Tackling pain points of the construction industry

Grace Najjar, Managing Director - MENA region at the Project Management Institute emphasises the necessity for the construction industry to embrace innovation to bridge the talent gap.

Megaprojects are crucial to effective urban and social development, as well as economic growth. Thus, it is no surprise that leading Middle Eastern countries have witnessed a surge in the construction market, which is expected to grow at a 4.69% CAGR in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and a 5% CAGR in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) by 2027, according to Mordor Intelligence.

Noteworthy initiatives such as The Qiddiya Water Theme Park, the Beeah Headquarters, and the Diriyah Gate, which ranked first on the Project Management Institute's list of the Top 10 Most Influential Projects for 2022 in the MENA region, offer benchmarks for the world on how to incorporate sustainability, innovation, and cutting-edge technologies in the construction sector.

However, the integration of innovation and technologies as well as the growing complexity of projects bring with them a need for skilled resources, which exacerbates the industry's already acute labour shortage.

According to the PwC Middle East Capital Projects and Infrastructure 2022 Survey, over a fifth of respondents anticipate that in the future, the demand for talent will outpace their capacity to retain and/or attract people. The top area that will constrain them, according to 41% of respondents, is access to skilled resources. In response, nearly half of those polled (42%) said that investing in people was their top priority, and 69% said that investing in people was one of their top three priority areas.

Organisations will need to promote learning programs, retain — and build — a new workforce outfitted with the skill sets to deliver an infrastructure revival to overcome these difficulties and narrow the talent gap.

According to Joseph M. Gebara, PH.D., Group CEO of C.A.T. Group up-Skilling their team, and especially their project managers, project engineers, as well as their construction managers and construction engineers, is key to their strategy to accelerate the development of their project leaders and to form new leaders from within their organisation.

As the top professional organisation for project management, PMI provides the Construction Professional in Built Environment Projects (PMI-CP)TM for construction businesses. This certification guarantees organisations have certified project managers and skilled project professionals, who are fully prepared with the essential project management abilities, business acumen, updated working methods, and necessary understanding of emerging technology required for the effective use of investment and deliverables. Mr. Gebara, also believes that with the traction in the market, establishing new competencies is important to the future of the construction industry.

PMI’s project management and construction programs are a key to the up skilling of our team. Project Management skills must be embedded within the culture and the DNA of any project team member and not necessarily restricted to managers. In a way, we need to approach it like HSE.”

PMI-CPTM is an industry-specific certification established with the assistance of construction professionals from the Lean Construction Institute (LCI), the Construction Industry Institute (CII), and worldwide industry experts such as Saudi Aramco. The certification includes seven e-learning courses that cover the industry's major pain points and provide construction professionals with the knowledge to address them:

• With the Technology and Innovation Pro course and micro-credential, Construction Professionals will be able to scope and design technology and digital requirements for a construction program, obtain visibility throughout the whole supply chain, and respond rapidly to changing market conditions.
• Upon completion of the Project Communication Pro course and micro-credential, Construction Professionals will be able to write a communication strategy and plan, increase stakeholder buy-in and influence without authority, facilitate OBEYA sessions, and apply the principles of commitment-based management. Sharpening these skills will allow them to avoid ineffective communication, which leads to confusion, frustration, and distrust among key stakeholders across the various contracting parties.
• Professionals will be able to lead metrics-oriented performance management processes with the 'Performance and Materials Management Pro,' increasing transparency, reducing waste, and proactively addressing global supply chain concerns.
• The Interface Management course will teach professionals in the construction sector about the complexity of managing large-scale projects and provide them with the know-how to use interface management to close communication gaps, lower risks, and successfully complete huge projects.
• With the help of the Scope and Change Order Management course, participants will be able to guarantee that projects produce the desired results and prevent needless rework by skillfully negotiating new terms, managing change order processes and governance, adopting value engineering, cost benefit analysis to manage scope and using scope evaluation tools for thoroughness and accuracy.
• Additionally, with the help of the Contract and Risk Management course, individuals will be prepared to deal with the industry's culture of disputes through proper planning, governance and risk practices, effective tools for risk management, and the management of claims and issues through a standardised procedure for quick resolution.
• Finally, the Execution Planning course will introduce construction professionals to novel planning and execution strategies to enhance project outcomes at all phases of the project life cycle, including Advanced Work Packaging (AWP), Last Planner System (LPS), and more.