Construction manager to quantity surveyor
A construction manager already meets 59% of what the quantity surveyor role asks for. The move turns on 7 required skills not yet in the profile.
43.7/ 100
1 How much of what a quantity surveyor is expected to do is already part of a construction manager’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the quantity surveyor role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A quantity surveyor role treats 12 of its required skills as things a construction manager already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- advise on construction materials
- building construction principles
- calculate needs for construction supplies
- communicate with construction crews
- construction industry
- cost management
What stands in the way is 7 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 23 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A quantity surveyor role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a construction manager background worth leading with.
- already held prepare construction documents information skills
- already held building construction principles engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held audit contractors information skills
- already held monitor parameters' compliance in construction projects information skills
- already held communicate with construction crews communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held carry out tendering management skills
All 23 carried skills, including the 12 the quantity surveyor role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 18 missing skills fall into 7 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn control of expenses required
- still to learn keep records of work progress required
- optional, not held advise on risk management optional
- optional, not held estimate profitability optional
- optional, not held monitor construction site optional
- optional, not held provide cost benefit analysis reports optional
- still to learn finish project within budget required
- still to learn perform cost accounting activities required
- still to learn identify customer objectives required
- optional, not held advise architects optional
- optional, not held coordinate construction activities optional
- optional, not held liaise with financiers optional
- still to learn urban planning law required
- optional, not held civil law optional
- optional, not held real estate market optional
- still to learn building codes required
- optional, not held follow the statutory obligations optional
1 further area in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a quantity surveyor role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 identify customer objectives practise this
- 02 building codes study this
- 03 control of expenses practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 23 skills that carry over
- already held advise on construction materials skill
- already held building construction principles knowledge
- already held calculate needs for construction supplies skill
- already held communicate with construction crews skill
- already held construction industry knowledge
- already held cost management knowledge
- already held manage budgets skill
- already held manage contracts skill
- already held order construction supplies skill
- already held oversee construction project skill
- already held prepare construction documents skill
- already held quantity surveying knowledge
- already held audit contractors skill
- already held carry out tendering skill
- already held check construction compliance skill
- already held civil engineering knowledge
- already held communicate with customers skill
- already held contract law knowledge
- already held ensure compliance with construction project deadline skill
- already held monitor contractor performance skill
- already held monitor parameters' compliance in construction projects skill
- already held project management knowledge
- already held quality standards knowledge
The 1 learning area not shown above
- optional, not held Monte Carlo simulation optional
11 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held Monte Carlo simulation optional
- optional, not held advise architects optional
- optional, not held advise on risk management optional
- optional, not held civil law optional
- optional, not held coordinate construction activities optional
- optional, not held estimate profitability optional
- optional, not held follow the statutory obligations optional
- optional, not held liaise with financiers optional
- optional, not held monitor construction site optional
- optional, not held provide cost benefit analysis reports optional
- optional, not held real estate market optional
33 held skills the quantity surveyor role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role apply safety management skill
- not needed by the target role budgetary principles knowledge
- not needed by the target role building materials industry knowledge
- not needed by the target role consider building constraints in architectural designs skill
- not needed by the target role construction equipment related to building materials knowledge
- not needed by the target role construction methods knowledge
- not needed by the target role construction product regulation knowledge
- not needed by the target role corporate social responsibility knowledge
- not needed by the target role design power plant systems skill
- not needed by the target role energy conservation knowledge
- not needed by the target role energy efficiency knowledge
- not needed by the target role ensure compliance with environmental legislation skill
- not needed by the target role ensure compliance with legal requirements skill
- not needed by the target role environmental legislation knowledge
- not needed by the target role follow nuclear plant safety precautions skill
- not needed by the target role green building practices knowledge
- not needed by the target role identify construction materials from blueprints skill
- not needed by the target role identify customer's needs skill
- not needed by the target role integrate building requirements in the architectural design skill
- not needed by the target role integrate engineering principles in architectural design skill
- not needed by the target role interpret technical requirements skill
- not needed by the target role liaise with architects skill
- not needed by the target role manage construction archive skill
- not needed by the target role manage environmental impact skill
- not needed by the target role nuclear energy knowledge
- not needed by the target role participate in governmental tenders skill
- not needed by the target role plan construction of houses skill
- not needed by the target role project commissioning knowledge
- not needed by the target role radiation protection knowledge
- not needed by the target role review construction plans authorisations skill
- not needed by the target role review construction projects skill
- not needed by the target role total quality control knowledge
- not needed by the target role work in a construction team skill
5 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn building codes required
- still to learn urban planning law required
- optional, not held Monte Carlo simulation optional
- optional, not held civil law optional
- optional, not held real estate market optional
Common questions about this move
Can a construction manager become a quantity surveyor?
Yes, and it is a moderate move. A construction manager already covers 59% of what a quantity surveyor is expected to do: 23 skills carry over, 12 of which the quantity surveyor role treats as required.
What skills does a construction manager need to become a quantity surveyor?
7 required skills are missing, plus 11 optional ones. They fall into 7 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by information skills. The single most important is identify customer objectives.
How hard is the move from construction manager to quantity surveyor?
Its learning distance is 43.7 out of 100, which is the moderate band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.