New employees who join the company as construction managers head out to the job site with a mix of anxiety and excitement, while honestly not fully understanding what their job entails. Many of these new employees will likely face the gap between their expectations and reality. That was my experience, too.
Listening to today’s new hires talk, I found many similarities to the disconnect I felt when I was a new hire myself, and it filled me with a sense of nostalgia. So, in this post, I’d like to share—in a lighthearted way—some of the common disconnects that first-year construction management new hires tend to experience.
The craftsman is 100 times nicer than I expected.
I imagine many people still hold the same perception they’ve always had—that “construction workers are scary.” When you go to a construction site, there are lots of people who look like trouble, and I remember that the night before I was assigned to a site, I was so anxious about getting yelled at by the workers that I couldn’t sleep.
However, once I was actually assigned to the department, those worries vanished in a single day. I clearly remember thinking to myself, “Wow, so many of the craftsmen are really nice people!!!”
I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed by this job, which requires quite a bit of mental effort
I used to think that construction management involved nothing more than giving instructions to workers while holding blueprints and filling out paperwork, but when I actually went out to the job site, I remember being taken aback by how much mental effort the job required—more than I had expected.
In particular, the sheer volume of calculations and the frequent use of geometric concepts may feel like a significant gap for those who haven’t studied architecture.
Computer skills are also necessary in construction management
I imagine there are many students who think, “You can get by in construction management just with your people skills, even if you don’t have computer skills!” I used to think that way, too. In fact, I’ve even heard of people who chose construction management precisely because they weren’t good with computers.
However, as soon as you start working in construction management, you quickly realize that computer skills are essential. What’s more, once you become a branch manager, you have to spend more than half your day staring at a computer screen.
I don't understand the meaning of the terms, so I feel like I'm in a foreign land.
When I went out to the job site, technical jargon flew around every day. I thought I’d studied a little before joining the company, but as a first-year employee, I had absolutely no idea what the terms meant—it felt as if I’d been transported to a foreign country.
My boss would give me instructions using technical jargon, and I’d carry out my tasks without really understanding them, just letting each day slip by. Looking at the blueprints was like trying to decipher a map of an ancient civilization—they were completely indecipherable. I’d think to myself, “Are people who can read these blueprints crazy?” (lol).
