Your career as a finance manager in the construction sector will see you play a vital role in the success of any construction company or any construction or civil engineering project. Let’s take a look at what a career as a finance manager actually involves and where your career as a finance manager can take you.
Working as a Construction Finance Manager
As a finance manager in the construction industry, which is a highly competitive market, a finance manager must successfully manage and monitor costs and profit margins, In your career as a finance manager your roles would include:
- Managing the company’s overall financial position and matching it to the firm’s financial targets
- Keeping accurate tracks of all expenses, liabilities and projected costs
- Tracking profitability by creating a budget for each part of a construction project
- Working closely with the estimator and purchaser to ensure alignment on costs and expenditure
- Managing man-hours and the costs of same and making sure all tax and welfare obligations are met
- Having a deep knowledge of company law, regulatory and reporting requirements
- Predicting future challenges and associated costs.
Career Path
A career as a finance manager in the construction industry is a critical part of any firm in this sector, and you must always operate with the strategic objectives of the company in mind. Some of the other roles you would interact with, within the construction industry, would include:
- Estimator
- Purchaser
- Site manager
- Architect
- Document controller
- Site clerk
- Draughtsperson
- Structural engineer
- Civil engineer
- Quantity surveyor
- Project engineer
- Setting-out engineer
Professional Qualifications
A finance manager should have a certified and recognised accounting qualification via bodies such as CAI, ACCA, CPA or for management position, ideally CIMA. You should also have significant postgraduate study and qualifications in specialist business areas and some years of business experience at a senior level within the industry. Any knowledge of the construction industry or the civil engineering sector would also add considerably to your skill set when starting out in your career as a finance manager.
How your Career can Develop
Your career as a finance manager in the construction industry can see you in cost control of ambitious projects, both at home and abroad, which vary greatly in scale and scope. With more experience you can take ownership of larger and more complex and financially demanding projects. Your background in accounting means you should be able to draw upon further learning and CPD resources in addition to building your professional network.