How Nurturing Young Talent Leads to Sustainable Growth

This year Munro’s growth and employee development has risen at its fastest rate. From celebrating 30 years employment with the business right down to welcoming a fresh intake of apprentices heading off to site for the first time, we can’t help but feel optimistic about Munro’s future. The New Year will also be bright for one member of staff in particular, Michael Buttress, who will be entering his first full year as a Trainee Project Manager.

Michael’s Story – Document Control to Project Manager

Michael joined the Munro team in 2013 in our Document Control department. He later progressed to become a CAD engineer and is now in the early stages of taking on his newest challenge, to become a Mechanical Project Manager.

Operations Director, David Clark, soon noticed some positive attributes in Michael’s work ethic; a willingness to learn and challenge himself as well as a positive can do attitude. With that, David devised a training and development programme for Michael which would take him through a number of key stages he must experience and familiarise himself with before qualifying as a Project Manager. In parallels with the supported on the job training, Michael will attend the City of Westminster College, London where Munro are funding his level 3 Building Services qualification.

Trainee Programmes at Munro

The first step of Michael’s journey saw him head out onto site. In July he joined our experienced senior site managers at The Amenities Building, Granta Park with Main Contractor VINCI Construction UK.

David explained why Munro chose this site for Michael, “Placing Michael in safe hands with staff who have a proven track record for successfully mentoring our future engineering teams was an easy choice. We can send trainees to outstanding colleges, but ensuring they get the right practical experience with engineers as skilled as this is the hard part. But that’s exactly what Munro can offer developing engineers.”

On site, Michael will be world’s away from the daily routine in the office. From hands on learning to attending and participating in briefings and meetings with stake holders, main contractors and sub-contractors, Michael has been busy taking everything in his stride.

“Having an opportunity to feel like I’m taking big steps forward towards a career and learning something new is so important to me,” he says, “In my previous role I had little left to learn. Taking a step out of my comfort zone re-engaged my brain into learning and developing my understanding of mechanical engineering further. Being part of a strong team with many combined years of knowledge is invaluable, and will no doubt help me to over come challenges I will face on my journey.”

And Michael’s development plan has plenty in store for him. In the New Year, Michael will continue his journey with our estimating team to gain an understanding in their role. The following stages will cover Procurement, Quantity Surveying and Contract Management with David continuing monthly meetings to ensure his development is heading in the right direction.

The Future’s Bright, The Future’s…Munro

The qualifications and upskilling that Munro are providing Michael will be invaluable to his career development, empowering him alongside some of our outstanding staff to take the steps necessary to find a fulfilling profession. As well as Michael, Munro’s succession planning will benefit from programmes like this, as will our industry, filling the construction skills gap one talented young person at a time.

If you know anyone that wants to begin their journey or take the next step on their career path with us, please get in contact via our Career Opportunities webpage.