Construction is Changing | Workplus Ep. 24

School is meant to be the best days of your life. For Jody Wilkinson, that cliché turned out to be true in a way he never expected.

In this episode of Workplus, host Richard Kirk sits down with Jody Wilkinson, Managing Director at Henry Brothers, whose career in construction started, unintentionally, helping the caretakers maintain his old 1700s school building. What followed was a career spanning quantity surveying in London, technical leadership in consultancy, and now managing director of one of Northern Ireland's leading construction companies.

Jody talks candidly about why he chose quantity surveying for all the wrong reasons, why apprenticeships weren't fashionable when he left school in 1997, and how the industry has been transformed by robotics, 3D printed buildings and AI. He also shares honest, practical advice for anyone thinking about a career in construction, and why the industry still has an image problem it needs to shake off.

Whether you're a parent, teacher, young person exploring careers, or someone who thinks construction is just hard hats and diggers, this episode will change how you see the industry.

In This Episode:
 — How a summer job with his school caretakers unintentionally started Jody's career in construction
 — Why he chose quantity surveying, and how wrong his expectations turned out to be
 — What it was really like starting his career in London during the construction boom of the early 2000s
 — The skills that actually make a great quantity surveyor, beyond the maths
 — Why apprenticeships weren't an option when he left school, and how that's changed for the better
 — How 3D printed concrete buildings and robotics are transforming the construction industry
 — Why construction still has an image problem, and what the industry is really made up of today
 — What it means to move from consultancy into running a construction company
 — His advice to his 16 year old self: don't waste your career chasing money
 — What is so good about work, from someone who has spent 26 years building things that last

YouTube Chapters:
 00:00 - Opening quote: leaving things a little better than you found them
 00:16 - Welcome to Workplus
 00:58 - School days and the summer job that started it all
 02:06 - The sailing group and the school caretaker job
 03:22 - Subjects enjoyed at school and A-levels
 04:25 - Choosing quantity surveying, for the wrong reasons
 06:15 - Studying in Edinburgh in the last fee-free year
 07:31 - Working part-time on a building site during university
 09:53 - Graduating into a booming economy and moving to London
 10:57 - What a quantity surveyor actually does day to day
 12:33 - The real skills that make a great quantity surveyor
 13:19 - Advice to his 16 year old self
 14:10 - The move from consultancy to Henry Brothers
 15:03 - Recent projects: an MOT super centre and AMIC
 16:29 - 3D printed concrete buildings
 17:25 - Why labour will always matter, even as the industry changes
 18:38 - Advice for anyone considering a career in construction
 20:37 - Moving into a leadership role as managing director
 23:23 - Building a legacy and finding purpose in construction
 25:35 - What is so good about work?

Thanks for watching Workplus, the podcast that shines a light on the people doing good work across Northern Ireland.

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#CareerDevelopment #Construction #NorthernIrelandCareers #WorkplusPodcast #Apprenticeships #Engineering #YouthEmployment #Innovation

🎧 Thanks for listening to Workplus, the podcast that brings real jobs into the light.
 🔗 Find more stories, tools, and guides to help young people and returners explore meaningful careers at workplus.app
 📩 Know someone who would find this helpful? Share it with a parent, teacher, or future changemaker.
 🎙 Follow so you never miss a story.

🎧 Thanks for listening to Workplus, the podcast that brings real jobs into the light.

🔗 Find more stories, tools, and guides to help young people and returners explore meaningful careers at workplus.app

📩 Know someone who would find this helpful? Share it with a parent, teacher, or future changemaker.

🎙Follow so you never miss a story.