A construction manager runs the build on site: they plan the programme, coordinate subcontractors and suppliers, keep to quality and safety standards, and watch the cost against budget. The title is used in two ways. In a contractor it is a senior site role. As a procurement route, the Client appoints a construction manager for a fee and contracts with each trade contractor directly.
Worked example
A construction manager at a £2,500,000 refurbishment reviews the job at the end of month four. The budget for mechanical and electrical is £300,000. The orders placed so far:
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Mechanical Subcontract order | £165,000 |
| Electrical subcontract order | £118,000 |
| Subcontract variations instructed | £9,000 |
| Committed cost | £292,000 |
| Budget remaining | £8,000 |
Only £8,000 of budget is left with the fire alarm and controls still to buy. The manager flags a likely overspend to the commercial team now, while there is still time to change the specification or recover the cost through a Variation.
The commercial side of the role
A construction manager is not usually the QS, but their decisions are what the QS prices. Instructing extra work on site without a written instruction creates cost the contractor may not recover.
A good habit is to check the committed cost on each package every week, flag any approved change that has no variation raised yet, and agree the Cost-to-Complete forecast with the QS before it goes in the monthly report.
Prompt site records help the money side. Daywork sheets, delivery notes and photographs of changes are what turns a disputed variation into an agreed one.
Related terms
Main Contractor, Project Manager, Quantity Surveyor (QS), Subcontractor, Client.
Planyard's job costing gives site and commercial teams one view of budget, committed cost and spend, so the manager sees where a package is heading before it overspends.
