Everything You Need to Know about Becoming a Construction Foreperson
If you’re interested in the building and construction trades, you’ve probably heard the title of foreman or foreperson bandied about.
As the name suggests, this role is a leadership role similar to supervisor and construction manager.
In this blog, we introduce you to to the foreperson job, what’s involved, and how to become a foreperson in Australia.
What is a foreman in construction?
A foreman or foreperson is a building and construction professional who looks after other workers such as the crew on a construction site.
A foreperson liaises between these construction workers and the higher ups like the managers, clients and stakeholders. Therefore, a foreperson is partly responsible for delivering projects on time and to budget.
The foreman job is very similar to other jobs like site supervisor or construction manager. But the title of foreperson is often reserved for construction leaders on big or advanced building projects.
A foreperson is also a role in other industries like mining, but in this blog we’ll focus on what is foreman in construction.
As a foreperson, you’d perform tasks and duties like:
- give instructions to workers on the site
- make sure quality standards are met
- ensure health and safety protocols are met
- hire, train and support new workers
- review projects regularly to make sure they’re on track
- supervise the use of tools, materials and equipment.
What skills do you need to be a foreperson?
As a foreperson you’ll need strong skills in leading and organising teams.
You will need to have strong communication skills to be able to talk to people as diverse as the tradies on site to the project managers, architects and engineers.
With added responsibility comes added pressure, so you’ll need to have a lot of resilience to work as a foreperson and withstand the fast-paced environment.
You’ll be working on site a lot so you’ll need a decent level of fitness and not mind working outdoors in the elements.
How to become a foreman in Australia
Option 1: Work your way up
Because the role of foreperson is a leadership role in construction, you need a high level of skill, experience and qualifications.
There are different ways to get into this line of work, for example by starting out as a qualified tradesperson and working your way up into management roles.
This would be a good option for someone who has already been working in the building industry and is ready for leadership roles.
Option 2: Do a certificate or diploma
For anyone just starting out in the building and construction game, your best chance at becoming a foreperson is by doing one of our building and construction courses.
Do the CPC40120 Certificate IV in Building and Construction (Building) to learn the skills to supervise or manage low rise residential construction projects.
Or for more of a challenge, do the CPC50220 Diploma of Building and Construction (Building) to become a supervisor or manager on mid to high rise residential construction projects.
Both the Cert 4 and Diploma of Building and Construction include a free Builders Registration Mentoring Program to help you get your licence.
In the mentorship, an expert helps you to make your application to the VBA to give you the best chance of passing and getting your registration.
Option 3: Get a degree
To qualify for even bigger foreperson jobs, use your Diploma of Building Construction from Builders Academy Australia to gain direct entry into a Victoria University Bachelor of Building (Construction Management).
With a bachelor’s degree in construction management, you can be a foreperson on large scale building projects such as high-rises and mixed use developments.
Learn more about it in pathways from diplomas to degrees.
Why study with Builders Academy Australia?
As a registered training provider of building and construction courses, we’ve trained hundreds of site supervisors, construction managers and forepeople across Melbourne and Victoria.
We help budding builders like yourself work out if you’re eligible for government funding, so that you can study subsidised courses at the lowest cost possible.
We even deliver our CPC40120 Certificate IV in Building and Construction (Building) and CPC50220 Diploma of Building and Construction (Building) in 3 different modes to accommodate your preferred learning style from in-person, to virtual classroom to self-paced study.
As Australia’s 2020 Small Training Provider of the Year, you can trust us for a practical and hands-on education in building and construction so that you’re job-ready by the time you graduate.
Want an exciting career in construction management? Speak to a course advisor today to discuss your study options. on 1300 534 363 (LEGEND) or complete the online form, and one of our course advisors will get in touch soon.