Eve Mallon: my approach as a Young Surveyor

Eve Mallon, Project Management category winner RICS Matrics Young Surveyor of the Year 2017, explains her award-winning approach to Project Management, what technology she uses to help her and why she loves her job.

I take pride in establishing successful working relationships while at the same time exceeding clients’ expectations.

An example of this is my involvement in a complex procurement process with the University of Glasgow Estates and Buildings team where I managed to develop an excellent working relationship with the team and integrated well with senior members of the university.

Taking a central role

I have enjoyed playing a central role in the development of our team’s partnership with the University of Glasgow over the past 18 months. It is associated with the Gilmorehill Campus programme, which has a budget in excess of £1bn.

My primary challenge was to coordinate the delivery team and manage internal resource through the Competitive Dialogue procurement process, but my RICS qualification meant I was well prepared. It has enabled me to build on my skills and benefit from previous experience gained assisting on complex programmes of work for the public and education sectors.

The whole process has seen me mature as a leader and hone my understanding of the multifaceted nature of such a complex development. It takes skill to manage the needs of its many stakeholders – you really need to embrace a holistic decision-making process.

Top two technologies

It’s important to use technology to your advantage. Rather than fearing technology, leverage it to reveal the most efficient ways of working on large, fast-moving programmes that require proactive monitoring and reporting across several work streams.

The top two technologies I champion at work and would recommend to any project manager are:

1. Trello. Trello is a project management application that allows you to collaborate with team members on projects and monitor and control activities across a programme as it evolves. For us, it drastically reduced email communications within the team and drove efficiency, which was of huge benefit.
2. Action Tracker. Due to the intense nature of the Competitive Dialogue process actions and points need to be recorded and traditional minutes are not the best method of doing so. We used the software’s traffic light system to show that project steps were closed, ongoing or requiring immediate action. This accessible yet powerful reporting system is very well received by clients.

Love your career

It’s so important to give back to the profession. Since passing my APC I have always enjoyed an active role within my local RICS Matrics committee, and I am currently chair. During my term, I aim to build on the diversity of RICS, organising equality and diversity lunch with RICS Matrics and Women in Property. I also want to develop mentoring opportunities for those in smaller companies.

• Find out more about the APC process

I like to believe that commitment, ethical behaviour and integrity are at the heart of everything I do. I enjoy working collaboratively because it forces me to have a holistic appreciation of the impact of my decisions. More than this, I just love my job!