BIM is no longer a niche skill set. Understanding how to create smarter assets for increasingly demanding clients is a skill set sought after by a wide range of employers from design teams through to owner operators. With demand rising and set to continue, the opportunity to widen your perspective and progress your career in a new sector has never been easier – or more exciting!
There are 4 primary sectors looking for good, on-the-way-up, BIM Coordinators: DESIGN, BUILD, CLIENT and ADVISE. There are multiple pathways into each. Here we summarise the most likely, the skill sets required, promotional prospects, salaries and link to LIVE opportunities on the BIM job board with employers in each sector.
THIS ARTICLE WAS POSTED ON 08 NOVEMBER 2021. FOR THE LIST OF LIVE OPPORTUNITIES FOR BIM COORDINATORS PLEASE VISIT THE JOB BOARD.
Section 1: DESIGN: Opportunities for BIM Coordinators in Architecture and Engineering – with pathways from the Build, Client or Advise sectors.
Section 2: BUILD: Opportunities for BIM Coordinators with Contractors – with pathways from the Design, Client or Advise sectors.
Section 3: CLIENT: Opportunities for BIM Coordinators with owners / operators – with pathways from the Design, Build or Advise sectors.
Section 4: ADVISE: Opportunities for BIM Coordinators with Digital Construction / BIM Consultancies – with pathways from the Design, Build or Client sectors.
DESIGN to DESIGN: Stay in this world if you get excited by design and authoring models.
Skill sets: Good technical proficiency with BIM tools. Good awareness of the BIM process and ISO19650. How a building goes together. Good communication skills. Love of design.
Promotional prospects: Can be limited within traditional organisational structures which tends to mean more movement to other design teams for promotion.
Salary: See the generic BIM Career Map and the latest BIM Salary Guide
6 LIVE opportunities on the BIM Job Board:
4154: London: To £60k: Ensure world-class BIM excellence with this highly regarded, BIM leading, multi-disciplinary design team.
4062: London: To £60k: Steer best practice across the studio with this highly regarded, very BIM centric, mega project (Middle and Far East), design team.
4138: London, Manchester, Midlands or Glasgow: To £50k.: Very BIM centric, multi-disciplinary design team carving a reputation for delivering class leading BIM on public sector projects with the most demanding EIRs.
4148: London: To £50k: High quality design team upping their BIM game and looking for a Coordinator with a passion for BIM and design.
4151: UK wide: to £45k: Global multi-disciplinary design team with impressive digital leadership and secure pipeline of advanced, civil engineering, BIM projects.
4160: UK wide: to £55k: BIM Manager-to-be opportunity for a ‘proficient’ BIM Coordinator to step up, take on more responsibility and become a BIM Manager quickly – with a leading global civil engineering design team.
BUILD to DESIGN: Not common. This pathway normally happens after someone moves from design to build but misses the design and authoring of models.
Skill sets: Good technical proficiency with BIM tools. Good awareness of the BIM process and ISO19650. How a building goes together. Good communication skills. Love of design.
Promotional prospects: Can be limited within traditional organisational structures which tends to mean more movement to other design teams for promotion.
Salary: You may need to drop your salary a bit to get back into the design world. See the generic BIM Career Map and the latest BIM Salary Guide
4 LIVE opportunities on the BIM Job Board:
4138: London, Manchester, Midlands or Glasgow: Very BIM centric, multi-disciplinary design team carving a reputation for delivering class leading BIM on public sector projects with the most demanding EIRs.
4154: London: To £60k: Ensure world-class BIM excellence with this highly regarded, BIM leading, multi-disciplinary design team.
4151: UK wide: To £45k: Global multi-disciplinary design team with impressive digital leadership and secure pipeline of advanced, civil engineering, BIM projects.
4160: UK wide: To £55k: BIM Manager-to-be opportunity for a ‘proficient’ BIM Coordinator to step up, take on more responsibility and become a BIM Manager quickly – with a leading global civil engineering design team.
CLIENT to DESIGN: Not common. This pathway normally happens after someone moves from design to the end user/operator but misses the design and authoring of models.
Skill sets: Good technical proficiency with BIM tools. Good awareness of the BIM process and ISO19650. How a building goes together. Love of design. Good communication skills.
Promotional prospects: Can be limited within traditional organisational structures which tends to mean more movement to other design teams for promotion.
Salary: You may need to drop your salary a bit to get back into the design world. See the generic BIM Career Map and the latest BIM Salary Guide
5 LIVE opportunities on the BIM Job Board:
4138: London, Manchester, Midlands or Glasgow: Very BIM centric, multi-disciplinary design team carving a reputation for delivering class leading BIM on public sector projects with the most demanding EIRs.
4148: London: To £50k: High quality design team upping their BIM game and looking for a Coordinator with a passion for BIM and design.
4154: London: To £60k: Ensure world-class BIM excellence with this highly regarded, BIM leading, multi-disciplinary design team.
4151: UK wide: to £45k: Global multi-disciplinary design team with impressive digital leadership and secure pipeline of advanced, civil engineering, BIM projects.
4160: UK wide: To £55k: BIM Manager-to-be opportunity for a ‘proficient’ BIM Coordinator to step up, take on more responsibility and become a BIM Manager quickly – with a leading global civil engineering design team.
ADVISE to DESIGN: Not common. This pathway normally happens after someone moves from design into strategic consultancy but misses the design and authoring of models.
Skill sets: Good technical proficiency with BIM tools. Good awareness of the BIM process and ISO19650. How a building goes together. Love of design. Good communication skills.
Promotional prospects: Can be limited within traditional organisational structures which tends to mean more movement to other design teams for promotion.
Salary: You may need to drop your salary a bit to get back into the design world. See the generic BIM Career Map and the latest BIM Salary Guide
5 LIVE opportunities on the BIM Job Board:
4138: London, Manchester, Midlands or Glasgow: Very BIM centric, multi-disciplinary design team carving a reputation for delivering class leading BIM on public sector projects with the most demanding EIRs.
4148: London: To £50k: High quality design team upping their BIM game and looking for a Coordinator with a passion for BIM and design.
4154: London: To £60k: Ensure world-class BIM excellence with this highly regarded, BIM leading, multi-disciplinary design team.
4151: UK wide: To £45k: Global multi-disciplinary design team with impressive digital leadership and secure pipeline of advanced, civil engineering, BIM projects.
4160: UK wide: To £55k: BIM Manager-to-be opportunity for a ‘proficient’ BIM Coordinator to step up, take on more responsibility and become a BIM Manager quickly – with a leading global civil engineering design team.
BUILD to BUILD: Stay in this world if you prefer managing models, ensuring they are fit for purpose and you want to see a project through all the construction phases to handover.
Skill sets: Good technical proficiency with BIM authoring software and a love of technology. Good awareness of the BIM process and ISO19650. How a building goes together. Strong communication skills. Report writing.
Promotional prospects: More promotional opportunity with larger contractors with multiple divisions / business functions.
Salary: See the latest BIM Salary Guide
4 LIVE opportunities on the BIM Job Board:
4147: London: To £50k: Great opportunity with a highly regarded major contractor setting the standard for BIM excellence with a blue-chip client portfolio.
4145: East London: To £55k. Live project, on-site with the chance of becoming a BIM benchmark. Highest commitment to BIM excellence. World class BIM leadership.
4111: Derby: To £35k: Good opportunity for a BIM Trainee to step up and take on more responsibility with an excellent major contractor delivering real BIM.
4149: London: To £60k: Blue-chip clients. Advanced BIM. Highly regarded digital project delivery experts. Good reputation for nurturing talent well and career progression.
DESIGN to BUILD: if you prefer managing models, ensuring they are fit for purpose and you want to see a project through all the construction phases to handover. Self-confidence to chair coordination meetings and the communication skills to engage and ‘encourage’ better outcomes.
Skill sets: Good technical proficiency with BIM authoring software and a love of technology. Good awareness of the BIM process and ISO19650. How a building goes together. Strong communication skills. Report writing.
Promotional prospects: More promotional opportunity with larger contractors with multiple divisions / business functions.
Salary: Salaries tend to be higher with contractors and tend to rise quicker once you are proven. To transfer from design to build there will be a learning process with some risk and investment on behalf of the employer. Over £50k and you would be earning more than experienced staff. If you are currently paid less than £50k these are your options:
4 LIVE opportunities on the BIM Job Board:
4147: London: To £50k: Great opportunity with a highly regarded major contractor setting the standard for BIM excellence with a blue-chip client portfolio. Happy and used to employing candidates transferring from DESIGN to BUILD.
4145: East London: To £55k. Live project, on-site with the chance of becoming a BIM benchmark. Opportunity to transfer from DESIGN to BUILD. Highest commitment to BIM excellence. World class BIM leadership.
4111: Derby: To £35k: Good opportunity to step up into the BUILD world with an excellent major contractor delivering real BIM.
4149: London: To £60k: Blue-chip clients. Advanced BIM. Highly regarded digital project delivery experts. Good reputation for nurturing talent well and career progression.
CLIENT to BUILD: This pathway normally happens after someone moves from a contractor to the end user/operator but misses the cut and thrust of the construction process and other BIM specialists around them. Sometimes the commercial drivers of the end user become over-bearing.
Skill sets: Good technical proficiency with BIM authoring software and a love of technology. Good awareness of the BIM process and ISO19650. How a building goes together. Strong communication skills. Report writing.
Promotional prospects: Good promotional opportunity with the larger contractors with multiple divisions / business functions.
Salary: You may need to drop your salary a bit to get back from the CLIENT side into the BUILD world. See the generic BIM Career Map and the latest BIM Salary Guide
3 LIVE opportunities on the BIM Job Board:
4147: London: To £50k: Great opportunity with a highly regarded major contractor setting the standard for BIM excellence with a blue-chip client portfolio. Happy to employ candidates transferring from CLIENT side if they haven’t forgotten how to use the tools and manage digital project delivery.
4145: East London: To £55k. Live project, on-site with the chance of becoming a BIM benchmark. Happy to employ candidates transferring from CLIENT side if they haven’t forgotten how to use the tools and manage digital project delivery. Highest commitment to BIM excellence. World class BIM leadership.
4149: London: To £60k: Blue-chip clients. Advanced BIM. Highly regarded digital project delivery experts. Good reputation for nurturing talent well and career progression.
ADVISE to BUILD: This pathway normally happens after someone moves from a contractor to a Digital Construction / BIM Consultancy but misses the opportunity to see projects through the full construction process.
Skill sets: Good technical proficiency with BIM authoring software and a love of technology. Good awareness of the BIM process and ISO19650. How a building goes together. Strong communication skills. Report writing.
Promotional prospects: Good promotional opportunity with the larger contractors with multiple divisions / business functions.
Salary: You may need to drop your salary a bit to get back from the advisory side into the BUILD world. See the generic BIM Career Map and the latest BIM Salary Guide
3 LIVE opportunities on the BIM Job Board:
4147: London: To £50k: Great opportunity with a highly regarded major contractor setting the standard for BIM excellence with a blue-chip client portfolio. Happy to employ candidates transferring from the advisory side if they haven’t forgotten how to use the tools and manage digital project delivery.
4145: East London: To £55k. Live project, on-site with the chance of becoming a BIM benchmark. Happy to employ candidates transferring from the advisory side if they haven’t forgotten how to use the tools and manage digital project delivery. Highest commitment to BIM excellence. World class BIM leadership.
4149: London: To £60k: Blue-chip clients. Advanced BIM. Highly regarded digital project delivery experts. Good reputation for nurturing talent well and career progression.
CLIENT to CLIENT: Stay in this world if you enjoy defining EIRs and driving smarter assets.
Skill sets: Strong IM / digital twin experience. ISO19650. Big picture commercial awareness. Strong communication and presentation skills. Report writing.
Promotional prospects: Narrow. You may be the only BIM person in the business, so promotion is likely to be come from recognition or moving to another client.
Salary: Salaries can be higher than in other sectors as there is less pressure to keep within existing BIM salary ranges. See the latest BIM Salary Guide
1 LIVE opportunity on the BIM Job Board:
4106: London: To £55k: Excellent opportunity to join an owner/operator where more efficient, smarter, assets are critical to their success.
DESIGN to CLIENT: Not a common path as clients tend to look for more managerial experience than design and coordination.
Skill sets: Strong IM / digital twin experience. ISO19650. Big picture commercial awareness. Strong communication and presentation skills. Good negotiator. Report writing.
Promotional prospects: Narrow. You may be the only BIM person in the business, so promotion is likely to be come from recognition or moving to another client.
Salary: Where opportunities exist, salaries can be higher than the ‘DESIGN’ sector as there is less pressure to keep within existing BIM salary ranges. See the latest BIM Salary Guide
1 LIVE opportunity on the BIM Job Board:
4106: London: To £55k: Excellent opportunity to join an owner/operator where more efficient, smarter, assets are critical to their success.
BUILD to CLIENT: A good career opportunity if you’re more ‘commercially-minded’, have a head for writing EIRs and ensuring the supply chaining smarter assets.
Skill sets: Strong IM / digital twin experience. ISO19650. Big picture commercial awareness. Strong communication and presentation skills. Good negotiator. Report writing.
Promotional prospects: Narrow. You may be the only BIM person in the business, so promotion is likely to be come from recognition or moving to another client.
Salary: Salaries can be higher than the ‘BUILD’ sector as there is less pressure to keep within existing BIM salary ranges. See the latest BIM Salary Guide
1 LIVE opportunity on the BIM Job Board:
4106: London: To £55k: Excellent opportunity to join an owner/operator where more efficient, smarter, assets are critical to their success.
ADVISE to CLIENT: The most common route as clients like a birds-eye perspective especially if you have been advising end users/operators.
Skill sets: Strong IM / digital twin experience. ISO19650. Big picture commercial awareness. Strong communication and presentation skills. Good negotiator. Report writing.
Promotional prospects: Narrow. You may be the only BIM person in the business, so promotion is likely to be come from recognition or moving to another client.
Salary: Salaries can be higher than in other sectors as there is less pressure to keep within existing BIM salary ranges. See the latest BIM Salary Guide
1 LIVE opportunity on the BIM Job Board:
4106: London: To £55k: Excellent opportunity to join an owner/operator where more efficient, smarter, assets are critical to their success.
ADVISE to ADVISE: Stay in this world if you enjoy the diversity of work and the birds-eye perspective of digital transformation across the construction industry.
Skill sets: Good technical proficiency with BIM tools. Strong awareness of the BIM process and ISO19650. Strong communication and presentation skills. Commercial awareness. Report writing.
Promotional prospects: Good promotional prospects with larger Consultancies with multiple divisions / business functions.
Salary: Salaries tend to be on a par with Contractors but usually with a performance bonus attached. See the latest BIM Salary Guide
4 LIVE opportunities on the BIM Job Board:
4122: London: £50k + performance bonus: Great opportunity to join and progress with a market leading Digital Construction Consultancy advising high profile AECO clients on how to improve efficiencies and information management.
4133: London, Manchester or Leeds: Up to £70k + performance bonus: Opportunity to strengthen your strategic digital transformation experience with a global player.
4132: Anywhere in the UK: Up to £60k + performance bonus: Provide a wide range of clients with best practice BIM technology advice and solutions with this exciting and ambitious technology developer.
4157: London: To £55k: Working with a high profile blue-chip client as their BIM guardian across all assets from inception to handover and beyond.
DESIGN to ADVISE: Good career move if you prefer diversity in your work and you want to be at the forefront of best practice digital construction. Great opportunity to gain a birds-eye perspective of digital transformation across the construction industry.
Skill sets: Good technical proficiency with BIM tools. Strong awareness of the BIM process and ISO19650. Strong communication skills and customer centric approach essential. Commercial awareness. Report writing.
Promotional prospects: Good promotional opportunity with larger Consultancies with multiple divisions / business functions.
Salary: Salaries tend to be on a par with Contractors but usually with a performance bonus attached. See the latest BIM Salary Guide However, to transfer from DESIGN to ADVISE there will be a learning process with some risk and investment on behalf of the employer. You may need to compromise on salary to get into Consultancy but once you have proven yourself, salaries and bonuses can be good.
3 LIVE opportunities on the BIM Job Board:
4122: London: £50k + performance bonus: Great opportunity to join and progress with a market leading Digital Construction Consultancy advising high profile AECO clients on how to improve efficiencies and information management. Very keen to attract talent from the worlds of Architecture and MEP.
4132: Anywhere in the UK: Up to £60k + performance bonus: Provide a wide range of clients with best practice BIM technology advice and solutions with this exciting and ambitious technology developer. Very keen to attract talent from the DESIGN world.
4157: London: To £55k: Working with a high profile blue-chip client as their BIM guardian across all assets from inception to handover and beyond.
BUILD to ADVISE: Good career move if you prefer diversity in your work and you want to be at the forefront of best practice digital construction. Great opportunity to gain a birds-eye perspective of digital transformation across the construction industry.
Skill sets: Good technical proficiency with BIM tools. Strong awareness of the BIM process and ISO19650. Strong communication skills and customer centric approach essential. Commercial awareness. Report writing.
Promotional prospects: Good promotional opportunity with larger Consultancies with multiple divisions / business functions.
Salary: Salaries tend to be on a par with Contractors but usually with a performance bonus attached. See the latest BIM Salary Guide However, to transfer from BUILD to ADVISE there will be a learning process with some risk and investment on behalf of the employer. You may need to compromise on salary to get into Consultancy but once you have proven yourself, salaries and bonuses can be good.
3 LIVE opportunities on the BIM Job Board:
4124: London: £50k + performance bonus: Great opportunity to join and progress with a market leading Digital Construction Consultancy advising high profile AECO clients on how to improve efficiencies and information management. Very keen to attract talent from the BUILD world.
4132: Anywhere in the UK: Up to £60k + performance bonus: Provide a wide range of clients with best practice BIM technology advice and solutions with this exciting and ambitious technology developer. Very keen to attract talent from the BUILD world.
4157: London: To £55k: Working with a high profile blue-chip client as their BIM guardian across all assets from inception to handover and beyond.
CLIENT to ADVISE: Preferred path by Adviser clients because of your end-user perspective. A good career move if you prefer diversity in your work and you want to be at the forefront of best practice digital construction. Great opportunity to gain a birds-eye perspective of digital transformation across the construction industry.
Skill sets: Good technical proficiency with BIM tools. Strong awareness of the BIM process and ISO19650. Strong communication skills and customer centric approach essential. Commercial awareness. Report writing.
Promotional prospects: Good promotional opportunity with larger Consultancies with multiple divisions / business functions.
Salary: Salaries tend to be on a par with Contractors but usually with a performance bonus attached. See the latest BIM Salary Guide
4 LIVE opportunities on the BIM Job Board:
4122: London: £50k + performance bonus: Great opportunity to join and progress with a market leading Digital Construction Consultancy advising high profile AECO clients on how to improve efficiencies and information management.
4133: London, Manchester or Leeds: Up to £70k + performance bonus: Opportunity to strengthen your strategic digital transformation experience with a global player.
4132: Anywhere in the UK: Up to £60k + performance bonus: Provide a wide range of clients with best practice BIM technology advice and solutions with this exciting and ambitious technology developer.
4157: London: To £55k: Working with a high profile blue-chip client as their BIM guardian across all assets from inception to handover and beyond.
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