Case studies: Facilities management consultant: Babajide Ogunniyi

Babajide studied for a degree in estate management at the University of Lagos Nigeria before completing an MSc in Construction Management at Heriot-Watt University. He now works as a facilities management consultant for EC Harris.

My course of study has been instrumental in providing me with confidence at work. A lot of the modules I studied have a direct application to what I do on a day to day basis. An example of this is construction financial management, which contrary to what most might think, I have to apply as a facilities manager. This is done through my work on private finance initiative projects on behalf of project sponsors.

I carried out an internship as part of my first degree, working in a property management firm where I learnt about asset management strategy, maintenance, property acquisition, leasing, sales and disposal. This proved to be very useful for my current role. I believe the initial knowledge from my qualifications and the experience I have picked up in my current role allows me to successfully advise clients on built asset performance related matters.

On a typical day, I try to get in about 8.30am so that I get off to a good start. I outline my itinerary and go through my emails to identify the issues I have to respond to and then work through them.

At the moment I work on about eight different projects ranging from health and central government to Building Schools for the Future. I have to juggle these projects and usually spend around two days on each one.

My role has grown since I first started as I was thrown into the thick of things from day one, which I think was advantageous as it means you have to learn quickly. I have also become a chartered surveyor which has helped me to develop professionally. When I first began with EC Harris, I was working in a support role on projects. Now I am fortunate to lead, or play a pivotal role, on projects becoming the main interface with clients. My career ambition is to get to director level and become an accomplished industry professional in the next eight years.

I really like the fact that my job is mostly solutions based and allows me to be creative.

Working on many projects at the same time can be challenging especially as deadlines merge and you are still expected to deliver, but I do enjoy the buzz of it.

I enjoy working in the public sector as it is the epitome of managing stakeholders. I deal with a lot of clients and each one is different with different pressures and requirements. I enjoy managing the stakeholders and developing strong relationships based on trust and knowledge. I like the fact that I need to learn quickly as projects are short-lived which means you work on a lot of them.

The advice I would give to anyone who wants to get into this career would be to work very hard to ensure you do well on your programme. It’s a very good career as it is a growing industry. I’d also recommend trying to get project management and financial experience, even if it’s just through your degree as it is very useful to facilities managers.