Two construction professionals can hold the same title while doing very different jobs. One Project Manager may control a specialist package; another may coordinate several packages with dedicated planning, design and commercial support. The title gives you a starting point. Project evidence shows whether their experience fits the role you need to fill.

Before interviewing an Estimator, Designer, Design Manager or Commercial Manager, define the work they will inherit, the decisions they will own and the support available. That makes it easier to assess both experienced specialists and credible candidates from adjacent sectors.

Separate the project from the package

Ask for the overall project value and the value of the package the candidate personally handled. Someone who worked on a £100 million development may have owned a £2 million subcontract, contributed to one design stage or supported a more senior colleague. Each can be valuable experience, but the responsibilities are different.

Then establish the systems involved, project stage, contract environment, team structure and reporting line. A smaller package with difficult interfaces, occupied premises or incomplete design can require more judgement than a larger, repetitive scope.

Use questions that reveal personal responsibility

Ask every candidate to take you through one relevant project. Use the same core questions, then probe the responsibilities that matter most to the appointment.

Estimator

Ask: Which tender assumption posed the greatest risk, and how did you price or qualify it? Look for evidence of scope review, supplier comparisons, access allowances and exclusions. Follow up: What changed between tender and handover, and how did you explain that to the delivery team?

Designer

Ask: Describe an interface you resolved between your system and another trade. Look for a clear explanation of the constraints, technical input, revisions and installation implications. Follow up: Which decisions were yours, and which needed approval from the Design Manager, engineer or manufacturer?

Design Manager

Ask: How did you manage a late design change affecting procurement or installation? Look for an approval sequence, responsibilities, a controlled information trail and communication with the project team. Follow up: What did you escalate, who made the final decision, and how did you check that site teams used the correct revision?

Commercial Manager

Ask: Take us through a forecast that changed materially during delivery. Look for the original assumptions, emerging costs, change records and steps taken to address the position. Follow up: What was within your authority, what needed director approval, and what was the eventual outcome?

Examples can be explained without disclosing a former employer's confidential documents or commercially sensitive figures. An anonymised account of the candidate's method and decisions is often enough for the interview; verify material claims through appropriate references later.

Compare evidence rather than confidence

Record each example against four headings: relevant scope, personal ownership, judgement and outcome. Note whether the candidate led the work, contributed to it or only observed it. Ask what they would do differently next time, particularly where the outcome was mixed.

For commercial appointments, our guide to hiring a Quantity Surveyor for a specialist subcontractor explores the checks beyond the CV.

Identify gaps that can realistically be learned

Direct competitor experience can be useful, but do not make it a substitute for assessment. Compare systems, interfaces, contract exposure and decision-making responsibility. Establish which gaps need training and whether your team has the capacity to provide it.

A strong brief also states salary, location, travel, reporting line and the outcomes expected in the first six months. At Humres, we use the project and package context to focus the search. Speak to our team about your hiring brief.