Your staff are your biggest asset. You'll get out of them what you put in, so its important to make training a priority.
But your staff are your tribe, too, with their own goals and aspirations. It's your responsibility to look after their health, work satisfaction, and career prospects. Here are some ways to arm your staff with the knowledge they need to excel in work and life:
- The "feedback loop" makes you a better surveyor. If you only do the data-collection part, you're never truly learning
If you limit surveyors to data collection only, they'll become skilled at surveying buildings and taking samples. But they won't truly master their craft unless they see the lab results and finished report. This "feedback loop" is where surveyors hone their skills and start to intuitively understand the nuances between sampled materials like Supalux® or Asbestos Insulating Board. And this knowledge, in turn, makes surveyors more efficient on-site.
- Don't let your skills get rusty. Attend P402 Refresher Courses regularly so you don't get complacent and take risks with your health
Over time it's easy for surveyors to get complacent and forget best practice. But complacency in the asbestos industry can lead to exposure, and when your health is at risk, it's important to be careful. P402 Refresher courses keep you up-to-date with legislation and guidance changes, risk assessments, sampling techniques and current best practice. So you can protect the most important thing - you!
- Find another surveyor to audit your work and reports. It'll stop the quality of your work slipping
Standards at small surveying companies can start to slip over time. Without external auditing (e.g. UKAS), you can become complacent about ladder and mask checks, wiping tools, sampling strategies, and so on. Ask another surveyor to audit you on-site and check your reports using a standard audit form. You could pay them or audit them in return. Either way, being externally audited will keep you working safely, honestly, and accurately.
- Dedicate regular time for software training
Does your software offer online or in-person training? Or an online knowledgebase? Could you promote your team's self-learning and give them a dedicated hour each week to upskill? This will pay dividends in the long-run!