Built Environment Professional Bodies; Perspectives On Their Role In Australia

As professional institutions increasingly seek to be global organisations with local significance there is a need for them to maintain and grow their membership base. In order to survive and thrive a new generation of members are needed for professional bodies in the built environment. Wilkinson and Zillante (2007) identified the issues of under recruitment and an ageing membership in the Building Surveying profession in Australia and Elliot & Warren (2005) similarly identified a declining valuation profession. Professional bodies not only need to recruit more student members into the profession during their studies, but they also need to convert these student members to fully qualified members. Warren and Wilkinsonís (2008) survey of 661 Australian student perceptions of built environment professional bodies showed that students value professional qualifications but that there is a lack of understanding of the role of professional bodies. The employerís perceptions of Australian graduate employeesí membership of surveying, property and construction professional bodies was examined in a survey of major national and international firms (Wilkinson and Warren 2008). This research sought to identify the importance placed on professional institutions by employers and the measures adopted in terms of encouraging professional body membership in the workplace. This paper presents an analysis of the two surveys of students and employers and seeks to reveal the differing perspectives of the two parties. It identifies the critical issue for professional institutions globally in recruiting new members and expanding the institutions both locally and international. The paper suggests ways in which employers and professional institutions can work together to increase student and graduate understanding of the importance of professional institution membership and grow the property and construction professions internationally.