 1-TO-1 MENTORING Â
DIRECT ACCESS.
REAL EXPERIENCE.
NO SHORTCUTS.
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One-to-one professional mentoring for construction and civil engineering business owners
— delivered by someone who is still doing it at the highest level.
MOST BUSINESS SUPPORTÂ FOR CONTRACTORS IS GENERIC.
It comes from people who have read the books, attended the courses and built a coaching practice, but who have never priced a major civil engineering tender, turned around a struggling business unit, or navigated a complex commercial dispute on a live project.
This is different.
CBA's 1-to-1 Professional Mentoring gives you direct, regular access to David Clark FCInstCES MCIOB — Fellow of the Chartered Institution of Civil Engineering Surveyors, Chartered Construction Manager, and an active Commercial Director. Currently leading business transformation in the civil engineering sector. David has built, restructured and turned around construction businesses and business units throughout his career. He brings that experience directly into every mentoring session.
This is a monthly retainer arrangement. It is not a course, a programme or a group session. It is a highly focused, confidential working relationship, built entirely around your business and your goals.
WHAT WEÂ WORK ON
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Every mentoring relationship is different, because every business is different. Sessions are structured around what matters most to you at that point in time. Typical areas include:
â—† Commercial Strategy & Direction
Where is your business going, and is the commercial model fit to get there? Pricing strategy, market positioning, pipeline management and long-term direction.
â—† Estimating & Pricing
Are you winning work at the right margin? Understanding your costs, building rates from first principles, and pricing with confidence rather than hope.
â—† Profitability & Cost Control
Turnover is vanity, profit is sanity. Understanding where your money is going, what's eroding your margin, and how to protect it.
â—† Business Development
Building the right client relationships, approaching the right work, and positioning your business to win it.
â—† Operational Performance
The commercial controls, systems and disciplines that separate businesses that grow sustainably from those that stay stuck.
â—† Navigating Challenges
Difficult contracts, cash flow pressure, team issues, disputes — having an experienced, confidential sounding board when you need one most. David has managed high level legal disputes and experienced in dispute resolution.
HOW IT WORKS
 ◆ Monthly retainer — regular, structured sessions with David directly
◆  Sessions tailored entirely to your business and current priorities
◆  Delivered remotely or in person — flexible to suit you
◆  Confidential — what is discussed stays between you and David
◆  No fixed programme or syllabus; the agenda is yours
WHO THIS IS FOR?
1-to-1 Professional Mentoring is for construction and civil engineering business owners and tradespeople who are serious about improvement, not just thinking about it.
  IT IS PARTICULARLY WELL SUITED TO: Â
 ✓  Owner-directors of SME and micro-SME construction, civils, or trades businesses who want senior-level commercial director input they don't currently have in-house   Â
âś“Â Â Business owners who have hit a ceiling and can't identify why   Â
 ✓  Contractors who are winning work, but not making the profit they should   Â
âś“Â Â Owners preparing to grow, scale or restructure their business   Â
 ✓  Anyone who wants a trusted and experienced voice from a chartered professional, who will be available and in their corner on a regular basis  Â
If you're looking for reassurance, this probably isn't the right fit.
If you're looking for honest, expert input that helps you make better decisions, then you’re in the right place.
WHY DAVID?
David Clark FCInstCES MCIOB is not a career consultant. He is an active Commercial Director, currently responsible for business transformation at a specialist civil engineering contractor, and a co-founder of the Construction Business Academy. He holds the highest grade of membership of the Chartered Institution of Civil Engineering Surveyors — Fellow — and is a Chartered Construction Manager with the Chartered Institute of Building.
He has spent his career operating at the senior end of construction and civil engineering: pricing complex work, leading commercial teams, turning around underperforming business units, managing legal disputes and building the commercial disciplines that make businesses sustainable. The mentoring he offers is drawn directly from that experience, not from a generic coaching manual.
APPLYÂ FOR A MENTORING PLACE
Mentoring places are limited.
David works with a small number of clients at any one time to ensure each relationship receives the focus it deserves.
To find out whether this is the right fit for your business, get in touch. There is no hard sell, just a conversation to understand where you are and whether CBA can help.
Pricing is by monthly retainer — available on application. All enquiries are treated in confidence.
Not sure where to start?
AÂ Business MOT gives you and David a clear picture of where your business stands before any ongoing commitment.
Many mentoring relationships begin there.
