Question Time is back for 2026! 🎉

In this episode, Paul is joined once again by regular co-host Chris Barber for a lively and candid discussion driven entirely by listener questions. Together, they cover a broad range of topics—from fantasy fixes for the construction industry, to spotting the next generation of commercial leaders, and the fine line between being “commercially astute” and just plain difficult.

Expect strong opinions, industry war stories, and the usual dose of friendly disagreement.

🧠 Topics Discussed:

• If you had a government mandate, how would you fix construction?
• Are we being held back by planning delays and building safety bottlenecks?
• The role of project bank accounts and retention reform in creating a fairer supply chain.
• How to spot future leaders in your commercial team — and how to retain them.
• The hidden career value of being on-site early in your QS career.
• What makes a QS commercially difficult versus commercially sharp?
• Industry phrases we’d happily never hear again (yes, “progressing well” made the list…).

📣 Listener shoutouts include:

• James (Commercial Manager)
• Darren (Surveying Director)
• Alexandra (Commercial Lead)
• Alan (Senior QS)

💬 Got a question for the next Question Time? Email Paul directly at paul@c-link.com

---------------------------------

📥 Plus: Grab Paul’s free new eBook Mastering Construction Procurement — link below:

Mastering Construction Procurement Strategies for Supply Chain Integration, Tendering, and Commercial Success

For our list of other eBooks on building your QS Career and AI, click here - Free eBook Downloads.

Send a text

Want to connect with Paul?

Paul is on Linkedin here and would love to talk. You can also connect with Paul at paul@c-link.com or through, C-Link.

C-Link is software built by Quantity Surveyors for Quantity Surveyors. We save 600 hours of Quantity Surveying time per project in automation. We can make your QS’ so much more efficient.

Watch the Video to learn more; you can book a demo by clicking here.

In the second episode of the Own the Build Leadership Series, Paul is joined by Chris Hartley, former Commercial Director at McLaren Construction, a £1bn+ main contractor, and now a business change consultant and quantum expert.

Chris shares a deeply reflective account of his journey from early career QS to leading commercial teams of more than 50 people — and what that experience taught him about trust, detail, leadership and decision-making at scale.

Rather than a linear career story, this conversation focuses on the realities of commercial leadership: earning trust through technical credibility, knowing when to empower people to make mistakes, and why the best Commercial Directors never lose touch with the fundamentals of construction.

The discussion explores:

• why mastery of detail is the foundation of commercial authority;
• the transition from “doing” to leading — and why people skills become decisive;
• building high-performing commercial teams in large, complex organisations;
• how trust is given, earned and sometimes rebalanced;
• the role of information quality in better commercial decisions;
• freeing up QS time from administration to focus on commercial judgement; and
• what world-class commercial leadership looks like in 2026 and beyond.

Chris also reflects on succession planning, developing future leaders, and why rushing progression without grounding ultimately limits long-term impact.

This episode is a thoughtful, experience-led perspective on Commercial Directorship — essential listening for QSs with leadership ambitions and senior commercial professionals looking to sense-check what good really looks like at the top.

---------------------------------

📥 Plus: Grab Paul’s free new eBook Mastering Construction Procurement — link below:

Mastering Construction Procurement Strategies for Supply Chain Integration, Tendering, and Commercial Success

Send a text

Want to connect with Paul?

Paul is on Linkedin here and would love to talk. You can also connect with Paul at paul@c-link.com or through, C-Link.

C-Link is software built by Quantity Surveyors for Quantity Surveyors. We save 600 hours of Quantity Surveying time per project in automation. We can make your QS’ so much more efficient.

Watch the Video to learn more; you can book a demo by clicking here.

In this episode, Paul is joined by Brandon Silver, construction solicitor at Bexley Beaumont, for a deep, practical conversation on where construction contracts most often unravel — and how QSs and commercial leaders can protect themselves before problems escalate.

Brandon works daily on adjudications, payment disputes, termination claims and delay arguments, acting for contractors and subcontractors across the UK. In this episode, he shares real-world insights into the contractual mistakes he sees repeatedly — many of which are entirely avoidable.

The conversation covers:

• why most construction professionals fundamentally misunderstand their contracts — particularly JCT;
• how poor contract administration quietly destroys entitlement;
• termination under JCT: common law vs contractual termination, and why procedure matters more than intent;
• the five-step checklist every contractor should follow before issuing a termination notice;
• how easily an invalid termination can expose a party to loss of profit claims and significant financial risk;
• why smash-and-grab adjudications are rising — and how simple diary failures are costing businesses millions;
• concurrent delay explained properly: why true concurrency is rare, and why effect matters more than timing;
• the difference between relevant events and relevant matters — and why time does not always mean money; and
• record keeping in practice: what actually wins disputes, shortens arguments and protects cash flow.

Throughout the episode, Paul and Brandon connect legal theory with commercial reality, exploring how QSs can balance strong relationships with robust record keeping — and why being “commercial” without being contractual is one of the industry’s biggest risks.

This is essential listening for QSs, commercial managers and directors who want to reduce contractual exposure, protect entitlement and lead more confidently in an increasingly adversarial environment.

---------------------------------

📥 Plus: Grab Paul’s free new eBook Mastering Construction Procurement — link below:

Mastering Construction Procurement Strategies for Supply Chain Integration, Tendering, and Commercial Success

For our list of other eBooks on building your QS Career and AI, click here - Free eBook Downloads

Send a text

Want to connect with Paul?

Paul is on Linkedin here and would love to talk. You can also connect with Paul at paul@c-link.com or through, C-Link.

C-Link is software built by Quantity Surveyors for Quantity Surveyors. We save 600 hours of Quantity Surveying time per project in automation. We can make your QS’ so much more efficient.

Watch the Video to learn more; you can book a demo by clicking here.