High Rise is our Niche · 04

Commercial

Commercial talent with genuine high-rise subcontract exposure — packages, variations, claims and head-contract risk on complex residential builds.

Roles appointed

4

Typical timeline

Three to five weeks from brief to shortlist.

Overview

The commercial team decides how much of a project's margin survives contact with reality. On a high-rise apartment build that means letting sixty or more packages accurately, holding subcontractors to scope, and keeping the head contract position defensible when the program moves.

Contract administration titles are used loosely across the industry. A CA who has run a $12m fitout package on a tower is doing different work to one processing progress claims on townhouses. We separate the two before anyone reaches your shortlist.

We look for people who can evidence a final account, explain a contentious variation from both sides, and describe how a claim was resolved without lawyers.

Roles we appoint

What each appointment actually carries

  • Commercial Manager

    Owns the commercial position across a portfolio — head contract risk, subcontract strategy, cost reporting to the board and the resolution of major claims.

    $260k – $340k package

  • Senior Contract Administrator

    Runs the commercial function on a single major tower, often with a CA or cadet reporting in. Letting, valuation, variations and final accounts.

    $180k – $230k package

  • Contract Administrator

    Package procurement, subcontractor claims, variations and cost tracking within a project team. The core commercial role on site.

    $130k – $175k package

  • Quantity Surveyor

    Measurement, cost planning and valuation, either builder-side or with a consultancy servicing residential development.

    $120k – $180k package

Package guidance reflects South East Queensland high-rise residential builders and is indicative only. Structure, vehicle, bonus and profit share vary considerably.

What we assess

Evidence before introduction

01

Package value and complexity

The actual dollar value and technical difficulty of the packages they have let and administered.

02

Contract literacy

Which contract forms they have worked under, and how they handle time bars, EOTs and security of payment.

03

Claims history

A real example of a disputed variation — how it arose, what was claimed, and where it landed.

04

Systems

Practical fluency in the cost systems your business runs, and how they report to project and executive level.

The market

Commercial candidates are the most frequently counter-offered group in the market. We prepare for that in the first conversation and again before resignation, which is why our accepted offers hold.

Contact Stuart Murray