I've spoken with many young engineers and architects eager to build a career in BIM, often attracted by its perceived flexibility, office-based work, and quick path to the "BIM Manager" title.
But I always share a line from one of my favorite movies, Sarkar: "๐ก๐ฎ๐๐ฑ๐ถ๐พ ๐ธ๐ฎ ๐ณ๐ฎ๐๐ฑ๐ฎ ๐ป๐ฎ๐ต๐ถ, ๐ฑ๐๐ฟ ๐ธ๐ฎ ๐ป๐๐ธ๐๐ฎ๐ฎ๐ป ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ธ๐ต๐ผ" ("๐๐ผ๐ปโ๐ ๐น๐ผ๐ผ๐ธ ๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ ๐พ๐๐ถ๐ฐ๐ธ ๐ด๐ฎ๐ถ๐ป๐; ๐ฐ๐ผ๐ป๐๐ถ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐น๐ผ๐ป๐ด-๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐บ ๐ผ๐ฝ๐ฝ๐ผ๐ฟ๐๐๐ป๐ถ๐๐ ๐ฐ๐ผ๐๐๐"). I then asked them what comes after the BIM Manager. That question is often met with silence.
In my experience, few BIM Managers manage to pivot to higher roles. In construction projects, those who actively help teams on-site to work faster and stay within budget have stronger career growth prospects. The BIM Manager role typically falls within design and coordination, which accounts for just 8% of a projectโs total cost. Meanwhile, procurement and constructionโwhere BIM's application has immense potentialโmake up 92% of project costs.
I firmly believe that young engineers who focus on BIM applications for construction management & Operations will find greater career longevity and success.ย Remember, you've invested four years in your engineering education โ make sure you're getting the most out of it.
Note:ย The views expressed are personal and primarily relevant to the Indian market.ย
This article is written by Juzer Bastawala.ย Juzer has 17+ years of global project management experience in the construction industry, specializing in 5D BIM solutions and bridging industry gaps through innovative technology integration.