Daemon Huynh, Commercial Manager
How did you first find your path into the construction industry?
For course selections as part of the HSC (many years ago), the Construction Management Degree was one of the few selections that I had made.
Could you list a couple of career highlights?
• Building the Education Revolution stimulus program: Working on the Managing Contractor side delivering projects in the Sydney Southwest region. Due to the sheer size and number of projects, the challenge was in coordinating the various teams and subcontractors over multiple sites spanning a vast widespread area. We also came up with a refurbishment delivery method that achieved cost efficiencies via a Construction Management arrangement.
• Wollongong Central West Keira Development: The design, architecture and build of this new precinct was extremely inspiring. The shapes and materials used in the design were all inspired by themes from the local area.
How has the industry changed for the better in the past ten years?
When I first stepped into the industry many years ago, technology was extremely scarce. These were the days of fax machines, arch lever folders, and the ‘brick’ mobile phone. The internet had only started phasing through. The site I was working on had a dial-up modem that was used to send financial data back to the head office in Newcastle. These days, you are lucky to find paper on my desk. We have developed and implemented our delivery systems to be entirely paperless, along with automated processes that were tedious tasks that somebody had to do at one point in time. With these tasks being taken care of by systems, project staff can spend valuable time working on other more urgent and value achieving matters. Whilst some might say technological advancements have made things worse off for the industry (increased pressure due to constant phone calls, messaging, system notifications), these advances assist in keeping the price to build down (due to faster build durations), which helps the end-users to achieve purchasing their dreams. The factor that we can’t control is the price of land.
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Stepping into your new role as Commercial Manager, what changes you are going to make in the future?
I always have my eyes and ears open in the space of innovation and efficiency. As we all know, the construction industry requires long hours of work in all roles. If there are valuable processes that can achieve a better work/life balance, we will be able to give back to staff to spend with their loved ones at home.
What are the shifts you are going to champion?
Whilst we have grown over the years, there is still room for improvement in uniformity. Our quality brand is how our external stakeholders perceive us. Hence, presenting ourselves with the same consistency throughout all departments is essential to maintain our respected perspective.
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How will your Binah experience be a platform for achieving company goals in the next five years?
There are several codes that all staff at Binah work by. It has been evident that these codes have assisted the business to achieve our goals to date and will also be the foundations of staff conduct that takes us into the future.
In what area of your extensive construction career have you experienced the most growth?
Financial, commercial acumen whilst working alongside senior managers.
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Where do your key strengths lie?
Detail. In providing answers to queries, I tend to sift through information to provide comprehensive responses. Those who are receiving these responses can rest assured that these responses encompass a high level of accuracy.
When you feel overwhelmed or lose focus, what’s your strategy?
Take a short break, breathe, and look out the window. Nature has a way of providing calm.
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What is the key to keeping our standards high and consistently delivering a quality product?
We have developed our own design manual. We need to ensure all design teams work to this manual. This manual derives from our Binah way. If we ensure all consultants and subcontractors work to this manual (whilst we review and inspect), we will deliver the same high-quality product project on project (just like how the Big Mac looks and tastes the same no matter which country you are in).
Growing partnerships into lifelong partnerships are at the core of all Binah operations. Can you share some benefits of establishing lifelong business relationships?
Creating lifelong business relationships allows both parties to know and support each other’s journey. Current, future and non-shared projects benefit from experience and insights for great outcomes. Furthermore, friendships are made along the way that are not purely business related.
Why is it so important to provide opportunities to employees to grow within their roles?
Providing opportunities opens the ability of individuals to think outside of the box. Not only do they grow themselves in their career, but it also allows them to focus on achieving better outcomes for the project. Opportunity for career progression (where available) helps curb the high turnover of staff that the construction industry is renowned for.
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