The Foreman is a central figure at construction sites, supervising work and troubleshooting any issues that may arise. Foremen mediate between site workers, architects, and supervisors, or property owners. They coordinate the day-to-day work on-site and report on the progress to the managers. Following the lead of a general contractor, they create the work schedule and allocate tasks, manage the budget, order material, if necessary, and make sure the delivered work is top-notch.
They make sure safety measures are met and supervise the machinery and equipment in use. They might also be responsible for recruiting, hiring, and training the crew.
Being a foreman is not for the faint of heart. You need to have excellent leadership skills, years of on-the-job experience, and the nerves to deal with paperwork, follow sketches and blueprints, hammer out interpersonal conflicts, and manage time like a pro.
There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a Foreman. For example, did you know that they make an average of $20.72 an hour? That's $43,098 a year!
Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow -3% and produce -400 job opportunities across the U.S.
There are certain skills that many Foremen have in order to accomplish their responsibilities. By taking a look through resumes, we were able to narrow down the most common skills for a person in this position. We discovered that a lot of resumes listed Communication skills, Detail oriented and Listening skills.
If you're interested in becoming a Foreman, one of the first things to consider is how much education you need. We've determined that 23.4% of Foremen have a bachelor's degree. In terms of higher education levels, we found that 1.8% of Foremen have master's degrees. Even though some Foremen have a college degree, it's possible to become one with only a high school degree or GED.
Choosing the right major is always an important step when researching how to become a Foreman. When we researched the most common majors for a Foreman, we found that they most commonly earn High School Diploma degrees or Bachelor's Degree degrees. Other degrees that we often see on Foreman resumes include Associate Degree degrees or Diploma degrees.
You may find that experience in other jobs will help you become a Foreman. In fact, many Foreman jobs require experience in a role such as Carpenter. Meanwhile, many Foremen also have previous career experience in roles such as Supervisor or Welder.