Critical Analysis General

APC

Critical Analysis

Preparation Course

cpd direct Ltd, PO BOX 54321, Edinburgh EH1 1QR

www.cpddirect.com [email protected]

James C Curran ARICS DQS CIOB MSc.

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Guidance Notes

To qualify as a chartered surveyor normally requires two conditions to be fulfilled: an RICS accredited academic qualification; and completion of a period of structured practical training which concludes with an assessment of your competence to practice. In this paper we are going to consider the final assessment phase focusing on the Critical Analysis.

Candidates must submit their Critical Analysis in advance of their Final Interview for the APC. The dates for CA submission vary from year to year and according to which faculty / division you are being assessed.

The application by the candidate must be accompanied by a range of documents comprising some of all of the following; the Summary of Experience; the Critical Analysis; your record of progress, diary, logbook; your record of Lifelong Learning; and a resume of your professional education and employment. These requirements will vary with such things as the date you first enrolled in the system and whether you are a mature candidate and as with the dates of submission of the Critical Analysis it is your responsibility to ensure that you fulfil the relevant conditions. You can discuss your case with someone from your divisional background by telephoning the RICS and asking to speak to the relevant APC section.

The Summary of Experience and Critical Analysis give your assessors the opportunity to begin to form an opinion of your suitability for corporate membership of the Institution.

They comprise a major component of a candidate's final assessment and will be used:

to assess the breadth and depth of your professional experience;

to assess your written skills and graphic communication skills; and

as a basis for part of the final assessment interview questioning.

As neither the Summary of Experience nor Critical Analysis are prepared under examination conditions, you will be expected to demonstrate technical and literal accuracy and a high standard of presentation.

The Summary of Experience

The Summary of Experience typically comprises a 1500 word summary of the experience you have obtained since your interim submission. If you have previously been referred then the summary may comprise a 500 word explanation of how you propose to address the deficiencies detailed in your referral report.

It should set out what you have done since your interim submission and must provide a clear and concise illustration of:

the types of work you have undertaken and the responsibilities you have been given within your employing



organisation; and

the practical professional experience you have obtained so far.

The experience should be grouped on a competency basis under the key areas of experience gained rather than a chronological listing.

The Critical Analysis

The Critical Analysis details a professional project(s) or commission(s) with which you have been intimately involved. The format will have divisional differences but in general comprises a maximum of 3,000 and up to a further 3,000 words in appendices. If you are in any doubt about the format including word count and the number of projects you may include please speak to the APC section of your division at the RICS. It may include photographs and plans, but the latter should be no larger than A4 size when folded.

It must be a detailed analysis of a professional project or projects with which you have been intimately involved during your professional training period, and must demonstrate your approach to, and philosophy of, the work of a chartered surveyor in your chosen division or specialism.

It must identify the:

key issues of the project;

options or possible courses of action;

reasons for the rejection of those options which were not selected;

reasons for the adopted course of action and a critical appraisal of the outcome;

a reflective analysis of the experience gained.

The APC Assessors are required to fill out a pro-forma assessment of your competence in each of the above aspects so all candidates should ensure that they have addressed each of these.

You will be assessed on a scale of FIVE gradations ranging from Outstanding to Very Poor - there is no box for the Assessor to mark Non Applicable.

To demonstrate your professional competence you will be expected to show the exercise of decision making skills and professional judgement. It is unlikely therefore that you will be able to demonstrate this and impress the Assessors on a project where you had absolutely no options.

The first component of the interview is an oral presentation of the Critical Analysis.



Much of the work with which you are involved is of course highly confidential. It is essential that as with all aspects of your professional work, you undertake the Critical Analysis is accordance with the Code of Conduct of the Institution. Explicit agreement should be obtained from your Employer and or Client about all disclosure of project specific information. Care should be taken to only disclose relevant professional details to explain and clarify your professional role, your thinking and decision making processes. You are not being asked to paint a full picture of the project as would necessitate disclosing much more breadth and depth of sensitive project information.

The Critical Analysis must reflect the candidate's abilities in respect of:

written and graphic communication;

professional standards of organisation and presentation;

analysis, reflective thought and problem solving; and

learning from experience gained.

It must be a true and faithful reflection of your experience during your training period.

Remember the Presentation

The Critical Analysis should be written using the basic rules for writing skills as detailed later. In addition it must be remembered that this document has to be presented verbally and you should also make allowance for this.

One of the objectives of the Presentation is to satisfy the Institution that you are able to express yourself clearly in an oral presentation and can demonstrate, in support of your written documentation, your understanding gained during the training period.

The initial phase of the Presentation ( 10 Minutes ) allows you to introduce the panel to an outline of the purpose, investigations and conclusions concerning the work detailed in the Critical Analysis.

The structure should follow a logical sequence with a brief map of your journey provided at the beginning. The numbering system should allow easy reference to guide the assessors and to enable you to find appropriate sections in answer to their follow-up questions.

You will have a lot of detailed information about each project and will have to decide how much to include and when to include it. It may for example be necessary to explain a number of issues early in the report in order to enable the reader or listener to understand the significance of what is being said later. Examples of such information may include history of the project, detailed Conditions of Contract or method of procurement.

Read your written work aloud preferably to other people and or on tape. If you have access to a camcorder then video your presentation. This will help identify problem areas such as long unwieldy sentences, non sequiturs, and any imbalance between sections or parts that look fine on paper but do not sound quite right when read out loud. Test you audience's understanding of the main points covered and practice defending your presentation. The key requirements of the presentation are that the candidate demonstrates reasonable oral communication skills, presentation skills and clarity of thought and structure. A good Critical Analysis will greatly assist in achieving these presentational objectives.



Practice

Practice

Practice

Practice

Practice

Critical Analysis

What it is and what it isn't.

The CA is your opportunity to begin the process of convincing the assessment panel that you are professionally competent. You must show that you have been in a position to exercise professionalism and that when called upon you were competent. It sounds simple but it is true.

Many candidates completely fail to realise this and prepare their CA to the wrong agenda.

So what is their CA not about.

It is not about being involved in really interesting projects. It is not about projects which made the news. It is not about projects which were very successful. It is not about projects where there were a lot of problems and where your Client always won through in the end thanks to you and everyone lived happily ever after.

We cannot all have been the QS on the channel tunnel or the Agency letting Canary Wharf. It helps if there is something interesting about the project and you may be surprised how even the dullest project can be made interesting. Probably the best way to achieve this is to appear to enjoy what you are doing; to seem well motivated; to appear to believe you are carrying professional responsibility and are determined to make the most of whatever surveying throws your way. One of the candidates I assessed recently chose the refurbishment of a toilet block and he passed.

Most projects are basically the same. There is a client with a financial interest in certain project outcomes and you are charged to give that client the best possible professional service. We do not want



you to tell us the story of the job - we do want you to use the job as a vehicle to demonstrate who you are and what you can do. Are you a good ambassador for the profession? Are you a safe pair of hands? Can you be trusted?

Most of the mechanisms for delivering these professional services are PRESCRIBED in one form or another; be it the 5th edition of the Red Book for Valuation Practice and Standards or JCT for construction contracts and a plethora or other manuals and agreed practices and standards. In many of your procedures there is little scope for you to be innovative or creative; rather you are interpreting client's wants and needs and using accepted methods to achieve these desired goals.

On all projects however there will be ample scope for you to demonstrate how you exercised professional judgement and communication skills. One of the first ways to do this is to correctly interpret what the RICS wants in a CA and then to communicate that in a professional manner. You have time to do this so we expect you to spend time on it. The CA should be as good as a professional report which you office would produce for one of its own clients.( This means wordprocessed, spell-checked and grammatical, assembled well and bound. This professionalism must also be carried forward in to the content and I will look in more detail at this aspect shortly.

Communications Generally

Introduction

The following notes are intended mainly as a list of basic rules on letter and report writing. They were not written specifically for the Critical Analysis; they do however apply to this and all other aspects of your professional communications. Examples of how these basic guidelines are incorporated in to a Critical Analysis are shown in the attached examples from previous Critical Analyses.

Good communications means getting the message across effectively and efficiently and in professional life one is called upon to do this every day using a variety of media.

Be clear about what you wish to communicate. What are your objectives? Are you selling, telling or asking? Carefully consider the characteristics of the person or group with whom you are communicating.

Interest must be maintained. People do not readily absorb information if they are not interested. The method adopted should be appropriate to the type of information being imparted; wherever possible the method should appeal to more than one sense.

Memory Try to communicate the information in a way that it can be remembered; again use as many senses as possible.

Introduction to Written Communication

The general rule for written communication is that it should be readable. The less readable it is - the less



understandable. What is required is plain English - honest unsophisticated language.

Written communication should also be distinguished from verbal communication by tone. It is often acceptable to exercise a degree of licence in spoken language in respect of colloquialism and the use of fashionable words and phrases. In written communication such elements lower the tone of the document.

Similarly, what is acceptable writing style for the tabloid newspaper may not be so for formal business communication.

In letters and reports, one should be aiming for objectivity. The case for or against should be established by reference to evidence; subjective argument, typified by loaded words and emotional statements, should therefore be avoided.

Writers are often under the illusion that length and complexity increase the authority- 'this chap must know his business, even I can't understand it.'

This problem is further exacerbated by the fact that it is much easier to write long rambling documents than short concise ones. The skill of the newspaper editor lies in what is taken out of the journalist's report and the choice of phrase to encapsulate the story for the headline.

It is easy to fill a report with jargon and 'technospeak' to impress a lay client and justify your essential employment. If such a client exists today, he is certainly not the norm. Clients pay for professional services and advice and they deserve a professional product both in presentation and content.

Jargon is often unavoidable in business communication. If there is any question over the reader's understanding, then such jargon should be defined when it first arises in the text. This is not only true of specialist jargon ( eg. 'machine-code') but also general words which have a wide variety of meanings depending on their context ( eg. 'system'.)

Letter Writing

Letter writing is a skill which professional people are required to practice on a daily basis. However it is something which very few people seem to feel is worthy of serious study. The general feeling would appear to be that "if I spend many years learning my professional skills then people should understand what I write.'

We tend to put the blame for communication failure on the receiver rather than the transmitter.

The more technical and 'jargon-laden' one's area of expertise then the more vital it is that one is communicating in a language and form that the reader can both understand and accept. Strategy

The strategy one adopts when writing a letter is in many ways more important than the actual process of writing. The central point about strategy is that you must plan before you write. Planning ahead takes a little time but writing without planning invites disaster. An efficient and well organised presentation requires an outline.

If you are responding to a letter or memo; read and reread it carefully. Understanding exactly what is required, whether you are the best person to deal with it and whether you have the required skills and information to deal with it are major steps towards successfully dealing with the response.



Do not rewrite the original letter to mean what you would like to have been asked or to suit your interests or specialist expertise.

If there is any ambiguity in what is required do nor perpetuate it by simply taking the most convenient interpretation and proceeding. If practicable clarify the intention of the writer immediately in a brief letter or telephone call. If necessary proceed with the letter clarifying that the ambiguity exists and what the appropriate courses of action are for each interpretation.

Determine what information you need before you start writing. Investigate which journals, textbooks, previous correspondence, drawings and the like may be required and have them available.

Always keep at the forefront of your mind what the reader hopes to receive from you.

The reader's needs must be considered in terms of the type of information you give, the form of language you use, the timing of the correspondence and the degree of formality. The technical language appropriate in a response to a fellow professional will probably not be appropriate for a lay client.

The best way to assess the extent to which you have achieved this goal is to put yourself in the reader's place.

What sort of letter would you wish to receive? How much detail does the situation deserve and the reader expect?

There are two main aspects to letter and report writing :

The content of the letter ie.what you want to write

and the style

ie. the way you are going to write it.

Style

Poor style will seriously, if not fatally, detract from the content of what you have written. Mistakes in style will the colour the recipient's impression of the value of your writing. It is important to adopt the following basic style rules into your writing.

Short Sentences.

Research shows that if you write a letter which has an average of more than 20 words in a sentence the reader will have difficulty in understanding it. Parts will require re-reading and understanding will be slow. Obviously this will give a bad impression. Ideally the average should be between 15 and 18 words per sentence.

This is an average; not a maximum. There will be occasions when sentences will be considerably longer but they will be balanced by others. If you were writing to tell a client that he was in breach of contract but there was a possible solution, it would be inadvisable to stop the sentence immediately after the words 'breach of contract'. The client may panic before he reads your postscript. There will therefore be occasions when caveats and the like will add



considerably to the sentence length.

Short Paragraphs

Only a very short letter will have a single paragraph. Take a separate paragraph for each point which you wish to communicate.

The golden rule is that if the point is not worth a separate paragraph then most probably it is not worth making the point at all.

Concise

Conciseness makes letters much easier to read and saves time for you the writer. You will not impress the reader by taking the long way round. Brevity is always a virtue in letters. Do not write things twice; if it is important and correctly stressed then it will be read as often as necessary.

Spelling / Grammar

Careless spelling and glaring grammar mistakes reflect badly on the writer. Inaccurate use of commas and such like is not critical but elementary errors, such as the use of double negatives, are more serious. ( Double negatives are occasionally acceptable - 'The design of the office was not unattractive' - but generally avoid. Careful use is required of words such as hardly or scarcely as these should be accompanied by positive verbs - 'There was hardly any' rather than ' There wasn't hardly any' or 'There was hardly none.')

This in turn has a knock-on effect in that the reader will wonder whether your ideas can be taken seriously if your basic education is so obviously flawed. There is also a presumption that you were not terribly interested in the letter you were writing or you would have taken more care. The reader will therefore be highly critical on two counts.

Language however should flow and this is more important than sticking to rigid and often outmoded grammatical rules.

Plain English

Do not try to impress the reader with your lexicographical dexterity. Plain simple unadulterated English is always preferable to convoluted prose. The vast majority of the written words should be of three syllables or less.

In 1948 Sir Ernest Gower published the famous 'Plain Words' (HMSO) and this is still often quoted as the bible of plain English. In 1952 Gower's work was added to by Gunning in 'The Technique of Clear Writing' wherein he proposed a system of measuring how easily a piece of writing could be understood. The technique is called 'Gunning's Fog Index' and has the following stages:

1 Take a random sample 100 words of writing. 2 Count the number of sentences, say 4. 3 Divide this number into the original 100 to get the average sentence length (eg. 100/4 = 25 ). 4 Count the number of words of three or more syllables in the sample and add this to the previous calculation. eg. 25 + 4 =29. 5 Multiply this number by 0.4. Answer = 11.6



The final figure is a measure of how many years of schooling someone would need in order to easily understand the writing. It is generally safe to assume that the audience of business letters and reports will have had at least an elementary education.

A Fog Index of less than 10 (possibly one of the more popular tabloid newspapers) would therefore indicate that the contents may be over-simplified. A Fog Index of more than about 15 (eg. The Financial Times ) would indicate that your sentences are too long or you are using an excess of polysyllabic words. This will make the writing less readable.

Precise

Always say precisely what you mean. Do not 'beat about the bush' or build-in ambiguities to attempt to hide the fact that you do not know the one correct response. There may not be a clear answer.

Imprecise language sounds weak and tentative. Do not use expressions such ' If you proceed along this course you may get into difficulties....' or ' ...problems may arise.' If you are of the opinion that a particular course of action will put your reader in breach of contract, then tell him exactly that in plain English. Then clearly spell out the available options.

If you are giving examples of what may happen or examples of possible courses of action, do not finish your list with 'etc. etc.' This is a ploy often used to finish a list when the writer cannot think of further examples but assumes that there are some. In reality you have most probably dealt with the major ones. In any event the reader is not going to be impressed with such an imprecise finish.

Legibility

If the reader cannot read the document, then there is little chance of his understanding it. If circumstances demand a hand-written letter, ensure that it is neat and clear. If calligraphy is not your forte, try using block capitals and writing slowly.

If using a word processor or typewriter, an unusual typescript may be eye catching at first but can obscure the message behind the words. It can also be tiring to read.

Appearance on the Page

Your letter should look good on the page if you practice the points made so far, particularly regarding legibility and short paragraphs.

Do not write very large or leave 2 or more extra blank lines between each line of text. Writing which is too generous with empty spaces gives the impression that you have not really got anything important to say and just want to fill 'x ' pages.

Similarly, do not make the writing too crowded on the page. The effect here is that a cramped letter reflects a cramped mind.

Some other things to avoid in letters are as follows;



Cliches:-

Hackneyed phrases or even single words that have lost their meaning through overuse. The original user of the phrase possibly devised a particularly apt use for the words and subsequent users apply the cliche on every occasion. A typical example which often appears in letters would be well and truly.

Sarcasm:-

Ironically worded bitter or wounding remarks.

Rhetoric:-

Language designed to persuade or impress by means of such methods as exaggeration or insincerity. Do not ask rhetorical questions ie. statements which are phrased as questions but to which only one answer is expected.

Repetition :- Usually caused by lack of concentration. e.g. ' it is also essential that some other essential steps should also be taken'. The writer will normally pick out the use of two 'essentials' and fail to notice the second 'also'.

Occasionally one will repeat a word immediately, eg and and or but but. This is usually because the mind is working ahead of the hand and the latter is struggling to catch up. Such obvious mistakes may then be missed if the work is read over as soon as it is written. The reason for this may be that the mind can remember what it intended to have written down and this is what one is looking at rather than the actual words on the page.

To avoid this type of error creeping in, make sure that you let the letter or report cool off, preferably overnight, before the final read through.

Metaphor:-

This is a way of making an idea vivid such as solid foundations, apex of the pyramid, sapping the life blood or head in the sand. Overuse ruins the effect, especially if used in groups or mixed; eg. ' the architect preferred the olive branch but nothing concrete had come of it ' or ' he took the bull by the horns and nipped it in the bud!'

Latin or Greek phrases:-

Avoid unless they are in common use by all parties and they precisely fit the situation. English should be the main language! The careful use of ie., eg. and etc. is acceptable as their meaning and use is widely accepted.

Personal comments:-

These tend to be out of place in a technical or professional letter. Brief introductory or concluding comment or social inquiry is acceptable if the reader is a social acquaintance.

Jokes:-

As a rule these do not translate well onto paper. Even if you are a natural storyteller you will probably depend on your audience for feedback. The reader may not understand the joke or simply may not be in very good form for a laugh



when your letter arrives.

Antiquated form of address and the like:-

Professional letters do not require you to remain the reader's most humble servant. Archaic terminology should be avoided. Yours faithfully or yours sincerely ( depending on whether you started Dear Mr/Ms .... or Dear Sir/Madam ) will suffice.

Excessive grovelling and humility:- Avoid, irrespective of who the recipient is.

Content

Letters generally

State your name, address and telephone number at the top right corner. Date the letter. Put name and address of recipient on left. Quote any reference from previous correspondence.

State what contract or project the letter is related to if for example you are carrying out a commission for a particular building or complex.If you regularly write to this person on a variety of topics, state what subject this letter is about.

State the exact piece of correspondence, if any, to which you are responding. (re your letter of the 14th March 1999. ) You may have received several letters from this source before you were able to answer the current one.

Logical Sequence

The letter should set out the case you are developing in a logical sequence. Similarly if you are responding to a letter, the order should follow logically from the initial correspondence.

Finality

If you are responding to a call for information then it is vital that you reach a conclusion. Preferably when answering a request for help, this answer should come near the beginning of the letter. You can include plenty of reasons or proofs as to why that is the correct answer but these should come after the actual answer.

If there is a large quantity of back-up information ( more than 2 or 3 pages) then this is best attached as an appendix.

Do not make the reader wade through several pages of arguments to try and find the answer to his question. If he has engaged you as a professional to carry out a task he will probably have some confidence in your ability. He will assume that you had some rational basis in arriving at your conclusion and will want this to be included in the letter or report.

His main concern however is to get a clear unequivocal answer to his problem. If the reader has a good on-going relationship with you, he may not even continue to read on after he gets the answer. Especially so if he gets the answer he was expecting or hoping for. Never state, or imply, that the answer is 'x y or z and take it or leave it!'



Never give all the evidence, the advantages and disadvantages, and finish with a comment such as " I will leave you to decide upon the most appropriate course of action." This is just another way of saying "your guess is as good as mine."

If there is no clear cut answer and strong arguments for and against several courses of action then this must be made clear. The advantages and the dangers of each viable course must be spelled out with a firm conclusion as to how you think the reader should proceed.

Warnings can be included in the form of caveats to your recommendation eg ' On balance I think we should proceed with the purchase. However if base rates should rise to 10% in the next twelve months, the purchase will probably break even or may even make a marginal loss.'

The fact that one course of action is marginal, is no excuse for ambivalence. If you are being paid for expert guidance that is what you must provide.

Be diplomatic when writing to a client or fellow professional, particularly if acceptance of the letter will require some concession or 'climb-down' from that person. There is never any profit in writing to someone to say that he/she is an idiot.

Do not be dogmatic; especially if you are coming to a conclusion which may be contentious such as ruling on a claim for loss and expense. Diplomacy does not allow dogmatism.

If your conclusion is based on case law it is fine to say that you believe the ruling on that occasion may be appropriate to these circumstances. Do not categorically state that 'the same question arose in Kramer -v- Kramer 1963 and that's the way it is!' If interpretation of the law was as straightforward as that, very few cases would ever get as far as the House of Lords.

Remember who you are.

If you are a Quantity Surveyor then you are an expert on aspects of costs and contract administration but you are not an architect or a structural engineer. Similarly, the architect and engineer have their own spheres of expertise and must be careful that they do not stray into areas which are best left to specialists.

This is particularly important if for example you believe that the client requires expert legal advice. The advice you give should be limited to your professional competence and you should direct the reader to consult his legal advisors where appropriate.

If you appear to take on excess authority and the reader subsequently acts on this, then at the very least you will be open to criticism for unprofessional conduct and possibly negligence.

Reports

The above notes on letters also apply in general to reports. There are however some additional considerations specific to the report format.

Reports have a structure and this includes definite rules for their preparation. There are two main types of report which



you are liable to be called upon to prepare.

Standard Reports

Firstly there are those which have a predetermined format. These will tend to be regular standardised communications which may be based on some pro-forma documents. In this case much of the work involves filling in the blank spaces with room for general comments as appropriate at the end.

Even if no pro-forma exists, the fact that it is a regular exercise implies that the recipient will be expecting a particular type of report in terms of content and layout. If for example you are responsible for submitting monthly progress reports for a construction site, do not re-invent the wheel every month. This will be time consuming for you and make your report prone to error ( mainly by omission but also by depth of treatment).

Regular reports should be compatible with their predecessors. Standard report formats are not written on tablets of stone and should evolve as requirements and even styles demand. If you have ideas for adapting a company standard report format, you should restrain your creative drive until you have persuaded all concerned that the change be implemented. This is particularly important when you are preparing reports which are broadly standardised for a professional body such as the RICS. If you prepare tender reports for example use a layout similar to that shown in textbooks and provide the same information in terms of content and detail.

Discretionary Layout.

Assume one is asked to prepare a report on the advantages and disadvantages of, for example, what Standard Form of Contract is best suited to a forthcoming project. In this case there is no pro-forma sheet or tick chart to guide one through the process.

The writer starts with a blank page and probably a blank mind. The report will be constructed around a skeleton of rules which determine the underlying structure.

The principal elements of such a report are: 1. Title2. Introduction3. Main body of the report 4. Conclusion 5. Recommendations 6. References 7. Bibliography

There are many variations on this such as an Executive Summary at the beginning and the inclusion of References in the Main Body. We can however consider the main elements involved in this typical layout.

1 The title should be short but meaningful. 'Report on Choice of Contract' is fine, 'Report No.4' is not. The title will normally be on a separate page and other information here might include; a reference number; the name of the author; for whom it has been prepared; and the date.



On a complex report, the title page may be followed by a list of the contents including pagination. 2. The introduction will generally be a short statement of one or two paragraphs. Typically this will comprise the terms of reference for the report; the subject matter, the purpose of the report and the reader or readers.

3 The main body of the report should be a logical and objective exposition and interpretation of all of the available information on which your conclusions are based.

Each individual section (eg. Advantages, Disadvantages) should be clearly identified by the use of headings.

4 The conclusions should be brief and conclusive. They should accurately reflect the content of the main body and should relate back to the title and terms of reference. Conclusions should be a summary of the preceding, so new material must not be introduced at this stage.

5 Recommendations if required may come at the end of the conclusions or, in an elaborate report, may form a separate section. They must follow logically from the conclusions and be clearly laid out and unambiguous.

6 References relate to other authorities mentioned in the report and may be presented in sequence in a separate section. Normally this reference will be a brief statement of what someone else has concluded on a previous relevant occasion or possibly a quotation from some publication. These are part of the evidence and the reader should be able to access the source if required.

Alternatively, references may be included in the form of footnotes at the bottom of each page on which the reference occurs. This makes it much more convenient for the reader and therefore more likely that the references will be used.This method is fine if there are only one or two short references on most pages. However if there are many or a few long references on most pages, then they are probably best relegated to a separate section. Otherwise they have the effect of making the report disjointed; the references become almost a sub-plot of the main report. It also makes typing difficult due to the calculation required to decide when to stop typing each page and still get all the reference material onto that page.This is not a problem where the reports are prepared on word processors.

7 A Bibliography will be a list of other relevant publications which the reader may wish to consult but which have not been directly used in the report.

In addition to the use of sections and headed sub-sections, each paragraph within the report may be numbered using a hierarchical system and indented sub-paragraphs as follows:

2.0 Advantages of JCT 1980



2.1 The principal cost advantages result from the following xxxxx 2.1.1 xxxxxxxxx 2.1.2 xxxxxxxxx 2.1.3 xxxxxxxxx 2.1.3.1 xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx 2.1.3.2 xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

2.2 The advantages with regard to contract period are twofold 2.2.1 xxxxxxxx 2.2.2 xxxxxxxx etc.

This is the format which I would strongly recommend. It gives the report a professional look and enhances the structure which you are building up.

A further advantage stems from the fact that each paragraph can be uniquely identified by quoting its number elsewhere in the report. Thus when summarising or stating conclusions the writer can quote paragraphs as evidence.( eg. The advantages of using this form of contract ( 2.1 to 2.2 ) are clearly outweighed by the onerous penalties for non-completion (3.5.1)). Checking the report

After finishing the outline, you will prepare the first draft. This should be checked for how the report is structured and whether it fulfils your remit as the writer.

Check that the structure is logical; that the main points in the body of the report develop the arguments and that each section follows clearly from its predecessor.

Check for ambiguities. These are often difficult to find because you, as the writer, understand what you meant. You may not even consider other meanings which a different reader may ascribe to the same words.

If possible it is useful to let someone else read the draft before final typing.

Have you adopted the right tone; have you clarified jargon; have you adhered to the style rules? A second reader is also useful for spotting mistakes such as glibness and pomposity.

If you were the prospective reader, does the report fulfil your needs?

Illustrations

There is a traditional saying that 'a picture paints a thousand words'. An appropriate illustration will make data more



interesting to the eye and also more memorable. When giving verbal presentations or presenting a report, an illustration serves as a useful interruption to long narratives or lists of figures.

The illustration enables you to draw on the power of the receiver's sense of sight. The more senses you utilise then in general the greater the understanding.

Illustrations are sometimes essential. One can describe how to get from point A to point B but a MAP is essential to show how a variety of places relate to each other. The illustrations may be a necessary element to enable you to understand the task with which you are dealing. Some form of diagrammatic flow chart will be required to help prepare a complex algorithm for a piece of computer software.

Similarly if one wishes to describe the complex relationships between an organisation's management structure and its customers and suppliers, a narrative description would be difficult to construct and virtually unintelligible to the reader. In a case such as this, the answer is to use a SYSTEMS MAP which shows how each component of a system relates to both the other components and to other factors in the environment.

By the use of graphs, bar charts, line charts, pie charts, and scatter diagrams statistics, technical figures and data and their interrelationships are made more interesting, memorable and meaningful.

The following key points should be read in association with the Audio element of this course.

CRITICAL ANALYSISObjectives

To ascertain the candidate's ability in :-

Written and graphical communication Professional standards of organisation and presentation Analysis, reflective thought and problem solving Learning from experience gained

CRITICAL ANALYSISContent

Key issues of the project Options on possible courses of action available Reasons for rejection of options Reasons for adopted course of action Reflective analysis of experience

CRITICAL ANALYSISPresentation

Clear in content



Main points Professional style Good reporting Accurate spelling and presentation Easy to follow Appendices

Poor style devaluates content !

CRITICAL ANALYSIS

OUTLINE

Must be a detailed analysis

Advise panel of presentation project if more than one

Candidate must have intimate involvement

3,000 - 6,000 words

Maps, plans and photographs

Objective - demonstrate approach to and philosophy of the work of a chartered



surveyor

Must be certified unaided and true and faithful reflection of experience

Criteria to be applied

Are the written communication skills to a high standard in respect of presentation, organisation, graphics, spelling and grammar ?

Have the key issues been identified ?

Have all the options been considered and has the candidate explained why certain options have been rejected ?

In respect of the adopted course of action, are they supported by reasoned judgment and has the candidate demonstrated problem solving abilities ?

Is there a critical appraisal of the outcome ?

Has the candidate includes some reflective analysis of learning from the experience gained ?

Has the candidate demonstrated high standards of professional and technical knowledge ?



The Project

A vehicle for you to demonstrate your professional competence.

Does not have to be a big, exciting or successful project.

Does have to have provided youwith an opportunity to show your professional skills and the exercise of judgment.

Only tell the Assessors enough about the project to allow us to assess your competence.

How to Start ?



What is the project ?

Why did you choose it ?

Wrong reasons :

Only suitable job

Only project involved in

My supervisor told me

It was one of those jobs; one problem after another

Good reasons :

'Provide me with an excellent vehicle to demonstrate my professional skills and the exercise of judgment'

'Allows me to show development from assistant to



team leader over the life of the project'

'Involvement from inception to completion allows me to demonstrate the full depth and breadth of my experience'

'I really enjoyed the challenge of this very complex project'

ConfidentialityStatement that you have obtained the permission of all relevant parties that you may use in the project for your Critical Analysis.

Parties : Employer and the Client. May also include Design Team members or even third parties if anything in the analysis reflects badly upon them.

Do not give real names unless it is material.



Do not include sensitive information unless you have to. Examples would include Bill Rates or fee quote information. If you think you need this information included, ensure that you get EXPLICIT written permission.

Good idea to verbally reinforce this to the assessors in your presentation.

SupervisionRemember that you are still a probationer.

We want to know that you are a safe pair of hands and can be trusted.

Make it explicit that although you were doing the work, there was someone who oversaw your output and was able to provide help and guidance if



required.

We will decide if it is time for you to go solo.

LanguageWe want to know what you did, not your firm.

Do not be afraid to say 'I did this'

Key IssuesWhat are they ?

Time, Cost and Quality

Not just factual details but state why they are KEY.



eg The project sum was £2m, or

The project sum was £2m and due to the accountability restrictions with this public client, any variations could only be agreed in the next financial year.

The contract period was 9 months. or

The contract period for the shop opening was 9 months to enable trading to catch the Christmas period and the Client has made it clear that the viability of the project is dependent on this immovable completion date. or

The contract period for the project was 9 months and as this is one of a series of programmed completions, no variation was possible.

Example from GP analysis

Key Issues

The Clients Requirements

Prior to undertaking the property inspection and subsequent marketing campaign it was crucial to fully understand the clients requirements and aspirations for



the property in question.

In this case the client was keen to ensure he gained maximum value for the property, however was keen to minimise the active management of the property when let.

In addition the client was keen that the property should be let for as long as possible to a good covenant which would compliment the development. Finally, the client needed to gain income quickly in order to offset borrowings which had been made on the purchase and re-development of the property.

As a result covenant strength, swiftly gaining a client for the whole property rather than a tenant for each floor and achieving solid lease terms and rental levels were the major aims of the project.

What did you do ? Literally - “My role .....'



When were you acting as part of a team, what was your place ?

How did you do it ?Valuation, survey, estimate, billing, meetings etc.

'I prepared the valuation on the basis of .......'

'My cost estimate was based on .......'

Why did you do it that way ?'I chose this estimating technique because it was the most appropriate bearing in mind the information and the time available .....'

'I carried out the survey using the Code of Measurement ....'

'I used this method as it is prescribed by our QA system ...



Why not do it another way?The Assessors are specifically charged to assess you on whether you have considered all feasible options

You will be assessed on a scale ofOutstanding .........................Very weak

No Options = Very weak?

Other forms of contract or amendments to your chosen contract.

Other methods of valuation, survey, estimating

Do not detail spurious options which are clearly not appropriate.

If there is clearly a better way to do it, you would be expected to be aware of this and state why it was not used -



Lack of time

Not enough detail

Conflicting with your ISO procedures etc

A Critical Appraisal of the outcome of the Project

“The project was a big success.' NOEspecially if it was little thanks to you.

'As a result of our decision to recommend the use of a Partnering arrangement the client was very pleased with the outcome and we have now formally set these procedures in place for future programmes with the Client.'



Example from Spring 99

Analysis of the proposal

In order to outline the strength of the proposal, comparable evidence of other deals was provided to my client to compare the level of rent achieved on this letting with other recent transactions. From analysis of this information a strong case was presented to the client, recommending xxx as a potential tenant.

The major positive factors were:-

xx were a strong covenantThe new use complimented my clients existing premises No rent-free period creating an instant income stream. A contribution to legal costs was to be received. An increasing income providing evidence at rent review that other space within the xxxxxx complex was reversionary, unlocking further value on our clients investment.



xx would occupy the whole building minimising management costs.

The negative factors were:-

Letting the building on a floor by floor basis could have created a higher income for the building as a whole.

The ten-year lease with a five-year break option decreased the value of the property on the investment market.

The timescale of the transaction was uncertain due to xx already occupying a building elsewhere and their need to sublet before exchanging .

xx wished to undertake a major fit out programme and the feasibility of the scheme had to be clarified.

Despite the negative factors, after further discussions with the client and analysis of the other client interest, I was instructed to issue formal heads of terms, on a subject to contract basis, to xx with a view to instructing solicitors.



What did you learn from it?

Reflective - we do not expect you to have been perfect but we may expect you to show improvement.

Try to show some development.

'Over the course of the project I took responsibility for all site meetings / Client contact etc.'

'The estimating stage demonstrated the inadequacies of our existing IT equipment and my senior partner and I are currently investigating how to upgrade this into an integrated system which will enable us to be faster, more accurate and efficient within the office whilst providing a more



professional value-added service for the client.'

'The changes in our QA system which resulted from my work on the project has enabled us to guarantee a more reliable reporting system for our Clients.'

Transferable SkillsWhat have you learned that will help you throughout your professional life ?

Importance of open communication between the Client and the design team.

Right medium and right level (lay-person / expert)

Report writing skills

Importance of clear accurate minutes / records and agreement of all parties.

Need for written confirmation of instructions and basis

of fees and charges.

Others ?

ITInterpersonal skills - Teamwork



Negotiation skillsProblem solving, evaluation, creative thinkingLateral thinkingFlexibilityTime managementOrganisational skillsetc

The RICS Assessors marking scheme for the Critical Analysis.

This varies but in general comprises the 6 areas as discussed earlier.

1 Key issues of the project have been identified2 All options have been considered and reasons given for options

rejected.3 Adopted courses of action are supported by reasons and a

critical appraisal of the outcome4 Report contains a reflective analysis of the experience gained

i.e. lessons learned from the project5 Overall standard of written presentation ( layout, spelling,

grammar, graphics)6 Candidate has displayed good professional and technical

lnowledge and problem solving abilities

Each of the 3 assessors will rank each candidate on each of these 6 aspects using the following scale:

Poor No evidence of competence – levels not met

Weak Some limited evidence of competence- partially met but candidate not at the required elevl of competence

Satisfactory Evidence of competence demonstrated- competence levels fully met



Outstanding Evidence over and above basic requirements- competence levels more than met.

The assessors on the day will individually assess you under these criteria and objective marking schemes and the Chairman then compares each assessors marks and comments to come to a consensual judgement. However the assessors have of course already read your Analysis up to 2 weeks earlier and will have formed an opinion of you solely on the basis of the written submission before they meet you. It is much easier to impress the assessors if your Analysis follows this prescribed structure.

The related file demonstrated actual Critical Analyses from recent candidates. These are for guidance to show strategies for fulfilling the APC requirements. Your analysis should be your own unique piece of work but these can act as models for the individual components.

The analyses have been slightly changed to prevent the candidate, firm, client or project being identified. If for any reason you are able to identify any of these parties in any of the examples, we would expect this to remain confidential as per Rule 9 of the RICS Rules of Conduct.



Critical Analysis General

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Transcript of Critical Analysis General