How to Hire a Site Manager in Australia

Your site manager gives notice on the day the slab goes down. You've got four subbies booked, a client who rings daily and nobody to run the job. Here is how to hire a site manager without panic, from the brief to the first fortnight.

A site manager runs the job day to day. They look after the schedule, the subbies (subcontractors), safety, quality and the client on site.

The short answer: how do I hire a site manager in Australia?

Write a short brief first. Then find people through referrals and a few job sites, and use the same interview questions for everyone. Ask about real jobs that went wrong. Call at least two referees, make a written offer, and plan the first 14 days before they start.

The rest of this post covers each step in plain language.

Write a five-minute brief before you post anything

Most bad hires start with a vague ad. Spend five minutes on a brief first.

Write down:

• The jobs. Houses, townhouses, fit-outs or commercial work? What size?
• The crew. How many subbies and tradies will they run at once?
• The tasks. Scheduling, ordering, quality checks, safety paperwork, client updates.
• Must-haves and nice-to-haves. Keep the must-have list short.
• Pay, hours and start date. Be ready to put the pay in the ad.
• Tickets you can check. Workers on a construction site need a White Card, the construction induction card. Safe Work Australia says workers must have one before they start work on a construction site.

Licensing rules differ by state, so check your state regulator before you write "licensed" in an ad. Don't list a ticket unless you know it applies.

An empty site manager seat is expensive too. The free hiring cost check helps you work out what an empty site manager role costs you each week. A wrong hire can cost even more, which our post on the cost of a bad hire in construction explains.

Where to look (beyond Seek)

The best site managers are often already employed. They aren't browsing job boards.

• Referrals. Ask your best subbies, suppliers and certifiers who they'd work for. This is often the quickest way.
• Indeed. Setting up an Indeed employer account is free. Indeed's employer page says Smart Sourcing is a paid subscription that lets you see candidates and invite them to apply.
• LinkedIn. Search by job title and area. LinkedIn's help page shows how to use capitals for AND, OR and NOT, and quote marks for phrases.
• Specialist job boards. Some sites focus on construction roles. Check what they charge first.
• Seek. It is a big board and you pay per ad. Our post on Seek vs Indeed for hiring tradies compares how each one charges.

Whatever you use, put the pay in the ad. Fair Work says job ads can't advertise pay below an employee's minimum entitlements, such as an award rate. Check which award or agreement covers the role.

What good looks like on paper

A good CV shows more than titles. Look for:

• Jobs like yours. Similar size, similar type, similar number of trades.
• Stayed through to handover. Did they finish projects, or move on halfway?
• Clear numbers. How many jobs at once, how big, how many subbies.
• A reason for each move. Plain ones are fine.
• A current White Card. Ask to see it.

Qualifications can help but they don't prove someone can run a job. The national training register describes the Certificate IV in Building and Construction as a qualification for builders, site managers and managers of small to medium building businesses. It has a Building and a Site Management pathway.

Plenty of good site managers learned on the tools and have no certificate. Treat a qualification as one point in the person's favour, not a pass mark. If a CV claims one, ask for the certificate.

Interview questions that test site control

Use the same questions for every candidate. Take notes and score each answer straight after. Our post on interview questions for carpenters has more on how to run a fair interview.

1. Walk me through a job you ran from start to handover. A solid answer is specific: stages, trades, problems and dates.
2. How do you plan the week ahead? They should talk about trade bookings, deliveries and checking the weather.
3. A subbie doesn't turn up. What do you do? They should call, find a backup and tell the client early.
4. A client asks for a change halfway through. What happens? They should price it and get it signed before any work starts.
5. How do you run site safety day to day? They should mention inductions, checks, talking to the crew and fixing hazards straight away.
6. Tell me about a job that fell behind. What did you do? They own their part and explain what changed after.
7. How do you check quality? Good answers include checking each stage before the next trade starts.
8. How do you handle a tradie who keeps cutting corners? A solid answer starts with a clear chat, then a written note, and doesn't dodge the issue.
9. What would you want in your first two weeks here? They ask about the jobs, the crew and who they report to.

Listen for "I" and "we" in the right places. A good manager says what they did, not just what the team did.

Red flags

Pause if you see any of these:

• Vague answers with no names, dates or job sizes.
• Blaming everyone else for every problem.
• No questions about your jobs, your crew or your standards.
• A work history with many short stints and no clear reason.
• Dodging the worst-day question.
• Pushy about pay before they've seen the work.
• Won't give referee details.

One flag may have a good explanation. Three should slow you down.

Reference checks that matter

Don't just ask "Was he good?" Everyone says yes. Ask for two referees, ideally one boss and one person who worked under them.

Try these questions:

• "What was their worst day on site? What did they do?"
• "How did they handle subbies who ran late?"
• "What would you tell me to watch for in the first month?"
• "Would you hire them again?"

Listen to the pause before the answer. Hesitation tells you something.

Our free 7 Hiring Mistakes report and Recruiter's Toolkit includes checklists you can use for references and interviews.

Offer, start date and first 14 days

Put the offer in writing: role, pay, hours, start date and who they report to. Fair Work says employers must give every new employee a Fair Work Information Statement before, or as soon as possible after, they start.

Fair Work also says employees on probation get the same entitlements as anyone else, and the employer usually decides how long it lasts.

Plan the first 14 days before they arrive:

1. Day 1. Site induction, a walk of every job, introductions to key subbies.
2. Week 1. Shadow you on one job, then run one stage with you close by.
3. Day 10. A short catch-up. What's going well, what's unclear?
4. Day 14. Agree what they take over fully.

Induction rules are set by your state or territory WHS (work health and safety) regulator. Safe Work Australia points you to your local regulator. Check with them for what applies to your site.

Keeping good people after week two matters too. Our post on how to keep good tradies covers it.

When to get help vs do it yourself

You can do most of this yourself. The brief, the questions and the reference checks take hours, not weeks.

An agency can make sense when you need someone fast and have no time to run the process. It can also make sense for a senior role you can't fill alone. Know the fees and the terms first.

Our post on in-house recruitment vs agency in construction compares them. HiredConstruction is not an agency. The aim is to teach you to run your own hiring.

If you'd like to see where your hiring stands today, try the free hiring scorecard.

General information only. It is not legal or tax advice. Check award, Fair Work and state WHS rules for your own situation.

Want help with your next hire?

Book a free 15-minute discovery call and we will talk through your next hire. Prefer to learn it yourself? The Construction Hiring System course ($497 AUD) teaches the full method.

FAQ

How do I hire a site manager in Australia?

Write a short brief first, then look through referrals, Indeed, LinkedIn and construction job boards. Use the same interview questions for each candidate and check at least two referees. Put the offer in writing, tell them the pay in the ad and plan their first 14 days before they start.

What should I ask in a site manager interview?

Ask about real jobs, not theory. Try "Walk me through a job you ran from start to handover" and "A subbie doesn't turn up, what do you do?" Then ask about a job that fell behind. Look for specific names, dates and numbers, and for someone who owns their part.

What qualifications should a site manager have in Australia?

Workers on a construction site need a White Card. Beyond that, it depends on your jobs and your state, so check your state regulator. A qualification like the Certificate IV in Building and Construction can help, but experience on jobs like yours matters just as much.

How do I check a site manager's references?

Ask for two referees, ideally a boss and someone who worked under them. Ask about their worst day on site and how they handled late subbies. Ask whether the referee would hire them again. Vague answers and long pauses tell you as much as the words do.

Should I use an agency to hire a site manager?

You can, especially if you need someone fast or have no time. Agencies charge fees, so read the terms first. Many builders can run the process themselves with a good brief, set questions and proper reference checks. Learning to do it yourself also saves money on the next hire.