The importance of client communication in building surveying
Posted on: 14 May, 2026
At the recent RICS Building Surveying Conference, Nicola Allen, Head of School – Construction, Surveying and Engineering, participated in a panel discussion on ‘Strengthening Client Communication and Reporting’. Drawing on RICS professional standards for client relationships and communication, alongside insights from the panel session, Nicola explores why communication is critical and how it can be improved in practice.
Effective client communication sits at the heart of professional practice in building surveying. Much like broader challenges in housing delivery, where success depends on alignment across stakeholders, successful surveying outcomes rely on aligning the surveyor’s expertise with the client’s needs, expectations, and decision-making processes. Strong communication is not simply about transferring information; it is about ensuring clarity, relevance, and actionable insight.
Communication as the foundation of professional practice
The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) emphasises that professionals must communicate clearly, transparently, and in a way that clients can understand and act upon. This includes tailoring communication to the client’s level of knowledge, maintaining confidentiality, and ensuring that advice is both accurate and accessible.
In practice, communication failures are one of the most common causes of dissatisfaction. As highlighted in the panel discussion, the most frequent issue is not a lack of technical knowledge, but overly complex, fact-heavy reports that fail to distil key messages. These reports may be technically correct but ultimately ineffective if the client cannot readily interpret the findings or understand the recommended actions.
Understanding the client: the starting point
A core principle of effective communication is understanding the client before any work begins. This aligns directly with RICS Professional Standards, which stresses the importance of recognising client objectives, context, and preferred communication methods.
During the discussion the panel emphasised several practical steps:
- Identify the purpose of the report (e.g. acquisition, maintenance, funding).
- Understand who will read it (e.g. funder, asset manager, homeowner).
- Adapt tone, language, and level of detail accordingly.
For example, a bank or funder may require a concise, 1–2 page summary focused on risk and financial implications, whereas a technical stakeholder may require a detailed 30+ page report with full appendices. Failure to align communication with the client’s needs often leads to confusion, rework, and reduced trust.
Early engagement and scoping
Effective communication begins long before the report is written. The panel highlighted the importance of early-stage engagement, including:
- Conducting desktop research (planning portals, background information).
- Agreeing the scope of work, including thresholds for reporting (e.g. cost cut-offs).
- Determining the format of deliverables (brief summary, Excel schedule, or full report).
This approach ensures that both surveyor and client are aligned from the outset, reducing ambiguity and avoiding later disputes. It also reflects expectations that professionals should define and agree the terms of engagement clearly.
Producing clear, actionable reports
A key responsibility of the building surveyor is to translate technical findings into clear, actionable advice. The panel identified several best practices:
Executive summaries
Every report should include a concise executive summary that highlights key risks, identifies priority actions, and provides strategic recommendations.
Visual communication
Visual tools significantly improve understanding. These include aiagrams and sketches, tables and phased plans, and maps and annotated images.
One example praised in the session was a simple hand-drawn diagram illustrating water ingress – demonstrating that clarity often outweighs complexity.
Structured reporting
Reports should be structured to allow quick access to essential information and detailed technical evidence in appendices. This ensures that time-pressured clients can act quickly while retaining full documentation for audit or legal purposes.
Tailoring tone and language
Communication must also be adapted to the individual client. Professional Standards and ethics reinforces the need for professionalism, clarity, and sensitivity in all interactions.
The panel stressed:
- Avoid unnecessary jargon; where technical terms are required, explain them clearly.
- Be prepared to repeat or reframe information.
- Consider client diversity, including overseas clients or those with different communication preferences.
In some cases, the same project may require multiple reports tailored to different audiences, such as a technical document for consultants and a simplified summary for investors.
Quality assurance and professional responsibility
Strong communication is inseparable from quality assurance. Reports must not only be clear but also accurate, consistent, and defensible.
Best practice includes a peer review to identify errors or incorrect assumptions; checking grammar, structure, and clarity; and ensuring all risks are clearly identified and supported.
The panel highlighted the importance of maintaining an audit trail and being able to stand by professional advice, particularly in scenarios where reports may be scrutinised in legal or contractual disputes.
Managing challenging client interactions
Not all client communication is straightforward. Difficult conversations often arise when delivering unwelcome findings or managing expectations.
Effective strategies include remaining calm and professional, avoiding reactive responses, and using direct communication methods, such as phone calls, to resolve issues quickly.
The ability to present difficult information in a balanced and constructive way is a critical professional skill.
The role of technology and continuous development
Technology is changing how surveyors communicate, but it does not replace professional judgement.
The panel noted that AI and dictation tools can improve efficiency in capturing data but that human interpretation and distillation remain essential.
Additionally, there is a recognised need for improved training in communication skills across the profession. With a growing skills gap and limited conversion of graduates into professional roles, improving how surveyors communicate is essential for attracting and retaining talent.
Demographic change and its impact on communication
An important emerging theme discussed at the conference was the changing demographic profile of the building surveying profession, and the implications this has for communication skills.
Current data presented in the session highlighted a widening imbalance:
- A relatively small number of practitioners aged under 30.
- A significantly larger proportion aged over 50, with many approaching retirement.
- A limited conversion rate of graduates into professional practice despite strong academic interest.
This demographic shift creates several communication challenges and opportunities:
Knowledge transfer and communication style
As experienced practitioners retire, there is a risk of losing not only technical knowledge but also well-developed client communication skills built through years of practice. These include the ability to distil complex issues into clear advice, manage client expectations, and communicate risk effectively and confidently.
Younger professionals entering the industry may have strong technical and digital skills but often require more structured development in client-facing communication, particularly in high-pressure or complex advisory situations.
Evolving client expectations
At the same time, the client base itself is becoming more diverse. Clients increasingly expect faster, clearer, and more visual communication as well as digital-first outputs (dashboards, summaries, interactive data). They also want less jargon and more direct recommendations.
This shift requires surveyors to adapt their communication style, blending traditional professionalism with more modern, accessible reporting formats.
The role of training and education
The panel emphasised that communication should be treated as a core professional competency, not a secondary skill. There is a need to:
- Embed communication training earlier in education and APC pathways.
- Use practical exercises such as presentations, visual reporting, and peer reviews.
- Encourage continuous professional development focused on communication and client engagement.
Improving communication skills across all career stages is essential to bridging the gap between generations and maintaining professional standards.
Attracting future talent
Better communication also plays a role in promoting the profession itself. Clearer messaging about career pathways, real-world impact, and opportunities may help improve conversion rates and attract a more diverse range of entrants into building surveying
Conclusion
Client communication is not an auxiliary skill in building surveying but central to delivering value. Effective communication ensures that technical expertise is translated into meaningful outcomes, enabling clients to make informed decisions with confidence.
The key lessons are clear:
- Start with a deep understanding of the client.
- Define and agree scope early.
- Produce clear, structured, and visual reports.
- Ensure quality, accuracy, and defensibility.
- Communicate professionally, even in challenging situations.
Ultimately, strong client communication creates alignment between surveyor and client, much like alignment across systems is needed in housing delivery. Without it, even the most technically sound advice risks being misunderstood or ignored.
