Maintain working relationships, communicate effectively and support diversity and inclusion

URN: ECI PC103
Business Sectors (Suites): Project Control, Estimating, Planning and Cost Engineering
Developed by: ECITB
Approved: 2025

Overview

This standard is about the way you maintain working relationships, communicate effectively and objectively, and support diversity and inclusion. This will enable you to work and communicate well with colleagues to successfully apply project controls principles to achieve positive outcomes.

You will need to think diversly, work ethically and support diversity and inclusion by treating everyone with fairness and respect. You will need to consider how your actions and work approach impacts on others in the working environment.

Who this standard is for
This standard is for those who work in Project Controls-related disciplines, including estimators, planning engineers, schedulers, cost engineers and project controls engineers, risk practitioners and contract managers.


Performance criteria

You must be able to:

Ethics, diversity and inclusion

  1. treat everyone fairly and with respect to support the creation of a welcoming and inclusive environment for everyone
  2. follow relevant work or professional codes of conduct, as appropriate for your role
  3. always work with integrity and rigour

Maintaining working relationships

  1. develop effective working relationships with a range of people with whom you interface
  2. maintain effective relationships by:
    • keeping others informed about work activities which affect them
    • seeking assistance from others in a polite and courteous manner
    • resolving disagreements in a constructive and objective manner
    • considering the impact of your work and work requirements on others
    • responding in a positive way when others ask for help or information

Reporting lines and related communication

  1. resolve problems within the limits of your authority:
    • as they arise
    • escalate if needed
    • report, in accordance with procedures
  2. demonstrate integrity and rigour by completing all documentation accurately and correctly in accordance with procedures

Communicate effectively

  1. communicate with good interpersonal skills
  2. communicate the right information with the right people in an appropriate format to enable effective project control
  3. communicate with integrity by providing evidence-based insights and recommendations
  4. work effectively demonstrating adaptability, initiative, integrity, and impartiality
  5. modify communication style and method to suit stakeholders
  6. respond to questions professionally and objectively
  7. understand the role that honesty and integrity plays in supporting project governance, including the challenges related to upholding these values in a project environment

Knowledge and Understanding

You need to know and understand:

Ethics, diversity and inclusion

  1. the purpose of ethics, diversity, and inclusion in a typical workplace
  2. what working ethically means in terms of equality, equity, diversity, and inclusion
  3. why it is important to treat all people fairly and with respect
  4. why it is important to work honestly, displaying integrity and rigour
  5. codes of conduct, including work-based and professional codes of conduct relevant to your role

Maintaining working relationships

  1. why it is important to create and maintain working relationships and the benefits of this
  2. the different problems that can affect working relationships and the actions that can be taken to deal with specific difficulties

Reporting lines and related communication

  1. the responsibilities you have in a typical workplace and the responsibilities of others within your typical work location
  2. the importance of reporting lines, procedures, systems and documentation, the consequences of failing to follow them in relation to effective communication
  3. the limits of your responsibility and who to refer to for clarification on issues
  4. the importance of dealing promptly and effectively with problems and reporting those which have been, and those that cannot be solved

Communicate effectively

  1. styles and methods of effective communication
  2. stakeholder management and engagement
  3. project controls related information and the stakeholders that you will communicate the information to
  4. how to evidence insights and recommendations that you provide
  5. the importance of adaptability, initiative, integrity, and impartiality in the role of a project controller

Scope/range


Scope Performance


Scope Knowledge


Values


Behaviours


Skills


Glossary

Additional Information:

Ethics, diversity, and inclusion
Everyone has an ethical obligation to create a welcoming environment within which we work – to ensure all could feel included.


Links To Other NOS


External Links


Version Number

1

Indicative Review Date

2029

Validity

Current

Status

Original

Originating Organisation

Engineering Construction Industry Training Board

Original URN

ECI PC16, ECI PC17, ECI PC18, ECI PC68

Relevant Occupations

Contract Manager, Engineer, Estimator, Risk Manager, Project Controls, Cost controller, Planner, Scheduler, Risk analyst

SOC Code


Keywords

Relationships; communication; communication theory; listening techniques; responsibilities; accountabilities; stakeholder engagement; ethics; equality; equity; diversity; inclusion; fairness; respect; inclusive; honesty; integrity; rigour; transparency; facilitate; facilitation; collaborate; collaboration; leadership; support; coaching; mentoring; positive values; reporting; behaviour; resolve conflicts; confidentiality; technical communication; data commentary; human factors; optimism bias; professional development; professional development plan; professional bodies; delivering unwanted news; delivering bad news