I was recently fortunate enough to find myself invited to a webinar/workshop where I was introduced as an “expert” and mentor. Now I’m fairly happy for people to call me whatever they like, so long as it’s not too rude, but expert is not something I have ever felt comfortable with. When it comes to the niche world of BIM there are, in my honest opinion, rather too many “experts” around. After all, not everyone can be an expert in their field, surely? Where are all the “enthusiastic journeymen” or even “keen amateurs”? In fact, the term is so overused as to be in danger of becoming rather meaningless. It has become like the “Celtic arm ring” tattoo equivalent, that looked great in Bali in the 90’s when no one else had one, but is so mainstream these days that it can be more of a talking point NOT to have a tattoo.

Arm ring tattoos: so passé.

So if we are not to introduce all knowledgeable BIM peeps as “experts”, then what should we be introducing them as instead? Well, here is a suggestion; although it is only a suggestion. How about we just do away with all the guff about how “Mr So-and-so was the first person in the world to export an NWC file”, or “Ms Blah-de-blah is frequently invited to perform parlour tricks to government ministers” and let the audience judge the value of the content for themselves? Why? Because it is my considered opinion, having sat through a few of these things in my time, that the true “experts” of any given BIM situation spend far too much of their time attempting to unravel the Gordian Knots they frequently confront on their projects that they simply haven’t the time to fanny about with putting fancy Powerpoint slideshows together. You are as likely to find genuine expertise in the audience at such events as on the stage talking about it.

So back to where I started with this. A webinar thing. What with the COVID-19 apocalypse, the industry, which previously comprised of a calendar filled with copious networking events, seminars, lectures and summits, culminating in the “Burning Man festival of BIM” that was Autodesk University with its annual pilgrimage to Las Vegas, was completely wiped out. If there was any silver lining to this great, black cloud of the pandemic, it is that far fewer people have been subjected to the merry-go-round of unrepresentative award ceremonies, snake oil salesmen soapbox events and theory lacking in practical application that has been a feature of the growth of BIM. Many senior IT/CAD/BIM/digital whatever saleswankers have been prevented from attending their annual get togethers on the company Dime. And, guess what? Has the push for BIM upskilling and usage fallen behind globally by a whole year? I guess we will know for certain as 2021 progresses, but something tells me that this whole experience, as painful as it has been for so many people due to furloughs and staff cuts, it should have become abundantly clear that the parasitical relationship between software vendors via the preferred vectors of IT/CAD/BIM/digital departments, is not only unhealthy but entirely superfluous to meaningful progression and uptake of BIM throughout the AECO industry.

Something we can all do though, and something that does add value and meaning, both to teacher and pupil, is mentoring. If all of those “enthusiastic journeymen” and “keen amateurs” were to each find a suitable BIM professional mentor to take them under their wing, and those mentees were to go on and do the same once suitably experienced, the whole upskilling and knowledge cock-block that is the most frequent accusation foisted upon BIM advocates as the reason why “Design Department A doesn’t do BIM” would be progressively overcome.

But do remember one thing; it’s mentees, not manatees.

By Bim Weasel

Born in 1900, in a block of cheese, Bim Weasel has had to struggle from day one. After eating his way out, bursting forth, like some kind of pasteurised Alien alternative, he began trading nuts and seeds before moving on to complex financial derivatives. After making his first million at the tender age of 13 and three quarters, he diversified into commodities. The outbreak of the First World War saw his fortunes rise yet further, as now the owner of copper, bauxite and iron mines in Papua New Guinea and Australia, and rubber plantations in the Dutch East Indies, his holdings shot up in value. The next decade saw Bim spend his fortune on women and fast cars, whilst the rest he just wasted. By the outbreak of World War Two, Bim was destitute and living as a tinker and shoe repairer in a coastal village in Sulawesi. Despite not being a Dutch national, his love of the colour orange saw him interned by Japanese Imperial forces. He was sentenced to execution and only saved at the last minute by a young Jedi. In gratitude Bim joined the Rebel Alliance and saw action on the forest moon of Endor, frozen Hoth and arid Tatooine. Upon his return to earth, with laurels upon his brow and feted as a war hero, he wanted nothing more than to return to nature and work the land; a simple agrarian lifestyle, far away from conflict. He kept a low profile and slipped from the public consciousness, his past largely forgotten and his true identity unknown to those few mortals who met him on his occasional forays into urban areas in search of cheap thrills and rice flour. He may have remained forgotten and unknown, wandering Southeast Asia as a vagabond, had he not overheard a conversation in a bar one night whilst on one of his jaunts into civilisation. A pair of businessmen were talking in hushed tones about a new disruptive force, sweeping all before it and trampling all over norms and customs the world over. No, this was not a US presidential candidate, but an American software developer called Autodesk, and in particular a product called Revit. Intrigued, Bim sought knowledge and found a ready source of pudgy, pallid and poorly dressed men from the damp isles of Britain; a cold and windswept outpost on the extreme fringes of Northern Europe. A destination even the all-conquering Roman legions decided to abandon due to its inhospitable climate, arcane traditions and warm beer. However, it turned out that living in fog and drizzle for three hundred days of the year also accelerated creativity and the ability to generate a seemingly endless number of Microsoft PowerPoint slideshows, as well as memes. Bim immediately felt comfortable in this land of sunlight starved and sexually repressed Gollums, and within a short time he had established himself as a purveyor of some of the finest slideshows, Yammer posts and memes. Bim travelled the world, expounding eager audiences with tales of 15-20% efficiency gains, whilst providing little or no hard evidence. It was like a dream come true for Bim, having felt that he had discovered his true calling! The rise of Bim has since been vertiginous, with almost all nations, states, principalities and fiefdoms seeing the benefits Bim brought, but with one stubborn exception; Hong Kong. Seeing it as almost his divine duty, Bim took it upon himself to conquer that semi-submerged volcanic caldera in the South China Sea. He has been there ever since. Hong Kong still stubbornly refuses to accept Bim, yet still he persists. Now entering the third decade of his second century of existence, he feels sufficiently knowledgeable to be able to pass on some of his experiences, here in this blog. Read on, brave adventurer!

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.