<p>The housebuilding industry should see itself as more customer-led which will help it attract talent to the sector, according to Bukky Bird, group sustainability director of Barratt Developments.</p> <p><span>Speaking at a panel discussion at the HBF Future Talent conference, which took place in Bedfordshire for housebuilding graduates, Bird said that the “shared volume of communication” between other sectors and its customers “surpasses what we do”.</span></p><p></p> <p><span>“Homes are one of the most expensive purchases consumers will make, but we barely talk to them,” Bird said. “Construction should see itself more as consumer than tech [focused].”</span></p><p></p> <p><span>The industry’s collective goal was to “build great homes for people,” she pointed out. “Everything else is a means to an end”. Following this principle would in turn aid regulation and draw people to housebuilding. The industry also had an obligation “to be out there, making sure people understand the variety of roles. There’s almost every role [within housebuilding] that you can imagine.”</span></p><p></p> <p><span>The panel, also featuring HBF’s md Neil Jefferson, Rob Boughton, ceo of Thakeham Homes, and Richard Lankshear, NHBC’s senior technical services manager, also discussed the role of modern methods of construction (MMC) for housing delivery, customers and skills and embodied carbon – the …