The successful contractor

Winning work (part 1)

29/9/2016

Your client has heard your pitch or read your proposal. You're confident in your estimate, and the players involved. The client hasn't green-lit your proposal, and the scheduled start date is looming.

Every client or design team question is a red-hot priority to get answered. Whatever else you've got to do will have to wait.

As days creep by there's still no contract award. What do you do?

It's just so close!

Estimators suffer a tendency to think like...estimators. Specifically they tend to focus on measuring and pricing items rather than considering what's been presented to the client. Adding to this problem, Estimators might be accustomed to competing against their peers in the market. This implies that a general level of knowledge and skill is present among competing estimators. No such criteria exists among clients. Clients may not understand industry practices, terminology, and jargon.

Well I'm the low bidder, surely that's enough for them!
Consider the case of a one-time builder like a standalone retail building. The client may have little to no personal experience with the construction industry. However they have doubtlessly read about State or Federal projects that became boondoggles through mismanagement and greed. It's a grave concern to an individual that cost over-runs could put them under before they can even start. The tighter their budget, the less likely they are to have contingency funds to pay for change orders. This is a serious commitment, similar to hiring a surgeon. Clients need the project to be successful on their terms. That means defining and addressing whatever they're most concerned about.

The key to closing is knowing which door is open.

Don't be like this guy

Time Critical
Some clients will be especially sensitive to deadline delays. Retail establishments that aren't open in time for major shopping seasons can face financial ruin as a result. Office remodels might entail renting a temporary space, effectively doubling or tripling their rent during construction. Clients like this would be looking for a firm schedule commitment in the bids they receive.

Competence with Complexity
Other Clients are primarily concerned with the functional outcome of complex systems. Factories, or manufacturing facilities might require extensive coordination between; Architects, Engineers, specialty contractors, equipment purveyors, and the build team. Clients in this case might need a General Contractor who can take the many demands of all these disciplines and direct the resources towards a successful outcome. "By the book" bidding practices won't carry far with these clients. Problem solving, conflict resolution, and strong leadership need to be promoted to attract these clients attention.

Perfect Craftsmanship
Certain clients want perfection in terms of craftsmanship, and materials. These clients are willing to hire strong design teams with well-defined construction documents. Top-tier subcontractors deliver the sort of performance these clients are looking for. These clients want to know you've vetted every tradesman you'll have working on their project. The best indicator of future success is past performance.

Proving your abilities with a portfolio of similar work is a good approach. Appearing "cheap" may work against a bidder.

Bid Packet Perfection
Municipal, public, and institutional clients often have regulations and policies they must adhere to. These regulations may give preference to specific groups like Women Owned Business, or Minority Owned Businesses. Depending on the policies, these clients might have a percentage of participation for these groups in terms of contract value. Proving the percentages with the correct paperwork, on complex jobs often leads to minor discrepancies. Winning and losing these bids can be as simple as getting the paper work correct. I've encountered urban city projects that were re-bid because there wasn't a single GC who had submitted an error-free proposal the first time! These clients can't accept an incomplete/imperfect proposal so it's very important to prioritize accordingly.

Corral the Committee
Sometimes the client is a committee tasked with reviewing the proposals and awarding the contract. In the best of cases, this is a smooth democratic process. More often, it's an exercise in scope creep. Questions regarding the project quickly move to the hypothetical. Before long, you're attempting to give accurate schedule, budget, and permitting feedback on something imagined within the conversation! Committees lacking firm leadership are long on good intentions and short on decision-making. It's critical to understand that these clients won't make decisions any faster once the project is underway.

Projects rarely get schedule extensions so unanswered questions can pose significant risk. Kindly rise to the situation and fill that leadership gap. Diplomatic but firm direction keeps the committee on task and gets everyone where they need to be. Done well, they'll be satisfied that your firm took their direction properly.

All inclusive
Clients with Design-Build projects have an entirely different perspective than others. Lacking an Architect's representation, these clients are looking for a turn-key proposal which effectively delivers them their vision of the project within the schedule and budget submitted. These clients generally perceive change orders to be impossible since "you designed it". Whatever schematic design documents were provided will be expected in your proposal regardless of how vague, misleading, or apparently irrelevant. A history of previous successes might be significant with these clients as well.

Brass tacks
Finally, there's the budget-conscious client. These clients occur at every tier and there's just nothing for it but to be low bidder. Clients with high expectations and low funds often arrive at bid day to find they've blown their budget. Estimators are often too discreet to ask the client how far the budget is off. Lacking this information, they're unable to determine how much needs to be cut. This leads to playing guessing games with breakouts, alternates, and value engineering. Estimating is NOT GUESSING. Throwing out whatever might save money is a foolhardy practice that consumes resources, generates risk, and lowers profitability. It's a terrible practice that desperately needs to stop. Every number you provide can be used against you later. Many GC's have unit-priced their way into an unprofitable project by "helping" an underfunded client. Charitable donations should at least be tax-deductible!

It may help to be reminded that the Architect typically knows the clients budget at the earliest design stages. They also know the clients priorities for the project. Some features are naturally more critical to the client than others. When it comes to big budget gaps, the Architect should be involved. Working together with the Architect reduces the odds that they'll reject your suggestions later.

"Your number was competitive, I'm still deciding which way to go."
It's absolutely imperative that estimators recognize the connection between time for consideration and pressure to act. The deadlines for bidding are a source of pressure for all bidders. Get it done by this day, no excuses, no exceptions. Clients who marinate on the proposals for longer than you had to bid aren't playing fair. It can be extremely difficult to get the clients attention after the bid. Stay after it because more time translates to less pressure. Dithering clients might be approached by a competitor who captures an opportunity to revise their proposal to meet some previously undisclosed demand. Now that competitor is "working with" the client. Potentially generating inertia away from the actual outcome of the bid via trust-building rapport.

Next week read part 2!

Thanks Anton for your valuable insight into construction estimating
© Anton Takken 2015 all rights reserved
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Do you lead by example?

25/9/2016

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forgotten construction equipment - see footnote

Our construction projects made extensive use of steel forms. These were joined together by clips and wedges. When stripping the forms the carpenters and form-workers used to knock out the wedges and the clip and wedge would fall to the ground where they were often left – eventually becoming lost, buried in the dirt or swept out with the trash. Now these clips and wedges only cost about fifty cents. None the less I made it a habit as a young site engineer, then as a construction manager and even when I was the general manager of a construction division to pick up these clips and wedges together with other small items of formwork equipment. Now don’t get me wrong, I didn’t actively spend time searching for these items, but I was observant enough that as I went about my normal business of inspecting progress, safety, quality and attending to the day to day issues on the project I picked these items up in passing and handed them to the supervisor, foreman or carpenter in that area. I even picked up nails and screws lying in the dirt, not because they were of real value but because they could have punctured a tyre on one of our construction vehicles resulting in lost time and additional costs.

Now I was reminded of this habit when a project manager invited me to visit his construction project. Ten years ago he was a young site engineer, newly qualified and learning the ropes on one of my projects. He remarked that he still remembers my actions of picking up the small items of formwork equipment and involuntarily repeats the habit on his project.

The impact of our good examples
Over the years I probably picked up a couple of thousand dollars of equipment, which to some might not seem worth the effort of getting their hands dirty. But it’s the indirect impacts of my action that made the real contribution.

Supervisors and their team saw that I placed a value on the items I collected. They saw I cared enough about the items that I picked them up. They therefore took a little extra care to look after the equipment they were working with. Some years ago the mayor of New York took action against crime and he started with broken windows. His proposition was that if you ignored the small criminal acts it was setting an example that all crime could be ignored. I set the example that we should look after the small items of equipment which then automatically meant that the bigger items would also be looked after.
There was a multiplier impact of my actions which is demonstrated by the project manager that was a young engineer many years ago. I may have only picked up a couple of thousand dollars of equipment over the years, but this habit has been multiplied a hundred times over so the cumulative impact is probably hundreds of thousands of dollars.
My team saw that the manager wasn’t scared to get their hands dirty. I was more respected for these actions.

Lead by example
In my years in construction it never ceased to amaze me how observant construction workers were. It was noticed when the Construction Manager arrived late in the mornings, when they took an extended lunch break or left early in the afternoon. But they noticed other bad habits as well. Once a worker was caught stealing items from the project and his defense at the disciplinary hearing was that when the project had scrap metal (waste reinforcing bars and other items) the project manager instructed him to load it onto the truck and take it to the scrap yard to sell. The scrap metal was paid for in cash which the worker handed to the project manager who then put the money in his pocket. Now the project manager later paid the money into the company’s system but the worker didn’t know that, and automatically presumed the manager had pocketed the money for their personal use. They perceived that the project manager was stealing and it was therefore acceptable practice to also steal.

So we see that just as good habits have a multiplier effect so to can bad habits also multiply. The project manager who has an extended lunch break could cause all the workers on the project to have an extended lunch break. But it’s not just about the habits of the project manager it also comes down in ensuring that everyone in the team keeps to the same rules. Allowing one worker to leave the job site early today, inevitably leads to ten workers leaving early tomorrow, more the next day until everyone leaves early. When everyone leaves five minutes early and nothing is said, then the five minutes becomes ten minutes and ten minutes becomes fifteen. Everyone leaving fifteen minutes early on a large project could cost hundreds of dollars every day.

Safety is one area where some managers set a poor example. The CEO of one company frequently visited projects and didn’t wear the correct personal protective equipment – except when he visited my projects. Even if he was only on the project for five minutes I insisted he wore the correct safety footwear, hat and glasses. Not only was it for his safety but those were the rules on my project and everyone was expected to follow suit. But setting the right example meant we had no problems with our team not wearing the correct personal protective equipment.

Leading by example not only means that managers should be seen to be obeying the rules and doing the right thing, but it also means that they shouldn’t walk by others who aren’t doing the right thing. Walking past poor quality work, an unsafe act, unproductive workers or someone misusing equipment is perceived by others that these acts are condoned and accepted.

Conclusion
Next time you arrive late at work, or neglect to obey the safety rules on your project consider who is watching and the impact your behaviour will have on the project team. It’s no use lecturing workers on poor time keeping, being intoxicated at the work place, of unsafe practices and poor quality work if management ignores the rules and condones some workers poor work.

Even today if I see litter lying in the street outside my house, or that’s in front of me in the park, I pick it up and throw it in the trash bin. If I don’t do it, who will? Again I don’t actively go and search it out, but if it’s there at my feet I pick it up. It doesn’t cost me anything and it’s better than whining about the litter in the neighbourhood. Oh, and just maybe I’m setting an example for others in the neighbourhood to follow!

Are you setting the right example? What are the workers on your project saying about you?

Footnote – The photograph above was taken on a project site many months after the contractor had demobilised. Obviously the items of equipment had been covered by dirt and been forgotten by the contractor. But even if the contractor had discovered the equipment when they demobilised from the project the items had probably corroded and possibly have risked been damaged by vehicles.

To read more about the author’s books and find out where you can purchase them visit the pages on this website by clicking the links below:
'Successful Construction Project Management: The Practical Guide'
'Building a Successful Construction Company: The Practical Guide'
'Construction Claims: A Short Guide for Contractors'
© 2016 This article is not to be reproduced for commercial purposes without written permission from the author.

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10 Tips to improve productivity on your project

21/9/2016

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Construction is notorious for poor productivity. What contributes to this problem and how can we improve construction productivity on our projects?
Imagine if we could improve our labor productivity by just 5%. Not difficult one would imagine. If labor makes up 40% of a project’s cost then effectively you could save 2% on your project costs. 2% additional profit! Doesn’t sound like much? But if your profit margin was 10% then a 5% improvement in productivity could mean we now make 12% profit. Well that means we have increased our profits by 20%, and directors and shareholders would be more than happy with this. But improved labor productivity could also result in better equipment productivity, shorter construction times and reduced overheads leading to even more profits.

We often blame workers for the low productivity, which is sometimes the case. However, management can also play a significant role in improved construction productivity.

How can you improve construction productivity?
Here are some suggestions to improve construction productivity:

Planning – unfortunately many projects are poorly planned at their start. I’m not just talking about the construction schedule but rather about how you are going to construct the project, what resources you’ll need, and when they’ll be required. It includes among others, selecting a construction methodology, selecting the most suitable resources, picking the construction team, and ordering materials timely. Too often the wrong choices are made at the start of the project which negatively impact the project later.
Quality – a large problem on construction projects is poor quality which causes work to be redone. Some of this is due to careless mistakes when measuring and setting-out and others is because of a lack of skilled people.
Ensuring employees have the required skills – skilled people will be more efficient, productive and make fewer mistakes. It’s not just about recruiting people with the required skills it’s also about ongoing training which also improves morale, adding to our productivity improvements. Having skilled people operating equipment will improve the productivity of the machine and will probably also result in the item being less likely to be damaged.
Supply the correct equipment – too often workers spend their time walking the site to find or borrow tools. Sometimes they don’t have the correct tools making the job slower. We’ve all witnessed undersized excavators loading a large truck. But over-sized equipment is also wasteful – costing more to hire and using more fuel. Trying to save money by hiring or purchasing inferior equipment will cost money later because of lower productivity.
Ensure equipment doesn’t breakdown – repeated equipment breakdowns disrupts production and negatively impacts employee morale. A crane malfunction can cause a whole section of work to stand. Provide reliable equipment. Encourage operators to look after the equipment. Implement regular maintenance checks. Oh, and talking about maintenance try and have this done outside working hours or during rest breaks. Stopping a crane or excavator in the middle of a shift for routine maintenance brings the whole team to a standstill.
Poor communication – does your crew know what they are supposed to do? Do they understand the schedule – what has to be completed first and why? Poor communication leads to errors. In today’s environment where our construction projects employ people of different nationalities, cultures and languages, communication become even more important. Just because someone says ‘yes’ when you’re talking to them doesn’t mean they actually understood what you said.
Material handling – poor logistics and not getting materials to where they’re needed on a construction site can strangle production. Teams waiting for materials or cranes are unproductive. Even packaging material differently can improve its handling. Having material delivered on pallets for instance could mean a slight increase in cost, but being able to quickly and efficiently move the materials on the project site will repay this cost back several times over. Moving materials after-hours or bringing another crane to site could prevent our teams standing waiting for materials. Constantly be on the lookout for these bottlenecks.
Good people – never underestimate how important it is to have good people in our team. This means you need to look after your good people. Pay them fairly. Treat them well. Mentor and train them. Give them responsibilities. Employ the right people that will fit in with your company culture. A good project manager can make a project successful. A poor project manager can destroy the project and the company’s reputation.
Double handling of materials – ......Continue Reading.......

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'Construction Claims: A Short Guide for Contractors'
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© 2016 This article is not to be reproduced for commercial purposes without written permission from the author.

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10 Easy Ways to Ensure Your Project Doesn’t Look Ugly to Customers

14/9/2016

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What does your project really look like? Do you see what your customers see?
When you arrive at a hotel what do you think when you see paint flaking from the building and weeds growing in the sidewalk? Are you tempted to cancel your booking and walk away? You enter the lobby and the décor is old and faded – hey the beds could be comfy and the food good but you surely doubt the wisdom of checking in to this hotel and you might not stay long enough to sample either the beds or the food? And the more you see faults the more you start looking for faults. That check-in clerk better be quick and efficient or you’ll be adding that to your list of complaints. So too with our construction projects, customers and potential customers can be turned away by projects that look disorganized and appear unprofessional. When your client walks onto your project site what have they seen, what has offended them and are they already looking for other faults?

Have a look at your project from the outside in
When last did you take a good look at your construction project? Are you so rushed every day that you walk past things without noticing when they don’t look right? How do your customers, and potential customers, view your project? Yes, it’s important to finish the project on time and provide good service – but, this is only part of what’s required.
So let’s take a half hour this morning and view our project from the outside to the inside. Switch the phone off and really take the time to look. You may be surprised at what you’ve walked past every day without noticing!
Starting outside the project site:

Is there a sign board advertising your company? Companies pay big money to advertise on a billboard so we shouldn’t waste this opportunity of almost free advertising! What does the sign board say about your company? Maybe it’s a sign you take from project to project so it’s showing its age, got a bit dented, started to rust or maybe the paint has started to peel? Is it straight or put in crooked or maybe bent over by the wind – if so customers may wonder about the standard of your construction work?

Is the company name clear, will people know what the company does, and are the contact details easily read from a distance? Why let good advertising be wasted? Why let bad advertising spoil the company image?

How is your project impacting the neighbors? Are your construction vehicles blocking the road or parked on neighboring sidewalks? Can pedestrians safely walk past your project? Is debris from your project spilling onto the road causing a traffic hazard? Remember a neighbor could be a future customer – but not if your workers annoy them.

Your work, vehicles and workers (or your subcontractors) shouldn’t damage the roads or sidewalks because it will cost you money to repair.
While you’re looking outside the project site look for litter – often workers eat their lunch in their vehicles and discard their fast-food wrappers next to where they’re eating. Some tradespeople like a beer after work and then throw the empty bottles over the neighbor fence or leave them in neighboring gardens – certainly not good for neighborly relations. Irate neighbor may write letters to the local press which isn’t good for the company image. They may even contact your customer directly – which will certainly annoy your customer. Customers don’t like bad press and they certainly don’t like dealing with members of the public that their contractors have offended.

What’s the appearance of the company trucks? Are they a good advertisement for the company, or are they dirty, leaking oil, bashed and looking old? Customers like employing construction companies that have new and reliable equipment – equipment that won’t break down and slow their project down.

But more importantly is your crew looking after company equipment? Dirty equipment may be a sign that the item isn’t being maintained, which could lead to problems later.
Well we’ve had a good look at the project from the outside so let’s go in.

What do the site offices look like? Are they set level and in straight lines? Are they in good repair, with no broken doors or windows? How do you access the offices – are there proper stairs or only some bricks or pieces of timber piled on top of each other which are a safety hazard. Is their graffiti on the outside or are they neatly painted? Again shoddy offices give a bad impression of the company and customers may think that it’s a reflection on the quality of the work your company produces.

Look inside the offices – are they organized, with enough space for everyone and all the documents? Your team needs to be comfortable in their offices – not too comfortable because some need to spend time at the work front – but certainly comfortable enough so they can do their work properly. While you’re looking – consider security – security of documents and confidential information, security of equipment (a stolen computer not only costs money to replace, but more critical are the lost documents on it, and the time without the computer), and in some areas even consider the security of your personnel.

What is your crew wearing – do they look a rag-tag mob in mismatching torn outfits? Do they have proper personal protective gear? Our project managers don’t need to be dressed in jackets and ties, but they should at least look neat, clean, tidy and professional. Customers would like to think they are dealing with a professional person and a professional company.

It’s good if your workers have a company uniform so they’re readily identifiable, especially when there are other contractors working on the project. At least then your customer also knows who your workers are so you aren’t blamed for the bad behavior of another contractor’s employees.

What does your store and storage areas look like? When last did you look inside the project stores? Are dangerous and flammable products kept in a separate store? Is everything neat and tidy and readily accessible – or does the crew have to waste time scratching to find what they need?

You might be surprised what you find in the project stores – hired equipment that’s not being used and should have been returned to the supplier (why pay rental for equipment that’s no longer required), dangerous or defective equipment that should be tagged out so that it’s not used inadvertently possibly resulting in accidents, broken equipment that should have been sent for repairs or tossed in the trash, and even materials long past their expiry date.
Don’t let your workers have to deal with disorganized stores and storage areas as it costs time and money. Consider what your customer will think if it appears that your company doesn’t cares for your equipment, and things are disorganized.
Finally let’s have a look at the work-site!

Does the work-site look neat and tidy? Is everything orderly or are materials mixed-up in an untidy heap where they’re getting damaged, it’s difficult to find and where it could be a safety hazard. It’s just as easy to stack material tidily as it is to discard it in a heap – all it takes is a little discipline. Are the work areas well planned and organised with clear access routes or are workers falling over material and equipment? I’ve walked past construction projects that look chaotic and thought I wouldn’t want that contractor on my project!

Tidy projects are more productive, safer and create a good impression of the contractor with the customer, visitors, neighbors and the public passing by.

Is the project safe? Are all the workers working safely, are hazards clearly demarcated and safety signage visible. Customers don’t want the fuss and hassle of an accident – it creates bad publicity for their project, it causes work for them and it could delay the project. We certainly don’t want an accident so let’s ensure the project is safe. Poor safety will impact business.
Are we producing quality we are proud of? That poor quality concrete may eventually be covered up by ground or hidden by finishes, but until it is hidden what does your customer think, and what will the public think as they walk past the project? It’s just as easy to do good concrete work as produce poor quality work. Insist that your workers produce the best quality – quality you’ll be proud of – everyday. As we walk through the project look at it with a critical eye and see it as others may see it. Commend those who’ve produced good quality work and correct those whose work is shoddy. Customers want good quality. They are after all paying for a quality product. Don’t let poor quality drive customers away.
......Continue Reading........

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10 habits of successful construction project managers

7/9/2016

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Image courtesy of kdshutterman at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

The other day while talking to construction management students I was asked what a construction manager should do to become successful. My answer was that they need to have knowledge and experience of the industry, but as important is to master many of the soft skills that are often not taught at college or university such as being able to communicate, negotiate and delegate.
In this article I discuss important habits that successful construction managers should master.

10 habits of successful construction managers

Good construction project managers:

Plan – project managers and construction managers must be able to plan. By this I don’t mean they should only know how to prepare and follow a construction schedule or programme. Rather, the construction manager must also be able to plan what must happen today on their project, what must happen tomorrow and how what they do today will impact what happens tomorrow. They should know what needs to happen next week and next month and how what they do today will impact whether they achieve what must be achieved next week and next month. This planning entails ensuring that the project has the required people, materials and equipment on time. Planning is about ensuring that the work is coordinated and organised and not completed in a haphazard approach. Following a construction schedule is a good start, but it’s how we get the tasks completed on time that’s most important. Far too many construction managers lurch from crisis to crisis because they haven’t planned the work properly. These problems include forgetting to order materials, not having sufficient resources or having resources standing because there’s no access.
Communicate – construction is a people’s business. Construction managers have to communicate from morning to night. Written communication is as important as verbal communication. The communication must be clear and understood by the person receiving it. In construction we encounter people from diverse educational, economic and cultural backgrounds and communication must be adapted to the situation as well as to the person. Communication should be polite and refrain from being personal. Poor communication can lead to mistakes, disagreements and detract from the message. Communication includes providing constructive criticism and telling someone when their work doesn’t meet the required standards. It’s also complimenting someone for good work and saying thank you.
Delegate – construction isn’t achieved by one person. It’s impossible for a construction manager to build a project on their own. The art of delegation is essential. Delegation isn’t just about telling someone what to do, but rather it’s about ensuring the person has the knowledge (or can obtain the knowledge) and is capable of carrying out the task, then, ensuring they understand what’s required, and finally following up to ensure the task has been completed. All too often managers delegate tasks to people who don’t have the necessary authority or don’t have the knowledge to carry out the task. Poor delegation is asking a junior to negotiate an important item with the customer, or telling a senior manager to carry out menial tasks which could be done by others. Asking someone to make you tea every day isn’t delegation, especially if it’s not that person’s responsibility to make tea. Also, when tasks are assigned to someone and then there’s no follow-up to ensure the tasks are completed, isn’t good delegation. Of course micro managing someone to ensure the task given to them is executed precisely as you want it completed is also poor delegation.
Negotiate – construction managers must be able to negotiate and persuade people. This may include the customer, suppliers, subcontractors and their own team. Every day is about convincing people that your proposal is correct and that your proposed path of action is best. It could be negotiating with a customer for a new project, negotiating a variation claim or negotiating the best price from a supplier or subcontractor.
Manage their time – construction managers are being bombarded by multiple problems and people all the time. If they aren’t careful they can be swamped and important issues may be forgotten or left until it’s too late. Managing time is about being organised, ensuring that everything is filed correctly where it’s easily accessible. It’s also about ensuring that important issues are prioritised and tasks aren’t forgotten.
Get to the work site – projects can’t be only managed from the office. Going through the project site enables the construction manager to assess the quality, safety and productivity on the project. They can better understand problems, even foreseeing potential problems before they develop into full-blown problems. They can interact with their team and understand the mood of employees. No report can take the place of physically being on the project at the ‘coal-face’ where the work is happening.
Understand the contract document – unfortunately some construction managers don’t read their contract document until the project is in trouble – by then it’s too late. It’s important to understand the contract document to ensure that both the contractor and the customer meet their obligations under the contract and that the project conforms to the scope of works and specifications. Understanding the contract documents can minimise conflicts and arguments and ensure the contractor claims what they are due.
Understand costs – construction managers should understand what materials, equipment, people and processes cost. This doesn’t mean that they have to always know exactly what everything costs, but they should at least understand the various cost components of an activity. Working for a time in the estimating department provides valuable experience and insights into the cost makeup of the various tasks on a project. Understanding value and costs provides an essential component for deciding methods and materials and for improving productivity.
Make timely and informed decisions – construction managers have to make decisions on a daily basis. The wrong decision could possibly cost the company millions or even put someone’s life in jeopardy. Yet to not make a decision can sometimes be more harmful than making the wrong decision. Construction managers have to carefully weigh their decisions to ensure they are the best decisions made with the available information and considering alternative options.
Understand they are responsible for people’s lives – accidents can happen suddenly and can be devastating for the people involved and seriously damage the company’s reputation. Good construction managers do not put progress or dollars before people’s safety. Unfortunately we still see people’s lives disrupted when buildings collapse due to faulty workmanship. Workers and members of the public are frequently injured during construction. Taking a short cut, not checking that bracing is correctly installed, using faulty equipment or allowing poor safety habits all lead to accidents. Good construction managers take safety seriously and ensure their team also does so. They understand the consequences of their actions (or lack of action) and they lead safety by example.

Conclusion
There are many who think that a degree or college course can make them a construction manager. There are others who may have years of construction experience yet are still ill equipped to be a good construction manager. Yet much of what’s in the above list isn’t included in university and college curriculum. Good construction project managers mentor people that work with them so they can be the next successful construction managers.

Construction project managers need to get the basics right. They should understand the principles of construction but as important is to understand the principles of management and master the softer skills of people management.

What do you think makes a good construction project manager?

To read more about the author’s books and find out where you can purchase them visit the pages on this website by clicking the links below:
'Successful Construction Project Management: The Practical Guide'
'Building a Successful Construction Company: The Practical Guide'
© 2016 This article is not to be reproduced for commercial purposes without written permission from the author.