SITECH Rocky Mountain is your source for construction technology in Denver, Colorado, and beyond. We are specialists in Trimble survey equipment, but our expertise extends into construction management software of all kinds. Whether you are looking to optimize construction technology for a fleet of heavy equipment, add an internet-based infrastructure, or find a solution/service of some other kind, we’ve got you covered at SiTech Rocky Mountain.
In posts of the recent past, we’ve deviated from our typical blog-brand of discussing the various attributes and benefits of our services and solutions. Yes, we are adept in consulting our customers regarding grade control systems, site positioning systems, machine monitoring, and beyond, but the truth of the matter is that it is often easy to generalize hastily when discussing these kinds of things. This is because no two clients we help are alike, which means one prescribed solution will look different than another client’s.
In light of this, we’ve recently felt the need to shake things up in terms of our content’s focus. For instance, in our last blog we provided our loyal readers with a few tips to grow your construction business. While we would encourage you to go back and read that blog if it sounds enriching, you should feel free to finish this one prior to navigating away because today’s post goes pretty much hand in hand with what we discussed last month. Yes, the rumors are true — we will be offering up a few more tips for construction project managers. Fair warning: be prepared for these tips to floor you with their practical quality and undeniable truth.
That being established, let’s dive in!
Organization
One of the most common shortcomings construction managers experience is a lack of natural organizational ability. To be clear, we aren’t saying all construction managers are sloppy or anything of that nature; organizational weaknesses are pervasive across a wide range of vocations and personality types.
Nevertheless, if your construction business is looking to gain a competitive edge over your competition, you should take a long, hard look at your operational efficiencies, or lack thereof. Whether you handle residential or commercial construction projects, optimizing your workflow with modern digital tools like time management and schedule software helps reduce the time it takes to get necessary tasks done. What’s more, identifying where your organization can improve is a healthy thing to do no matter how successful your business is; there is always room to keep improving!
Be Personal & Real
Once a business reaches a certain threshold in revenue and size, it becomes more likely that some of the personal touch which contributed to that business’ success will get loss. This is only natural, seeing as how more employees and automated processes become necessary to maintain efficiency. But a lack of personal touch is the inherent byproduct of growth once a company begins to scale.
So, what can you do about it? Start with yourself, for one thing. People will look to you, whether you are the owner or the project manager/foreman, to set the tone in terms of how your staff interacts with customers and third-party people from other companies. After you’ve managed to clean up your own act, however much cleaning there was to do, then it’s the time to start taking a look at where your staff can improve. Be clear in your expectations as to the standards you will hold your team to.
With so many technological tools available, it’s easy to end up neglecting the relationships that brought you success in the first place. Joe Passkiewicz is the vice president of construction of LandSouth Construction in Jacksonville, Fla, and he states the following on the matter: “There is nothing more powerful than a face-to-face meeting with the ability to discuss more than just the task at hand. We recognize the need for personal attention and encourage our staff to seek out ways to meet personally with clients, subs and vendors to foster a healthy business relationship.”
We agree, Joe!
Get Obsessed With Staying On-Schedule
Brian Cook, president of Cook Construction in Webster Groves, MO, recommends creating a firm schedule before the project’s onset and sticking to it if at all possible. Cook says, “Construction managers have to be vigilant with these schedules, checking them constantly and allowing for additional time whenever possible,” Cook stated. “Setbacks are inevitable on almost any job and must be dealt with immediately to keep the project on time.”
Indeed, we don’t have to tell you twice that some number of setbacks are inevitable. However, being able to stick to the schedule better than your competitors do will dramatically improve your reputation. Because construction projects and their deadlines are so often intertwined with other projects and deadlines (like retail shops moving into a strip mall, for instance), it can often be the thing that “makes or breaks” you as a construction company.
Learn To Delegate
It’s not easy being a construction project manager. In fact, it takes a pretty special brand of human being to be able to plan and execute with quality and precision. Oh, and make sure you get everything done on time, or you won’t be nearly as likely to get the jobs you are looking for again any time soon.
As talented and dynamic of a construction manager as you might be, the best ones are those who have learned to delegate responsibility to employees they can trust. Easier said than done, right? Yeah, probably, but that doesn’t make it impossible. Complicated construction projects are never completed by a single person.
What does quality delegation look like? Primarily, it doesn’t look like simply telling someone what to do. In fact, that’s the opposite of delegating. Instead, it’s giving someone the responsibility of completing a task while providing them with the tools and resources they need to independently oversee the successful completion of a given task.
This means, as a manager, you need to make sure the people you delegate certain tasks to have the ability and authority to do the job right. Ensure that the task you are requesting is realistic for that staff person to complete. It might be difficult to take a step back in order to avoid being labeled as a “micro-manager,” but you can do it! Your future self will certainly thank you in the long-run.
Contact SITECH Rocky Mountain
Would you believe that we have more to say on the topic!? Be sure to keep an eye out for our next blog, which will likely revolve around the same topic. In the meantime, if you are looking for a construction technology provider to help maximize profitability and improve operational efficiency, give us at SITECH Rocky Mountain a call! We’d love to hear from and help you.