What Not to Do in Your Next Meeting

So much of life and business runs parallel because business is life. Picture this: It’s the weekend, and you have a lot to catch up on after a busy workweek. A friend who just happens to be in town contacts you, and the decision is made to meet for lunch. You’re having a great time, enjoying the good food, atmosphere and conversation. Then, for whatever reason, you get distracted. It could be a stranger passing by your table, the pinging smartphone next to you or any number of other causes.

What is the Most Important Part of an Employee Handbook?

Christopher M. Mason

Attorney
Jennings, Strouss & Salmon, P.L.C.

Working with Locate Service Providers on Utility Projects

The emergence of new regulations, awareness campaigns and best practices across the United States and Canada has thrust the topic of damage prevention to the forefront of construction safety conversations. Excavation remains one of the riskiest construction activities, and a utility line is damaged every 6 minutes across the country.

The Bigger Picture.

In our business, there are times when the tendency is to quantify by the unit. “Price per square foot” is used to measure all kinds of things, from the average property value, all the way to building cost. While it can be a quick and easy reference at times, a summary is just that. A summary.

Maybe we would do better to step back and get a larger perspective, rather than get hung up on PPSF.

Years ago, I had a friend who was a residential real estate agent in Georgetown. A relevant story, as she relayed it to me, went something like this: There was a couple she was showing around one day and who routinely asked, ”How much per square foot?” as they visited different homesites. She finally said, “Where you are from, you may buy the home by the price per square foot, but here, we sell by the house.”

Value in commercial construction comes from the delivery method to any number of other hard-to-quantify factors. Sure, numbers matter. But if one is only looking at the smallest units to determine value, we are likely missing a much bigger picture.

{Image Source: Our friends at The Birmingham Museum of Art}

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February 2018 Construction Industry Stats

Each month, the Construction Business Owner team compiles statistics from several different sources, including the American Institute of Architects (AIA) and the United States Census Bureau, to give you a better understanding of the current state of affairs for the construction industry. The statistics featured in each month's print issue are for 3 months prior to the publication of the magazine, based on the data available.

Advice from 5 Top Industry Project Managers

Project managers are often the jacks of all trades on a construction project. They are tasked with the responsibility of keeping the entire project running like a well-oiled machine. And we don’t have to tell you how difficult that can be. Because of this, some of the best lessons come from the experiences and the knowledge of those in the field. The project leaders listed at left are from five of the top United States construction companies.

Open Office? Not in Construction.

This morning, I was on the phone with one of our service providers. There was a question about our account that required me to speak with a representative…And after hearing at least three other conversations in the background as we talked, I’m confident he was sitting in the open office environment that’s become a standard in certain places.

For some, it works. Our friends in the architecture field, for example, might benefit from the shared space, where they can easily collaborate. I’m reading about all kinds of structural tweaks for privacy when it’s needed, from white noise generators to headphones, plants, temporary dividers and sound proof booths that one can use for important calls.

But construction is by nature noisy. We jokingly call the wing where I sit along with several others “the loud wing” because of the lively conversations that take place at times. The saving grace is that we all have offices with real walls where we can retreat when we need peace and quiet.

Around here, we’ve compensated with glass office fronts to show we are connected, and plenty of informal places to gather and “put our heads together” when needed. I think everyone is grateful for the ability to shut a door and knock out the work that requires concentration without the symphony of many conversations playing in the background.

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How to Use Daily Reporting to Prepare for Future Litigation

Litigation remains one of the most common stressors for construction business owners. However, with the implementation of new technology solutions in your company, you are also arming yourself with some of the greatest tools available to protect your company against future legal issues.

When & How to Use Digital Signatures in Construction

An electronic signature, or e-signature, is simply data in electronic form used by a signatory to indicate assent on an electronic document. An e-signature can be as simple as a name typed into an electronic document, or it can be more complicated, effectuated through a cryptographic digital security mechanism.

Advice from 5 Top Project Managers

Project managers are often the jacks of all trades on a construction project. They are tasked with the responsibility of keeping the entire project running like a well-oiled machine. And we don’t have to tell you how difficult that can be. Because of this, some of the best lessons come from the experiences and the knowledge of those in the field. The project leaders listed at left are from five of the top United States construction companies.

How to Revolutionize Your Construction Business with Lean Thinking

The construction industry continues to evolve at a glacial pace from a management and productivity standpoint, while other industries have transformed themselves and their productivity performance. Efforts to improve productivity in construction have been widely unsuccessful. Lean construction or lean project delivery is no exception. However, construction companies need to take a fresh look at the concept of lean with a new perspective.