The construction industry is notoriously slow to adopt technology, and when preconstruction professionals do use software, it often becomes ingrained in workplace processes. But just because your company has done things one way for years, that’s no reason not to consider newer, better ways of operating. Conducting a process audit is a great way to determine what’s working and what isn’t for your team.
Why Audit Your Precon Process?
The world is constantly changing, and so is the industry, the available technology, and your workforce. The systems that worked for you in years past might not be serving your current and future needs. If your team can function more efficiently and drive more profits, you owe it to them and to your company to discover new workflows.
Which Construction Processes Should Be Audited, and When?
Any part of the process should be open to examination and improvement. Think about:
– Searching for potential projects
– File systems and document organization
– Maintenance of items and assemblies
– Performing takeoffs on plans
– Creating estimates
– Generating proposals
– Tracking team assignments
– Analyzing estimator performance
When planning an audit, consider seasonality. A good time to conduct a thorough audit is just as the busy season is winding down for your business. This gives you space to think critically while you’re not as stressed with the demands of projects, and also allows you time to implement a new plan before the next bid season ramps up.
Of course, auditing your entire process can take a significant amount of time, so it’s a good idea to set a cadence for doing so. You don’t need to expect to do each step annually. Consider a bi-annual sequence for more human resource–related processes, and line up other workflows with any software renewals so you’re prepared to reevaluate and onboard a new tool before an existing one expires.
How to Conduct a Preconstruction Audit
The idea of an audit sounds daunting and negative, but it’s really just the process of cataloging your workflows and taking a close look at them. Here are 5 steps you can follow to make your audit go as smoothly as possible.
1. Involve your whole team.
Make sure everyone is informed of what’s going on and has a chance to provide input. Teams can get nervous when leadership evaluates how they spend their time and how they do their jobs. Reassure your people that you’re all in this together and get their feedback. Be positive about their performance and ask for their ideas on how to optimize things to be even better. Truly listen to what they tell you, since they are the ones in the trenches doing the day-to-day work.
2. Document everything.
Create a detailed map of the project journey through the lens of your preconstruction team. From project discovery to winning the bid, exactly what happens, and who is involved? Consider:
– How does your team identify potential projects? What criteria make a project worth bidding on? Whose decision is it to bid a job?
– Where are project documents stored? Who has access, and how is version control addressed?
– Who performs the takeoff, and how long does it take? Where do estimators get tripped up in the takeoff process? Are you able to determine how accurate your company’s takeoffs are?
– Do you have a database of items and assemblies your estimators use for takeoffs? Where is the database kept, and how is it maintained? Who has access to make changes, additions, or deletions?
– How is takeoff data converted to an estimate? How does your team predict material costs in estimates? What other costs do you account for in estimates (i.e., labor, permits, equipment rental), and how does the team calculate and track those costs?
– From takeoff to estimate to proposal, are there manual data entry steps that could potentially be eliminated with technology? Is there a particular part of this sequence where you notice more errors than you’re comfortable with?
– Is your team consistently meeting deadlines? On projects where deadlines were missed, what is the root of the problem?