You probably can’t – and shouldn’t – bid on every job that crosses your desk. So, how do you determine which of the many projects are worth your team’s time, and which will generate profits?
Having well-defined criteria to make this call will ensure that you’re spending your time on activities that will increase your bottom line.
Especially as your business grows, it’s important to bid only for jobs that fit within the scope of your organization, meet your scheduling needs, and match the resources you have available. Being able to quickly eliminate projects that don’t fit within these requirements lets you focus your energy on profitable work.
6 Questions to Ask Yourself About Every Potential Project
As you begin your evaluation of a project, answer these questions honestly.
- Does the size of the project fit within my wheelhouse?
- Does it have a realistic schedule?
- What’s been our experience with the general contractors on the bid list?
- Is the scope of the requirements consistent with our capabilities?
- Can we price the job competitively and profitably?
- Do we have the funding to comfortably execute the project?
The first three questions are relatively simple if you have a good grasp on your company’s strengths and availability. If the project is too big for your crew to handle, on a deadline that you know you don’t have staffing for, or if you’ve had poor experiences with the GC in the past, it should be crystal clear that this job isn’t the right fit for your business. You can cross it off and move on.
But the last three questions take a bit more scrutinization to answer. And that’s where STACK and Billd can give you an edge.
Analyzing Scope & Price Alignment with STACK
STACK preconstruction software was designed to equip subcontractors with a centralized hub for streamlined plan management, lightning-fast takeoff and estimating, proposal customization, and real-time cloud collaboration.
But STACK’s value doesn’t start with creating the estimate. It starts by providing you with the tools you need for making bid decisions that align with your organization’s capabilities and vision.
With STACK you can:
– Download and store all current project documentation.
– Review all the applicable plans, specs, addenda, instructions to bidders and other documentation.
– Find the right document quickly via customized document folder hierarchies, free text search and automatically created hyperlinks between predefined callouts.
– Complete rough magnitude quantity and measurements.
Access to these tools during the bid phase allows you to do a deep dive into the specifics of the project to determine if your team can complete the job profitably.
Breaking Down Funding Barriers with Billd
Once you’re certain the job is a good fit, the final consideration before putting together your bid package is to ensure you can fund materials comfortably with your other expenses. It’s no secret that the construction industry is one of the most challenging industries in which to manage cash flow.
As a subcontractor, you’re faced with issues like:
– Payment delays up to, and sometimes exceeding, 90 days.
– High upfront costs.
– Lack of support from traditional lenders.
You’re caught between a rock and a hard place: you’re the first person to pay upfront costs and the last person to get paid. As a result, you need cash to take on new work. So, a large part of your bidding strategy must involve understanding if you have the available capital to execute the work.
But what if there was a way to avoid the need to pay for materials upfront? By unlocking 120-day terms through Billd, you’ll always have cash to pay your labor, and your credit line increases with each new project. It really is that simple.
A Winning Combination
Together, STACK and Billd equip you to make skillful, strategic bid decision challenges. With these two powerful tools, your business has the appropriate resources and cash flow to effectively bid on new, larger projects, and grow your business along the way.
Ready to get started? Check out STACK’s partnership with BIlld, and create a free STACK account today!
