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News April 6, 2022

Construction management tips for project leaders

Construction projects can be complicated as project leaders juggle scheduling, budgeting, paperwork and managing a potentially large team. An effective construction manager needs to communicate well, make fast decisions and adapt to frequent change.

Indeed.com offers the following construction management tips to help you increase efficiency on job sites and improve the quality of your work.

  • Be familiar with the details. Gather all the information you need about a job, its requirements and your team while you still are in the project’s planning stages to help you manage the project and prepare for challenges.
  • Create a plan. Develop a construction management plan that follows the five phases of project management: initiation, planning, launch, performance and close. Establish a deliverable and assess progress and performance at the end of each phase so you can maintain quality and ensure the project is on schedule.
  • Communicate constantly. Communication is essential to completing a construction project smoothly and transparently. Communicate regularly with everyone involved in the project, including clients, stakeholders, subcontractors, suppliers and staff.
  • Lead your team. Focus on maximizing your team’s performance by learning their strengths and assigning them to appropriate tasks; listening to their ideas and opinions; offering productive feedback; praising good work; and providing necessary training.
  • Stay organized. Organization is crucial, and using project management software can help you monitor every phase of a construction project. If you are highly organized, you can adapt to changes quickly and keep projects on time and within budget.
  • Monitor costs. Construction managers are responsible for tracking many expenses, so you should record and manage every cost. Try to limit delays; ensure equipment is up to date and functioning properly; and ask questions and communicate budget concerns quickly.
  • Choose the right technologies. Technology has helped streamline construction management. Choose tools that meet your project’s needs and help make processes more efficient, such as integrated databases or budget tracking.
  • Use automation. You can use automated reporting systems and delivery tools to send status reports, create schedules, update expense sheets and track incidents, among other uses.
  • Emphasize safety. Safety should be a priority on the job site so your team can focus on their work rather than their well-being. Safe work environments improve productivity, reduce stress and increase job satisfaction.
  • Stay on schedule. Check your timelines and milestones constantly to keep your project on schedule. When planning, only promise to complete construction projects by a date you know you can achieve. If possible, build extra time into your estimate to accommodate unexpected delays.
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