Challenge-Series-Staying-in-Control

The Challenge Series - Staying in Control

Staying in control of a construction project is a major concern for most Construction Owners. Cost and schedule goals, once established, must be met without compromising quality and physical scope. Additionally, risks that threaten any of the above must be managed to an outcome acceptable to the Owner.

Primarily, these issues are thought of in the context of the construction project itself. It should be noted, however, that soft costs (such as professional fees, IT, moving costs, for example), which may be anywhere from 20–60% of the total budget, must be managed. There are the Owner’s internal stakeholders who must be managed to ensure that individual preferences do not compromise focus on the strategic project goals.

Finally, there are external project participants with whom the Owner may have no contractual relationship (such as governmental authorities, special interest groups, Utility Companies) but who can dramatically affect project outcomes and therefore must be managed.

Clearly, this is a daunting task requiring discipline, processes, experience, and skill sets—many of which Owners simply do not have.

When control goes awry, symptoms include, at best, breakdowns in communication and team collaboration, cost overruns, schedule delays, change orders, claims—and worse.

Reasons for Loss of Control Include:

  • Poor initial definition of project goals (this will be the subject of a future Tenzing Challenge article on project definition).
  • Teams are all working with different tools (spreadsheets, software applications)—communication between systems is difficult. Versions, definitions, fine print notes, qualifications, etc., are often not consistent project-wide. Email correspondence is hard to keep track of; not all parties receive the same information. Team-wide communication is suspect at best.
  • When dealing with project status, the Owner is often reliant on data provided and updated by third parties—be it Construction Managers, Contractors, Architects, etc. The Owner should always have the ability to monitor, review, challenge, and approve these costs before they are accepted. The Owner should also build in protections to ensure that threats to project goals are identified in a timely manner so that an optimum solution is found, and the Owner is not forced into a “gun to the head” decision.
  • Accountability—when there is an issue threatening project goals, it is often not assigned properly nor progressed to resolution in a timely manner, which leads to poor or no resolution.
  • Poor selection of PMIS systems—many Owners try to utilize PMIS systems that are primarily focused on the business of being a contractor managing the construction of the project. These systems are excellent for their intended users; however, they are not the best choice for the Construction Owner. Construction Owners typically lack a process by which they manage (stay in control of) not only the contractor and construction but all project participants outlined above, team-wide communication, cost, schedule, critical tasks, and risk issues.
  • Adoption—many PMIS systems, because of their focus and complexity, are hard to adopt and meet with resistance by users. This is especially true for users with little construction experience.

How Tenzing One Helps

Tenzing One brings Owners a fully integrated process by which to manage and stay in control of the entire project development process, addressing all the issues outlined above. Dashboards show real-time, 24/7 status of cost, schedule, and risk issues. All data relative to any issue is typically a click away—status can be quickly reviewed, and appropriate action taken. All communication between the team and Owner is held here, ensuring the Owner can make sure the team is all on the same page. For any issue, task, etc., requiring action, accountability, due dates, etc., are assigned and proactively tracked.

Tenzing One has been developed by practitioners with a view to ease of use and is basically a one-click system. Our users are up and running in a couple of hours and able to use all functionalities within a few days.

We would welcome the opportunity to meet with you to discuss how Tenzing One could help you feel like you are in the driving seat of your own project.

Reach out to info@tenzingone.com to learn more