/ Page 4 - Articles by Rachel Burger

It’s the giant elephant in the room when buyers go shopping for project management software and customer relationship management (CRM) software: should you get an all-in-one solution, use plugins, or keep both entities separate?

Commercial construction isn’t an easy field to be in. Though the sector has beaten growth forecasts over the past five years, it’s still incredibly challenging for construction companies to complete their projects on time, on budget, and of high quality.

Good construction managers are often the unsung heroes of construction projects. Thanks to their skills and diligence, construction projects can be delivered without delay, to budget, and within scope. Good resource management makes sure the right people are working with the right equipment on the right job at the right time.

How many books are there on estimating construction project costs? How many manuals, price indexes, spreadsheets, tools, rules of thumb, and opinions? Construction cost estimating should lead to profitable business and satisfied clients. However, it can all too rapidly veer towards loss of money (estimates too low) or loss of customer (estimates too high). It’s no wonder that so many people want to add their two cents’ worth about the best way to do it.

I was doomed to be an office worker because of my upbringing. My father loves Dilbert. The family bookshelves are stuffed full with classics like Bring Me the Head of Willy the Mailboy, It's Obvious You Won't Survive By Your Wits Alone, and the management classic, The Dilbert Principle.

I love watching Gordon Ramsay. On any given day I switch on Netflix, Ramsay can be seen firing barbed insults at bumbling chefs. Some great quotes include:

How do you rate your construction company's chances of survival? Construction projects, whether for a new house, a multi-level office block, or other jobs are complex and unique--as are the risks that go with them. Sometimes a risk turning into reality delivers a knockout blow. In other cases, a combination of risks, even where no individual risk would have been fatal, will sink the project or even the construction company altogether. Construction risk management is a must if a company is to be sure of survival and growth.

Residential construction managers are used to the build and grumble relationship. As in, the longer residential construction takes, the more customers grumble. Even the best construction management software can’t prevent the cycle.

You’ve probably seen Undercover Boss, but if you haven’t, the formula works like this: The CEOs of major companies, like Waste Management Inc., The Dwyer Group, and Orkin, go “undercover” in their massive companies. Typically, they find some workers that they really like, and some they really don’t care for.