This is a guest post written by Jeff Sample, Head of Communications at Join.
The Problem
Construction is going through significant changes from technological advancements to new project delivery methods. Preconstruction teams are at the center of these changes and grappling with these new challenges. Are your project teams adjusting to the new collaborative project delivery methods that blur the traditional lines from design to construction? Or are they struggling to keep everything on track and not burn out at the same time? Juggling changing scopes and iterative design development while providing cost transparency to owners can be a huge challenge for your teams. The foundational characteristics of a high-performing team are collaboration, transparency, and accountability. While collaboration and transparency have received a lot of attention, accountability has been a delicate subject for multiple reasons. It could also be the reason your project teams aren’t entirely reaching their potential.
Healthy Project Teams Equals Better Projects
Embracing accountability early in preconstruction sets an essential expectation for the entire project delivery team. When teams have a clear sense of the work ahead and confidence that their fellow project team members are capable of getting it done, the team can crank out work. But then why does it seem so many teams struggle?
80% of workers polled report accountability "as punishing."
Let’s look at one of the most common ways accountability falls over and creates a disaster for project teams. Currently, many project teams manage requests for information and assignments of work in a series of email messages, spreadsheets, meeting minutes, and other disconnected systems.
There is no single source of accountability to clearly define the status of an item and where it’s at in its lifecycle. People leave meetings with their notes and an idea of their following tasks but immediately are distracted with other questions, inundated by daily operations, or any number of different work or project distractions. The task responsibilities slowly blur, and when questions arise, we are left chasing down systems to figure out which tasks were at hand and to whom they are assigned.
It is a fingering-pointing war and the accountability for the tasks isn’t owned by any one individual. This cluster is the result of meshing disconnected channels into the human brain... and, unfortunately, human brains aren’t perfect.
Enter a new method, Join. Join helps project teams manage transparency and accountability simply by creating a single source of information for all decision-making processes in preconstruction. Join manages and tracks the status of estimates and budgets from DESTINI Estimator and couples that information with visibility into design revisions, opportunity pricing exercises, new design or product ideas, and more in a single location. Any project team member can access this information and determine the status of who’s responsible for outstanding items and their respective due dates and find information on any current change or item in flight status; in a word, accountability.
Fewer Excuses, More Value
Collaborating while maintaining accountability will limit excuses for failing to meet deadlines and free up time for team members to focus more on value. The ability to assign tasks and effectively pass ball in-court items creates a natural flow of information that keeps teams focused on critical tasks at hand and prevents lost time checking on or waiting for information.
Preconstruction management also can filter further and monitor the progress of an entire team. This macro view helps optimize project resources to keep projects on track. We’re not saying anyone would try to wiggle out of a deadline through obscurity, but Join has you covered when the preconstruction flow of information is like an open fire hydrant. Plus, it stores the data so accountability is at our fingertips when we need it most.
There is another beneficial side effect to a single source of information that democratizes access to project information. As estimators, it has become part of their job duties to be the keepers and understanders of all things project: The latest estimates, budgets, options, or even design changes must be clear to make accurate cost estimates. With a single source of information in the Join platform, estimators can point others to Join and access this same project detail level. The democratization of project data frees up a significant part of their day, enabling them to focus on their most important asset to the company: new project ideas and opportunities to improve outcomes and drive value.
If your projects need a boost in accountability that results in better project delivery, your team needs Join.
About Jeff Sample
Jeff Sample has devoted the past 20+ years to transforming companies. Jeff optimizes companies throughout the construction industry by designing solutions, optimizing strategic advantages, and breaking down information silos. His passion for outdoor adventure and Ironman competitions garnered him the moniker "The Ironman of IT." As Industry Evangelist for Join, Jeff promotes collaboration and the transformation of preconstruction to help project teams reach their potential. His depth of IT experience in various industries and his passion for continuous improvement have made Jeff a popular speaker and vocal thought leader in construction, spending much of his time educating on multiple topics to better the industry as a whole.
