More on Toughest Job in Homebuilding

Scott Sedam's had some really great articles recently in Pro Builder; they include discussions on the current trade shortage (as in skilled trade personnel) and 12 fallacies held by many home builders (such as Design Centers are always a source of profit).

Toughest Job in a Builder's Organization?

 His most recent article, What's the Toughest Job in Home Building? is thought provoking as it reviews a typical builder's organization to develop a response.  Everyone, it seems, thinks their role is critical, "If you don't have lots, you can't build and you can't sell (and, parenthetically, there's no need for a warranty department, either!)" or "If we don't get the money lined up, nothing happens. Dead in the water."

All of those arguments, of course, have some validity. And, suggests Sedam, it could well be the warranty/customer service group that has the toughest job.  Generally, Sedam points out, this team gets little support and even less respect but has a significant impact on customer satisfaction.  And, there's Facebook and all sorts of other social media outlets ready and waiting to hear about the things that went wrong!

Sedam continues to run through the various builder departments: operations, purchasing/estimating, administrative support, even sales -- and for various reasons.  Each department's argument, of course, has merit.

Getting Everyone on the Same Page!

However, the most telling response might be the one from Eric Tiffin, "The toughest job in home building is getting everyone on the same page."

Have you had a chance to take a look at Troy Warr and Noelle Tarabulski's IBS 2016 presentation, Are the Best Builders the Best Schedulers? There's a copy here.

One concept made it's way throughout the presentation, Accountability, Accuracy and Consistency. Everyone in a builder's organization needs to have a single source of information -- and that is critical to getting everyone on the same page. 

CPS' FieldCollaborate offers construction scheduling tools (including reporting) as well as a web Portal for internal staff and vendors.  If anyone needs to know whether or not the flooring vendor completed the hardwood installation in Lot 26's kitchen, there's a single source to answer the question.  Whether you're in the accounting, operations or the sales department -- or you're the flooring vendor -- there's one source for the answer. That process goes a long way to getting everyone on the same page!

Grab Some Construction Scheduling Benefits...here!

Did you have a chance to attend the IBS Education Forum in Las Vegas called The Best Builders are The Best Schedulers?  CPS' Troy Warr partnered with Builder Consulting Group's Noelle Tarabulski to provide an overview of benefits offered using a comprehensive construction scheduling process -- and a roadmap to successful implementation.

Good scheduling improves day-to-day-operations and your bottom line!

What benefits, you might ask.  Many builders report limited success with new automated construction scheduling software, for example. Others mention getting conflicting answers to a single question due to a variety of reports and methods.

Troy and Noelle highlighted several key improvements available as a a result of good construction scheduling practices including:

• Fewer delays -- enhancing your relationship with both vendors and home buyers
• Fewer Cost Variances -- no question, fewer variances results in more consistent forecasting and better profitability
• Improved Quality -- using scheduling milestone checklists as well as inspection templates means spotting problems sooner and minimizing the long-term impact
• Reduced Cycle Times -- improved cycle times not only improve profitability per home but mean you're able to build more homes in the same amount of time
• Accountability, Accuracy and Consistency -- good scheduling practices enable the builder to have a single source of information providing consistent results across the enterprise (builder, vendor and home buyer).

Would improving any of these key indicators be useful to you?  Tara provides consulting services to help analyze, measure and prioritize an organization's construction process while CPS offers FieldCollaborate - a cloud-based, automated scheduling software application available on the job-site with mobile tablet/smart phone access and using desktop/laptop access at the corporate office.

We can talk with you to determine how an improved scheduling process will grow your bottom line as well as enhance day-to-day operations and increase home buyer satisfaction.