There are three major functions within the electrical contracting business: estimating, which is the process of accurately pricing jobs for the purpose of securing work at a potentially profitable price and producing the information required for effective project management; project management, which is the process of taking the estimate data, refining it, and using it to build the project on budget and on time; and accounting, whose primary function is to produce cost reports, and, like a rear view mirror, it tells us where we have been.
Project management is without any doubt where contractors make money or lose money.
Most contractors will agree that their core competency is in project management and that in order to be successful they must have a streamlined and effective project management process.
The approach to management across many industries today (construction included) can be defined in terms of managing business activities within the framework of projects. In this landscape, goals and objectives are clearly defined with carefully managed activities to ensure that they are achieved. In this framework, the key individuals responsible for the success of projects are the project managers. These are the people responsible for ensuring that projects are completed on time and on budget and within the scope defined by clients.
The construction industry has traditionally recruited its project managers from within its rank and file staff, and through promotion has positioned these individuals to carry out the duties of managers within their organizations. This selection process usually begins with the identification of individuals that possess managerial traits. These individuals often have excellent technical skills but may lack some of the other required skills necessary for a successful career as a manager.
In the business models of some contracting organizations today, the role of a project manager is much broader than merely governing projects. Indeed, they operate more as entrepreneurs who are responsible for the profitability of their business units. In this environment, the project manager must be equipped with the skill sets necessary to accomplish their duties and thrive.
This can only be achieved with proper training and dedicated mentoring efforts. The skills that a competent project manager must possess are indeed broad and varied. These skills can be categorized as follows:
- Project Management Skills;
- Interpersonal Skills;
- Technical Skills;
- Business and General Management Skills; and
- Integration Skills.
Within each of these skills categories lies a subset of skills that we will explore in future articles but are summarized as follows:
Project Management Skills
The principal skill sets underlying project management are planning, organizing, controlling, and monitoring. In future articles, we will examine each of these skills in light of the functions that are performed.
Interpersonal (People) Skills
Many project managers focus a lot of energy on the technical aspect of managing projects and tend to ignore the interpersonal side of things. These skills, while less tangible and elusive, are crucial in the success of any project. We must not overlook the fact that there is a human side to every project and with that reality one must strive to develop and apply those skills. Some interpersonal skills areleadership, communication, facilitation, motivation, negotiation, team building, training, and salesmanship.
Technical Skills
In the construction industry, these skills can be defined as specialized knowledge of the systems and the methods of installation in their respective environments. These can be daunting skills to acquire for the inexperienced but fortunately they are second nature to many project managers coming from a field craft background. Technical skills can also extend to those of managing budgets, schedules, and resources.
Business and General Management Skills
These skills are in general business management, and fundamentals of planning, budgeting, and finance. Other areas of note would be legal knowledge (specifically contract law).
Integration Skills
These are skills that are a little harder to define, but, never the less vital to the success of firms and their projects. A manager skilled in integration sees how the different elements of a project fit together and examines ways to improve on them. Projects contain complex interplays of interdependent activities that must be well balanced with one another in order to operate at equal efficiency.
The Plan
We may have all heard the adage of “planning the work” and then “working the plan” to describe the key to successfully managing projects.
It is a fact that most project failures can be traced back to poor or improper planning and that planning is a process that must not be overlooked regardless of the size of projects.
In a recent study sponsored by the Foundation for Electrical Construction on the topic of pre-construction planning, a strong correlation was found between planning and the performance of projects. It was concluded that the more effective the planning was, the higher the chances of achieving success in the project. The study identified the planning process as a complex one with up to 42 significant activities organized into 10 categories all taking place before any serious production commences. Those categories are as follows:
Pre-Construction Planning Processes
- Team selection and turnover;
- Scope and contract review;
- Administrative setup;
- Buyout process;
- Material handling plan;
- Budget preparation;
- Layout and sequencing;
- Schedule development;
- Tracking and control; and
- Construction kick-off meeting.
With all these activities to consider, can you imagine jumping into a project without considering all of them? Well, unfortunately within our industry, it occurs all too often and usually by novice managers lacking proper training and mentoring.
For the novice project manager, it is crucial that they understand the importance of adequate planning. This understanding should stem from an espoused ideal in the culture of the organization. In this environment, it would be reasonable to expect nascent managers will receive adequate training and mentoring in subjects of planning.
Of all the aforementioned planning processes, the one that stands clearly above the others in terms of reason for a project’s success is schedule development.
In developing a schedule, the project manager plans the sequence of all activities of a project, especially effort-driven ones that involve labor resources. The ability to plan manpower requirements is critical given its overall weighting in costs and level of risk.
Scheduling is not a one-time endeavor on a project, nor should it be developed solely to appease the needs of a general contractor. It should be undertaken with the intent of tracking and maintaining your progress of the project, and for use in assessing and quantifying impacts of delays and changes.
Scheduling is a difficult skill to master and one that can take years to perfect. Today’s robust software solutions offer excellent tools to assist project managers to create and maintain detailed and accurate resource-loaded schedules. These benefits, however; cannot be realized without proper training in the principles of scheduling and the use of the applications themselves.
There are a myriad of educational offerings available on scheduling in the marketplace from which to choose, including the introductory course in scheduling offered through the education and training department at Accubid Systems Inc. (1-800-ACCUBID). While there are many offerings, not all are suited to fulfilling the specific needs of the construction industry, especially those of the mechanical and electrical trades. The course you select should provide practical hands-on exercises with relevant examples that can be put to use in the workplace upon course completion.
Giovanni Marcelli, a former electrical contractor, is the founder and CEO of Accubid Systems. Accubid has been providing estimating, billing, and project management software solutions for electrical and mechanical contractors since 1985.
Gil Cabral has over 20 years of experience in the construction industry and currently serves as Manager of Education and Training for Accubid Systems. Gil has held a variety of roles in the electrical contracting industry which encompassed duties in service management, project management and estimating.
