Over the last few years, builders have experienced some of their busiest times, with the general population spending more time at home and less time injecting cash into holidays and experiences. As a result, the construction industry has seen an influx in both residential and commercial renovations and building projects. And construction businesses are feeling it.
While this is fantastic for builders, it also means builders no longer have as much time to commit to making sure their construction business runs smoothly. This can put pressure on you as your business continues to grow.
So, here’s 5 tips to help you manage your growing construction business. We’ve also included some handy resources to back you with smooth business operation, worker safety and project quality.
With the right team, processes and organisation in place, it’s possible to manage and maintain steady business growth.
1. The 'A' Team
To maintain solid business growth, retain the solid team you’ve cultivated. A chain is only as strong as its weakest link, and so is your team’s strength. Take the time to build and retain your talented team.
Retain a highly skilled, motivated team who look forward to coming to work. A team that feels respected and important is imperative to the success of your business.
Create a culture and environment that appeals to your top performing staff. Consider offering competitive benefits to keep talented staff engaged and committed. Employees want to feel valued and appreciated so showing them in this way will help to retain those high performers.
Taking care of all staff has its benefits too. From tradies to administration, make them feel important and valued. This encourages a positive culture and ultimately can cultivate a positive workplace reputation that supports your business growth goals.
2. Keep compliance documentation up-to-date
As your construction business expands, it’s reasonable to expect that your spare time is limited, or potentially non-existent.
Often this results in administrative tasks piling up with less time spent on ensuring documentation is up-to-date. With huge paperwork requirements for safety, quality and project management it’s easy to get left behind when time is so short.
Moreover, now that your business is expanding, the list of required documentation increases. From Work Health Safety Management plans, Risk Assessments, SWMS, JSAs to ITPs, the list can seem endless.
We’ve compiled a list of what you need to get you started.
Keep documentation up-to-date to maintain business growth. It keeps workers safe, and your business compliant.
3. Keep an eye on construction business costs
Now, more than ever, it’s important to keep an eye on costs! With the cost of materials, subcontractors and labour on the rise, expenses add up quickly. Try to account for all expenses that have the potential to create headaches in the long run!
Additionally, try to take the time to quote jobs as accurately as possible, even if it means waiting an extra week or so for up-to-date material prices and subcontractor costs. The extra time it takes could mean the difference between a profitable job, or a job in the red.
4. Evaluate and review your projects
Project evaluation is crucial.
True, it takes up precious time, but in the long run, it’s time well spent. Moreover, it’s the perfect opportunity to ask yourself things like:
- ‘What worked?’
- ‘How accurate were our cost estimates and project timelines?’
- ‘Where can we refine our processes or capitalise?’
Evidently, by looking back, we progress forward in a more efficient way. We learn how to improve, which assists construction business growth.
5. Streamline efficiency
Our fifth tip to manage construction business growth is: streamline efficiency. E.g. be as organised as possible!
Ensure bookkeeping is up-to-date, projects are managed according to a brief, and as a business owner, try to keep an eye on how much time is spent on each area of business.
E.g. is enough time dedicated to client relationship management? Do you need to move off the tools for a while to make sure backend processes are in order?
When you are organised across all areas of business, it's one of the most helpful things to do to grow effectively and steadily.
With the right team, processes and organisation in place, it’s possible to manage and maintain steady construction business growth.
If you struggle to find the time to create construction documentation or can’t find the construction documentation you need, Builder Assist offers a number of options including a full Builder’s Pack which is instantly downloadable.
It contains more than 200 documents, including all required WHS Management Plan, Risk Assessment, Safe Work Method Statement, Job Safety Analysis and Inspection Test Plan documentation.
The documents simply require your business details and project-specific information, which is easy to input with MS Word templates.
Alternatively, we have a number of Builders documents, which are instantly available.
To find out more about the types of documentation builders need, read more in our blog ‘Construction documentation for building businesses’.
