Premature Optimization

Construction technology innovation has exploded and is continuing to accelerate.

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The quantity of experienced talent is at a low point and will continue to decline throughout the next 10+ years.

Leadership Tools: Deming Cycle, Plan, Do, Check, Adjust. Quote: Premature Optimization is the roof of all evil. Donald Knuth. Quote: If something is truly worth doing then it's worth getting started now even if it isn't perfect then iteratively improving. David Brown.

There are probably more unknowns than knowns:

  • What is the best software or technology for ________?
  • Will this company provide the support we need or even be in business in 3 years? 
  • What exactly is the best process for managing the preconstruction process?
  • What is the best training program to accelerate the development of ________ ?
  • If I invest in training _______ will they even stay with the company?
  • How specifically do I measure the return on all these investments?  

The truth is that there is no perfect answer to any of these questions.  

If you never take a step forward then you will never “waste” a step.  You will also never move any further down the road - and you can bet that at least one of your competitors is.  

This is why they call it a “Strategic Direction” rather than “Exact Instructions.”  

What is more important is that you start moving forward and put a great PDCA process in place.  Be focused on rigorously adjusting but don’t stop moving forward. 

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An unbiased 3rd party can be invaluable in helping you evaluate unknowns.

Not because they have all the answers but because they will bring different perspectives, methods to evaluate the decision and continuous improvement tools.




The Teacher and the Student in All of Us
The rate a contractor can grow is the average speed the team learns and teaches at. We are all teachers and we are all students. There are many things that we can do to improve ourselves on both sides of that equation.
Succession Planning at All Levels
If a construction company is growing at 15% per year, then it will double in size about every five years. Therefore, in general, every position must be training at least two people that will be capable of succeeding them within five years.
The Contractor Scoreboard - A Contractor Must Do 3 Things
This outcome-based scoreboard keeps everyone focused on what matters. Avoid metric overload and diffusion of resources. All other metrics throughout all levels of the organization fall into a hierarchy below these with priorities changing over time.