Are you 18% better?

I was with a client this past Thursday and Friday. I have been working with them for the past 2.5 years. Actually I first worked with them in 1999 but we will not count that. When we met in Jan 2009 we did a survey to determine how well they used basic processes for construction productivity. We also asked about morale and overall communication. We redid the survey last week. The results are great.

Their use of a prejob meeting went up 18%. Their use of short interval schedules went up 22%. Morale is up 11% and communication is up 18%. Now, I can’t take credit for this increase. OK, I may get partial credit…..but the point is this firm took a look at what they do and worked to make it better. Oh yeah, during this time revenue increased by 20% and there was no erosion on the bottom-line. In other words, they got better as they grew (not many firms can say that) and are making more money. Consider too that they did this in the face of a weak economy and the accomplishment is even more impressive.

We conducted training on basic procedures and they ran with it from there. We conducted training on effective communication and on leadership and the results show they embraced what they learned. Change is not easy. Getting better at what we do takes time. It is possible and I invite you to consider the improvements you have made in the past two years, if any…Can you claim an 11% increase in morale? If not, you have work to do as your competition can.

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" ...it was one of the most dynamic and interesting talks I have ever witnessed on general leadership and effective management. I thought it was very interesting to see how you approached the topic from the bottom up -- from the grunt's perspective. This made the topic very easy for me to relate to and gave me ideas on how to develop the leaders I am responsible for."

Noel S. Salac, P.E.
Construction Engineer
Nebraska Dept. of Roads