How project collaboration can help
Juggling deadlines, budgets, and contract requirements while keeping employees, sub-contractors, and clients on the same page isn’t easy in any industry. For construction business owners, collaboration between internal parties and external vendors means project managers must use specialized tools and best practices.
However, better technology designed to deliver projects on time and on budget doesn’t make you magically immune to collaboration hurdles. In an article I wrote for Construction Business Owner, I reveal the Top 5 collaboration hurdles cited in a survey of 200 North American businesses. Do these sound familiar?
- Information is not easily accessible – Who has done what and when is muddled when extended internal and external teams share documents, timelines, and project statuses.
- Confusing cross-functional team collaboration – Collaborating across departments, functions, and geographies is challenging and chaotic. Traditional spreadsheets and emails fail to facilitate dynamic communication.
- Too many emails – Staying focused on top priorities becomes overwhelming and cumbersome with this communication method. Version control and missing information rule the day.
- The bring-your-own software dilemma – Disparate productivity tools and apps make it more difficult to get everyone on the same page, which decreases team efficiency.
- Lack of workload visibility – Keeping track of who is working on what is difficult. Overcommitted or underutilized staff and external vendors result in stress, unnecessary overtime, and project delays.
How to overcome these hurdles? I invite you to read the full article “Work More Effectively To Deliver High-Quality Projects On Time and On Budget” to learn how the construction industry is tackling these issues. Here’s a preview of the highpoints:
- Centralized, cloud-based project tools
- Outside-party collaboration
- Document sharing
- Task visualization
- Formalized planning and Scheduling
No matter your industry, organizations of all types can benefit from project collaboration technology. How are you currently managing some of the challenges outlined? Is it working for you? Share by leaving a comment below.