If you’re in charge of a residential construction company, you know that staying organized and keeping track of subcontractors is key to your success. That’s why we’ve put together a list of the top tool categories geared toward small business for construction project management. These tools will help you keep track of everyone involved in your construction projects, from subcontractors to suppliers to customers. Without further ado, here are the top categories and key features.
Subcontractor Management
Many independent building contractors keep a list of their subcontractors on a rolodex, notepad, or in their phone, but where this method of subcontractor management falls short is when you have them scheduled for your projects. A construction project management software will have a subcontractor database where you can keep all their contact information as well as their availability for projects. This way, when you’re assigning subcontractors to a job, you can easily see who’s available and make sure that they’re qualified for the job.
Project Scheduling and Budgeting
One of the most important factors in building your reputation as a local building contractor is your ability to estimate and deliver the project on time and on budget. Choosing the right management software will help you keep a close watch on your project timeline with a scheduling and budgeting tool built-in. With this tool, you can create a timeline for your project that takes into account the subcontractors’ availability as well as your own crew’s schedule. You can also allocate funds for each stage of the project and track how much has been spent so far, relieving you of hours of your manual project tracking.
Customer Relationship and Communication
Nothing beats face-time with your clients, but sometimes that’s not feasible if you’re running multiple projects simultaneously. Sometimes there will be a period of days or more where schedule does not permit you to have direct interaction with your clients. Enter the CRM and status capabilities baked into some of the top construction project management solutions to help track communications, maintain 24/7 access to information for both contractor and client, and even offer advanced capabilities to send status updates/links via text messaging. Mastering hi-tech communication has never been easier or faster.
What Are The Tools?
While the list of software providers grows by the day, many of them serve a wide range of industries, and may not have the specifics you need to manage your projects effectively and efficiently. Fortunately, there are some industry-specific platforms available, with some clear industry leaders: Procore, Quickbase, and Contractor Forum. We’ve experienced an increase in productivity and greater accuracy and reporting in our business by adopting a management platform; is it time for you to start looking for some technology help in running your construction company?
