Leading vs Lagging

Clearly defining the outcome you want in clearly measurable terms is critically important so that you and everyone else knows exactly what winning looks like.

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Consider this at all levels of a contracting organization from the high-level vision of where you want the company to be in the next decade then broken down to the operational level and ultimately down to the job description level.

Leadership Tools: Focus on What You Can Control. Profit and Success are results of relentlessly executing of a few critical leading activities consistently.

When you get down to the job description level defining the top 3-8 very specific measurable outcomes is incredibly powerful because ultimately your are trading a certain amount of compensation and benefits (inputs) for some very specific outputs.  This is very difficult to define clearly and to integrate the various job role descriptions together into a cohesive organizational structure.  

It is such a challenge that it is easier to define the job descriptions in either a very general terms or a concise list of routine tasks to be done.  Both of these lead to sub-par performance in the long-term.  

As challenging as defining clear measurable outcomes is; that is the easiest part.  What truly makes an impact is defining the 1-3 Leading Activities with Measurable Performance Metrics that will lead to the successful outcome you are looking for.  Managing these leading activities relentlessly every day is what drives truly sustainable performance.




Resource - Elevating Construction Superintendents (General Contractors)
Elevating Construction Superintendents by Jason Schroeder is our most recommended book for Superintendents, Project Managers, and Senior Leadership at all GCs along with top leadership at any specialty contractors with a field workforce of 50+ people.
Higher Scores Aren’t Always Better: Percent Planned Complete (PPC) Example
Construction is full of competitive personalities - more is always better. This is not always the case, and you must be careful when setting targets that your goals don't have unintended consequences. Percent Planned Complete (PPC) is a perfect example.
Tasks vs. Key Results
“Life favors the specific ask and punishes the vague wish.” - Tim Ferriss Excellent advice from the book Tribe of Mentors that can be applied to the hiring and management process for contractors.