Process Improvement and Cycle Times

When contractors grow inefficient processes usually get substantially more inefficient dramatically changing the Return on Investment (ROI) model.

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Saving 5 minutes per cycle for something done 100 times per month is only worth $6,000 over a couple years. At 1,000 cycles per month it’s worth investing up to $60,000 to make the process more efficient.  

Management Tools: Graph representing Saving Seconds Adds Up with Increased Cycle Times.

Where are your opportunities?

Too many times as contractors scale they look primarily at the technology tools and get poor results. One factor often underestimated is the investment in rolling out the new standards versus just the cost of the technology

Corbins Electric and NOX Innovations are really good at is looking at the whole workflow, talent, culture and technology. They give a great example of this with their purchasing process improvement.  

Everything stated here seems easy enough but is VERY difficult to execute consistently.  The team at Corbins has done an amazing job balancing high-level strategic direction, culture and process streamlining.  They are also great about sharing with their peers in the industry.




Strategy and Fighting the Fewest Battles
Strategic decisions along with the operating rhythms and the feedback mechanisms that ensure execution are the most highly leveraged decisions in the business.
Lean Principle - People First > Process > Tools
To maximize productivity a contractor must focus on their people, processes and technology tools as an integrated system with a hierarchy. This is not a linear process and should be looked at as a continuous PDCA cycle.
Contractors Business Model
There will never be enough resources to take advantage of every opportunity or solve every problem in a construction business. Contractors must relentlessly prioritize allocation of resources and alignment around the biggest bottleneck in the business.