Communication is key to successfully completed projects, but there are two common communication problems.
Too little information results in rework because someone was not notified of changes made to a project or timeline. If you are using email to communicate changes, you risk forgetting someone or typing their email address incorrectly. Phone calls and voice messages may not get through in time to be acted on.
Too much information can be just as problematic. The concrete contractor doesn't want or need to hear about the electrical work unless it directly affects the concrete work. If your teams are getting too many notifications that do not apply to them, they will start to ignore notifications and could miss critical information that impacts the project.
Real time communication between the appropriate people results in faster work and far fewer mistakes and can be accomplished no matter where you are.
Having a single source that contains all the up to date project plans, documents, and communication means no one has to chase another person down to get current information.
If a change is made to a blueprint, everyone sees the change in real time, and can act accordingly. Teams can also immediately ask questions to clarify the work to be done. This drastically reduces the amount of time wasted on asking for more information, and ensures there is a record of changes made and conversation around those changes. That means no more "I wasn't notified...", or "I didn't get that email".
Project management technology allows the project owner to keep their teams up to date with the information that each team needs to know, while also not bombarding them with information that has nothing to do with their part of the project.
This allows each team to keep free communication flow, and focus on their specific tasks.
By controlling access to information, project owners can use a single repository without worrying that the wrong individuals will see sensitive data. The people that need to see bids can do so, and the people who don’t need to, don’t. The best applications out there allow companies to build custom roles allowing very precise access to sensitive information.
The way a project is actually built is usually different than what was first envisioned. Having a complete record of every change, conversation, and photograph is almost like having a time machine. A time machine that allows everyone on the project to see exactly how the project was built and where everything is located.
This simplifies future maintenance, and provides detailed information that helps with budgeting, planning, and hiring.
Any last minute change can be located and identified easily, and a complete history of that work or object is available down to the smallest of details required. Information such as manuals or troubleshooting guides can be attached to specific objects, again reducing time required to search for information.
Every piece of data collected can be analyzed and learned from, allowing you to become more efficient on future projects as well as capture current project information as it is created.
Project owners can review performance and accountability with real information that was collected in real time. This helps them discover and correct inefficiencies before they have a major impact on the project.
Project owners know the exact status of projects in progress, and contractors can schedule more efficiently.
The more efficient your business becomes, the more dollars in your pocket.
