While step 1 is having a contingency plan in place, here are the ways you can keep delays and damages to your construction projects at bay.
Develop A Contigency Plan
The first step in creating a contingency plan is to understand the present data. Ensure your staff and their families are safe and healthy. Communicate to your team the resources they have available through your insurance and benefits providers, specifically for COVID-19. Next, draft and communicate a Coronavirus job site policy along with a work-from-home policy. This should be for both your staff and subcontractors. Finally, set clear expectations for the entire team by letting them know who is accountable and what they are accountable for.
Ask Tough Questions
Tough times call for a clarity break. Be open and honest with yourself and your leadership team by asking the tough questions:
- What does COVID-19 mean for my employees and their families?
- What is our project outlook? (Pull your WIP reports)
- What are our project owners thinking? How is this impacting their industry? Ask them.
- What does our company look like a week from now, two weeks from now, 2 months from now?
- What does our revenue look like at a 10% drop? 25% drop? 50% drop? Who and what are the key players?
Communicate, Listen, Communicate
The best path forward is to be real and to communicate with your owners and your team. States typically consider construction work as “essential”, however that is not always the case. Your owners and employees can and will provide essential feedback that will impact your business through the pandemic and well beyond. Again, let your team know who is accountable for what and ensure everyone is on the same page.
Dive Into The Financials
Forecasting and historical prediction becomes key during hard times. What does your QTD, MTD, and YoY look like right now? I’m not talking about anything fancy, just a good old Excel sheet will do, but you must understand your key, high-level financials in order to have a better understanding of what to prepare for. Maybe you have taken on significant capital expenditures or a high-risk project. Perhaps you have had a consistent level of cash flow from spec projects. All of these factors need to be taken into the equation so you can predict bad, better, and best.
Dive Into The Financials
Forecasting and historical prediction becomes key during hard times. What does your QTD, MTD, and YoY look like right now? I’m not talking about anything fancy, just a good old Excel sheet will do, but you must understand your key, high-level financials in order to have a better understanding of what to prepare for. Maybe you have taken on significant capital expenditures or a high-risk project. Perhaps you have had a consistent level of cash flow from spec projects. All of these factors need to be taken into the equation so you can predict bad, better, and best.