As Canadians brace for an anticipated recession, many are wondering how higher interest rates will impact the construction and housing industries. To get a sense for this, on October 17, Statistics Canada reported an increase in building construction investment in Aug 2022 by .04% (to $21.1 billion).  Non-residential building investment decreased by 0.2% (to $5.3 billion) while the residential building investment increased by 0.5% (to $15.7 billion).     Most of the major growth in residential building construction investment is attributed to growth in British Columbia ..read more

In this post-pandemic economy, the shortage of skilled workers is being felt globally across multiple industries.  Although a surplus of vacancies are reported in most industries everywhere, the construction industry has been especially impacted.    In the United States, for example, the labor shortage problem is amplified by the growing amount of well-needed investment in infrastructure and construction projects. This increased demand on availability of skilled workers only worsens the already scarce labor market, creating a significant gap between demand and supply.  ..read more

You’re excited about the next major client project, and it’s the one that has been in discussion for months. Everything is falling into place. Then, you realize you’re missing key documents and email exchanges where agreements were made, along with the spreadsheets and financials associated. You’re in information overload as you realize the contents of the project are in disarray. Fast-forward to the eleventh hour. You have spent hours sorting through emails, file folders and possibly some late night calls or messages to employees. It’s nerve-wracking watching the clock, counting down until ..read more

We often look at our business relationships as pillars of strength and support to be successful. This is particularly true with vendors because relationships are long-term; where you trust the goods or service they provide, and the people behind it. You know your values align and they have your company’s best interest at heart.  But picking referred or unknown vendors means that we take on a significant risk if it’s a new relationship. You might be unsure of the person or organization’s performance and how they will work with your team.  Or, even a previous vendor carries a certain ..read more

What is the difference between an RFP, RFQ and invitation to tender? In the world of contract management and procurement, there are a variety of ways the tendering stage can work. Owners and clients require a way to determine which subcontractor or supplier will provide the best value; and so understanding the difference between an RFP, RFQ and invitation to tender can determine the best procurement option to find the right vendor.  In the private sector, choosing a vendor doesn’t always require a bidding process at all. Often a sole-sourced vendor is chosen and a purchase ord ..read more

You're not alone. Statistics will tell you that 85% of construction projects go over-budget. But Why? What are the mechanics behind project cost overruns and project schedule delays? Plenty of experienced professionals engage in dialog about this very topic every day and try to arrive at conclusions about how to stop projects from going over budget. In this article I’d like to shed some light on the underlying workings as to the root causes of cost overruns and schedule delays on construction projects. In order to tackle the problem of how to eliminate overruns, it’s important to understand ..read more

Changes are inevitable on projects. Project manager know fluctuations in scope, cost, schedule and activity can happen almost daily in any project.   This article discusses change management in project management including the different types and states of Change Events that can be registered on a project, and some of the nuances of each.  The three main project change events are: Change Order.  Used to register a change in project scope Change Forecast. Used to identify any project trends Budget Transfer. Use to move ..read more

Excel is an amazing tool. It is truly the great multi-purpose software of the past few decades. People can bend and twist spreadsheets to do pretty miraculous things – from planning a children’s party to full enterprise budgeting & forecasting.  In the early days of Excel and Lotus 123, spreadsheets were a major leap forward for the finance world to shed themselves of physical ledgers and an accounting calculator with a paper feed.  And even though most organizations will have long since moved into an ERP for their corporate finance system, many companies still today use Excel ..read more

You're not alone. Statistics will tell you that 85% of construction projects go over-budget. But Why? What are the mechanics behind project cost overruns and project schedule delays? Plenty of experienced professionals engage in dialog about this very topic every day and try to arrive at conclusions about how to stop projects from going over budget. In this article I’d like to shed some light on the underlying workings as to the root causes of cost overruns and schedule delays on construction projects. In order to tackle the problem of how to eliminate overruns, it’s important to understand ..read more

What is the difference between an RFP, RFQ and invitation to tender? In the world of contract management and procurement, there are a variety of ways the tendering stage can work. Owners and clients require a way to determine which subcontractor or supplier will provide the best value; and so understanding the difference between an RFP, RFQ and invitation to tender can determine the best procurement option to find the right vendor.  In the private sector, choosing a vendor doesn’t always require a bidding process at all. Often a sole-sourced vendor is chosen and a purchase ord ..read more