Secret Best Practices of Top Projects – Key Takeaway #5 “Empathize, Adapt & Overcome”
Best-in-class owners seek first to understand before being understood—a fundamental tenet of active listening.
In the United States Marine Corps, soldiers are taught to improvise, adapt, and overcome. It has become an unofficial mantra because of how true life can really be when you are “in it”. Essentially, military leaders know that no plan is perfect and that they must be prepared for the unexpected.
It’s an adage that has been adopted by successful businesses around the globe—and is an essential takeaway of the Secret Best Practices of Top Projects with a small twist.
While capital program management plans are not a life/death battle per se, the point is that best-in-class owners empathize, adapt, and overcome, especially when it comes to technology-driven process implementation.
Top owners seek first to understand the challenges. Then they lead a technology-enabled approach through a collaborative implementation with their construction and project managers, while at the same time retaining their strategy for success. A cloud-based construction management software is typically priority number one for any project manager looking to increase productivity, visibility, and collaboration into the project.
It’s not easy, but a best-in-class owner knows that the best solution to improve productivity, streamline processes, and drive efficiency requires some adjustment once it makes it into the field. Therefore, these leaders listen; they ask stakeholders what they need to make their jobs easier and where are the bottlenecks that slow processes. They talk to adjacent stakeholders, including those in accounting and finance, as well as primary suppliers such as architects, construction managers, and contractors.
In summary, best-in-class owners seek first to understand before being understood—a fundamental tenet of active listening.
Best-in-class owner Banner Health adopted this habit to eliminate the chance of surprise overruns by implementing an efficient cost forecasting process. The cost forecasting feature within a cloud-based construction management software was customized to fit the stakeholder needs. Ultimately, the healthcare organization was able to leverage $70 million in savings from active projects to fund a new cancer center.
