Any business, not just construction, thrives when a quality job is achieved. Quality is, after all, one of the benchmarks of success that define whether a business will go on to do good work. If you can consistently provide a high level of quality, you get more work. If you don’t, you lose your business to someone who does.
However, quality is not something that happens through hard work. Planning and management need to be paired with effort. In the UK, for example, the construction industry there is concerned that quality management is just not there for most projects. If you don’t want this to be you here in the USA, there are five things you should keep in mind to assure better quality management.
Goal Definition
It may seem simple, but one it all starts with the willingness to sit down and define what goals you have. All the work in the world isn’t going to help you unless you and your company know exactly what you are working towards, concrete easily understood terms. Being “the best there is,” is all well and good, but unless you stop and break down exactly what constitutes being “the best,” you won’t know how to achieve this goal.
The trick is to be ambitious and aim high, but with realistic expectations. If you’re a medium-sized company, giving yourself the goals only achievable by a larger enterprise is setting yourself up for failure. But if you aim high within your class or category, this is challenging but achievable.
Model Determination
Once you know what you want to achieve, determine the model that will define how you achieve it. The model you create or plan is the map that you and all the other staff in your company will be following. If you want to increase your safety, for example, concrete examples of how to do this will surface in your model, so that people will know what to do. If you want to be more financially efficient, the steps to achieving this will be laid out in your model. Spend a lot of time on this model, because whatever it finally becomes will determine how everyone in your company acts.
Resource Commitment
Once you know what to do, and how to do it, you are going to need to ensure that your people have what they need to carry out your goals. If you’re emphasizing safety, for example, but refuse to provide any additional safety equipment, or, worse yet, confiscate safety equipment already in use, you shouldn’t be surprised when your safety rates don’t increase, and even get worse. Be prepared to spend money, time or resources to get you and your staff closer to your goal.
Get Quality Hires
Behind any quality work are quality people. If you’re expanding or committing to a new direction in your quest for quality, you’ll be bringing new staff in. Don’t cut corners in the hiring process, because a quality employee is one of the greatest assets any business can have.
Define & Track Your Metrics
How will you know when you’re successful? What criteria or information are you using to make this determination? Make sure that you define the data and numbers that you’re looking for, and then be both meticulous and honest about how your efforts are comparing to this. Only with good data can you make the tweaks and adjustments you need to get closer to your goal.
