BUSINESS MANAGEMENT - MANAGEMENT'S ROLE
This is the 23rd of a series of newsletters published on Business Management and Management Skills. Not all topics will apply to your business, but each section will be beneficial to establish company goals and objectives. By reading and studying these newsletter articles, you're taking the first step in achieving your goals.
* * * * *
Most people have weak management skills, regardless of their position or title. How well do you manage work processes and time? You need to keep up, read about management, attend management seminars, look at best practices, and take some courses. Get new management skills and document them for your resume.
Managers must undertake long-range planning to achieve their goals and growth expectations, and short-range planning to keep busy, pay the bills, and build up financial reserves. Know your objectives (what you want to achieve), and then establish your policies (how you're going to achieve it). Decide how you want to position yourself and chase only that kind of work.
In all your planning, recognize the time value of money for it's the fuel that keeps things moving, and the stalling effects that a lack of money can cause. Cash is king - you're out of business the day you cannot make payroll. Seek your level of competition. Some large firms have evolved to be very efficient and specialized. These firms tend to dominate certain types of construction, so choose your own field of battle. Determine the types of jobs where you have a competitive advantage, and then assign specific resources to obtaining this type of work.
Take an inventory of your tangible and intangible assets. How qualified are your field personnel, supervisors, estimators, sales people and office staff? Are ...