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Tag: construction business advice
Success Stories
Precision Pipeline worked around the recession and desert turtles to become one of Utah’s top contractors
Landon Floyd grew up in construction. His father ran a small excavation and pipeline company in Southern California but moved to Utah when Landon was a boy because it seemed a better place to raise a family. Although his dad handed the reins over about 10 years ago, Landon grew up working for the company. […]
February 10, 2015
Business
Building the future of your construction company: Matching tech-savvy, young employees in a mentorship with seasoned crew members
When I listen to contractors tell me how they first became involved in construction—usually a tale of early exposure and family tradition—it has hit me that what this industry needs is a corporate adoption program. But as the chances of our own Orphan Train Movement are slim, the best option we’ve got is growing the […]
July 18, 2014
Business
4 tips for developing a health and wellness program at your construction firm (and why you should)
Construction company owners are in a unique position when it comes to assessing and helping their employees manage their health and wellness. Construction is difficult, demanding work, and having employees at the top of their game both mentally and physically is crucial. The firms are also often small enough for company owners to be able […]
July 16, 2014
Business
Hard work, soft touch: 3 steps to becoming an effective, modern construction company leader
As anyone who has ever owned a business can tell you, being in charge and being a leader isn’t necessarily the same thing. When you’re running a company, it’s important to make conscious decisions as a leader that will not only enrich your firm, but also benefit your people. In construction, reputation is everything, and […]
June 17, 2014
Business
Want to boost your construction business? Put a woman in charge
I saw something this week that caught my eye: A Tweet linking to a Harvard Business Review post said a study in Italy found naming a woman as CEO improves profitability in family-owned firms. Specifically, replacing a male CEO with a female CEO increases profitability. Also, the more women on the board of directors of […]
March 21, 2014
Business
4 New Year’s resolutions every contractor should make to improve their business in 2014
Your crews have been sent home, most of your machinery has made it back to the yard for a yearly maintenance run through, and it’s time to celebrate another full year of being in business. During this less-than-full-throttle time (assuming a client doesn’t call with an emergency), consider these ways you can get on the […]
January 3, 2014
Business
The 9 leadership rules every contractor should know
One of the great assignments the editors at Equipment World get every year is to go out and interview a dozen Contractor of the Year finalists and find out how they have succeeded in this very tough business. If you want to be the best at what you do you owe it to yourself to […]
October 9, 2013
Business
Too much of a good thing? Three steps for managing your construction company’s growth
It’s the time of year when Equipment World editors start scouring Contractor of the Year nominations, looking for the best of the best. Some traits are easy to pick out as the signs of a contender: low turnover, good revenue growth, excellent equipment management, a sterling safety record. While others don’t quite jump out at you, […]
September 3, 2013
Business
Energy, fuel and the federal regulatory tsunami dominate the conversation at the 2013 Construction Symposium
Contractors and heavy equipment fleet managers got an earful of what challenges await them in the construction industry and what the solutions might be at the Randall Reilly Construction Symposium held Wednesday and Thursday in Dallas, Texas. In a nutshell—the shale oil and gas revolution is going to be great for the construction industry, but […]
August 23, 2013
Construction Equipment
74 tips for reducing equipment costs (21-30)
In my last post covering equipment cost cutting tips 11-20, I looked at eliminating buddy jobs, cutting down emergency work and reducing engine idling.  Here are cost-saving strategies 21-30: 21: Manage omissions Omissions can create common failures that affect numerous downstream components. Omissions can lie concealed or dormant until they trigger events that cause an […]
August 16, 2013
Home
74 tips for reducing equipment costs (11-20)
In my first post covering equipment cost-cutting tips 1-10, I addressed several equipment cost cutting basics, including the impact of faithfully using a computerized maintenance management system. Here are cost-cutting strategies 11-20:  11: Eliminate “buddy jobs” I have seen unnecessary use of two-man jobs many times while analyzing maintenance operations.  If they aren’t really […]
August 5, 2013
Business
Is your construction company being embezzled? How to sniff out the problem
Times were good in the early 2000s when a Southern California contractor went looking for a financial manager. “This candidate was far above anyone else we interviewed,” the contractor says. She had construction experience and caught on quickly. He immediately gave her more responsibility. The manager would sit down with him every month, going over […]
May 1, 2013
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