by Simplar | Aug 13, 2026 | Business of Construction, Business, Strategic & Project Planning, Financial Management and Risk, Financial Management and Risk, Leadership, Risk Management, Risk Management, Weekly Construction Message
The strategic planning that we have been discussing can be converted into a highly effective business management tool by turning ambition into a definite action plan. The strategic planning process identifies what markets to pursue, how to win work, how to build...
by Simplar | Jul 30, 2026 | Financial Management and Risk, Financial Management and Risk, Project Selection, Project Selection, Risk Management, Risk Management, Weekly Construction Message
Vacation schedules have interrupted our strategic planning series, so we are repeating an important message on risk. If risk recognition and assessment is so fundamental to the construction transaction, why do so few contractors engage in formal risk management? As I...
by Simplar | Jul 10, 2026 | Business Development, Business, Strategic and Project Planning, Financial Management and Risk, Financial Management and Risk, Leadership, Leadership, Risk Management, Weekly Construction Message
Warren Buffet was a businessman. He never drove a train, wrote an insurance policy, built an office tower, or miniaturized a computer. He strictly analyzed an existing business’s ability to make a profit over an extended period and invested an appropriate...
by Simplar | Jun 25, 2026 | Business Failure, Business Failure, Financial Management and Risk, Financial Management and Risk, Risk Management
The instrument rated construction company financial management that we have been discussing these past few weeks is not simply a metaphor. Most of the contractors that failed mid-project when my company was completing construction projects for sureties were surprised...
by Simplar | May 21, 2026 | Built Environment, Financial Management and Risk, Leadership, Leadership, Risk Management, Risk Management, Weekly Construction Message
Magicians only perform a trick once for the same audience. A second time and the trick loses its luster. The third time around the audience figures it out. The trick no longer fools the audience and the magic is gone. Legacy Tricks of the Trade We contractors start...
by Simplar | Apr 2, 2026 | Built Environment, Business of Construction, Contracting Methods, Financial Management and Risk, Financial Management and Risk, Organization Transformation, Risk Management, Risk Management
I have been haranguing the industry for years about what is wrong with the contracting business model. Many of you agree with my discomfort but ask, “How do we change the long-held structure of the standard construction financial transaction?” Let’s...
