by Simplar | Dec 11, 2025 | Built Environment, Business of Construction, Financial Management and Risk, Financial Management and Risk, Financial Management and Risk, Financial Management and Risk, Organization Transformation, Partnering, Planning, PM, Project Delivery, Weekly Construction Message
“The ultimate measure of performance is not what is earned, but how the earnings are used to increase a construction company’s value.” (The Business of Construction Contracting, Thomas C. Schleifer, Aaron B. Cohen, Wiley, 2025 The only way for small...
by Simplar | Feb 20, 2025 | Business Failure, Business, Strategic & Project Planning, Business, Strategic and Project Planning, Business, Strategic and Project Planning, Financial Management and Risk, Risk Management, Risk Management, Weekly Construction Message
Continuing last week’s risk discussion: Recognizing, identifying, and measuring risk is a critical pre-bid task. A Las Vegas sports book doesn’t wait to set the line until after the game. A handicapper who failed to take a key player’s injured wrist into account or...
by Simplar | Oct 10, 2024 | Business Development, Business, Strategic & Project Planning, Business, Strategic and Project Planning, Business, Strategic and Project Planning
Do not be misled. Construction contractors are not manufacturing structures, or highways, and selling them to ultimate owners one piece at a time. We are selling construction services, much like business consultants are selling information services or law firms are...
by Simplar | Oct 12, 2023 | Business Development, Business Development, Business, Strategic and Project Planning, Financial Management and Risk, Financial Management and Risk, Financial Management and Risk, Growth, Growth, Weekly Construction Message
Capital capacity is just a fancy way of saying having enough cash around to finance projects ongoing plus projects under consideration. The construction industry is grossly undercapitalized. This, I believe, is the primary risk factor that contractors deal with daily...
by Simplar | Sep 20, 2023 | Business Failure, Business Failure, Financial Management and Risk, Financial Management and Risk, Financial Management and Risk, Partnering, Planning, PM, Weekly Construction Message
Risk Mitigation Thomas C Schleifer, Ph.D. Thirty-five years ago, I initiated research that resulted in ranking construction contracting #2 in business failure rate (restaurants are #1). That data inspired me to begin ongoing research into the causes of construction...
by Simplar | May 26, 2023 | Built Environment, Facility Management, Labor & Labor Issues, Labor & Labor Issues, Labor & Labor Issues, Leadership, Leadership, Leadership, Leadership, Organization Transformation, Partnering, Planning, PM, Procurement, Weekly Construction Message
Our Team is Our Business Thomas C Schleifer, Ph.D. The Greatest Generation After World War II the construction industry boomed in the U.S. The G.I.s who saved the world from the evils of Hitler, Mussolini, and Hirohito were proud of what they had accomplished but...
