Every aspect involved in successfully managing a business, has a process in place. This goes for estimating too. You don’t want to just keep estimating projects without a process in place to measure your success ratios as to what works, what doesn’t and most importantly, was it profitable.
Without a process in place you could be throwing good money at bad, by not knowing several key factors.
What types of jobs are you proficient at?
Don’t go after a job that your estimator(s) may not be familiar with. This goes for your work force as well, for if they are not familiar with the installation, it won’t match the estimated hours and/or materials
Have you tracked what jobs you were successful at?
This needs to be broken down in multiple sectors to analyze the true value of the installation
- Were the estimator(s) proficient in the take off?
- Were the estimator(s) and work force familiar with that particular type of project? (See Bullet Point above)
- Did you do a side by side comparison to similar projects, times of year, geographical location, GC, Work force, Etc…?
Can you break it down in a spreadsheet, or software program, so you can validate future projects you are interested in based upon all of the above?
Now I know some of this seems like common sense, however some smaller contractors that start out working by themselves don’t need to do this, because they can gauge it based upon their own work performance. Let’s jump ahead to when that same contractor grows and now needs to know this to be successful. Some do adapt to this type of structure, and some don’t, however if you look at a side by side comparison, as we do when we engage a new client, you will see the obvious differences, and unfortunately some don’t make it that far before they go out of business without even knowing why.
Don’t become the “ONE” that did go out of business, contact us today to learn how we can assist you in your growth, or even just to give an analysis of an already booming business, as we may be able to assist you in growing your bottom line even more.
At On Time Estimating we have been in the industry since 1982 as Contractors, Electricians and Estimators, so we can always lend a helpful hand. Even if you don’t think you may need it, there is nothing ever wrong with a second opinion. Remember, we NEVER charge for advice, consultations or for cost quotes for a project you may be interested in bidding.