Keys to Successful Communication

Communication is critical to the success of design and construction projects. Almost every client—large or small, old or new—is most concerned with their project being on time and on budget. We have found the key to both is effective and frequent communication.

This might sound like a simple concept, and it is. But not many people or organizations do it well.

Our firm was founded on the core value of Servant Leadership. As servant leaders, our architects and engineers seek to deeply understand our clients and put their mission and goals above their own. This ensures our designs reflect the client, not us. It means clients get the best possible results toward accomplishing their mission. It also means we understand how important communication is.

So how do we do it? Here are a few examples:

Every Monday morning, our key project leadership meets and discusses every project deadline forecasted in the next three months. These meetings are a critical project planning tool and a spot check, ensuring all deadlines are successfully met.

 

We recommend all Owners maintain bi-weekly Owner/Leadership Meetings with our team. These meetings offer an avenue for consistent communication throughout design and construction. In them, we discuss the project scope, schedule, and budget.

 

A public blog helps keep school stakeholders and the community up to date on important K-12 projects. Our team can maintain this blog on behalf of the school district, working with the Owner to post key information, manage feedback, and communicate our progress.

 

These interactive review sessions are scheduled at strategic points throughout a project. We walk the Owner’s team through each component of the project—going room by room—to ensure we meet expectations. We confirm everything from layouts to the type of light switches we’re using to the space allotted for servicing mechanical systems.

 

Using video game technology, we can quickly generate real-time virtual walk throughs of a building. This allows for improved design coordination between our team and the Owner throughout the project process. Seeing the design evolve according to the Owner’s feedback ensures the final product aligns with their vision.

 

From the Kick-off Meeting through Substantial Completion, all documentation for a project is generated and housed in a Centralized Electronic Document Management System. Owner teams have immediate and secure access to everything from meeting minutes to the latest building plans. This allows for live documentation that clearly articulates decisions in an easily accessible system.

These are just a few pieces in the arsenal of tools we use to ensure budget control on all projects. Want to hear more about how they can be used on your project? Give us a call!