How Can I Make Better Use of My Time?

Time management problems often stem from poor work habits; therefore, you need to analyze how you spend your time. It may take years to become proficient at managing time but the little positive changes you make in your daily working habits will prove beneficial when, a year from now, your stress level has diminished and you are enjoying owning and operating your business. Below are some useful tips,

• Break old habits and make new ones. Decide to change poor working habits by replacing them with effective tasks. Take time to start now, don't procrastinate!
• Start with yourself and analyze how you waste valuable time.
• Set yearly, monthly, weekly and daily goals and then develop strategies to reach these goals.
• Write a to-do list with the 80/20 rule in mind-do the most important things first. Tackle tough jobs first rather than doing petty tasks. In this way you will be able to finish big jobs without stress.
• Consolidate similar tasks, group similar jobs and do them concurrently.
• Get started immediately on important tasks. No matter how much you hate doing a task, do it.
• Break the "Do-It-Yourself" habit and let others learn to share responsibility in operating the business.
• Avoid the cluttered desk syndrome-a clear desk helps you to think clearly, locate papers easier and keep your mind on the task at hand.
• Reduce meeting time. Ask yourself if a meeting is necessary or will a phone call do just as well? If a meeting is a must, try a standup one; this will guarantee that the important issue is addressed.
• Put up a "Do not disturb" sign when you absolutely have to get work done.
• Practice not answering the phone just because it's ringing and e-mails just because they show up. Disconnect instant messaging. Don't instantly give people your attention unless it's absolutely crucial in your business to offer an immediate human response.
• Block out other distractions like Facebook and other forms of social media unless you use these tools to generate business.

How To Keep Your Employees Motivated?

Well motivated employees lead to high business productivity, minimal staff turnover and greater profitability for your business. However, how do you keep your employees motivated? Motivating your employees is not just about paying a competitive salary or offering perks and bonuses. To ensure your employees are well motivated you need to consider all aspects of your business.

• Know what motivates your team members, never assume that you know what drives the people in your team. Some people may respond well to financial incentives such as commissions or bonuses but others may not. For some it could be more important to have some time off or a simple 'Thank You' for the good work that they do. 
• Communicate your goals and vision clearly, it is incumbent upon the manager to set the direction in clear, unambiguous terms. Ongoing communication and monitoring of progress is crucial.
• Develop a 'coaching' style and attitude by developing a coaching attitude, you will be able to empower your staff to find the answers to their own day to day challenges on the job rather than telling them to do things your way. Employees will be more effective in the longer run if they are given the space to use their natural strengths and unique approach on the job. A 'directive' style of management will restrict the inherent potential of your team members. 
• Communicate with your employees in an open and honest way, including regular staff meetings in groups and on a one-to-one basis and staff updates on how the business is performing and management decisions that have been made. 
• Review performance on a regular basis through staff appraisals and individual update meetings, ensuring individual objectives are realistic and align with the overall business objectives. 
• Consult with your employees before making decisions that will affect them and encourage your employees to make suggestions for improvements in the business. 
• Develop trust and teamwork among your employees and encourage them to ask for help when problems arise.
• Give your employees a reasonable amount of autonomy and control and try and ensure each employee has a variety of interesting and satisfying work. 
• Support your employees through times of change in the business, in achieving work balance and managing stress. 
• Provide employees with development and career opportunities, through training, work placements and encouragement. 
• Create an atmosphere where employees enjoy working alongside their colleagues, where there is time for humour and fun and take the time to be interested in their life outside work.

Construction Softwares

In this fast changing world, construction industry has to adapted several techniques to cope up with other industries. Though, adoption of technology rate in construction industry is pretty slow than any other industry. However, some advancement is necessary to adapt, implying information technology is one of them.  Tailoring the necessary construction software in industry has not only reduced the construction cycle time but it also increase the productivity in terms of improvement in customer satisfaction. Furthermore, the management can get rid of several long processes like contact management and document management etc. Below is just a brief glimpse of some of the well-known construction softwares and providing companies.

Aconex

Aconex is a privately held Australian company providing mobile and web-based collaboration technologies for project information management (also sometimes described as project management or project extranet systems), on a software as a service (SaaS) basis, to clients in the construction, infrastructure, power, mining, and oil and gas sectors. With more than 300,000 users and 12,000 projects globally. Aconex provides the most widely used multiparty online collaboration platform for construction and engineering projects. Helping to combat the cost of paper documents and the limitations of e-mail, Aconex provides a web-based system for managing project information such as drawings, documents, tenders and correspondence. To help prevent disputes and delays, the system maintains a complete audit trail of who did what and when, allowing contractors and project managers to track key deliverables and identify bottlenecks before they impact schedules.

Causeway

Causeway is the only global software provider that powers the design, build, operation and maintenance of the built environment. Unlike other software companies, our products provide in-depth functionality at each stage of the process, helping our customers increase their delivery, profitability and environmental performance. Causeway’s design, cost, financial supply chain and enterprise content management solutions cater to the needs of the construction industry. Its cost management and financial management systems help organizations minimize risk, control cost and increase profits. Causeway’s enterprise content management solutions help companies gain better control over information relating to projects, departments and entire organizations. The company’s supply chain management solutions help construction firms control costs and increase profit margins throughout the tendering process.

CMCS

CMCS offers PPMIS, a portfolio and project management solution that helps companies keep track of project progress. The system centralizes all project information, including schedules, costs and documents, so that information is readily available when needed by the user. Amongst those expected to benefit from the system are: developers and owners, financial partners, project management firms, surveyors, consultants, contractors and suppliers. The company’s customer list includes regional developers, project managers, consultants and contractors.

Construction Computer Software (CCS)

Candy Construction Estimating and Project Control system is a software application for the cost management and planning of all construction projects. The system integrates all functions and stages of the construction process, from estimation to tender award and ultimately, final account. Candy is entirely focused on and designed for construction – it is not a set of relational databases pressed onto construction people. Developed over 30 years through an interactive and consultative process with the industry, Candy manages the numerous links between all functions and all the people in construction in a systemic way. 

Primavera

Oracle subsidiary Primavera provides project portfolio management solutions for the engineering and construction industry. P6, the latest iteration of the company’s flagship software, is an integrated project portfolio management solution that comprises role-specific functionality to satisfy each team member’s needs, responsibilities and skills.

Oracle Primavera is the leading Enterprise Project Portfolio Management (EPPM) solution for project-intensive industries. It offers best-in-class capabilities focused on mission critical PPM requirements of industries like engineering & construction, discrete and process manufacturing, public administration, financial services and others. Oracle Primavera enables enterprise agility, team productivity, portfolio predictability and overall project management efficiency. The result is the ability to drive down costs, minimize risk and deliver results to key stakeholders.

Worldwide Challenges Facing the Construction Industry

There are some very serious challenges facing the construction industry that are motivating new approaches such as 3D rendering and simulation and model-driven design to how we design, build, operate, and maintain buildings and infrastructure.  While these new technologies are designed to address challenges in the construction industry, they are going to profoundly affect other sectors such as operations and maintenance, emergency planning, first response and urban planning.  Below are some of the major challenges:

• Few opportunities: Undoubtedly there is less new construction work happening, both in the private sector (due to lack of available money, investors and certainty) and the public sector (due to government cut backs). Until confidence and availability of money returns, this is unlikely to change. However, as far as public sector construction is concerned, the government does now seem to be investing in some major infrastructure projects in an attempt to kick start the economy.
• Greater competition: A direct result of fewer opportunities is that more companies are vying for fewer projects. Prices are driven down as companies bid lower in an attempt to secure the work. 
• Shortage of resources: It seems that, over the last few years, many tradespeople have left the industry and retrained in other careers. This means that companies who have secured work may now have problems in resourcing those new projects, resulting in them either paying a premium for labour or under-resourcing the project; both having a negative financial impact on the organization. It is made worse as these companies want to employ apprentices and train them to be fully skilled, but are unable to do so as tight margins and slow payments leave no spare money to do so.
• Fraud/ethics: A large proportion of engineering and construction companies report being the victim of serious economic crimes. While theft of assets might be regarded by some as an accepted risk of doing business, regulators are taking a hard line on companies who turn a blind eye to these activities. Companies should also be aware of the impact this can also have on their reputation and share price. 
• Resolving disputes: The inherent and often unexpected risks on a new construction project present key challenges to engineering and construction companies. For example, if a project is delayed or disrupted, significant resources are engaged and management time consumed. The outcome can have serious consequences on corporate value.
• Relationships with sub-contractors: Construction contractors are under constant pressure to improve margins, reduce costs and improve predictability. Developing long-term relationships with key strategic suppliers is a key part of delivering this strategy. This involves construction companies motivating their contractors to be pro-active, develop new approaches, solutions and work with them to reduce risk.
• Risk management: Construction projects are high risk. They present enormous fiscal requirements and unusual logistical challenges for companies constructing new office buildings, plants or production facilities. Underestimating risk can lead to poor procurement strategy or the lack of skilled resources to actively manage the risk of project implementation may lead to poor decision-making.