A blocked project is one that’s not performing, is late, over budget. It’s the last thing you need. There are clear signs and symptoms that your project is blocked. Here’s what to look out for so you can get things back on track and under control:
1. A heavy feeling. You know what I’m talking about! You don’t want to go to site and sit with the team involved in the job. You have a hesitancy to write emails because when you open them it’s draining rather than a welcome update. It’s almost like an instinctive feeling of, ‘I have to get as far away from this project as possible’.
2. Limited communication. One minute you have your standard communications on a job, the next your phone calls dry up or you get fewer messages. When people are inclined not to reach out and only make contact when absolutely necessary and not from a place of ‘how is this going to be best serve the team?’, that closed communication loop is a sign your project is blocked.
3. No one wants to address the elephant in the room. You might be going through a dispute where there’s no resolution. It’s blocking everything, upsetting everyone, throwing the whole project off course. But nobody wants to deal with or talk about it. In the last 12-18 months, a key common one is builders running massively behind, and construction costs being more than the contracted price. We’ve been engaged on a few that were blocked and these were the key issues we addressed upfront to get things moving.
4. Abnormally high Requests for Information (RFIs). If a builder doesn’t know something or has a question on design, he’ll issue an RFI. When you get a long list of RFIs from a builder it’s a sign that the design is insufficient or the builder is not interested in the job—or lacks motivation to work or think things through (or pick up the phone.) Big red flag for a blocked project.
6. Abrasiveness. You go to site and the subcontractors are unhappy, dealing with the builder feels abrasive, every interaction is short and sharp and the tone is curt. If you get an abrasiveness vibe it means people aren’t happy and are taking it out on other people. You have a problem.
Once you identify signs of a blocked project, you need to take action. That means open, honest and consistent communication and leading by example. You need to hold the energy as project manager.
Matt Grbcic, Founder MG Group
