Business News

Wed Jan 10

How to Improve Communication on a Construction Site

Written by News Feature Team

Construction firms will be tied to tight deadlines and will be continually responsible for onsite health and safety. Communication is, therefore, important for the smooth running of a project.
It’s safe to say that no construction project can successfully be completed if the communication lines are poor. Communication is needed for teamwork, cooperation, collaboration from one end of the construction line to another, and productivity.

Unfortunately, miscommunication is common in the construction site. When this happens, mistakes are bound to happen, such as the project getting delayed. This is only the beginning of the many problems that can happen to the construction site simply because communication was poor.

To ensure you embark on a hassle-free project every time, read the following advice on how to improve communication on a construction site.

Hold Frequent Meetings

Every construction site will need a flexible office space, such as a shipping container, to arrange the paperwork and hold meetings with staff.

It’s important to regularly hold meetings with various employees every week, which will confirm the project's plans and what is expected of staff onsite. It will also provide a space to develop meeting notes, which must be circulated to all members of staff.

Regularly meeting with your staff can also help solve problems while they’re still at an early stage. This also provides an avenue for the staff to give ideas, based on their hands-on work as to what can be done to improve.

Find out more about flexible office spaces at NZBOX.

Utilize Digital Technologies

Since technology is advancing at a rapid pace, you should use these to your advantage. If you can automate what could’ve otherwise been manual tasks, then do so. Mobile devices have made it easier to connect with all employees on a construction site in one quick swoop.

Encourage all members of staff to download construction communication apps, such as Raken, which will allow site managers to instantly send safety warnings or other news directly to all employee phones. For the higher-level officers or office staff, there are now various project management software that your team can use to your advantage. This can help speed up communication and transmission of information from one line of the project to another.

Ensure All Employees Can Understand You

As we live in a multicultural society, not all your employees may speak English as their first language. Every employer has a responsibility to ensure staff onsite are safe and protected, which is why they must provide the appropriate bilingual signage and training. It might also be beneficial to hire an interpreter at work to translate instructions and health and safety warnings.

Encourage Communication

In addition to holding both formal and informal meetings, encourage employees to continually communicate with one another. For example, they should provide each other with updates on a project to remain on schedule, or state if they unexpectedly need to leave the site for a short or long period of time. As a result, it can create a more productive, safer environment for everyone.

Convey Messages In Different Ways

Some employees will absorb information better than others. Reinforce warnings or news by conveying a message in different ways.

For example, you can provide instruction verbally by changing the language you use, and you can also position onsite notifications and diagrams to reiterate your message.

Don’t just stick to one means of communication, in thinking that everyone can immediately understand this. You need to put yourself in the shoes of everyone in the construction site–from those with the lowest position to your boss. Make it easy for everyone in the team to visualize all the data and information that you’re giving out.

If there’s any communication that should also be spread in bold and with much importance throughout the entire construction duration, you can post this on areas all over the site. That way, it can be absorbed by everyone. Common examples of these concerns would include safety hazards. For a supplier of fence wraps where you can print these infographics, visit fencewrap.com.au.

Provide Positive And Constructive Feedback

The construction industry can be demanding, so your staff must meet the expected standard. It’s important you iron out any employee weakness before they slow down productivity, which is why you should regularly provide both positive and constructive feedback to individuals. This will help an employee to identify where they are going right and wrong, and praise may also help to increase employee morale.

Stick To The Facts

Never overcomplicate messages onsite. It’s important to only stick to the facts so employees know what is expected of them. Going into too much detail or projecting your personal feelings onto staff can negatively impact a project, as it can lead to miscommunication or confusion. Employees can then focus on the task at hand to remain on schedule.

Final Word

Communication is very important in the construction industry. This is essential for projects to go smoothly. More so, when you’re dealing with something that can greatly and adversely affect the safety of people, this is never one for anyone to take for granted. Poor communication can often be the root of a lot of mistakes, which is something that you should avoid in construction.

In all your construction projects, you should always strive for success. One key way to achieve this is through good communication. Most of the company is using workforce management solution which providing valuable insights to help you grow and manage your employee well.

Mon Jan 8

10 Reasons to Hire a Business Coach Now

Written by Greg Rogers

Businesses fail: it is a reality in the world of commerce.

People who create, buy or seek to improve a business, usually approach their management role with optimism and zeal. Over confidence is one reason that most operators do not recognise the potential for failure. Confidence is a good thing but all leaders do not know everything about their market and that is why successful people surround themselves with intelligent, affable and highly qualified staff or advisors.

Most small or medium enterprises cannot afford to employ the most qualified people but they should set aside a budget to pay for the services of a business coach or mentor.

Many business people do not know how much they don't know. They cannot plan for something that they do not know about. A good professional business coach or mentor, is usually an older person who has constantly absorbed information about all sorts of businesses. They know why businesses have succeeded and why businesses have failed. They have a set of data based on history. As they saying goes, "Those who ignore history, are doomed to repeat it".

One of the first things to consider is how to find a business coach. Take time to make an informed selection. Business coaches can advise on ways to succeed and ways to not fail.

Some things to consider.

1.   Choose a mentor or coach with experience in the same industry or service of your own business.

You need a coach who understands the nuances of your enterprise right from the start. An experienced coach or mentor can impart targeted knowledge if they has a vast database of information about a specific business category.

2.   Look for a business coach who has a background in business recovery or receivership.

When a business fails, especially if it is a company, receivers or administrators are called in. They are required by law to enquire into the reasons for the failure and to provide comprehensive reports. The information in those reports can be mined for things to avoid and what to do to avoid commercial disaster.

3.   Make sure that your chosen coach will see you at your own place of business.

While business management is a theoretical study topic in almost all tertiary business courses from MBAs to diploma courses, practical lessons are as important. The coach must be prepared to visit to see where you operate, your premises, your fit out and to see what your customers see when they arrive.

4.   Where possible, choose a mentor who will visit you to see your business when it is open.

Your coach will need more than to just see your place of business. He or she will have to see how your business runs during business operations to fully understand and report on your commercial operations. You can't gain a full insight into a business' potential without being able to observe actually daily operations.

5.   Ensure that your coach will provide written notes touching on his or her observations of your business.

You will want to include reports, recommendations and observations from your business coach in your operations manual for daily reference and to be maintained as a part of your staff training resources.

6.   Choose a business coach who will interview staff as well as the managers.

A good business coach will want to gather information from all levels within a business. Everyone has a point of view but not everyone is willing to come forward with suggestions, comments or ideas. The business coach can be an impartial communications channel for people within an organisation to have an input into an investigation or teaching session.

7.   Where possible, locate a coach who has accounting qualifications or significant ability in finance.

Every business needs to earn more money than the total cost of all of the operations required to run the enterprise. Financial reporting is probably the ultimate score card on how well or how poorly a business is performing. Unless the coach can fully appreciate the information contained within financial records, he or she cannot have a valid role as a coach.

8.   Ask each potential business coach to provide checkable testimonials.

You will need a coach who can demonstrate success as a mentor. Not only do they have to be qualified in terms of experience and education, but they need to be able to show that their services have been useful to people in the past. You do not want an apprentice business coach: you want a coach who will be useful from day one and who can prove that they can produce results.

9.   Look for a business coach who can demonstrate a lot of connections in your industry.

A business coach has to prove that they are suitable for a given role before they are appointed. One factor to consider is, if he or she comes up with suggestions or avenues of inquiry, then can that person can call in contacts within the customer's industry to assist with resources, advise, more customers or better suppliers. Unless they know an industry personally and can call on useful people to help at short notice, then there may be better people to consider.

10. Look for a business coach who will offer a long term association with your business.

Where possible when looking for a business coach, narrow down the field of potential applicants by choosing someone who can come back again and again or who will offer long term support. You will need a business coach who can recommend, monitor implementation of business advice and produce adaptations to business plans over the long term.

Business managers and owners should consider allocating an education budget in much the same way that they set aside a marketing budget. If you are going to advertise, you might as well take advice on how to promote the enterprise with best effect.