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August 24, 2005
There Are No Windfalls Left
We know our business is a tough one. However, it has not always been that way. A time or two ago, material prices were stable, people wanted to work, the economy was steady and legal/political issues were a minor concern.
We all have worked as labor in the field. Some of us remember how fun it was. Loud music playing on the radio, our shirts off, and after work time was ours. What happened? In the decades since, we have moved up in our responsibilities thus less fun. However more to the point, the business has changed.
Our industry has tightened up in the demands in places on us to make a profit. There are no windfalls left. We don't have the luxury of naive competitors. Information in out there. Addtionally, the clients, subcontractors, and suppliers have become more sophisticated leaving us with less opportunity to make a profit.
Lets' look at the changes that have occur in the last 30 years or so. These points are compiled from several groups of contractors at different times. They were asked what has changed in the last 3 decades?
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Matt Stevens is a management consultant who works only with construction contractors. He has performed training and business consultation for the contracting community since 1994. Matt can be reached at mstevens@stevensci.com.
Posted by Matthew S. Stevens at August 24, 2005 05:51 AM
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