Making Elevating Construction Surveyors, Part 2, Feat. Brandon Montero

Five More Habits That Separate Good Surveyors From Great Ones

In the first part of this conversation, Brandon Monteiro and Jason Schroeder covered the foundational habits of situational awareness, task grounded preparation, tool belt refinement, work order envisioning, and plan reading. In this session, they go deeper into the habits that define mastery: understanding the math, using equipment with precision, keeping notes that serve as professional records, learning the CAD environment, and managing error proactively.

These are not beginner concepts. They are the habits that the best surveyors in the field apply at every level of their career, every day, on every task.

If You Do Not Know the Math, You Cannot Check the Math

Brandon tells a story that is hard to forget. Property corners had been set in the wrong place on a job. In reviewing the field book of the crew lead responsible, Brandon discovered something that explained everything: the crew lead did not know the math for doubling an angle. He knew that the company required him to double angles, so he was writing down his first turned angle and then some other number in the field book. There was no back checking math that would have flagged anything wrong. Errors compounded silently through the entire task.

The math is not just a formality in surveying. It is the only mechanism that tells you whether the work is done. And if you do not understand the math, you cannot check whether the instrument’s output is correct, whether your calculations hold, or whether the numbers in your field book reflect reality.

Brandon’s challenge is direct: do not depend on the data collector to do your thinking for you. The data collector does not know what a wrong answer looks like. You do, if you know the math. Make it a standard practice to understand the math behind every task you perform and to QC your work in accordance with that math. If you are not yet at that level, the path is repetition. Put yourself in positions where you have to perform the math functions. Chase the thing that is uncomfortable until it belongs to you.

If you do not know the math, you will not be able to check the math. And the work that cannot be checked will not be caught when it is wrong.

The Work Is Done When the Math Checks Out, Not When the Task Is Finished

Before moving to equipment, Brandon returns to something from the math section that deserves its own emphasis. He has seen too many surveyors run level loops, come back with numbers that do not check out, and essentially complete the task for nothing. The field work was done. The math was not. That means the work was not done.

This reframe applies everywhere in construction, not just surveying. The pour is not done when the concrete is placed. It is done when the placement is verified. The layout is not done when the marks are set. It is done when the QC confirms they are correct. The schedule is not done when it is printed. It is done when it reflects reality and the team can use it.

Build the habit of knowing what a complete result looks like before you go to the field, so you know when you have actually achieved it.

Learn the Equipment Beyond What You Were Told

Most field professionals learn equipment the way they were shown by whoever trained them. Brandon’s challenge is to go further. Read the instrument manuals. Watch instructional videos. Understand not just how to operate a piece of equipment but what its inherent error characteristics are, what best practice methods exist for each task type, and how to use the equipment to QC your own work.

He also introduces a discipline worth internalizing at any career stage: time yourself and beat your time. If you are learning instrument setup, measure how long it takes you. Then measure it again in a few months. Continuous improvement is not an attitude. It is a practice. It requires measurement.

The broader question Brandon keeps returning to is: with your mind in the on position, is every step in the process actually necessary? Are you creating rework somewhere? Is there a faster or more accurate method that you have not explored yet? The surveyor who asks those questions and chases down the answers is the one who compounds their capability over time. The one who does not is the one who has been doing it the same way for twenty years.

Always have room to broaden your knowledge and grow.

Notes Are Your Professional Record

Brandon teaches surveying at Arizona State University and has reviewed field notes from beginner to intermediate level. His observation is consistent: a large portion of task failures trace back to inadequate note keeping. Not enough starting information. Incorrect formatting that made the math hard to follow. Descriptions that only the person who wrote them could understand.

The field notes are often the only official record of what actually happened on site. The data collector stores point values, but notes can contain everything else: instrument and rod height revisions, fuller descriptions, sketches that explain how the work was carried out. In many cases, a great set of field notes can become the exhibit shared directly with the project team, saving hours of CAD drafting work on the back end.

Every type of survey task has a note keeping format that makes sense for it. Three wire leveling, traverse work, monitoring surveys: each has a format that allows others to follow the thought process, verify the math, and understand what was done without having been there. Learning those formats is part of becoming a professional.

If note keeping is uncomfortable for you, that is the signal. Chase the area that is uncomfortable until it belongs to you. Look up the format for the specific task you are performing. Practice it until it is a reflex.

Learn CAD to Understand What Your Client Receives

Brandon offers a framing that reorients the way most field surveyors think about their work: your client is the draftsperson. Not the project owner. Not the civil engineer. The draftsperson is the person who will receive your data and turn it into a deliverable that the engineer will use to design the site. If your data is difficult to interpret, if the lines do not connect, if the coding is inconsistent, you have failed your client.

That means the surveyor who understands AutoCAD, even at a foundational level, will perform better field work. They will code and label things in ways the draftsperson can render. They will take photos that resolve ambiguity. They will draw field sketches that translate directly into exhibits. They will collect the data the draftsperson needs to build a clean surface, not just the data that seemed complete at the time.

Brandon’s practical challenge: take your own topographic work home. Try to connect all the dots in AutoCAD. Create a surface from the point data. See if what you collected actually builds into what was supposed to be built. That exercise will tell you more about the gaps in your field practice than any instruction from a supervisor.

Managing Error Is Not Optional

Error creeps into every survey task. Human error, instrument error, environmental error: it is unavoidable. The professional’s job is not to eliminate it entirely but to foresee it, plan around it, and use best practices that average it out or alleviate it altogether.

Brandon uses the phrase “it’s on the cap” to describe the mindset he is pushing against. A measurement that falls somewhere on the survey cap is technically acceptable. But acceptable and accurate are not the same thing. A five second gun that reports exactly 90 degrees is reporting something that could be up to five seconds off by construction. Is there a best practice that eliminates that error? Is there a different tool that backs up the measurement? Is there a way to alleviate the error at the source, like using a mini prism at ground level instead of a rod that introduces angular error?

These are the questions that professionals ask during the task, not after. Building the habit of asking “how does what I am doing introduce error, and is there a better way?” is what separates surveyors who produce reliable results from surveyors who produce results that mostly check out.

If your project needs superintendent coaching, project support, or leadership development, Elevate Construction can help your field teams stabilize, schedule, and flow. The habits in this conversation, and in the Elevating Construction Surveyors book being built from these sessions, are part of a broader framework for professional development in the field.

The Challenge Across All Ten Habits

Jason closes this session with an observation worth carrying: these concepts are not just for surveyors. If you write a book for superintendents, ninety percent of the concepts apply to project managers. These are universal truths about professional excellence in construction. Absorb your environment. Prepare specifically for the task. Know the math. Verify the work. Keep records that others can follow. Understand the full process from field to finished product. Manage error proactively.

Whether you are holding a rod or running a billion dollar project, the discipline of asking “am I doing this right, and do I know how to verify that?” is what separates the professional from the technician.

On we go.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you start learning the math for surveying if your training never covered it properly?

Start by identifying the math behind the specific tasks you perform most often. Look up the formulas. Practice working through them by hand alongside your data collector outputs. When the numbers match, you understand the process. When they do not, you have found a learning opportunity. Put yourself in positions where you have to perform the math functions rather than always deferring to equipment.

What is the minimum level of AutoCAD knowledge a field surveyor needs?

Enough to understand how a draftsperson will work with your data. You do not need to be a CAD technician. You do need to understand how point data becomes a surface, how line work needs to be coded for clean rendering, and what a drafter requires to produce the final product without rework. That understanding will change what you collect and how you document it.

How should a surveyor decide which error reduction practices to apply on a given task?

Start by identifying where in the task human or instrument error is most likely to creep in. Then ask what the cost of that error would be. High stakes tasks with tight tolerances warrant more rigorous error management. The key is making that assessment consciously rather than defaulting to the same practices regardless of the task.

What makes a set of field notes truly professional?

Anyone who was not present should be able to read the notes, follow the thought process, verify the math, and understand exactly what was done and why. If the notes require the person who wrote them to explain them, they are not complete. Great notes include full descriptions, sketches, instrument and rod height records, and enough detail that they could function as a standalone exhibit.

How do these surveying habits connect to the broader principles Jason teaches for construction leadership?

Directly. The habit of envisioning the full process before performing it mirrors the principle of planning before building. The discipline of verifying math before calling work complete mirrors the standard of finishing as you go. The practice of continuous tool refinement mirrors the lean principle of constant improvement. The specific application is different. The professional discipline underneath it is identical.