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Women in Construction!

Posted on by Danny Jiménez⁩
Read 24 min

Women in Construction: Why Diversity Is Not a Social Cause, It Is a Competitive Strategy

This is the conversation that a lot of construction leaders want to have but do not know how to start. Not because they do not care, but because it is genuinely complicated territory. Some women in construction want to be recognized specifically as women who are succeeding in a field that has historically made that harder than it should be. Others want nothing more than to be called a superintendent, full stop, without any qualifier that sets them apart from the rest of the team. Some leaders are unsure whether calling attention to diversity makes things better or reinforces the idea that someone needs special consideration to be there. The uncertainty is real. But letting uncertainty prevent action is its own kind of failure, and this episode, recorded with Katie Schroeder and Jason Schroeder, works through the complexity honestly and arrives at a conclusion that any construction leader can apply: create safe, inclusive environments, recruit intentionally, and say directly, we need women in construction.

The Performance Gap the Industry Is Ignoring

Before getting into the cultural and interpersonal dimensions, there is a practical argument that every construction leader can engage with regardless of where they stand on the social dimensions: diverse teams outperform homogeneous ones. Research consistently shows that teams with diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and experiences produce better decisions, more creative solutions, and stronger results than teams that are composed of people who think and communicate in the same way. The construction industry, which continues to be overwhelmingly male in its leadership ranks, is operating with a narrower talent pool than it could have, a narrower range of perspective than it needs, and a narrower set of problem-solving approaches than the complexity of its work demands.

This is not a soft argument about inclusivity as a social value. It is a hard argument about competitive performance. If you want the best team, you need the widest possible pool of capable people. If you are systematically excluding half the population from serious consideration, you are not building the best team. You are building a limited version of it.

The System Built the Problem, Not the People

The underrepresentation of women in construction leadership is not primarily the result of individual prejudice, though individual prejudice certainly exists and needs to be addressed. It is the result of a system that was built without women in mind and has been slow to redesign itself. The culture of many construction sites, from the casual acceptance of harassment to the informal networks through which opportunities are communicated, was designed for and by a demographic that did not include women. Women who entered that system had to navigate conditions that were not designed for them and were often actively hostile to them. The barrier was systemic, not personal.

That matters because it changes the response. If the problem were purely individual attitudes, the solution would be individual attitude change. But if the problem is systemic, the solution requires systemic design: intentional recruiting that reaches women candidates who would not otherwise find the opportunity, mentorship programs that build the pipeline, cultural standards that are enforced rather than aspirational, and leadership accountability for the composition and health of the teams they build.

What Hensel Phelps Got Right

Jason Schroeder describes watching Hensel Phelps make a decision, roughly fifteen to seventeen years ago, that felt uncomfortable at the time: they were going to intentionally hire women and develop them through the leadership ranks. Some people inside the organization, including Jason in his own admission, questioned whether this was the right approach. Looking back, he recognizes it as one of the most important decisions the company made. Hensel Phelps project sites now include women in project management, superintendent, operations management, and vice president roles in proportions that exceed the industry average by a significant margin. The quality of leadership, the culture of those projects, and the company’s reputation in the industry have all benefited from the intentionality of that decision.

The lesson is not that you need a mandate. The lesson is that intentionality is required. If a company simply posts an opening and waits for applicants, the pool of applicants will reflect the existing demographics of the industry. Intentional recruiting means actively reaching people who would not otherwise see the opportunity. It means building relationships with universities, trade schools, and professional organizations that serve women in construction. It means designing the interview and selection process in a way that does not unintentionally filter out candidates who do not fit a narrow cultural template. None of that is complicated. All of it requires making a decision that this is a priority rather than leaving it to chance.

What Women in Construction Are Actually Navigating

Katie Schroeder describes experiences that are common for women in construction and common in professional settings more broadly. The job site interaction that establishes, without words, that the woman in the room is viewed differently. The leer that produces a skin-crawling response that is not about oversensitivity but about the body’s accurate read of a situation where someone is using their perceived power to diminish someone else. The mechanic who assumes a woman needs her husband to make a decision about her own car. The car dealer who gives her brother a better price after she has already negotiated. The accumulation of small moments, each one individually dismissible as not a big deal that adds up over years to a persistent message: you are not quite the same as the people who were here first.

These are not hypothetical. They are described by a woman who leads a company, has decades of professional experience, and does not identify as someone who is looking for reasons to feel diminished. When someone like that describes an experience of being treated as less than, the response is not to question whether she perceived it correctly. The response is to understand that this is still happening, that it has real effects on real people, and that the construction industry has a specific responsibility to address it because the industry’s culture has historically been a significant contributor to it.

Signs That Your Project or Company Has Work to Do

Before looking at what to do differently, it helps to be honest about where a project or company currently stands:

  • Is the leadership team of your project entirely or nearly entirely male, and has that ever been examined as a potential limitation rather than a neutral fact?
  • Are the informal channels through which opportunities, mentorships, and advancement decisions happen accessible to everyone, or do they primarily flow through networks that women have limited access to?
  • Are there behaviors on your project site, in your office, or in your team communication that create discomfort for women and are tolerated because the person doing them is otherwise valuable?
  • When something uncomfortable or inappropriate happens, is the response swift and clear, or is it managed quietly in ways that protect the culture of silence?
  • Have you ever directly asked the women on your team what would make the environment more supportive, rather than assuming the current environment is neutral?

Honest answers to those questions reveal where the work is.

What to Do With the Information

The practical steps for a construction leader who wants to create a genuinely inclusive environment are not complicated, though they require consistent follow-through. Jason summarizes one of the most important ones with a phrase that his brother-in-law used in a different context: we do not do that around here. When something is wrong, when someone is being treated with less respect than they deserve, when a comment or behavior is setting a standard that the project should not accept, the response from anyone in a leadership position is to say so, directly, in the moment. Not in a report. Not in a meeting later. In the moment.

The other critical step is to be intentional about who is in the room. Who is on the project leadership team? Who is being considered for the senior superintendent role? Who is being invited to the site visits, the client meetings, the professional development opportunities? If the answer to those questions consistently produces the same demographic, it is not because the talent is only coming from one group. It is because the system of selection is not reaching everyone who qualifies.

Built for an Industry That Wants to Win

Katie’s closing point in this episode is the one that every construction leader should take forward: if you see something, stop it. Not because it is politically required or because there is a policy that demands it, but because the industry is better, and projects are better, and teams are better, when everyone in them can bring their full capability without spending energy navigating an environment that is working against them. Elevate Construction is committed to supporting women in construction, to celebrating their success as the outcome of their talent and effort, and to creating the conditions where more of that success becomes possible. If your project needs superintendent coaching, project support, or leadership development, Elevate Construction can help your field teams stabilize, schedule, and flow.

Make It Normal, Then Make It the Standard

The goal is not a construction industry where women are tolerated or accommodated. The goal is a construction industry where the question of whether a superintendent, project manager, or operations leader is a woman is as unremarkable as the question of whether they are left-handed. Hensel Phelps built toward that goal deliberately over decades and now has projects that reflect the full range of talent available in the labor market. Other companies and project teams can follow the same path. It starts with saying it clearly, as Maya Angelou wrote: in diversity there is beauty and there is strength. Say it, mean it, and build the systems that make it real.

On we go.

 

FAQ

Why is intentional recruiting for diversity better than just posting an open position and waiting for applicants?

Because the pool of applicants who respond to a standard posting reflects the existing demographics of the industry, which is already heavily skewed toward one demographic. Intentional recruiting means actively reaching beyond that pool to build relationships with universities, trade schools, and professional organizations that serve underrepresented groups, including women in construction. It means designing the posting, the interview process, and the selection criteria in ways that do not unintentionally filter out candidates who do not fit a narrow template. The talent exists. Intentional recruiting is how you find it.

How should a construction leader respond when they witness inappropriate behavior toward a woman on their project?

Immediately and directly, in the moment. The phrase Jason uses in this episode captures it well: we do not do that around here. Not a report filed later. Not a quiet conversation after the fact that the person who was targeted never hears about. A clear, direct statement in the moment that establishes what the standard is and that it is being enforced. Leaders who wait for formal processes to handle what they could address directly are allowing the behavior to continue longer than necessary and communicating to everyone watching that the standard is aspirational rather than real.

What does the research say about diverse teams versus homogeneous ones?

The research consistently shows that diverse teams, meaning teams with different backgrounds, perspectives, and problem-solving approaches, produce better decisions and more creative solutions than homogeneous ones. Katie references the Antifragile concept in this episode, and the broader research literature supports the conclusion: when a team is composed of people who think similarly and communicate in similar ways, it has a narrower range of pattern recognition, a narrower set of responses to novel problems, and a narrower view of what the right answer looks like. Adding perspectives that approach problems differently makes the team’s collective intelligence higher than any individual contribution. For construction, which is full of novel, complex, multi-stakeholder problems that matters.

What is the tension between calling out women in construction specifically and simply treating everyone as equal?

This is a genuine tension that the episode addresses honestly. Some women in construction want to be recognized specifically as women succeeding in a field that has historically made that harder, and they want the industry to name the barriers and work to remove them. Others prefer to simply be called what they are, a superintendent or a project manager, without any qualifier that implies they are a special case. Both positions are reasonable. The answer that Jason and Katie land on is to be intentional about inclusion without treating any individual as a special case within the team. At the organizational level, say clearly that women in construction are needed, wanted, and valued, and recruit intentionally toward that goal. At the individual level, treat every person as a capable professional whose role is defined by their work.

What does a psychologically safe construction environment actually look like in practice?

It looks like a site where anyone can raise a concern, ask a question, or report a problem without fear of retribution or social cost. It looks like a leadership team that models respect across every interaction, including the informal ones that set the real cultural standard. It looks like clear enforcement of conduct expectations, where the first violation is addressed directly and publicly enough that everyone understands the standard is real. It looks like women in leadership roles that are earned through capability and recognized without qualification. And it looks like a team that is better at its work because it is drawing on the full range of talent and perspective available, rather than a limited subset of it.

If you want to learn more we have:

-Takt Virtual Training: (Click here)
-Check out our Youtube channel for more info: (Click here) 
-Listen to the Elevate Construction podcast: (Click here) 
-Check out our training programs and certifications: (Click here)
-The Takt Book: (Click here)

Discover Jason’s Expertise:

Meet Jason Schroeder, the driving force behind Elevate Construction IST. As the company’s owner and principal consultant, he’s dedicated to taking construction to new heights. With a wealth of industry experience, he’s crafted the Field Engineer Boot Camp and Superintendent Boot Camp – intensive training programs engineered to cultivate top-tier leaders capable of steering their teams towards success. Jason’s vision? To expand his training initiatives across the nation, empowering construction firms to soar to unprecedented levels of excellence.

Recommended Books

Posted on by Danny Jiménez⁩
Read 23 min

The Essential Reading List for Construction Superintendents and Project Managers

There is a pattern in the careers of the best construction leaders that is rarely discussed because it is not dramatic enough to make a good story. They read. Not occasionally, not on vacation, not when they happen to find an interesting title. They read consistently, on purpose, across a range of subjects, and they apply what they read directly to the work they are doing. The superintendent who has read Taiichi Ohno, Patrick Lencioni, and Dale Carnegie is drawing on a combined body of wisdom that took decades to produce and costs a few hundred dollars to access. The one who has not is drawing exclusively on their own experience, which however valuable, is always incomplete. This episode is a reading list drawn from the books that inform the forthcoming title Elevating Construction Senior Superintendents, and it is a direct answer to the most common question Jason Schroeder receives: what should I be reading?

The Problem That Compounds Every Year

Most construction professionals will tell you they do not have time to read. They are managing crews, responding to RFIs, chasing material deliveries, running foreman huddles, and attending owner meetings. The list of things that must happen before the next morning is almost always longer than the available hours. Reading is the category that gets trimmed when everything else has been allocated. And the problem is that trimming it has a cost that does not show up immediately: the cost of leading without the frameworks, language, and practical tools that books provide. That cost accumulates quietly over years, and it shows up in leaders who are technically capable and interpersonally blind, or who know their product but have never thought systematically about systems, culture, or change.

The System That Did Not Provide a Reading Path

This is not a personal failure. The construction industry has never had a standard curriculum for developing superintendents or project managers as leaders. The trade skills are trained. The technical competencies are developed on the job. The interpersonal, organizational, cultural, and production science dimensions of the role are left largely to chance. Nobody handed most superintendents a reading list and said: here is what you need to understand about lean thinking, about trust, about team dynamics, about mindset, and about the psychology of change. The knowledge gap was built into the system. The books exist to close it, for anyone willing to use them.

The Field Engineering Methods Manual and What It Started

Jason Schroeder describes reading the Field Engineering Methods Manual by Wes Crawford eight times early in his career, eventually converting it to audio on an early text-to-speech program and listening to it on the drive to and from an Intel project. Not because someone assigned it. Because he understood that the gap between where he was and where he wanted to be was a knowledge gap, and that books were the most efficient way to close it. That habit, formed early and maintained deliberately, is one of the things he credits most directly with whatever competence he has developed. The list in this episode is the extension of that habit into a structured reading program for anyone who wants to build the same foundation.

The Books That Build Your Production and Technical Foundation

The lean and production books are the technical core of the reading program. They provide the scientific and conceptual framework for understanding why lean production systems work, how they were developed, and how to apply them in a construction context.

The following are the foundational lean and production titles from the list:

  • This Is Lean by Nicholas Modig and Par Alstrom: the clearest and most comprehensive treatment of lean thinking available, covering the efficiency paradox and the distinction between resource efficiency and flow efficiency
  • Toyota Production System by Taiichi Ohno: the source document for understanding the foundations of lean, flow versus pull, and the principles that underpin every lean construction tool
  • The Goal by Eli Goldratt: the novel that introduced the Theory of Constraints, essential for understanding how bottlenecks govern production throughput
  • The Bottleneck Rules by Clark Ching: a shorter, more accessible treatment of Goldratt’s Theory of Constraints, focused on practical application
  • The Lean Builder by Joe Donarumo and Keyan Zandy: the best practical guide to implementing the Last Planner System in the field
  • Scrum by Jeff Sutherland and JJ Sutherland: the foundational text for understanding how Scrum applies to project management and team coordination
  • Two Second Lean by Paul Akers: the most accessible introduction to building a lean culture of continuous improvement, usable at any level of the organization
  • Takt Planning and Integrated Control by Jason Schroeder and Spencer Easton: the guide to implementing Takt as the master scheduling system in construction

Reading all of those in sequence produces a leader who understands production science at a level that very few construction professionals ever reach, and who can apply it practically rather than theoretically.

How the Best Leaders See the Human Side

Production tools without leadership capability produce technically sophisticated projects that are interpersonally dysfunctional. The second major category in the reading program addresses trust, team dynamics, communication, mindset, and the psychology of change. These are the books that explain why good plans fail, why talented people underperform, and how to build the conditions where both the production system and the people inside it can perform at their best.

The leadership and personal development titles from the list include:

  • Mindset by Carol Dweck: the most important book on the list for anyone whose career trajectory depends on their willingness to keep learning and adapt under pressure
  • Leadership and Self-Deception by the Arbinger Institute: essential reading for anyone who has ever found themselves blaming others for problems they contributed to, which includes every leader in every industry
  • The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni: the clearest framework for understanding why teams fail to perform and what trust, healthy conflict, commitment, accountability, and results require of every member
  • Multipliers by Liz Wiseman: the distinction between leaders who amplify the capability of everyone around them and those who diminish it, with practical guidance for moving from one to the other
  • How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie: still the best practical guide to interpersonal skill, written not as theory but as a set of immediately applicable principles
  • The Speed of Trust by Stephen Covey: the definitive treatment of what trust is made of and how to build it deliberately
  • The Ideal Team Player by Patrick Lencioni: the three virtues of a great team member, humble, hungry, and smart, applied to hiring, development, and culture
  • Switch by Chip and Dan Heath: the most practical guide to leading change available, addressing the rider (intellect), the elephant (motivation), and the path (circumstances) simultaneously
  • Essentialism by Greg McKeown: the discipline of eliminating the non-essential so that the essential can be done exceptionally

Those books, read and applied in combination with the lean production titles, produce a leader who understands both how to design an excellent production system and how to build the team that can run it.

Knowledge Is Not Power. Action Is.

The final point in this episode is the most important one, and it is where many reading programs fail. Jason closes the list with a direct statement: knowledge is not power. Action is power. The leader who reads every book on this list and applies nothing has spent thirty hours in an activity that produced the feeling of progress without the substance of it. The value of the reading is entirely in the implementation. Leadership and Self-Deception changes a leader’s professional behavior when they actually begin noticing the moments they are in the box and deliberately choosing to get out. The Toyota Production System changes a superintendent’s project when they actually redesign their production sequence based on what they learned. Mindset changes a career when the leader stops defending their existing knowledge base and starts approaching every gap with curiosity rather than defensiveness.

Pick two books from this list that address the area where you most need to grow. Read them completely. Implement one thing from each of them before starting the next. The book that sits on a shelf produces nothing. The one that changes how you walk into a project meeting, run a foreman huddle, or respond to a production problem produces everything.

If your project needs superintendent coaching, project support, or leadership development, Elevate Construction can help your field teams stabilize, schedule, and flow.

Start the List and Stay With It

The return on investment for a consistent reading habit in construction leadership is as high as any investment a leader can make. The frameworks take months or years to develop from field experience alone. Books compress that development significantly. The leader who reads This Is Lean and then runs a Takt simulation understands what they are experiencing and why it works. The one who runs the simulation without reading has a useful experience and no conceptual scaffolding to build on it. The difference compounds over a career. As Harry Truman observed: not all readers are leaders, but all leaders are readers. Start the list, stay with it, and implement one thing at a time.

On we go.

 

FAQ

Why do construction leaders need to read books outside of technical construction content?

Because the work of construction leadership is not purely technical. A superintendent manages people, culture, trust, conflict, change, logistics, communication, and production systems simultaneously. None of those domains are fully addressed by technical construction training. Books on lean thinking, team dynamics, mindset, interpersonal communication, and organizational change provide the frameworks, language, and practical tools for the non-technical dimensions of the role. A leader who is technically capable but interpersonally underdeveloped, or who understands product but not production science, will consistently underperform relative to their potential. Reading across the domains that the role requires is how that gap gets closed.

Which books on this list should a new superintendent start with?

The highest immediate impact combination for a new superintendent is probably Leadership and Self-Deception for interpersonal awareness, The Lean Builder for field production management, and Mindset for the learning orientation that makes everything else possible. Those three books address the three most common gaps in new superintendents: self-awareness in difficult interpersonal situations, practical production tools for the field, and the willingness to keep developing rather than defaulting to what has worked before. From there, This Is Lean provides the conceptual foundation for everything lean, and The Five Dysfunctions of a Team provides the framework for building the team that can execute the plan.

Why are there so many Patrick Lencioni books on the list?

Because Lencioni’s work covers the organizational and team health dimensions of leadership more practically and accessibly than any other author in the space. The Five Dysfunctions addresses team performance. Death by Meeting addresses the meeting system that drives or drains a team’s effectiveness. The Advantage addresses how communication scales through an organization. The Ideal Team Player addresses hiring and culture. The Truth About Employee Engagement addresses direct management relationships. Each book covers a different dimension of the organizational health problem, and taken together they constitute a comprehensive framework for building and sustaining a high-performing team. For a superintendent or project manager responsible for a team of any size, that framework is directly relevant to daily work.

What if I prefer listening to reading?

The list translates well to audio. Audible carries most of these titles. For leaders who want a shorter format, Blinkist provides ten-minute audio summaries of most major business and leadership books, which is a practical way to decide which titles are worth the full read. The key is that the format matters less than the consistency. A leader who listens to one book per month over a career covers an enormous amount of material. The limitation of summaries is that they often strip out the stories and examples that make the frameworks memorable and applicable. For the books that matter most, the full version is worth the time.

How should a leader decide what to implement after finishing a book?

The most useful practice is to finish a chapter or a section and immediately ask: what one thing from this section can I implement before the next chapter? Not ten things. One. The leader who reads Leadership and Self-Deception and then spends one week actively noticing moments when they are making themselves the victim of a situation gets more from the book than the one who reads it straight through and moves on. The leader who reads The Lean Builder and then implements a single element of the Last Planner System in the next weekly planning meeting is compounding the learning. The books are tools. Tools only produce value when they are used. Use one thing at a time, completely, before adding the next.

If you want to learn more we have:

-Takt Virtual Training: (Click here)
-Check out our Youtube channel for more info: (Click here) 
-Listen to the Elevate Construction podcast: (Click here) 
-Check out our training programs and certifications: (Click here)
-The Takt Book: (Click here)

Discover Jason’s Expertise:

Meet Jason Schroeder, the driving force behind Elevate Construction IST. As the company’s owner and principal consultant, he’s dedicated to taking construction to new heights. With a wealth of industry experience, he’s crafted the Field Engineer Boot Camp and Superintendent Boot Camp – intensive training programs engineered to cultivate top-tier leaders capable of steering their teams towards success. Jason’s vision? To expand his training initiatives across the nation, empowering construction firms to soar to unprecedented levels of excellence.

I Have No Idea What I Am Doing!

Posted on by Danny Jiménez⁩
Read 26 min

I Have No Idea What I’m Doing: The Leader’s Confession Every Construction Professional Needs to Hear

Here is something that almost nobody in a leadership position says out loud: I have no idea what I am doing. Not the leader who just got promoted and is running their first project. Not the superintendent who has been in the industry for twenty years. Not the business owner who just signed a third client while trying to make payroll for the first time. Not the project manager who is about to implement lean systems on a project that has never seen them. Nobody says it out loud, even though every single one of them feels it at some point. And because nobody says it, everyone assumes they are the only one experiencing it, which adds the burden of isolation to an already difficult situation. This episode is permission to say it out loud, along with the honest truth about what comes after you say it and do the thing anyway.

The Problem That Goes Unnamed

The construction industry produces a culture of confidence as a baseline professional standard. Superintendents are expected to project certainty. Project managers are expected to know the plan. Foremen are expected to have the answer before the crew asks the question. That expectation of confidence is not entirely wrong: the field needs decisive leadership, and hesitation in some situations has real consequences. But the culture of projected certainty also creates a significant problem. It makes it nearly impossible for leaders at any level to admit that they are scared, uncertain, or genuinely unsure of what to do next. And when that admission is impossible, leaders stop asking for help, stop taking risks that might fail, and stop doing the hard things that produce growth.

The System That Creates Alone-ness

This problem is systemic, not personal. The construction culture that expects projected confidence from its leaders was designed without a genuine mechanism for leaders to acknowledge what they do not know or what they are afraid of. The result is a profession full of capable, experienced people who are carrying a private weight of uncertainty that they cannot set down because the culture does not have a place to put it. The leader who is terrified about making payroll this week and the superintendent who is afraid to implement a new production system on a project where their reputation is at stake are experiencing the same thing: the flesh is weak, and the blood is running a little cold, and there is no one they can say that to without feeling like they are failing their role.

The Honest Starting Point

Jason Schroeder has eleven children and started a business when the income was uncertain, the model was unproven, and the financial reserves were being used to fund the launch. His wife Katie pushed the risk forward. He followed because he believed in the direction. And he can say plainly, on a podcast with 480 episodes behind it, that he has no idea what he is doing. Not in the sense of being incompetent. In the sense that starting a business, scaling a business, hiring professionals who depend on you for their livelihoods, managing client relationships while expanding a team and creating new offerings: none of that came with a manual. None of it maps cleanly onto what he learned as a superintendent or a project manager. He is figuring it out in real time, one step at a time, with faith that the direction is right even when the specifics are unclear.

That is not a confession of failure. It is a description of every meaningful thing a person does for the first time.

The Verse That Says It Better Than Most

His daughter Effie reads a verse from the hymn “A Poor Wayfaring Man of Grief,” and one line carries the weight of the whole episode: the flesh was weak, my blood ran chill, but my free spirit cried, I will. Every significant decision a leader makes, every hard thing they do that was not on the list of easy and comfortable options, has that structure. The flesh is weak. The blood runs a little cold. The thing is scary enough that the body registers it. And then the spirit decides anyway.

Think about the version of that experience that belongs to you. The conversation you needed to have and kept postponing. The promotion or new role you almost turned down because it felt too uncertain. The system you knew the project needed but was afraid to push for because the owner or the team might push back. The apology you owed someone that required you to be the first to lower your defense. Every one of those moments has a moment in it where the flesh is weak. The question is what happens next.

What Happens When Leaders Say I Will

Here is the honest picture of what doing the hard thing produces, drawn from real experiences:

  • The superintendent who implements Takt planning on a project where no one has seen it before and the pushback is immediate and real emerges with a team that eventually trusts the system, a project that flows, and a professional credibility that cannot be built any other way
  • The project manager who tells the owner honestly that the schedule needs more time, even when the owner does not want to hear it, builds a relationship of trust that survives the difficult conversation
  • The foreman who speaks up in a planning meeting about a sequencing problem that the superintendent has not seen protects the crew and earns the kind of respect that cannot be manufactured
  • The leader who admits to a client that they do not have the answer right now but will find it and come back demonstrates the kind of professional honesty that generates loyalty beyond any single project
  • The young superintendent who takes the role they are not sure they are ready for, and asks for help along the way, becomes in two years what the comfortable version of themselves would not have become in ten

None of those outcomes arrive without the moment where the flesh is weak and the spirit decides anyway.

The Biodome Tree and What It Teaches Construction Leaders

Jason tells the story of the biodome experiments conducted near Tucson, Arizona, where scientists attempted to grow trees in a controlled environment. The trees grew quickly and appeared healthy. Then they toppled over. The root systems had not developed the strength to support the above-ground growth. The cause was the absence of wind. When a tree grows in a natural environment, the constant pressure of wind against its trunk and branches triggers a cellular response that strengthens the wood structure and drives the roots deeper. Remove the wind and the tree grows without the feedback that makes it strong. The adversity was not harming the tree. It was building the tree. Without it, the growth was real but the foundation was not.

Construction leaders who have never had a difficult project, never had to fight for a schedule they believed in, never had to deliver bad news to an owner, never had to rebuild trust with a team after a rough start, have grown without wind. They may look like senior leaders and carry senior titles. The first genuine adversity will reveal what the biodome obscured.

Effie adds the point that makes this more than a biology lesson: the opposition is what fills the vacuum with growth. The hard thing, overcome, creates room that was not there before. And then, because you have been through it, you can help someone else go through it. The growth connects you to the people who are behind you on the same path.

The Fear Does Not Mean You Are Wrong

The critical mistake that stops many construction leaders from doing the hard thing is interpreting fear as a signal that the direction is wrong. It is not. Fear is the signal that the direction matters. The things that are truly unimportant do not make the blood run cold. The conversations, decisions, and commitments that generate genuine fear are generating it because something real is at stake. That is not a reason to stop. It is a reason to recognize that you are at the right place, facing the right challenge, with the opportunity to grow in a way that would not be available if the thing were easy.

Faith, as Jason describes it in this episode, has a specific structure: you know something is possible, you have a desire for it, and you are willing to act before you have certainty about the outcome. It is not confidence that everything will work out exactly as planned. It is the willingness to take the next step in the direction you believe is right and trust that the step after that will become clear.

Built for Leaders Who Are Figuring It Out

The purpose of this podcast and of Elevate Construction’s work in the construction industry is to build people who build things. Not to build systems for people who already have everything figured out. To build systems for people who are scared, uncertain, facing something they have not faced before, and need both the practical framework and the honest encouragement to keep going. Jason Schroeder can say he has no idea what he is doing because being honest about that does not undermine the work. It is the work. The leaders who change projects, teams, and companies are almost always the ones who were scared and did it anyway. If your project needs superintendent coaching, project support, or leadership development, Elevate Construction can help your field teams stabilize, schedule, and flow.

Say I Will and Take the Next Step

Whatever the hard thing is in front of you right now, whether it is implementing a system your project has never seen, having a conversation you have been avoiding, taking a role you are not sure you are ready for, or simply admitting to your team that you do not have the answer yet but you will find it, the invitation from this episode is to feel the fear honestly and act anyway. The flesh is weak. The blood runs a little cold. And the spirit can still cry, I will. As Ernest Hemingway wrote in A Farewell to Arms: the world breaks everyone, and afterward, many are strong at the broken places. Construction leadership breaks every leader who takes it seriously. What it builds in the breaking is what makes the rest of the career possible.

On we go.

 

FAQ

Why is it important for construction leaders to admit when they do not know what they are doing?

Because the culture of projected certainty that construction demands also creates isolation and prevents leaders from asking for the help they need. A leader who cannot admit uncertainty will not seek coaching, will not acknowledge when a system is not working, will not ask the owner for an honest conversation about the schedule, and will not create the kind of psychological safety that allows a project team to surface problems early. Admitting that you do not have everything figured out is not a professional weakness. It is the precondition for honest collaboration, continuous learning, and the kind of trust that makes difficult projects work.

What does the biodome tree story teach about leadership development?

It teaches that adversity is not the enemy of growth. It is the mechanism of growth. Trees grown in protected environments without wind develop without the cellular feedback loop that strengthens wood structure and drives root growth. When they reach a certain height, they topple because the root system cannot support what grew above it. Construction leaders who are never challenged, never pushed to implement a new system, never required to have a difficult conversation, and never placed in situations where failure is a genuine possibility develop the same way. The growth is visible but the foundation is not there. The adversity that feels like it is working against development is often the precise thing that makes the development real.

How does fear indicate that a decision or direction matters?

Because the things that do not matter do not generate genuine fear. The conversations, commitments, and decisions that make the blood run a little cold are the ones where something real is at stake: a relationship, a professional reputation, a project outcome, a family’s financial security. That fear is the body registering the weight of what is in front of you. It is not a signal to stop. It is a signal that the direction is significant enough to be worth the fear. Jason Schroeder describes this directly in the episode: starting a business with eleven children and uncertain income generated genuine fear that he did not override. He moved through it because the direction felt right and the purpose was clear. The fear was real and it did not stop him.

What is the structure of faith as Jason describes it in this episode?

Faith, in Jason’s framing, has three components: knowing that something is possible, having a genuine desire for it, and being willing to act before the outcome is certain. This is different from confidence, which assumes a known result, and from wishful thinking, which involves desire without action. Faith is the middle state where the direction is clear, the destination is uncertain, and the next step is taken anyway. For a construction leader, this looks like implementing a production system on a project where the team has not seen it, having a difficult conversation with a client before the relationship deteriorates further, or taking on a role that is bigger than any previous role, trusting that the capability will develop through the doing.

How does overcoming a hard experience prepare a leader to help others?

Because the person who has gone through a genuinely difficult experience carries specific knowledge that cannot be learned from a book or a course: what it feels like to be scared, how to take the next step when you cannot see the one after it, what the other side of a hard decision actually looks and feels like. Effie’s insight in this episode is that connection is part of the purpose of difficulty. The leader who has implemented lean systems on a resistant project team, rebuilt trust after a breakdown, or made a difficult change in their professional life can reach a colleague who is facing the same situation in a way that no amount of technical expertise alone can match. The growth you do not seek for yourself because it is hard is sometimes the exact growth that equips you to help someone else.

If you want to learn more we have:

-Takt Virtual Training: (Click here)
-Check out our Youtube channel for more info: (Click here) 
-Listen to the Elevate Construction podcast: (Click here) 
-Check out our training programs and certifications: (Click here)
-The Takt Book: (Click here)

Discover Jason’s Expertise:

Meet Jason Schroeder, the driving force behind Elevate Construction IST. As the company’s owner and principal consultant, he’s dedicated to taking construction to new heights. With a wealth of industry experience, he’s crafted the Field Engineer Boot Camp and Superintendent Boot Camp – intensive training programs engineered to cultivate top-tier leaders capable of steering their teams towards success. Jason’s vision? To expand his training initiatives across the nation, empowering construction firms to soar to unprecedented levels of excellence.

What Excellence Looks Like

Posted on by Danny Jiménez⁩
Read 27 min

What Does Remarkable Look Like? A Tour of Operational Excellence on a Live Construction Project

Most people who want to implement lean construction systems on their projects have never actually walked a project where those systems are functioning at a high level. They have read about Takt planning. They have heard about morning worker huddles. They have seen diagrams of visual management boards and color-coded inspection systems. And then they go back to their project and try to implement things they have only ever seen described, without a clear picture of what the finished version looks and feels like in the field. This episode is that picture. It is a walk through a real construction project, a 240-million-dollar build with 550 workers actively on site, and then through a Takt simulation that demonstrates exactly why the system works when it is done correctly.

The Problem That Most Good Leaders Share

The overwhelming majority of superintendents and project managers who want to run better projects do not lack the desire. They lack the reference point. When you have never walked a project where the entrance is immaculate, the morning huddle has workers genuinely engaged, the foremen have the model on a kiosk in the field, and the entire site runs with the kind of operational order that makes a six-inch pile of sawdust stand out against 300,000 square feet of clean floor space, it is difficult to know what to aim for. The standard is invisible until you see it, and once you see it, everything changes.

The System Produced the Result, Not the Heroes

What needs to be said before going any further is that the project described in this episode did not look the way it looked because it happened to have exceptional people. Every construction company has exceptional people. The difference on this project is that the exceptional people were supported by systems that made exceptional behavior the default rather than the exception. Clean entrances. Visual boards. Standardized morning huddles. Pre-staging protocols. Color-coded inspection systems. BIM access in the field. A logistics process for the hoist that required coordination before anything went on it. All of those systems created the conditions for the people to perform at their best. The system made the standard visible and enforceable. The people followed the standard because the environment made it easy to do so and impossible to ignore when it was not.

The Virtual Tour

Walking onto the DPR project in Phoenix that serves as the setting for Elevate Construction’s superintendent boot camps, the first thing that registers is the entrance. Straight fence posts. Evenly cut tops. Taut screening. Laminated signage in English and Spanish, equally spaced and clearly formatted, with QR codes for the COVID-19 worker check-in process positioned for easy access. Rock stabilization properly maintained, no track-out on the roadway. No trash from the gate to the first interior point. Everything about the entrance communicates operational control before a single word is spoken.

The huddle tent anchors the morning. Six to eight job-built visual boards with dry-erase surfaces display weekly work plans and visual floor maps. An enclosed, lockable monitor case provides access to the BIM model. When workers queue into the morning huddle area, music is playing. A project team member gets up on the raised podium, tells a joke or offers a welcome, leads the stretch and flex, and communicates the major safety focus for the day along with any changes to the production schedule. The workers break into their crew groups for preparation huddles where foremen run through pre-task plans and confirm their crews are ready to execute.

Inside the building, every cord is off the ground. The floors are swept. Materials are staged in their assigned locations, coordinated before anything moves to the hoist. The hoist itself is color-coded by trade so that pallets going up are identifiable at a glance. On the walls, a spray paint inspection system tells the story of where each space stands: the final trade to complete its work paints a color code, and a black mark confirms the space is ready for the next sequence. Foremen access the building model on kiosks positioned at key coordination points, confirming their in-wall and overhead installations against the coordination model before they close anything up. Room kitting drawings tell each crew exactly what goes in each room, reducing the interpretation and coordination variability that generates rework.

The Takt Simulation That Makes It Real

The boot camp that follows the project tour uses a physical three-dimensional simulation that puts participants in the position of running a small-scale construction project through three rounds, each with different levels of planning sophistication.

In the first round, participants are told to schedule and execute the project however they want. No constraints. No system. They finish in roughly fifteen to sixteen minutes. The process is somewhat chaotic, the laydown areas are disorganized, and there are no clear handoffs or rhythmic sequences. The work gets done, but it gets done the way most projects get done: through improvisation, individual effort, and occasional confusion about what comes next.

In the second round, participants are told to apply Takt planning. They choose six zones and a Takt time, and they begin to play. This is typically where participants experience what a Takt plan looks like when it is applied without understanding the underlying production principles. Some trades run too large for their time window. Others try to jump ahead. When a zone falls behind, the instinct is to push, which means two wagons are competing for the same space. The chaos is different from round one but it is still chaos, and it illustrates something important: Takt planning is not a template that makes projects better automatically. It is a system that requires leveling, flow principles, and the right Takt time to function as intended.

In the third round, the participants apply Little’s Law to determine the right Takt time for the right number of zones. They level the work packages. They incorporate everything they saw on the project tour: pre-staging, crew preparation huddles before each Takt window, a logistics person managing material movement, prefabrication of components that can be built off the critical path, and direct communication between trades about what each one needs from the zone before theirs. The difference is immediate and visible. The project flows. Handoffs happen cleanly. When a trade falls slightly behind, the team uses a buffer rather than pushing into the next space. The project completes in eight and a half minutes against a target of eight minutes, compared to fifteen and a half minutes in round one.

What the Three Rounds Reveal About Flow

Here is what changes from round to round in that simulation, and what it teaches about real projects:

  • Round one without a system: the trades start when they feel ready, work as fast as they can, and hand off when they are done, regardless of whether the next trade is ready to receive
  • Round two with Takt but without flow principles: the rhythm is imposed but the production design is wrong, so the imposed rhythm creates conflict rather than coordination
  • Round three with leveled work, right Takt time, pre-staging, huddles, and flow discipline: the system governs the pace, the trades trust the rhythm, and the buffers absorb the variation without cascading into the rest of the project

That three-part progression is the learning arc that every project team goes through when they encounter Takt planning without proper support. The simulation compresses it into an afternoon rather than three months of painful field experience.

The Last Planner and Takt Are Not Competitors

One of the clearest conceptual points in this episode is the relationship between pull planning and Takt planning. A pull plan shows how work flows within a single area, the sequence of trades through one room, one zone, one segment of the building. A Takt plan takes that same pull-planned sequence and repeats it across multiple areas on a defined rhythm, showing not only how work flows within each zone but how trades flow from zone to zone across the entire project. Trade flow from area to area is the most important type of flow in construction, because when trades are moving steadily from zone to zone on a reliable rhythm, work throughout the entire building is flowing. The Last Planner System’s weekly work plan and commitment structure then operates inside each Takt window, making specific commitments within the rhythm that the Takt plan governs. They work together. Neither replaces the other.

What Remarkable Requires

Before leaving the boot camp, participants see this list of what the project team built to create the conditions for flow:

  • Huddle tent with visual boards, weekly work plans, and floor maps accessible to every foreman and trade partner
  • Morning worker huddle with music, stretch and flex, and project-wide communication before crews begin their day
  • Crew preparation huddles with pre-task plans completed and confirmed before workers hit the floor
  • Color-coded inspection system that makes the progression of each area visible without any report or meeting
  • BIM model access via kiosks and foreman iPads so coordination can be verified at the point of work
  • Room kitting drawings that eliminate interpretation variability from in-wall and overhead installations
  • Logistics coordination for the hoist so nothing reaches the upper floors without having been staged and coordinated first
  • Pre-staged materials by zone so that crews arriving at a new Takt zone are not mobilizing from scratch on day one

None of those elements are expensive. All of them are intentional. And together they create a project where a six-inch pile of sawdust stands out against 300,000 square feet of clean floor because everything else has been maintained at a standard that makes any deviation immediately visible.

Built for Every Project That Wants to Perform at This Level

The point Jason Schroeder makes at the close of this episode is the one worth carrying: this is not a 240-million-dollar-project standard. It is not something that only DPR Construction or only elite general contractors can achieve. These principles are repeatable. The simulation produces the same result everywhere it is run when the conditions are set up correctly. The project described in this episode is a proof of concept for what any project, at any scale, can achieve when the team commits to the systems that produce flow. If your project needs superintendent coaching, project support, or leadership development, Elevate Construction can help your field teams stabilize, schedule, and flow.

Raise the Level of What You Expect

The lasting effect of walking a project like the one described in this episode is not information. It is expectation. Once a superintendent has stood on a clean floor, walked through a gate with straight posts and laminated signage, watched workers queue into a morning huddle with music playing, and seen a foreman confirm their installation against a BIM model at the point of work, they cannot unsee it. The standard becomes real and visible and possible, which changes what they are willing to accept on their own project. As Aristotle observed: we are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act but a habit. Every element of the remarkable project described in this episode is a daily habit, built into the system, reinforced by the environment, and visible in every corner of the site. That is what remarkable looks like. Build the habits and the project will follow.

On we go.

FAQ

What makes the DPR project described in this episode remarkable beyond just being clean?

The cleanliness is a symptom of a deeper operational system. What makes the project remarkable is the integration of visual management, standardized meeting systems, logistics coordination, BIM access at the point of work, and a morning huddle culture that connects every worker to the project’s daily priorities. Each of those elements reinforces the others. The visual boards inform the huddles. The huddles prepare the crews. The crew preparation confirms the logistics. The logistics protect the Takt rhythm. And the Takt rhythm governs the flow of trades through the project. Cleanliness is visible in the entrance and the floors, but it is produced by a system that creates accountability at every level for the standard that the entrance communicates.

What is the relationship between the three Takt simulation rounds and what happens on real projects?

The three rounds compress a learning arc that typically takes months on a real project into an afternoon. The first round without a system mirrors most construction projects: work gets done through improvisation and individual effort, but without coordination, rhythm, or flow. The second round with Takt but without proper production design mirrors what happens when organizations adopt Takt planning as a scheduling format without understanding leveling, batch sizes, and the right Takt time: the rhythm creates conflict rather than coordination. The third round with leveled work, the right Takt time, pre-staging, and huddles mirrors what Takt planning produces when implemented correctly: steady flow, reliable handoffs, and buffer absorption that protects the rhythm from variation.

Why is trade flow from area to area the most important type of flow in construction?

Because when a trade is flowing steadily from zone to zone on a defined rhythm, it means that work is progressing through the building in a coordinated sequence. The framing crew finishes zone three and moves to zone four. The rough-in crew enters zone three. The drywall crew enters zone two. Each trade is moving forward in sequence, each space is being progressively closed out, and the project is advancing at a pace that corresponds to the Takt time rather than to whoever happens to finish first. When trade flow breaks down, trades stack, handoffs fail, and spaces get partially worked and abandoned. Takt planning, done correctly, is a system designed specifically to govern and protect trade flow across the entire project.

What is the difference between a pull plan and a Takt plan?

A pull plan shows how work flows within a single area or zone: which trades enter in what sequence, what each trade needs before it can begin, and how the work in that area progresses from rough to finished. A Takt plan takes that same pull-planned sequence and repeats it across multiple zones on a defined rhythm, showing not only the flow within each zone but the flow of trades from zone to zone across the project. The Takt plan governs the overall production rhythm. The pull plan governs the specific work content within each Takt window. They work together rather than competing: the Takt plan provides the rhythm, and the Last Planner weekly work plan provides the specific commitments within each Takt cycle.

Why do participants produce dramatically different results in the third simulation round compared to the first?

Because the third round incorporates the production principles that the first two did not: leveled work packages, the right Takt time calculated using Little’s Law, pre-staged materials by zone, crew preparation huddles before each Takt window, logistics coordination for material movement, and direct communication between trades about handoff conditions. Each of those elements reduces the variation that the first two rounds were absorbing through improvisation and individual effort. The simulation demonstrates that flow is not primarily a function of how hard people work. It is a function of how well the system is designed. When the system is right, the same people who took fifteen and a half minutes in round one complete the project in eight and a half minutes in round three, without working harder.

If you want to learn more we have:

-Takt Virtual Training: (Click here)
-Check out our Youtube channel for more info: (Click here) 
-Listen to the Elevate Construction podcast: (Click here) 
-Check out our training programs and certifications: (Click here)
-The Takt Book: (Click here)

Discover Jason’s Expertise:

Meet Jason Schroeder, the driving force behind Elevate Construction IST. As the company’s owner and principal consultant, he’s dedicated to taking construction to new heights. With a wealth of industry experience, he’s crafted the Field Engineer Boot Camp and Superintendent Boot Camp – intensive training programs engineered to cultivate top-tier leaders capable of steering their teams towards success. Jason’s vision? To expand his training initiatives across the nation, empowering construction firms to soar to unprecedented levels of excellence.

Checklists and You!!!

Posted on by Danny Jiménez⁩
Read 25 min

Why Checklists Are Not Optional: The Case Every Construction Leader Needs to Hear

There is a version of the checklist conversation in construction that goes like this: we are professionals, we have been doing this for years, we do not need a piece of paper to tell us what to do. That version of the conversation ends with inconsistent quality, preventable rework, and a project team that is relying on tribal knowledge and individual memory to execute work that a simple written standard could have protected. The argument against checklists in construction is not actually an argument for expertise. It is an argument for hoping that experienced people never have bad days, get distracted, skip steps under pressure, or forget what they learned before handing off to the next crew. That hope is not a quality system. It is a wish.

The Problem That Repeats When Checklists Disappear

The pattern is familiar to anyone who has managed field quality on a construction project. The crew installs the in-wall rough-in. The work looks complete. The area is closed up. Three weeks later, during a ceiling inspection, someone notices that putty pads were missed on a portion of the in-wall conduit runs. The drywall is already in. Remediation begins. The schedule absorbs the hit. The cost absorbs the hit. And the team has a conversation about how to prevent this from happening again. The conversation usually ends with a verbal reminder, not a checklist. And six months later, on a different floor with a different crew, the same type of miss occurs because the verbal reminder did not travel with the work.

The root cause of that failure is not a careless crew. It is an absent system. The in-wall inspection did not have a written checklist because someone decided that experienced electricians know to install putty pads without being reminded. That decision sounds reasonable and it produces rework. Every time.

The System Failed, Not the Crew

This is worth stating plainly because the instinct when a quality miss is discovered is to look for who did not do their job. The question to ask instead is whether the crew had a written standard that specified every step required for a complete and correct installation. If the answer is no, the system failed the crew. Experienced workers know how to do the work. What checklists protect against is not incompetence. They protect against the natural human tendency to skip steps under time pressure, to rely on memory in conditions that are not ideal for memory, and to assume that the person who precedes you on a task covered everything that needed to be covered. Those vulnerabilities exist at every skill level, in every industry, in every person who has ever worked under pressure.

The Industries That Already Proved It

Aviation figured this out through painful experience. Early in the development of complex aircraft, Boeing encountered failures and accidents that traced back to the lack of standard work and standardized checklists for operating aircraft that were too complex to be managed from memory alone. The response was to develop and mandate checklists for every phase of operation: preflight, takeoff, cruise, approach, landing, and emergency procedures. The result, combined with other improvements in training and engineering, has produced a commercial aviation safety record in the United States that is remarkable by any standard. The discipline of the checklist is not a small contributor to that record.

Medical practice tells the same story from a different angle. Hospital-acquired infections, surgical errors, and medication mistakes dropped significantly in facilities that adopted standardized checklists and standard work protocols for procedures that experienced practitioners had been performing for years without written guidance. One specific example that Jason Schroeder cites directly: inclining a pneumonia patient’s bed is a step that dramatically reduces the risk of the patient’s lungs being overwhelmed by fluid. That knowledge existed in medicine long before it became a standard item on a pneumonia care checklist. The difference between it being known and it being done consistently was a checklist.

The question every construction leader should sit with is this: if you would want your pilot to use a checklist, and your surgeon to use a checklist, and your pharmacist to use a checklist, and the people who handle your food to use a checklist, what exactly is the argument for your installation crews not using one?

What Good Checklists Actually Do

The objection to checklists is usually not that they are wrong in principle but that they are burdensome in practice. Too many items. Rarely referenced. Recreated from scratch every time instead of being standardized and reused. Formatted in a way that makes them feel like paperwork rather than tools. All of those are real problems with how checklists are often implemented, and none of them are arguments against the concept. They are arguments for doing checklists well rather than abandoning them.

A good checklist in construction does several specific things. It captures the lessons that were learned the hard way by the people who came before, so that the crew doing the installation today does not have to relearn them through a quality miss. It creates a shared definition of done that the foreman, the superintendent, the inspector, and the downstream trade can all reference and confirm against the same standard. It makes quality a crew accountability rather than a management inspection, because the crew has the checklist in hand and knows exactly what complete looks like before the next crew enters the space. And it creates a repeatable standard that can be improved over time as new lessons emerge, rather than relying on the individual knowledge of whoever happens to be working that day.

What These Look Like on a Construction Site

The crew that enters a zone with a clear feature of workboard and a relevant checklist is a crew that does not have to reconstruct the definition of right from memory or from the foreman’s verbal instructions at the start of the shift. The checklist does not replace the foreman’s expertise. It protects against the parts of the installation that expertise alone cannot guarantee under field conditions.

Here are examples of where checklists directly protect quality in construction:

  • In-wall rough-in inspections: conduit fastening, putty pads, back box installation, firestopping, circuit labeling, and any penetration sealing required before drywall can proceed
  • Concrete placement: slump testing, form inspection, reinforcing bar inspection, pre-pour checklist items required by the structural drawings, and wet weather or temperature protocols when applicable
  • Ceiling inspections: overhead coordination clearances, hanger wire installation at required intervals, main runner and cross-tee connections, tile or panel placement before accessible areas are completed
  • Preflight checks for heavy equipment and temporary power systems: safety devices, fluid levels, inspection documentation, and operator certification confirmation

None of those lists are long. None of them are complicated. All of them represent the difference between work that closes out clean and work that comes back for rework.

The CFO Who Never Misses Payroll

Jason tells the story of a leadership team meeting where the company’s chief financial officer listened to the conversation about checklists and had a visible moment of recognition. She had never in ten years been late with payroll. Never missed a name. Never made a material error. And then she realized, out loud in that meeting, that she uses a checklist every single time she processes payroll. Every time. Not because she is not expert at her job. Because the checklist is what makes her expertise reliable rather than variable. Her process includes confirming every employee’s name, verifying hours against her established system, and running through a sequence of steps that she has followed consistently for a decade. The checklist is not a crutch. It is what makes a decade of error-free performance possible.

That is the point. The checklist does not replace the professional. It makes the professional’s performance reproducible regardless of the conditions on any given day.

The Art That Construction Cannot Afford to Lose

The risk in construction right now is that checklists are being dismissed in favor of digital tools that claim to replace them, or in favor of the confidence that comes with years of experience, or simply because the pace of work does not feel like it leaves time to reference a written standard at the end of every installation. All of those feel like reasonable trade-offs in the moment and they cost projects significantly over time.

Jason Schroeder grew up at Hensel Phelps where checklists were part of the professional culture. Port inspection checklists. In-wall inspection checklists. Checklists for each critical phase of work, embedded in the field and office guide that new team members were expected to read and use. That culture produced a generation of superintendents and project managers who understood quality at the source as a discipline rather than an aspiration. When that culture disappears from a company or a project, the quality that depended on it disappears with it, quietly and gradually, until a rework problem or an inspection failure makes the cost visible.

If your project needs superintendent coaching, project support, or leadership development, Elevate Construction can help your field teams stabilize, schedule, and flow.

Bring the Checklist Back

The challenge from this episode is simple. Identify one scope of work on your current or upcoming project that would benefit from a written checklist and does not have one. Build it by working backward from what a failed installation looks like and specifying the steps that prevent each failure mode. Make it short, specific, and relevant to the work your crew is actually doing. Put it on the feature of workboard where the crew can reference it during the installation, not in a file on someone’s computer. And then use it consistently, every time, on every floor, with every crew, without exception. As Atul Gawande wrote in The Checklist Manifesto: under conditions of complexity, not only are checklists a help, they are required for success. Construction is one of the most complex endeavors human beings undertake. The checklist is not optional.

On we go.

 

FAQ

Why do experienced construction professionals sometimes resist using checklists?

Because expertise creates the feeling that a written standard is redundant. When someone has installed the same scope of work dozens of times, referencing a checklist can feel unnecessary and even slightly insulting, as if the checklist implies they do not know what they are doing. That feeling is understandable and it is also incorrect. What checklists protect against is not incompetence. They protect against the natural human tendency to skip steps under time pressure, to rely on memory in suboptimal conditions, and to assume that everything was covered when some element was missed during a moment of distraction or fatigue. Those vulnerabilities exist at every skill level, including expert level.

What makes a checklist effective in a field construction setting?

Effective construction checklists are short, specific, and relevant to the actual work the crew is performing in the actual conditions of the current project. They capture the specific failure modes that have occurred before, so the crew can confirm those steps are covered before moving on. They are formatted for field use, laminated if possible, and posted at the point of work rather than filed in an office. They are reviewed and updated when new lessons emerge. And they are used consistently, by every crew, every time, without exceptions made for experience level or time pressure. The most useless checklist is one that exists as a document but is never referenced during the work it is meant to govern.

How do checklists connect to the concept of quality at the source?

Quality at the source means that the entire production team is oriented toward installing work correctly the first time rather than inspecting defects out after the fact. Checklists are one of the primary tools that make quality at the source operational rather than aspirational. When a crew has a checklist that specifies every step required for a complete and correct installation, they have the ability to confirm their own work against the standard before closing up the area or moving to the next zone. The checklist is what makes quality the crew’s accountability rather than the superintendent’s inspection task. It also allows any worker on the crew to stop the work and confirm something is correct, which is the field application of the Andon stop-and-signal principle.

What is the connection between checklists and standard work?

Standard work defines the best known method for a given installation, made visible and consistent for every crew member. A checklist is one of the primary expressions of standard work in the field: it captures the sequence of steps, the quality criteria for each step, and the confirmation that each step was completed before the next one begins. The feature of workboard that Jason Schroeder describes in other episodes combines cycle time, work sequence, and standard inventory with quality checkpoint confirmation. The checklist portion of that board is what allows the crew to execute the standard work consistently rather than relying on each crew member’s individual interpretation of what complete looks like.

How should a construction team get started if they do not currently use checklists?

Start with one scope and one phase. Identify the installation that creates the most rework or the most downstream problems when it is not done correctly. Work backward from the specific failure modes: what was missed, what was installed incorrectly, what was skipped under time pressure. Build a checklist that specifies the steps that prevent each of those failures. Keep it to a single page or less. Put it on the feature of workboard for that scope. Use it for the next three installation cycles and refine it based on what the crew actually references versus what they already do automatically. Expand from there to other scopes as the habit develops. The goal is not a hundred-item master document. It is a short, useful, field-relevant tool that the crew actually picks up and uses at the end of each installation sequence.

If you want to learn more we have:

-Takt Virtual Training: (Click here)
-Check out our Youtube channel for more info: (Click here) 
-Listen to the Elevate Construction podcast: (Click here) 
-Check out our training programs and certifications: (Click here)
-The Takt Book: (Click here)

Discover Jason’s Expertise:

Meet Jason Schroeder, the driving force behind Elevate Construction IST. As the company’s owner and principal consultant, he’s dedicated to taking construction to new heights. With a wealth of industry experience, he’s crafted the Field Engineer Boot Camp and Superintendent Boot Camp – intensive training programs engineered to cultivate top-tier leaders capable of steering their teams towards success. Jason’s vision? To expand his training initiatives across the nation, empowering construction firms to soar to unprecedented levels of excellence.

Construction Entrances

Posted on by Danny Jiménez⁩
Read 24 min

Why Your Construction Entrance Sets the Standard for Everything That Follows

It might not sound like the most important topic in construction leadership. Entrances. Not schedules. Not lean systems. Not production control. Entrances. But here is the thing: if you want to understand why some projects run clean, orderly, and with a sense of collective pride from day one, and why others descend into clutter, chaos, and indifference by week two, the entrance is where that story begins. It is not a metaphor. It is a literal threshold. Every worker who steps through a construction entrance reads it the same way they would read any other environment: this is what this place cares about. And they behave accordingly.

The Problem That Shows Up on the Project Floor

Walk a hundred projects and you can predict the condition of the floors, the bathrooms, the staging areas, and the crew break spaces within the first thirty seconds of stepping through the front gate. Not because the workers arrived with an intention to create a mess, but because the entrance communicated to them whether this project cares about how things look and whether the leadership will enforce that care. If the gate is crooked, the fence is sagging, the signage is weathered, the track-out pad is clogged with debris, and there are two energy drink cans on the ground next to the check-in station, the message is clear: nobody is watching, and the standard is survival, not excellence.

A project site in that condition is a project site that has already told every trade partner, every worker, and every subcontractor superintendent that the bar is low. And people live up to the bar they are given.

The System Set This Up, Not the Workers

Nobody chooses to work in a filthy environment by preference. Nobody shows up on day one of a project thinking they would prefer to navigate a cluttered entrance with broken signage and a mud-soaked track into the building. What happens is that the first trade to arrive sets its materials where it wants. The second trade adds to it. By week three, the entrance has taken on the character of every small decision that nobody corrected. Nobody corrected it because the project team never made it clear, from the first day, what the standard was and that the standard would be enforced. The system created that outcome. Not the workers, and not the trades. The absence of a clear signal from leadership is the system that produced the mess.

The Starbucks Bollard and What It Teaches

Jason Schroeder tells the story of a Starbucks drive-thru in Springfield, Illinois, where a bollard in front of the pickup window had accumulated at least three hundred stickers over time. Company stickers. Random stickers. McDonald’s order tags. All kinds of things from all kinds of people. His son thought someone must have asked people to put stickers there. Jason’s interpretation was simpler and more instructive: one person put one sticker. It stayed. Another person put one. It stayed. And by staying, it communicated two things simultaneously: this is what we do here, and this is what we allow here. The result was a bollard covered in three hundred stickers, not because anyone planned it, but because invitation and permission were implied by what was left in place.

That is exactly what happens at a construction entrance. The first piece of trash that is not picked up is the first sticker. The first fence post that goes uncorrected is the second. By the end of the first week, the entrance has taken on the character of the habits that were allowed to form, and it will communicate those habits to every worker who arrives for the rest of the project. The entrance does not just reflect the culture. The entrance creates the culture.

What a Great Entrance Actually Looks Like

Jason stopped his vehicle and took photographs of a DPR construction project entrance in Jacksonville, Florida because it was genuinely remarkable. Not because it was expensive. Because it was intentional. Laminated signage in English and Spanish, equally spaced, clearly formatted, mounted on a fence with taut screens and posts cut evenly across the top. QR codes for the worker check-in process positioned for easy access. A gate in clean working order. A properly maintained track-out pad with correctly sized rock for dust and dirt control. A stabilized interior entrance surface. Not one piece of trash on the ground from the gate to the first point of work. A guard station swept clean. A DPR sign and an American flag. A sign thanking the workers for their contributions.

The overall impression was of a project where someone cared deeply about the first impression that every person on site would receive every time they came to work. And the signal that sent was not about aesthetics. It was about operational control. That entrance was saying: this project is run with intention. The people running it are paying attention. The standards here are real and they are maintained. What you do inside this fence will be held to the same level of care that you are seeing right now at the entrance.

What a Great Entrance Communicates Without Saying a Word

Before looking at how to build a great entrance, look at what happens when workers arrive at one:

  • The worker who enters a clean, well-organized gate area gets a nonverbal signal that this team is serious about how things are done
  • The trade partner whose foreman sees laminated signage, clear wayfinding, and no trash at the entry understands immediately that this superintendent runs a tight project
  • The subcontractor who sees a properly maintained track-out pad and a swept interior access road knows the owner of this project will not tolerate a site that looks like a salvage yard
  • The new hire who walks onto a well-kept site on their first day adjusts their behavior upward to match what the environment is communicating
  • The experienced journeyman who has worked on poorly run sites recognizes a well-run one within thirty seconds of stepping through the gate and brings their best professional behavior to match it

None of that communication requires a speech or a policy. It happens the moment the worker arrives, and it sets the behavioral standard for the rest of their time on that project.

How to Build an Entrance That Sets the Right Standard

A great construction entrance does not require a large budget. It requires intentionality and maintenance. The elements that matter are straightforward: straight fence posts with evenly cut tops, taut screening secured properly to the fence, laminated signage that is clear and current, wayfinding that makes orientation easy for a new worker who has never been to the site before, a track-out pad that is properly sized and maintained, an interior surface that is stabilized and kept clear of trash, gates that work cleanly and are not left propped open or hanging, and a check-in system that is easy to use and visually organized. None of that is expensive. All of it requires someone to own the standard and enforce it from day one.

The other thing that matters is labeled gates. If a large project has multiple worker entrances, each one should be clearly identified, equally well maintained, and equally unambiguous about where people should go and what they should do when they arrive. Confusion at the entrance is a friction point that starts every workday with a small amount of friction that compounds across hundreds of workers over months of a project.

What Happens Downstream When the Entrance Is Right

The DPR project Jason photographed was not clean at the entrance and chaotic on the floors. Projects do not work that way. The level of care established at the entrance tends to propagate through the rest of the site because the signal is consistent: this team cares, this team is watching, and this team holds the standard. Workers who see that signal at the beginning of every shift carry it with them as they move through the building. Foremen who see their crew arriving at a clean entrance are reminded, visually and daily, of the standard they are expected to maintain in their own work areas. The entrance is a daily renewal of the commitment to operational control.

The bathroom is often cited as the lean indicator of a project’s culture, and it is a valid one. The entrance is the pre-bathroom indicator. By the time you reach the bathrooms, you already know what you are going to find. The entrance told you before you got there. If your project needs superintendent coaching, project support, or leadership development, Elevate Construction can help your field teams stabilize, schedule, and flow.

Set the Standard at the Gate and Hold It There

The challenge from this episode is not complicated. Walk your own project entrance tomorrow morning and look at it as if you are a worker arriving for the first time. What does it communicate? Is the signage current, laminated, and equally spaced? Is the fence straight and the screening taut? Is the track-out pad doing its job? Is there a single piece of trash between the gate and the first point of work? Is the gate itself in clean working order? And most importantly: does the entrance communicate that this project is run with intention and held to a genuine standard?

As David Morrison said in a speech that resonated across military and civilian leadership alike: the standard you walk past is the standard you accept. Every day that the entrance is less than it should be and nobody addresses it is a day that the project’s culture takes another small step toward the wrong standard. Set the entrance right, hold it right, and let it do its job every morning for every worker who steps through it.

On we go.

 

FAQ

Why does the construction entrance matter for project culture?

Because it is the first thing every worker, trade partner, and visitor experiences when they arrive on site, and the condition of that entrance communicates the project team’s standards more clearly than any policy or orientation speech. A clean, organized, well-maintained entrance signals that the project is run with intention and that the standards inside will be equally high. A neglected entrance signals the opposite, and workers adjust their behavior to match what the environment is communicating. The entrance does not just reflect the culture. It actively shapes it by setting the behavioral expectation for everyone who passes through it every day.

What are the specific elements of a well-maintained construction entrance?

The key elements are straight fence posts with evenly cut tops, taut screening properly secured to the fence panels, laminated and equally spaced signage in the languages spoken by the workforce, clear wayfinding for first-time visitors, a properly sized and maintained track-out pad for dust and dirt control, a stabilized interior access surface, gates that operate cleanly and are not left propped or hanging, a check-in system that is clearly organized and easy to use, and zero tolerance for trash accumulation at or near the entry point. On larger projects with multiple gates, each entrance should be labeled, equally well maintained, and equally clear about where workers should go and what they should do.

How does the entrance connect to the broader concept of cleanliness as a production strategy?

Cleanliness is not primarily an aesthetic preference. It is a diagnostic and control tool. A clean environment makes production problems visible because nothing is hidden under clutter. It makes safety hazards easier to spot. It creates the conditions under which lean systems can function because visual management requires a visual environment that is clear enough to be read. The entrance is the first application of that principle on every project. When the entrance is clean and organized, it signals to every person arriving that the project team is practicing the same discipline throughout the site. When the entrance is neglected, it predicts what will be found inside before anyone has walked through the gate.

How does the sticker analogy apply to construction sites?

The sticker analogy illustrates how cultural norms form through implied invitation and permission. When something is added to an environment and left in place, it communicates to everyone who sees it that this is acceptable here and that this is what we do here. The first piece of trash left near a gate is the first sticker. The first fence post that goes uncorrected is the second. Each small deviation that goes unaddressed becomes an implicit invitation for the next one, and over time the accumulated permissions define the standard. Conversely, a project team that consistently removes trash, straightens fence posts, and maintains the entrance is communicating constantly that those deviations are not permitted, and that communication shapes behavior without requiring a single direct conversation.

What is the superintendent’s role in maintaining the entrance standard?

The superintendent is responsible for setting the standard at the entrance from day one and for enforcing it consistently throughout the project. That means being the first person to pick up the piece of trash near the gate when it appears, which sends a clearer signal than any announcement or directive. It means doing the daily walk that includes the entrance as a deliberate stop, not an afterthought. It means addressing the first deviation immediately, because the first deviation that goes uncorrected becomes the new standard. The superintendent who personally holds the entrance to the highest standard they would expect anywhere else on the project will find that the rest of the project tends to meet that same standard over time.

If you want to learn more we have:

-Takt Virtual Training: (Click here)
-Check out our Youtube channel for more info: (Click here) 
-Listen to the Elevate Construction podcast: (Click here) 
-Check out our training programs and certifications: (Click here)
-The Takt Book: (Click here)

Discover Jason’s Expertise:

Meet Jason Schroeder, the driving force behind Elevate Construction IST. As the company’s owner and principal consultant, he’s dedicated to taking construction to new heights. With a wealth of industry experience, he’s crafted the Field Engineer Boot Camp and Superintendent Boot Camp – intensive training programs engineered to cultivate top-tier leaders capable of steering their teams towards success. Jason’s vision? To expand his training initiatives across the nation, empowering construction firms to soar to unprecedented levels of excellence.

These Are Always Late!!!

Posted on by Danny Jiménez⁩
Read 24 min

Why the Same Three Scopes Are Always Late on Every Construction Project

Here is something every superintendent knows but few projects actually solve: walk into a hundred different construction projects and ask the team which scopes are causing the most pain, and the answers will be identical every time. The exterior skin. The elevators. The electrical service switchgear. The air handlers. Permanent utility connections to the building. Same scopes, same problems, same late deliveries, different projects, different teams, different markets. If everyone knows these things are always late, why are they still always late? The answer is not that people are incompetent. The answer is that the industry has normalized starting these conversations at the wrong point in the project, and then not tracking what happens between order and delivery.

The Problem Every Team Recognizes and Almost No Team Prevents

Every experienced superintendent knows that the exterior curtain wall and the elevators have long lead times. The awareness is universal. The action is not. Projects identify these scopes as critical, note them in the schedule, flag them in kickoff meetings, and then wait until the construction contract is awarded before actually engaging the trade partners. By the time the team is ready to move, the math has already failed. The fabrication window needed to deliver the exterior skin before the installation date requires procurement to have started months earlier, during design development, not after groundbreaking.

The gap between knowing and doing is where the schedule gets lost. It is not that the team forgot the exterior was a long lead item. It is that the team kept waiting for conditions that felt like the right moment to engage: a signed contract, a fully approved design, a funded GMP. All of those conditions are reasonable checkpoints. None of them change the physics of fabrication lead times. And by the time all of them are in place, the time that was needed to protect the schedule is already gone.

The System Created This Problem, Not the People

This needs to be said directly: the teams that keep experiencing late exterior skin and late elevator deliveries are not careless. They are working inside a procurement culture that has always defaulted to waiting for the contract before starting the vendor engagement. That default was established at a time when project schedules were longer, market capacity was more available, and the consequences of late delivery were more manageable. None of those conditions apply today. The system has not caught up with the schedule reality that most construction projects are now operating under. The system failed the team. The team did not fail the project.

The Lesson That Changed How Jason Schroeder Approaches Long Lead Procurement

Early in his career, Jason worked with a project manager named Ryan Young who pushed hard, in the middle of design development, to start weekly meetings with the exterior skin contractor and the elevator contractor. At the time, it felt premature. The design was not finished. The contract was not awarded. The scope was not fully defined. Jason’s instinct was to wait. Ryan’s instinct was to act.

Ryan was right. The team talked the owner into bringing those trade partners on in a design assist capacity before the construction contract was executed. They started producing preliminary submittals, building a detailed procurement schedule, and coordinating with the design team while the project was still being designed. By the time the construction contract was awarded, the exterior skin and elevator procurement were weeks ahead of where they would have been if the team had waited. That head start protected the schedule in ways that no amount of compression later in the project could have replicated.

The financial risk was real but small. A letter of intent. An owner-approved release of $20,000 to $30,000 for early submittals. A commitment to go at risk for a modest expenditure to protect a delivery date that the entire project depended on. That is a better trade than three months of schedule extension explained to an owner who trusted the team to manage procurement.

Why Tracking Release Points Is Not Optional

Knowing the lead time is not the same as managing the procurement. Most project teams can tell you approximately how many weeks a curtain wall system takes from shop drawing approval to delivery. Few of them have a system for tracking the five or six intermediate release points that determine whether that timeline actually holds.

For a unitized curtain wall system, those intermediate points run through preliminary sample approval, die approval for the extrusions that produce the mullion profiles, shop drawing production and review concurrent with the glass and panel order release, delivery of materials to the fabrication shop, fabrication of the unitized assemblies, shipping to the project site, stacking and staging by floor, and then installation in sequence with the adjacent structure and weather barrier work. Each of those is a step that cannot begin until the previous one is complete. Each of those has a date attached. And each of those dates is vulnerable to being missed if nobody is confirming that the action was taken.

Jason describes confirming that a purchase order for a curtain wall glass order was never executed because everyone assumed it had been after shop drawings were approved. The glass was six weeks late. Not three weeks. Six weeks, because by the time anyone checked, the fabrication slot had already been given to another project. That kind of miss does not happen when the team has a system for tracking release points. It happens when the team tracks the lead time at the beginning and trusts the process to handle itself the rest of the way.

What Needs to Happen Before the Contract Is Signed

If a project has any of the following critical scopes, procurement engagement needs to begin during design development, not after award:

  • Exterior skin systems including unitized curtain wall, metal panel, custom window systems, and specialty cladding
  • Elevator equipment including the cab, mechanical room package, controls, and door frames
  • Electrical service equipment including switchgear, service entry section, and main distribution panels
  • Major mechanical equipment including air handlers, cooling towers, boilers, and fan coil units
  • Permanent utility connections including power, communications, gas, water, and sewer, each of which may require utility company coordination that adds months beyond the equipment procurement itself

For each of these, the question is the same: when does the material need to arrive at the project site relative to the installation window, and how far back from that date does the procurement chain need to start?

What to Track Once Procurement Is in Motion

Once a critical long lead scope is procured, the work of managing it is not finished. The release points between award and delivery are where the schedule is protected or lost. These are the actions that need to happen at specific times for the procurement to stay on track:

  • Sample and mock-up submissions confirmed and approved
  • Die or tooling approvals executed before fabrication tooling lead times begin
  • Purchase orders for long lead materials within the scope, such as glass, released on the date required by the fabrication schedule
  • Delivery of raw materials to the fabrication shop confirmed
  • Field measurements taken for any components requiring site-specific dimensions
  • Shipping schedule confirmed and tracked against the installation window

Jason’s method for keeping these visible is to create calendar invites for each critical release point and distribute them to the full project team. When the invite fires, someone makes the call to confirm the action was taken. If it was not taken, there is still time to recover. If nobody is watching the intermediate points, the first visible sign of a problem is often when the installation window has already opened and the material is not there.

Built for Teams That Deliver What They Promise

Procurement feeds production. That is not an abstract principle. It is the daily reality that every superintendent manages when a scope that should be ready to install is not, and the crew that was supposed to be in that zone is standing on a floor waiting. The exterior skin and the elevators do not have to be the scopes that blow up every schedule. They are in that position because the industry has normalized starting too late and not tracking closely enough. Changing that requires starting the procurement conversation during design, using creative options like letters of intent and design assist arrangements to move before the comfortable moment, and building a system for tracking release points that does not rely on anyone’s memory or good intentions. If your project needs superintendent coaching, project support, or leadership development, Elevate Construction can help your field teams stabilize, schedule, and flow.

Get There Before the Problem Gets There First

The exterior skin is not going to manage itself. The elevator is not going to remind anyone that the cab release order was never executed. The switchgear is not going to flag that the shop drawing approval was three weeks late and the delivery date has already moved. That management belongs to the project team, starting in design development, continuing through the intermediate release points, and never assuming that silence means everything is on schedule.

As General George Patton understood about supply chains and military campaigns: a good plan executed now is better than a perfect plan executed too late. Start the procurement conversation before you have the perfect conditions for it. Track the release points before the consequence of missing them is already visible in the field. The schedule that finishes on time is the one where someone was watching the curtain wall glass order date three months before anyone else thought to ask.

On we go.

FAQ

 

Why are exterior skin and elevator procurement always late even when teams know they are long lead items?

Because knowing a scope has a long lead time is not the same as acting on that knowledge early enough. The industry default is to engage trade partners after the construction contract is awarded, but the fabrication timelines for these scopes often require procurement to begin during design development. Every week of delay in engaging the trade partner at the start of the process becomes a week of compression at the end, and compression at the end of a construction schedule is far more expensive and disruptive than the discomfort of starting before the contract is signed.

What creative options exist for engaging trade partners before the construction contract is executed?

Letters of intent allow a trade partner to begin preliminary submittals, coordination, and shop drawing production before the prime agreement is finalized. Design assist arrangements bring the trade partner into the design process formally, allowing them to contribute constructability input and begin procurement planning while the design is still being developed. An owner-approved release of funds for early submittal work, typically in the range of $20,000 to $30,000, covers the cost of getting the procurement sequence started before the commercial framework is fully in place. Going at risk for a small expenditure to protect a schedule that depends on early fabrication is a significantly better outcome than absorbing a multi-month delay.

What are critical release points and how should they be tracked?

Critical release points are the specific actions within a procurement sequence that must be executed by a specific person on a specific date for the next step to proceed on time. For exterior curtain wall, these include the die approval for extrusions, the glass purchase order release, shop drawing approval, delivery of materials to the fabrication shop, and field measurements for critical panel conditions. Tracking them means putting each one on the project schedule with a named owner and creating calendar reminders that fire on the relevant date. When the reminder fires, someone confirms the action was taken. If it was not, there is still time to respond before the delay becomes unrecoverable.

How does this procurement approach connect to the broader First Planner System?

The First Planner System begins in preconstruction by engineering the production system before boots hit the ground. Procurement planning is one of its core outputs: identifying long lead scopes, establishing the procurement sequence, and aligning the supply chain with the production plan before the work starts. Projects that engage long lead trade partners during design development are practicing First Planner discipline. Projects that wait until construction begins are starting the production system design after it was already needed, and they pay for that delay in schedule compression and cost overruns that show up later in the project.

What other scopes beyond exterior skin and elevators need this level of procurement management?

Any scope with a fabrication lead time that exceeds what the construction schedule assumes between contract award and installation. Electrical service switchgear and main distribution equipment frequently carry twelve to twenty-week lead times that projects underestimate. Major mechanical equipment including air handlers, cooling towers, and boilers has similar lead time exposure. Permanent utility connections to the building, including power, telecommunications, gas, and water, often require utility company coordination that adds months beyond the equipment procurement itself. Specialty finish materials with custom manufacturing requirements, including Italian tile, custom millwork, and specialty glazing systems, also need to be identified and procured well ahead of the installation window.

If you want to learn more we have:

-Takt Virtual Training: (Click here)
-Check out our Youtube channel for more info: (Click here) 
-Listen to the Elevate Construction podcast: (Click here) 
-Check out our training programs and certifications: (Click here)
-The Takt Book: (Click here)

Discover Jason’s Expertise:

Meet Jason Schroeder, the driving force behind Elevate Construction IST. As the company’s owner and principal consultant, he’s dedicated to taking construction to new heights. With a wealth of industry experience, he’s crafted the Field Engineer Boot Camp and Superintendent Boot Camp – intensive training programs engineered to cultivate top-tier leaders capable of steering their teams towards success. Jason’s vision? To expand his training initiatives across the nation, empowering construction firms to soar to unprecedented levels of excellence.

How to Run a Commissioning Kickoff Meeting

Posted on by Danny Jiménez⁩
Read 15 min

How to Run a Commissioning Kickoff Meeting That Actually Works

Every commissioning kickoff meeting follows the same script. The owner sends the meeting invite. The commissioning agent runs the agenda. There are introductions, a walkthrough of the commissioning plan, a review of the schedule, and a round of questions. It is polite, it is organized, and it is almost entirely useless from a field builder’s standpoint.

That is the problem Jason Schroeder is addressing in this conversation, specifically from the builder’s perspective. Not the commissioning agent’s perspective. Not the owner’s. The people who are responsible for delivering the building and who need the commissioning process to move at a pace that actually supports completion.

The Incentive Problem Nobody Mentions

Here is why commissioning kickoffs go sideways before anyone raises a concern. The people in the room are not all pointing in the same direction.

The facilities team and the owner’s representatives do not want to start up mechanical systems early. Starting air handlers before they are absolutely necessary creates maintenance exposure, warranty questions, and operational responsibility that nobody in facilities management is eager to absorb ahead of turnover.

The commissioning agent’s incentives are similarly misaligned with the builder’s urgency. Moving the commissioning schedule forward compresses the time they have to complete their work. Agreeing to earlier milestones adds pressure to their process.

The builder, meanwhile, needs energized systems and completed commissioning activities to allow trades to finish, for the building to be conditioned, and for the closeout sequence to run. Three groups, same meeting, fundamentally different motivations. If the builder walks in and makes demands, they will lose every person in the room before the agenda is halfway through.

What the Builder Must Bring to the Kickoff

The builder has two things to accomplish in a commissioning kickoff meeting that the standard agenda does not naturally create space for.

The first is the schedule conversation. Commissioning efforts are almost always behind before they start, because the activities that need to happen months in advance are rarely treated with the urgency they require. The kickoff meeting is the first formal opportunity to make those milestones visible and to begin the alignment process.

The approach matters enormously. Walking in and announcing “I need the air handlers energized by this date” will antagonize the facilities team and the commissioning agent immediately. The better path is to frame the milestones as shared context rather than demands. Functional performance testing is scheduled for this date. Floor to floor commissioning needs to occur by this milestone. The air handler energization window is here. These are not the builder’s personal preferences. They are the sequence required to deliver the building the owner wants, on the timeline the owner has communicated.

Framed that way, the conversation is not builder versus commissioning team. It is the full team looking at a shared timeline and beginning to align around it.

The second thing the builder needs to accomplish is building real connection. Commissioning is one of the most collaborative phases of a construction project, and it fails most often because the relationships between the construction team and the commissioning team are distant and transactional. The kickoff is the first opportunity to change that. How can the project delivery team actively support the commissioning team? What does the commissioning team need from the builder to do their work efficiently? Those questions, asked sincerely in the kickoff, signal something different than the typical posture of two groups working in proximity but not actually together.

When You Get Pushback

If the facilities team or the commissioning agent pushes back on an early air handler date or a compressed milestone, do not fight it in the room. The commissioning kickoff is not the place to win that argument, and pressing too hard in a room full of people who are not ready for the conversation will harden positions rather than move them.

The better response: acknowledge what you heard, express genuine interest in finding an approach that works for the facilities team, and offer to come back with options. “I hear you. I would love to go back, think through some alternatives, and come back with a proposal that gives you what you need while keeping us on a path to deliver on time.” That posture keeps the relationship intact and opens a door for a follow up conversation that is more likely to result in actual movement.

Here is what that looks like in practice:

  • Introduce the schedule milestones in the meeting without framing them as demands
  • Listen fully when the commissioning agent or facilities team raises concerns
  • Defer the resolution conversation to a smaller, targeted follow up rather than trying to resolve it in front of the full group
  • Use the time between the kickoff and the follow up to build individual relationships with the key decision makers

 

Turning the Kickoff Into a Strategy Meeting

A standard commissioning kickoff is informational. The builder’s job is to shift at least part of it toward strategic. That means arriving with a visual that shows how the commissioning strategy connects to the production schedule: which systems need to be energized by which dates, how the floor to floor sequence supports trade work, and what the builder is prepared to do to support the commissioning team through each phase.

That visual, presented clearly in the kickoff, does two things. It demonstrates that the builder has done their homework and understands commissioning as an integrated part of the project rather than a downstream handoff. And it gives the commissioning team and the owner something concrete to react to, which is far more productive than open ended discussion about a plan nobody has seen yet.

If your project needs superintendent coaching, project support, or leadership development, Elevate Construction can help your field teams stabilize, schedule, and flow. Commissioning is one of the highest risk phases of any complex construction project, and the builder’s posture in the kickoff meeting sets the tone for everything that follows.

The Challenge for Your Next Kickoff

Before you walk into the commissioning kickoff, know your milestones. Energization dates for each major system. Functional performance testing dates. Floor to floor commissioning windows. Turnover sequence requirements.

Then prepare for the incentive misalignment. Everyone in the room wants the building done. Not everyone is aligned on what needs to happen in what sequence to get there. Your job in the kickoff is not to win the argument. It is to make the milestones visible, establish yourself as a collaborative partner, and create the conditions for the follow up conversations that will actually move the schedule.

As Dale Carnegie’s principle holds: the only way to get the best of an argument is to avoid it. In a commissioning kickoff, that is not passivity. It is strategy.

On we go.

Frequently Asked Questions

What should the builder prepare before the commissioning kickoff meeting?

A clear map of the commissioning milestones tied to the production schedule, including energization dates for major systems, functional performance testing windows, and the floor to floor sequence. Also a clear understanding of what the commissioning team needs from the builder at each phase, so the offer of support is concrete rather than generic.

How do you handle a commissioning agent who is resistant to any schedule acceleration?

Start by understanding their constraints. What would need to be true for them to be comfortable moving earlier? What resources, information, or assurances do they need? Once you understand the actual barrier, you can often find a path around it that the commissioning agent can accept. Resistance usually comes from real concerns, not from a desire to slow the project down.

Should the builder run the commissioning kickoff, or defer to the commissioning agent?

Defer to the commissioning agent on the agenda and the process. The builder’s role is to be an active, prepared, and strategically engaged participant, not to take over the meeting. Taking over creates resentment. Showing up prepared and contributing meaningfully earns respect.

How early in the project should commissioning planning begin?

Far earlier than most teams start. Commissioning activities that affect the builder’s schedule, particularly system energization and functional performance testing, need to be integrated into the Takt plan from the beginning of construction. Waiting until commissioning begins to think about those milestones is one of the most common causes of schedule compression at project closeout.

If you want to learn more we have:

-Takt Virtual Training: (Click here)
-Check out our Youtube channel for more info: (Click here) 
-Listen to the Elevate Construction podcast: (Click here) 
-Check out our training programs and certifications: (Click here)
-The Takt Book: (Click here)

Discover Jason’s Expertise:

Meet Jason Schroeder, the driving force behind Elevate Construction IST. As the company’s owner and principal consultant, he’s dedicated to taking construction to new heights. With a wealth of industry experience, he’s crafted the Field Engineer Boot Camp and Superintendent Boot Camp – intensive training programs engineered to cultivate top-tier leaders capable of steering their teams towards success. Jason’s vision? To expand his training initiatives across the nation, empowering construction firms to soar to unprecedented levels of excellence.

Why Commissioning Must Start on Day 1

Posted on by Danny Jiménez⁩
Read 24 min

Why Commissioning Must Start on Day One: A Field Builder’s Guide

Here is the pattern on almost every project. The building is nearly complete. Trades are wrapping scope. The superintendent is driving toward substantial completion. And then someone asks about the commissioning schedule  and it turns out the commissioning agent’s plan is six weeks behind where it needs to be, the pre-functional checklists have not been started, and a scope of work that should have begun months ago is now a crisis being managed against the closeout date.

That scenario is not bad luck. It is the predictable result of treating commissioning as a closeout activity rather than as a day-one responsibility. How a building gets finished and handed over to the owner is not a separate phase that comes after construction. It is interwoven with every phase of construction, and the builders who understand that  who start asking the right questions on day one and never stop  are the ones whose projects finish on time, with systems that work, and owners who trust them to come back for the next one.

What Commissioning Actually Is

Commissioning is the quality-focused process of verifying and documenting that the facility and its systems are planned, designed, installed, tested, and operated to meet the owner’s requirements. That definition carries a word that most field builders skim past: operated. It is one thing to install the equipment correctly. It is another thing entirely to verify that all of the systems  HVAC, electrical, controls, fire alarm, building automation, plumbing, elevators  are talking to each other, operating in the right sequence, and functioning the way the owner needs the building to function for the people and processes inside it.

That verification process is commissioning. It is not the same as a punchlist. It is not the same as passing inspections. It is a systematic, documented confirmation that the building works as an integrated whole  not just as a collection of correctly installed components. And it is as much the field team’s responsibility as anything else done during the construction phase.

Who the Commissioning Authority Is and Why That Matters for the Builder

The commissioning authority  often called the commissioning agent or CxA  is an independent third party hired by the owner to lead, plan, and document the commissioning process. Understanding who they are and what motivates them is one of the most practically useful things a superintendent can know before the first commissioning conversation.

The commissioning agent is incentivized to find failures. Their job is to make sure anything that could go wrong does surface before the owner accepts the building, which is exactly what the owner needs. They are thorough, they are systematic, and they are looking for problems. What they are not incentivized to do is keep the construction schedule. Their timeline and the project’s milestone are not the same thing, and without proactive engagement from the builder, those timelines will drift apart in ways that cost the project significantly at the end.

The builder’s job is to be the schedule driver for the commissioning process  to build a relationship with the commissioning agent, to support their work fully, to respond to their issues log quickly, and to pull the commissioning timeline forward aggressively enough that the testing and acceptance phases land before the milestone rather than after it.

The Documents That Govern the Process

Before any commissioning activity can be planned or executed, the field team needs to understand the governing documents. Three of them are foundational. The Owner’s Project Requirements  the OPR  is the written document capturing the owner’s functional needs, performance criteria, and expectations for the project. It is the condition of satisfaction. It defines what the building has to do for the owner to consider it successful. The Basis of Design  the BOD  is the designer’s narrative explaining the concepts, assumptions, calculations, and decisions used to meet the OPR. Together, the OPR and BOD define what the building is supposed to be and how the engineering team planned to get there.

The commissioning plan is the road map the commissioning agent will use to define the scope, schedule, roles, responsibilities, and procedures for the commissioning work. It is a large document  dense, technical, and easy to defer reading until it feels urgent. Do not defer it. The commissioning plan contains the schedule that the project needs to drive, and that schedule is the single most important thing to identify and act on from day one. On every project, that schedule starts too late. The builder who reads the commissioning plan early and builds the commissioning timeline into the production plan is the builder who avoids the six-week deficit that otherwise becomes a given.

The Sequence That Governs Installation and Testing

The sequence of operations is the written description of how each building system is supposed to operate under all expected conditions  how the HVAC system ties into the heating hot water, the chilled water, the duct system, the power, the controls, and the building automation network, and how all of those elements interact in sequence. Reading the sequence of operations from a field builder’s perspective produces three things: a path of construction that reflects how the systems need to be installed to be testable in the right order, visibility into the key interfaces between systems where failures are most likely to surface, and an understanding of how the commissioning agent is going to test each step  and specifically where they are going to try to find a failure before clearing the next stage.

The systems manual is the turnover document that compiles the OPR, the BOD, the sequences of operations, the as-builts, the operations and maintenance information, and the test results  everything the owner’s operations team needs to understand what was built and how to run it. This document needs to be built as the project progresses, not assembled in the final weeks. Every piece of information that belongs in it should be tracked and compiled in real time during construction. When it is assembled at the end from whatever can be found in the final weeks, the quality is poor, the gaps are numerous, and the owner inherits a turnover package that does not serve them.

Warning Signs That Commissioning Is Already Starting Too Late

If any of these conditions are present on your project, the commissioning schedule is already behind and needs to be pulled forward immediately:

  • The commissioning agent has not been identified by the time the first MEP systems are being installed on the lower floors.
  • The commissioning plan exists but has not been integrated into the overall production schedule, meaning commissioning activities and construction activities are being planned independently.
  • Pre-functional checklists have not been started for any equipment that is already installed and energized.
  • The controls contractor has not begun developing their graphics and building automation system programming for the equipment that is already on site.
  • Vertical connectivity the cabling and internet access that allows the building automation system to communicate floor to floor  has not been established or planned.

 

Every one of those conditions represents time that cannot be recovered without compressing something downstream. Catch them early and correct them immediately.

The Pre-Functional Checklist: Where Most of the Work Happens

Of all the commissioning activities, the pre-functional checklist is where the field team will spend the most time and where the most progress can be made by starting sooner. A pre-functional checklist is an installation and startup verification checklist that confirms each piece of equipment is properly installed, connected, and ready for testing. The commissioning agent and the trade partners fill them out  the builder’s job is to make sure that process is sequenced correctly and started as early as the installation allows.

The sequence within each floor looks like this: equipment goes in, gets connected on the dry side and the wet side, gets electrically connected, gets controls connected, gets properly braced per the manufacturer requirements, receives the manufacturer startup, goes through the pre-functional checklist, gets connected point-to-point from the equipment to the floor-level controller, and then gets integrated into the vertical connectivity that allows the building automation system to see and control it. That sequence has to be planned and driven from the field, because waiting for the commissioning agent to initiate it guarantees it will start too late.

Test and Balance, Functional Performance, and Acceptance

The later-stage commissioning activities  test and balance, functional performance testing, integrated systems testing, and acceptance testing  all depend on the pre-functional work being complete. Test and balance measures and adjusts air and water flows in HVAC systems to match design values. It must be coordinated carefully with other testing activities; most importantly, test and balance should not run simultaneously with fire alarm testing when the HVAC system includes fire smoke dampers, because the damper actuations during fire alarm testing will invalidate the air flow measurements.

Functional performance testing confirms that systems operate correctly in all expected modes  including the failure modes and emergency conditions that regular installation verification does not test. Integrated systems testing checks how multiple systems work together: does the fire alarm trigger the smoke control system correctly? Does it engage the generator? Do the elevator recall systems function properly? These tests reveal the interface failures that no individual system test would find, and they require every upstream component to be fully commissioned before they can be run.

Acceptance testing is the formal process through which the owner accepts each system as completed and operational. It typically happens in the final weeks or months of the project, coordinated with the engineers and the authority having jurisdiction. A detailed commissioning schedule that maps out acceptance testing dates  and works backward from those dates to confirm when each upstream activity needs to be complete  is the field team’s most powerful tool for protecting the closeout milestone.

Day One Is Not a Metaphor

The phrase “start on day one” is not rhetorical. On day one of the project, the questions that need answers are: Who is the commissioning agent? Has the commissioning plan been developed? Has the commissioning schedule been reviewed against the production plan? Are there pre-functional checklists associated with any long-lead equipment that is already in procurement? Is the controls contractor engaged and working on their building automation system programming?

None of those questions have answers that can wait for the project to reach a certain percentage complete. By the time the building feels “close enough” to commissioning to start those conversations, the answers should already be in place and the work should already be months into execution.

We are building people who build things. The field builders who master commissioning are building the completion  the final, fully verified confirmation that everything that was designed, procured, coordinated, and installed actually works together the way the owner needs it to. That completion is what every family connected to every worker on the project was working toward. It is the purpose of the whole effort, and it starts on day one. If your project needs superintendent coaching, project support, or leadership development, Elevate Construction can help your field teams stabilize, schedule, and flow  including the commissioning discipline that protects the closeout milestone and delivers a building the owner can actually operate.

A Challenge for Builders

On your current project, identify the commissioning agent by name today if you do not already know. Pull the commissioning plan and find the commissioning schedule. Compare that schedule to your production plan and identify the activities that need to begin sooner than they are currently planned. Then have one conversation with the commissioning agent this week about pulling those activities forward. That conversation, repeated consistently throughout the project, is what the difference between a commissioning process that finishes on time and one that adds six weeks to the closeout looks like.

As Jason says, “Plan it first, build it right, finish as you go.”

On we go.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does commissioning need to start on day one instead of near the end of construction?

Because every commissioning activity  pre-functional checklists, startup, test and balance, functional performance testing depends on upstream work being complete. When commissioning starts late, every activity in the sequence gets compressed, and the acceptance testing and closeout that the owner’s milestone depends on gets pushed. Starting on day one means the builder is always pulling the commissioning timeline forward rather than chasing it from behind.

What is the commissioning authority’s role, and how should the builder work with them?

The commissioning agent is an independent third party hired by the owner to lead, plan, and document the commissioning process. They are incentivized to find failures  which serves the owner  but not to protect the construction schedule, which is the builder’s responsibility. The builder should build a genuine working relationship with the commissioning agent, respond to their issues log quickly, and serve as the schedule driver for the entire commissioning process.

What is the most common reason commissioning finishes late?

Pre-functional checklists start too late because the commissioning effort started too late because nobody was asking the right questions on day one. The pattern is consistent across projects: the commissioning plan is a large, technical document that gets deferred, the schedule within it is never integrated into the production plan, and by the time the commissioning activities need to run, the time to run them correctly has already been consumed by construction activities that were not coordinated with the commissioning sequence.

If you want to learn more we have:

-Takt Virtual Training: (Click here)
-Check out our Youtube channel for more info: (Click here) 
-Listen to the Elevate Construction podcast: (Click here) 
-Check out our training programs and certifications: (Click here)
-The Takt Book: (Click here)

Discover Jason’s Expertise:

Meet Jason Schroeder, the driving force behind Elevate Construction IST. As the company’s owner and principal consultant, he’s dedicated to taking construction to new heights. With a wealth of industry experience, he’s crafted the Field Engineer Boot Camp and Superintendent Boot Camp – intensive training programs engineered to cultivate top-tier leaders capable of steering their teams towards success. Jason’s vision? To expand his training initiatives across the nation, empowering construction firms to soar to unprecedented levels of excellence.

Making Elevating Construction Surveyors, Part 3 Feat. Brandon Montero

Posted on by Danny Jiménez⁩
Read 20 min

Why Zero Residuals Are Not Good News: Surveying Mastery for Construction Professionals

Zero point zero zero zero. When a trade partner’s data collector flashes that residual after a resection, most people see confirmation that the work is accurate. Brandon Monteiro sees a problem. That perfect number does not mean the work is good. It means there is not enough data to prove the work is bad.

This is one of the most important lessons in the third session of Elevating Construction Surveyors, and it is the kind of insight that separates professionals who produce reliable results from those who produce results that occasionally happen to be correct.

Applied Resection: The Math Behind the Setup

A resection is how a surveyor locates their total station at a convenient vantage point without needing a physical survey nail or rebar beneath the instrument. The instrument shoots angles and distances to at least three known control points, then calculates its own coordinates by triangulating its position from those observations.

This technique is widely used across trades in construction. Electricians use it to locate stub positions for bollards and light poles. HVAC contractors use it to determine overhead penetration locations. Civil layout crews use it to work from inside a busy site where perimeter control points are blocked by structures. The technique is common. The problem, as Brandon puts it, is that it is also very commonly done incorrectly.

Brandon tells the story of a trade partner on a project who was performing a resection using only two control points. Before taking any observations, he had already eyeballed the position of a column corner by taping off chalk lines on the ground, holding his rod at that estimated location, and shooting to it with an eight and a half foot rod held well above his head. The data collector returned exactly zero zero zero on the residual. The contractor was confident. Brandon was not.

Here is why. When you use only two control points for a resection, the instrument has no independent check. If your measurements to both points contain error, the instrument simply accepts both observations and calculates a position that incorporates all of that error without flagging any of it. There is nothing for the residual to compare against. The zero does not mean the work is accurate. It means the system cannot prove it is inaccurate.

When you add a third control point, the instrument now has three observations to reconcile. The residual will not be zero, and that is good. A nonzero residual tells you the magnitude of your error and allows you to evaluate whether it is within acceptable tolerance. Add a fourth or fifth point and you can identify which specific observation is the outlier and remove it, tightening your result further.

The lesson is direct: the more points included in a resection, the more your residuals can reveal. Minimum three points, always. Zero residuals from a two point resection are not a green light. They are a blind spot.

Plan Your Daily Tasks Before You Arrive at the Site

The second concept in this session moves from technical precision to professional discipline: planning the full day before the work begins, not just reviewing the work order.

Brandon draws a distinction that matters. The work order tells you what the task is. A daily plan tells you how the full day is going to unfold, in what order tasks will be performed, what the time constraints are, what resources each stage requires, and where the plan could fall apart if something unexpected happens.

He uses the image of a water hose to make the point. A hose with no nozzle puts water everywhere. The same hose fitted with a narrow nozzle focuses all that force in one precise direction. Showing up to a job site with effort but no plan is the hose with no nozzle. You are expending energy without directing it.

A daily plan includes more than just field tasks. It accounts for reporting back to the office at a specific time, communicating with the team before or after work hours, coordinating with trades who need your results before they can proceed, and protecting time that matters outside of work. Brandon is direct about this: personal time, family commitments, and recovery are also tasks that deserve a slot in the plan, not leftover time after everything else fills in.

The challenge is building the habit. Whether you use a calendar, a spreadsheet, a task management application, or a written list is secondary to the discipline of putting the plan somewhere visible before the day starts. People who plan their days discover where their time actually goes. People who do not plan wonder where it went.

Applied Leveling and Level Loops

The third section covers leveling, one of the most foundational skills in survey and one of the most frequently performed poorly in construction.

Applied leveling means understanding not just how to operate a level but when it is the right instrument for the task, what the math behind the observations looks like, what a properly closed level loop tells you, and how to distribute and mark final adjusted elevations clearly for the people who will use them.

Brandon’s strong recommendation is three wire level loops rather than single wire. Here is the argument. Three wire leveling records top, middle, and bottom wire readings for each observation. This gives you a built in distance check between observations and allows you to see, reading by reading, whether any individual observation is out of range before you close the loop. Single wire leveling gives you less information to work with and fewer opportunities to catch an error in progress.

The common objection is speed. Three wire is slower. Brandon’s response is to get faster at three wire. The same efficiency principles that apply to any field task apply here. Define the workflow, assign roles so no one is waiting on anyone else, and practice until the method becomes fast. Accepting a slower QC method because you have not optimized the better one is the wrong trade.

Level loops close back to the original benchmark. That closure is the quality check. If you surveyed a level loop from a benchmark, set control around a project, and never returned to the benchmark to close the loop, you have no way to know whether error crept into the work. Closing the loop tells you the magnitude of any error and allows you to distribute it through an adjustment rather than having it accumulate at one end of your work.

Jason adds context from his own superintendent and field engineering experience. He has seen elevation problems on multiple projects caused by not using proper leveling techniques. Six inch errors. Eight inch errors. Problems traced back to trigonometric leveling used where a level should have been, or benchmarks that were never independently verified, or level loops that were never closed. In every case, the method was the problem, not the instrument.

Layout Basics: Understanding What the Equipment Is Actually Doing

The final section in this session addresses layout fundamentals, specifically the discipline of performing manual layout operations with a conventional total station rather than relying entirely on robotic operation.

Brandon’s point is subtle but important. When you operate a robotic instrument, the machine turns the angles, finds the prism, and reports a result. You accept the result and move on. The error characteristics of that observation, whether the angle was turned cleanly, whether the observation quality was appropriate for the tolerance required, whether the prism position was actually where the work needed to go: none of that is visible to you. You trust the output.

When you perform the same work conventionally, turning a 90 degree angle manually, flopping the instrument to turn the reverse, and averaging the two to find the true 90, you can see what the instrument is capable of in the physical marks on the ground. You develop calibration for your equipment. You learn when to trust its output and when to apply additional checks.

That calibration is not replaceable by robotic operation. It is built through the experience of working conventionally, making observations, seeing the error, and learning what it means.

If your project needs superintendent coaching, project support, or leadership development, Elevate Construction can help your field teams stabilize, schedule, and flow. The survey principles in this series, from resection to leveling to layout, are part of a larger professional standard that applies to anyone who touches control on a construction project. Learn the math. Verify the work. Plan the day. Trust the process, not just the output.

The Challenge From This Session

Brandon’s challenge for resection is direct: if you understand applied resection, spread that training to the trade partners working around you. The vendors who sell and set up equipment for trades do not have the math background to train them properly. When you see a contractor performing a resection with two points and getting excited about zero residuals, you have an opportunity to help them do better work. Better work from every trade means a better project for everyone on site.

On we go.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why do trade partners use so few control points in a resection if more points produce better results?

Usually because no one has taught them the math behind the method. Vendors prioritize getting people operational quickly, not training them on the statistics behind their observations. The trade partner with two control points is doing what they were shown to do, not what produces reliable results.

When is trigonometric leveling appropriate versus using a level?

A level produces more accurate elevation transfers over short to medium distances. Trigonometric leveling using a total station introduces angle based error that compounds over distance. For project benchmark control and transferring elevations to the site, a level with proper three wire technique and a closed loop is almost always the right choice.

How do you handle a situation where a trade partner’s work does not meet accuracy requirements but they are confident in their results?

Ask to see the number of control points used and the residuals. If the resection used fewer than three points, the zero residual is not a valid quality check. Walk them through what a three point resection would show. In most cases, the trade partner is not being careless. They simply were not trained on why more points matter.

How detailed should a daily survey plan be?

Detailed enough to sequence the tasks in logical order, account for time constraints, identify what each person on the crew will be doing at each stage, and flag the moments where something unexpected could derail the plan. It does not need to be a formal document. It does need to exist before the crew leaves the office.

What is the most common leveling mistake on construction projects?

Not closing the level loop back to the original benchmark. An open loop gives you no independent check on your work. Elevation errors that go undetected at the leveling stage become structural problems later. Close the loop. Every time.

 

If you want to learn more we have:

-Takt Virtual Training: (Click here)
-Check out our Youtube channel for more info: (Click here) 
-Listen to the Elevate Construction podcast: (Click here) 
-Check out our training programs and certifications: (Click here)
-The Takt Book: (Click here)

Discover Jason’s Expertise:

Meet Jason Schroeder, the driving force behind Elevate Construction IST. As the company’s owner and principal consultant, he’s dedicated to taking construction to new heights. With a wealth of industry experience, he’s crafted the Field Engineer Boot Camp and Superintendent Boot Camp – intensive training programs engineered to cultivate top-tier leaders capable of steering their teams towards success. Jason’s vision? To expand his training initiatives across the nation, empowering construction firms to soar to unprecedented levels of excellence.

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    faq

    General Training Overview

    What construction leadership training programs does LeanTakt offer?
    LeanTakt offers Superintendent/PM Boot Camps, Virtual Takt Production System® Training, Onsite Takt Simulations, and Foreman & Field Engineer Training. Each program is tailored to different leadership levels in construction.
    Who should attend LeanTakt’s training programs?
    Superintendents, Project Managers, Foremen, Field Engineers, and trade partners who want to improve planning, communication, and execution on projects.
    How do these training programs improve project performance?
    They provide proven Lean and Takt systems that reduce chaos, improve reliability, strengthen collaboration, and accelerate project delivery.
    What makes LeanTakt’s training different from other construction courses?
    Our programs are hands-on, field-tested, and focused on practical application—not just classroom theory.
    Do I need prior Lean or takt planning experience to attend?
    No. Our programs cover foundational principles before moving into advanced applications.
    How quickly can I apply what I learn on real projects?
    Most participants begin applying new skills immediately, often the same week they complete the program.
    Are these trainings designed for both office and field leaders?
    Yes. We equip both project managers and superintendents with tools that connect field and office operations.
    What industries benefit most from LeanTakt training?
    Commercial, multifamily, residential, industrial, and infrastructure projects all benefit from flow-based planning.
    Do participants receive certificates after completing training?
    Yes. Every participant receives a LeanTakt Certificate of Completion.
    Is LeanTakt training recognized in the construction industry?
    Yes. Our programs are widely respected among leading GCs, subcontractors, and construction professionals.

    Superintendent / PM Boot Camp

    What is the Superintendent & Project Manager Boot Camp?
    It’s a 5-day immersive training for superintendents and PMs to master Lean leadership, takt planning, and project flow.
    How long does the Superintendent/PM Boot Camp last?
    Five full days of hands-on training.
    What topics are covered in the Boot Camp curriculum?
    Lean leadership, Takt Planning, logistics, daily planning, field-office communication, and team health.
    How does the Boot Camp improve leadership and scheduling skills?
    Yes. You’ll learn how to run day huddles, team meetings, worker huddles, and Lean coordination processes.
    Who is the Boot Camp best suited for?
    Construction leaders responsible for delivering projects, including Superintendents, PMs, and Field Leaders.
    What real-world challenges are simulated during the Boot Camp?
    Schedule breakdowns, trade conflicts, logistics issues, and communication gaps.
    Will I learn Takt Planning at the Boot Camp?
    Yes. Takt Planning is a core focus of the Boot Camp.
    How does this Boot Camp compare to traditional PM certification?
    It’s practical and execution-based rather than exam-based. You learn by doing, not just studying theory.
    Can my entire project team attend the Boot Camp together?
    Yes. Teams attending together often see the greatest results.
    What kind of real-world challenges do we simulate?
    Improved project flow, fewer delays, better team communication, and stronger leadership confidence.

    Takt Production System® Virtual Training

    What is the Virtual Takt Production System® Training?
    It’s an expert-led online program that teaches Lean construction teams how to implement takt planning.
    How does virtual takt training work?
    Delivered online via live sessions, interactive discussions, and digital tools.
    What are the benefits of online takt planning training?
    Convenience, global accessibility, real-time learning, and immediate application.
    Can I access the virtual training from anywhere?
    Yes. It’s fully web-based and accessible worldwide.
    Can I access the virtual training from anywhere?
    Yes. It’s fully web-based and accessible worldwide.
    What skills will I gain from the Virtual TPS® Training?
    Macro and micro Takt planning, weekly updates, flow management, and CPM integration.
    How long does the virtual training program take?
    The program is typically completed in multiple live sessions across several days.
    Can I watch recordings if I miss a session?
    Yes. Recordings are available to all participants.
    Do you offer group access or company licenses for the virtual training?
    Yes. Teams and companies can enroll together at discounted rates.
    How does the Virtual TPS® Training integrate with CPM tools?
    We show how to align Takt with CPM schedules like Primavera P6 or MS Project.

    Onsite Takt Simulation

    What is a Takt Simulation in construction training?
    It’s a live, interactive workshop that demonstrates takt planning on-site.
    How does the Takt Simulation workshop work?
    Teams participate in hands-on exercises to learn the flow and rhythm of a Takt-based project.
    Can I choose between a 1-day or 2-day Takt Simulation?
    Yes. We offer flexible formats to fit your team’s schedule and needs.
    Who should participate in the Takt Simulation workshop?
    Superintendents, PMs, site supervisors, contractors, and engineers.
    How does a Takt Simulation improve project planning?
    It shows teams how to structure zones, manage flow, and coordinate trades in real time.
    What will my team learn from the onsite simulation?
    How to build and maintain takt plans, manage buffers, and align trade partners.
    Is the simulation tailored to my specific project type?
    Yes. Scenarios can be customized to match your project.
    How do Takt Simulations improve trade partner coordination?
    They strengthen collaboration by making handoffs visible and predictable.
    What results can I expect from an onsite Takt Simulation?
    Improved schedule reliability, better trade collaboration, and reduced rework.
    How many people can join a Takt Simulation session?
    Group sizes are flexible, but typically 15–30 participants per session.

    Foreman & Field Engineer Training

    What is Foreman & Field Engineer Training?
    It’s an on-demand, practical program that equips foremen and engineers with leadership and planning skills.
    How does this training prepare emerging leaders?
    By teaching communication, crew management, and execution strategies.
    Is the training on-demand or scheduled?
    On-demand, tailored to your team’s timing and needs.
    What skills do foremen and engineers gain from this training?
    Planning, safety leadership, coordination, and communication.
    How does the training improve communication between field and office?
    It builds shared systems that align superintendents, engineers, and managers.
    Can the training be customized for my team’s needs?
    Yes. Programs are tailored for your project or company.
    What makes this program different from generic leadership courses?
    It’s construction-specific, field-tested, and focused on real project application.
    How do foremen and field engineers apply this training immediately?
    They can use new systems for planning, coordination, and daily crew management right away.
    Is the training suitable for small construction companies?
    Yes. Small and large teams alike benefit from building flow-based leadership skills.

    Testimonials

    Testimonials

    "The bootcamp I was apart of was amazing. Its was great while it was happening but also had a very profound long-term motivation that is still pushing me to do more, be more. It sounds a little strange to say that a construction bootcamp changed my life, but it has. It has opened my eyes to many possibilities on how a project can be successfully run. It’s also provided some very positive ideas on how people can and should be treated in construction.

    I am a hungry person by nature, so it doesn’t take a lot to get to participate. I loved the way it was not just about participating, it was also about doing it with conviction, passion, humility and if it wasn’t portrayed that way you had to do it again."

    "It's great to be a part of a company that has similar values to my own, especially regarding how we treat our trade partners. The idea of "you gotta make them feel worse to make them do better" has been preached at me for years. I struggled with this as you will not find a single psychology textbook stating these beliefs. In fact it is quite the opposite, and causing conflict is a recipe for disaster. I'm still honestly in shock I have found a company that has based its values on scientific facts based on human nature. That along with the Takt scheduling system makes everything even better. I am happy to be a part of a change that has been long overdue in our industry!"

    "Wicked team building, so valuable for the forehumans of the sub trades to know the how and why. Great tools and resources. Even though I am involved and use the tools every day, I feel like everything is fresh and at the forefront to use"

    "Jason and his team did an incredible job passing on the overall theory of what they do. After 3 days of running through the course I cannot see any holes in their concept. It works. it's proven to work and I am on board!"

    "Loved the pull planning, Takt planning, and logistic model planning. Well thought out and professional"

    "The Super/PM Boot Camp was an excellent experience that furthered my understanding of Lean Practices. The collaboration, group involvement, passion about real project site experiences, and POSITIVE ENERGY. There are no dull moments when you head into this training. Jason and Mr. Montero were always on point and available to help in the break outs sessions. Easily approachable to talk too during breaks and YES, it was fun. I recommend this training for any PM or Superintendent that wants to further their career."

    agenda

    Day 1

    Foundations & Macro Planning

    • Introduction to Takt Production System® principles
    • CPM vs TAKT comparison
    • Macro planning, zoning, and density analysis
    • Quantities and production rates
    • Hands-on application to participants’ projects with LeanTakt PM experts

    day2

    Norm Planning & Flow Optimization

    • Review and refinement of Day 1 work
    • Pull planning and sequence optimization
    • Work packaging for balanced flow
    • Project integration session with LeanTakt PM coaching

    day3

    Advanced Tools & Comparisons

    • Macro work packaging and example walkthrough
    • Calculator Norm for production optimization
    • Stacking comparison to avoid trade conflicts
    • Hands-on application to participants’ own schedules

    day4

    Buffers, Controls & Finalization

    • Review of Day 3 implementation
    • Buffer management strategies and placement
    • Takt control principles and steering methods
    • Project plan finalization with expert guidance

    day5

    Control Systems & Presentations

    • Takt steering, control systems, and real project examples
    • Participant project presentations with LeanTakt PM feedback
    • Wrap-up, feedback, and action planning for post-training implementation

    faq

    UNDERSTANDING THE TRAINING

    What is the Virtual Takt Production System® Training by LeanTakt?
    It’s an expert-led online program designed to teach construction professionals how to implement Takt Planning to create flow, eliminate chaos, and align teams across the project lifecycle.
    Who should take the LeanTakt virtual training?
    This training is ideal for Superintendents, Project Managers, Engineers, Schedulers, Trade Partners, and Lean Champions looking to improve planning and execution.
    What topics are covered in the online Takt Production System® course?
    The course covers macro and micro Takt planning, zone creation, buffers, weekly updates, flow management, trade coordination, and integration with CPM tools.
    What makes LeanTakt’s virtual training different from other Lean construction courses?
    Unlike theory-based courses, this training is hands-on, practical, field-tested, and includes live coaching tailored to your actual projects.
    Do I get a certificate after completing the online training?
    Yes. Upon successful completion, participants receive a LeanTakt Certificate of Completion, which validates your knowledge and readiness to implement Takt.

    VALUE AND RESULTS

    What are the benefits of Takt Production System® training for my team?
    It helps teams eliminate bottlenecks, improve planning reliability, align trades, and reduce the chaos typically seen in traditional construction schedules.
    How much time and money can I save with Takt Planning?
    Many projects using Takt see 15–30% reductions in time and cost due to better coordination, fewer delays, and increased team accountability.
    What’s the ROI of virtual Takt training for construction teams?
    The ROI comes from faster project delivery, reduced rework, improved communication, and better resource utilization — often 10x the investment.
    Will this training reduce project delays or rework?
    Yes. By visualizing flow and aligning trades, Takt Planning reduces miscommunication and late handoffs — major causes of delay and rework.
    How soon can I expect to see results on my projects?
    Most teams report seeing improvement in coordination and productivity within the first 2–4 weeks of implementation.

    PLANNING AND SCHEDULING TOPICS

    What is Takt Planning and how is it used in construction?
    Takt Planning is a Lean scheduling method that creates flow by aligning work with time and space, using rhythm-based planning to coordinate teams and reduce waste.
    What’s the difference between macro and micro Takt plans?
    Macro Takt plans focus on the overall project flow and phase durations, while micro Takt plans break down detailed weekly tasks by zone and crew.
    Will I learn how to build a complete Takt plan from scratch?
    Yes. The training teaches you how to build both macro and micro Takt plans tailored to your project, including workflows, buffers, and sequencing.
    How do I update and maintain a Takt schedule each week?
    You’ll learn how to conduct weekly updates using lookaheads, trade feedback, zone progress, and digital tools to maintain schedule reliability.
    Can I integrate Takt Planning with CPM or Primavera P6?
    Yes. The training includes guidance on aligning Takt plans with CPM logic, showing how both systems can work together effectively.
    Will I have access to the instructors during the training?
    Yes. You’ll have opportunities to ask questions, share challenges, and get real-time feedback from LeanTakt coaches.
    Can I ask questions specific to my current project?
    Absolutely. In fact, we encourage it — the training is designed to help you apply Takt to your active jobs.
    Is support available after the training ends?
    Yes. You can access follow-up support, coaching, and community forums to help reinforce implementation.
    Can your tools be customized to my project or team?
    Yes. We offer customizable templates and implementation options to fit different project types, teams, and tech stacks.
    When is the best time in a project lifecycle to take this training?
    Ideally before or during preconstruction, but teams have seen success implementing it mid-project as well.

    APPLICATION & TEAM ADOPTION

    What changes does my team need to adopt Takt Planning?
    Teams must shift from reactive scheduling to proactive, flow-based planning with clear commitments, reliable handoffs, and a visual management mindset.
    Do I need any prior Lean or scheduling experience?
    No prior Lean experience is required. The course is structured to take you from foundational principles to advanced application.
    How long does it take for teams to adapt to Takt Planning?
    Most teams adapt within 2–6 weeks, depending on project size and how fully the system is adopted across roles.
    Can this training work for smaller companies or projects?
    Absolutely. Takt is scalable and especially powerful for small teams seeking better structure and predictability.
    What role do trade partners play in using Takt successfully?
    Trade partners are key collaborators. They help shape realistic flow, manage buffers, and provide feedback during weekly updates.

    VIRTUAL FORMAT & ACCESSIBILITY

    Can I access the virtual training from anywhere?
    Yes. The training is fully accessible online, making it ideal for distributed teams across regions or countries.
    Is this training available internationally?
    Yes. LeanTakt trains teams around the world and supports global implementations.
    Can I watch recordings if I miss a session?
    Yes. All sessions are recorded and made available for later viewing through your training portal.
    Do you offer group access or company licenses?
    Yes. Teams can enroll together at discounted rates, and we offer licenses for enterprise rollouts.
    What technology or setup do I need to join the virtual training?
    A reliable internet connection, webcam, Miro, Spreadsheets, and access to Zoom.

    faq

    GENERAL FAQS

    What is the Superintendent / PM Boot Camp?
    It’s a hands-on leadership training for Superintendents and Project Managers in the construction industry focused on Lean systems, planning, and communication.
    Who is this Boot Camp for?
    Construction professionals including Superintendents, Project Managers, Field Engineers, and Foremen looking to improve planning, leadership, and project flow.
    What makes this construction boot camp different?
    Real-world project simulations, expert coaching, Lean principles, team-based learning, and post-camp support — all built for field leaders.
    Is this just a seminar or classroom training?
    No. It’s a hands-on, immersive experience. You’ll plan, simulate, collaborate, and get feedback — not sit through lectures.
    What is the focus of the training?
    Leadership, project planning, communication, Lean systems, and integrating office-field coordination.

    CURRICULUM & OUTCOMES

    What topics are covered in the Boot Camp?
    Takt planning, day planning, logistics, pre-construction, team health, communication systems, and more.
    What is Takt Planning and why is it taught?
    Takt is a Lean planning method that creates flow and removes chaos. It helps teams deliver projects on time with less stress.
    Will I learn how to lead field teams more effectively?
    Yes. This boot camp focuses on real leadership challenges and gives you systems and strategies to lead high-performing teams.
    Do you cover daily huddles and meeting systems?
    Yes. You’ll learn how to run day huddles, team meetings, worker huddles, and Lean coordination processes.
    What kind of real-world challenges do we simulate?
    You’ll work through real project schedules, logistical constraints, leadership decisions, and field-office communication breakdowns.

    LOGISTICS & FORMAT

    Is the training in-person or virtual?
    It’s 100% in-person to maximize learning, feedback, and team-based interaction.
    How long is the Boot Camp?
    It runs for 5 full days.
    Where is the Boot Camp held?
    Locations vary — typically hosted in a professional training center or project setting. Contact us for the next available city/date.
    Do you offer follow-up coaching after the Boot Camp?
    Yes. Post-camp support is included so you can apply what you’ve learned on your projects.
    Can I ask questions about my actual project?
    Absolutely. That’s encouraged — bring your current challenges.

    PRICING & VALUE

    How much does the Boot Camp cost?
    $5,000 per person.
    Are there any group discounts?
    Yes — get 10% off when 4 or more people from the same company attend.
    What’s the ROI for sending my team?
    Better planning = fewer delays, smoother coordination, and higher team morale — all of which boost productivity and reduce costs.
    Will I see results immediately?
    Most participants apply what they’ve learned as soon as they return to the jobsite — especially with follow-up support.
    Can this replace other leadership training?
    In many cases, yes. This Boot Camp is tailored to construction professionals, unlike generic leadership seminars.

    SEO-BASED / HIGH-INTENT SEARCH QUESTIONS

    What is the best leadership training for construction Superintendents?
    Our Boot Camp offers real-world, field-focused leadership training tailored for construction leaders.
    What’s included in a Superintendent Boot Camp?
    Takt planning, day planning, logistics, pre-construction systems, huddles, simulations, and more.
    Where can I find Lean construction training near me?
    Check our upcoming in-person sessions or request a private boot camp in your city.
    How can I improve field and office communication on a project?
    This Boot Camp teaches you tools and systems to connect field and office workflows seamlessly.
    Is there a training to help reduce chaos on construction sites?
    Yes — this program is built specifically to turn project chaos into flow through structured leadership.

    agenda

    Day 1

    Agenda

    • Intro to Camp
    • Set Expectations
    • Morning Routine
    • Plan Day
    • Explain "Why"
    • Teams Intros + Yells + Expectation
    • Focus, Physiology, Words + Yells
    • Blocks to Leadership
    • 50 Million
    • Biggest Thing
    • Choose Your Word
    • Marketing Exercise
    • Interview for the Project
    • PO Homework and Close the Day

    Outcomes

    • Understand how to get into a proper state to lead
    • Understand how to dig deep to find the confidence to lead
    • Team work and collaboration
    • Understand marketing
    • Understand how to interview for and win a project

    Day 2

    Agenda

    • Morning Routine
    • Day Planner
    • Plus & Delta
    • Macro Takt planning
    • Setup jobs + Signs + Logistics
    • Explain the IPCS™
    • Detailed logistics training
    • Team balance & health training

    Outcomes

    • Learn the IPCS™ understand how to integrate the entire project from start to finish with First Planners™ and Last Planners® through the Takt Production System®
    • Learn how to review a project
    • Learn advanced logistics
    • Learn team balance and health

    Day 3

    Agenda

    • Morning Routine
    • Day Planner
    • Plus & Delta
    • Review How Big Things Get Done
    • Review IPCSTM
    • Fix (Schedule, zone, logistics, trailer, org & procurement)
    • Fresh Eyes Meeting
    • Pre-Con Overview
    • TAKT SIMULATION
    • Recap and Review

    Outcomes

    • Understand why and how to plan
    • Understand the benefits of using a Takt production plan
    • Learn the steps to proper pre-con that sets the project up for success
    • Learn how to review a project in a Fresh Eyes Meeting
    • Learn flow from Takt planning

    Day 4

    Agenda

    • Morning Routine
    • Day Planner
    • Plus & Delta
    • Opposing Squares
    • Pull Plan
    • Takt Remaining
    • Norm Update
    • Re Zoning
    • Risks & Pre-Con Align
    • Meeting System
    • Problems
    • Recap

    Outcomes

    • Understand the Norm level Takt plan for weekly/daily planning
    • Benefits and outcomes of rezoning strategies
    • Using meetings to feed information through the system and to the Foremen

    Day 5

    Agenda

    • Morning Routine
    • Day Planner
    • Plus & Delta
    • Huddle I.D.S
    • Day Plan
    • Worker Huddle
    • Norm Update
    • Team Huddle
    • Lean Systems Recap
    • Feedback Exercise
    • Final & Close

    Outcomes

    • Know what information is needed and how to get it to the Workers
    • Better understand how to give feedback and why it’s crucial for everyone
    • How to problem solve as a team
    • Understand how all systems tie together
    • Know how the information gets all the way to the worker
    • Have perfect clarity on the individual’s personal organization planner