Do your people know exactly what their tasks are for the day? Did you just tell them? Did you expect them to just know or figure it out? And do you trust them to remember it if it isn’t written down? Do you trust any human? The answer is obvious.
This is Part 14 of my walk-through of my book Elevating Construction Foremen. If you are just joining, start with Part 1. This part is about written instructions to workers, the three habits of a builder, continual crew training, the afternoon check-in, and next-day prep.
Short answer: Great crew leaders give written, typed, or drawn instructions every day. They live by three builder habits: study the drawings daily, stay in the schedule, and take reflection walks. They train between tasks and zones, check the crew after every restart, and clean up and stage the day before, so the crew can work from the morning start through 11:00 a.m. without searching for anything.
Why Should Crew Leaders Write Instructions for Workers?
The best crew leaders provide instructions to the workers. That can be on a lift drawing, in shop drawings, with the quality checklist or feature of work visual, or with written instructions or lists. There must be written, typed, or drawn instructions on paper or an iPad. I realize this may seem like overkill, but the best crew leaders I have seen out of the hundreds I’ve worked with have always done this, even if it meant making lists for them or with them. Would your day be less chaotic if you just wrote out clear instructions?
When I get stressed and overwhelmed with a team, I sit down and start writing out clear instructions to get ahead of the chaos. Consider doing so as well, and hopefully it will become a habit. I also covered this in All Instructions Are Written and Verbal.
What Are the Three Habits of a Builder?
Crew leaders are builders, and there are three main habits of a builder:
| Habit | What it answers |
|---|---|
| 1. Study the drawings and specifications daily. | What you are building. |
| 2. Manage and be proactive with your schedule. Watch your lookahead, weekly work plan, and day plan, and always be making work ready out ahead of your crew. | When you are building it. |
| 3. Use reflection walks to understand the current situation in the field and prepare the work. | Where you will build it. |
With those three questions answered, you can answer the who and the how. The why should have been answered in the preconstruction meeting ahead of the work. Afterward, take time on your own to review these steps, objectively rate how you did, figure out why, good or bad, and plan for future assignments.
You must have this time. The best time seems to be after the morning huddles, getting the work started, and your zone control walks, which usually lands around 9:00 to 11:00 a.m. I do not care if your people think you are lazy when you sit or stand to do this work. It is just how work is done. Take the time, be the leader, and stand at your station.
How Do Crew Leaders Train Their Crews Every Day?
Crew leaders look at the project as zones and imagine their crew working from zone to zone in committed time frames. Between those time frames and zones, gather feedback from the workers and ask, “What would have improved your work in that zone or on this project?” You may not get much feedback at first, but if you stay after it and master the art of improvement, you will lead discussions that bring many ideas to light. Then plan those improvements with your crew and teach ways to improve the work for the next zone.
This training usually happens in buffer time. If you finish a little ahead in a Takt time, week, or duration, use the remaining time to teach, improve, and set up your operation so the next process runs more smoothly. We never just move to the next task. We never rush, and we never fail to take time to train. More on that in Mentoring & Training by Foremen.
I would love to see crew leaders going from worker to worker doing 5 to 15 minutes of training every day. Would that not fix our worker shortage problem? Would it not improve our untrained workforce? I believe this is one of the single most important habits a crew leader can have, and I would pay that kind of crew leader 30% more than any other based on this habit alone.
Why Does the Afternoon Check-In Matter?
Continual training must continue anytime the crew restarts work, after stops, delays, breaks, and lunch. When the crew gets back to work, check that they have what they need and are headed in the right direction. Most accidents happen after 11:00 a.m. because workers are tired. Their bodies are processing food, and the repetition of the work can create task automation, where thoughts about the work run subconsciously inside a habit loop. That is natural for all humans.
After lunch, make sure the crew is alert, prepared, and doing tasks they are trained for and in physical condition for. Huddle your crew, do a field walk and check-in, or simply observe your people. Don’t just let them start after a pause and hope for the best. Crews need to be checked, just like equipment, before every use.
Why Should Cleanup and Staging Happen the Day Before?
Crews do not stage, search for, and organize materials the day of as a default. If you have to, fine, but that should be the exception and not the rule. The safest and most productive time on the project is from the morning start to 11:00 a.m., so cleanup and staging for the next day is done the previous afternoon, when bodies are more fatigued and mental discipline is lower. That is also when you attend the afternoon crew leader huddle, while workers clean, stage, and pack up.
Some say crew leaders are too tired for an afternoon huddle. Here is my response: we discomfort leaders so workers can be comforted. I care that workers can execute their production work right away the next day with everything they need, and do less intense work in the afternoon when they are tired. I do care that supers and crew leaders are tired, but it is our best known solution at this point. Work areas are cleaned and prepared the day before. That is just how it’s done.
So here is the challenge. For the next five workdays, hand every worker written or drawn instructions for the day, and spend 5 to 15 minutes training at least one person each day. Then move your staging to the afternoon before and watch what happens to your mornings.
Bottom line: Write it down, live the three builder habits, train every day, check the crew after every restart, and prepare tomorrow’s work today.
If your project needs superintendent coaching, project support, or leadership development, Elevate Construction can help your field teams stabilize, schedule, and flow.
On we go.
Elevating Construction Foremen series:
Previous: Part 13: The Worker Huddle, the Crew Preparation Huddle, and the Safety Pre-Task Plan
Next: Part 15: What You Need to Be Successful: Respect, Stability, and a Good Plan
FAQ
Do crew leaders really need to write instructions down?
Yes. The best crew leaders I have seen out of the hundreds I’ve worked with always gave written, typed, or drawn instructions, on paper or an iPad, even if it meant making lists for or with their workers.
What are the three habits of a builder?
Study the drawings and specifications daily, manage and be proactive with your schedule, and use reflection walks to understand the current situation in the field and prepare the work.
Why should crews stage materials the afternoon before?
The safest and most productive time on the project is from the morning start to 11:00 a.m. Cleanup and staging are done the previous afternoon, when bodies are more fatigued, so the crew can start producing right away.
People Also Read:
How to Approach Studying Your Drawings
Sketching Instructions
Training From the Battle Perch: Mentor Your Team From Above
Crew Planning: How to Break Work Into Steps So Crews Win Every Day
If you want to learn more we have:
-Takt Virtual Training: (Takt Virtual Training)
-Check out our YouTube channel for more info: (Elevate Construction on YouTube)
-Listen to the Elevate Construction podcast: (Elevate Construction Podcast)
-Check out our training programs and certifications: (Training Programs and Certifications)
-The Takt Book: (The Takt Book on Amazon)
Discover Jason’s Expertise:
Meet Jason Schroeder, the driving force behind Elevate Construction. As the company’s Founder and COO, 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.