Project Success 101: IPCS™ – The Team

In this blog, I’ll discuss a critical component of what we call the Integrated Production Control System™—a system designed to empower your team to succeed while supporting all activities at the crew level on the project side. 

Curious about how to build a strong, balanced team that effectively supports your project? Want to know how to excel in your role as a leader? You’ve come to the right place. Let’s dive into these essentials.

The Core of Construction: Integrated Production Control System™

This is what excites me the most! In this blog series, I’ll break down the Integrated Production Control System™ and how it sets up teams for success.

In construction, the typical process often starts with designing and then figuring out how to build it. However, what we should really be doing is ensuring that our foremen and workers have everything they need to complete each task within their allocated zone and timeframe. 

This system relies on several factors: materials, personnel, information, tools, equipment, layout, and permissions. The essence of successful construction is ensuring the crew can install the work packages seamlessly and maintain a consistent workflow.

Key Elements of the Integrated Production Control System™

To achieve this, the crew needs a few critical components:

1. Team Support
2. A Robust Plan
3. A Well-Managed Supply Chain
4. Positive Culture
5. Appropriate Training

The Integrated Production Control System™ provides all these components, allowing foremen and their crews to perform effectively. Now, let’s focus on how to build and balance the team while showing up as an effective project leader.

Three Key Components of Every Successful Construction Project

Every team, when supporting a foreman and their crew, must have three essential elements:

1. A Multiplier Leader:
   This leader builds the team, manages difficult conversations, coaches and mentors direct reports, holds productive meetings, and scales clarity across the board.
2. Team Behaviors:
   Successful teams exhibit five behaviors:

    

   • Trust
   • Healthy Conflict
   • Setting Goals & Standards Together
   • Accountability
   • Performance
3. Strenuous Performance Goals:
   A high-performing team must always have a clear target to achieve. When these three components are missing, the project suffers.

How to Balance Your Team in Construction

Once the team is in place, you must ensure it remains balanced and capable of supporting the foreman and crew by clearing roadblocks and providing necessary information. Here are two important strategies:

1. Coverage Schedule:
   Each job site must have an intentional coverage plan. This means knowing who’s handling tasks like opening gates, working late, or covering for others when they’re unavailable. Without this, key roles like the superintendent or field engineers risk burnout.
2. Tracking PTO:
   Keeping a calendar that tracks when team members take time off ensures there’s adequate coverage at all times. No task should fall through the cracks because of overlapping absences.

How to Manage Your Own Personal Organization System

In order to support the foreman and crew effectively, you need personal balance and organization. Here’s how to do that:

• Time Blocking:
  Plan your day with intentional time blocks for meetings, tasks, and everything in between. Your day should be structured around your goals, with buffers for unplanned events.
• Leader Standard Work:
  This is a routine set of actions you do for yourself, your family, and your role. Combined with a detailed to-do list, this will ensure you’re always prepared for the day ahead.
• Morning Routine:
  An effective morning routine sets the tone for your day. Organize your tasks based on Leader Standard Work, create a to-do list, and stick to your plan. Doing so will save you hours and give you the capacity to better support your crew.

Summary: Three Key Habits for Project Success

To wrap up, remember these three essential habits:

1. Build a team with the right leader, behaviors, and performance goals.
2. Balance your team by ensuring adequate coverage and tracking PTO to prevent burnout.
3. Maintain your own personal organization system to create time for supporting the field crews.

These strategies form the backbone of a successful construction project and, more importantly, set your team up to win.

Stay tuned for more insights and resources on these topics. And don’t forget, as part of this system, we’re always focused on supporting the foreman with the crew to install work packages effectively in the field. 

I hope you’re able to implement these concepts and that you found this blog helpful. Let’s keep building successful projects—together!