The World Economic Forum classifies SMEs as the foundation for strengthening 90% of the global economy. It is further responsible for capturing 70% of job creation and GDP. According to the United Nations Report, the development of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) is given high priority by many governments across the world for its potential to create 600 million jobs by 2030.

With SMEs creating 7 out of 10 formal jobs, in the UK alone it is observed that 3.1 million people, approximately 9% of the total UK workforce is employed in the construction sector (United Nations). However, in a bustling construction world, they often find themselves navigating treacherous waters. Tight schedules, shoestring budgets, and the ever-present spectre of delays can turn even the most promising projects into nightmares. It induces work-related stress as observed in 97% of professionals in a survey conducted by the Chartered Institute of Building. This indirectly becomes a burden to the economy, costing billions of euros each year. (AMA Research) Data shows that 70% of SMEs in the UK’s construction sector itself have been using some form of mobile or web-based apps for project management. So, we’ve got five secret weapons – hacks that will help any SME around the world to build and deliver Construction project management for SMEs on time and within budget, all while keeping sanity intact.

1. The Marvel of Integrated Planning

Imagine having a detailed roadmap that guides you through every complex twist and turn of your construction journey. Creating a comprehensive document which consists of all the activities from macro to micro level will structure a detailed schedule in place. This beauty of integrated planning will outline every task, milestone, deadline, location, individual work breakdown record and quality check you need.

VisiLean will make this realistic for you when you import your master plan on our platform. Then we will integrate your detailed schedules at various levels within this master plan. Through our unmatched system’s interoperability with platforms from P6 to CSV, you can integrate all planning windows into a single source-of-truth. Our Scheduler view will further transform your well-sequenced tasks into digital tickets just like sticky notes. With an elaborative plan in place, it will accommodate short-range planning, commitments and a make-ready process of removing constraints before initiating any work. And guess what? You can even connect it to VisiLean’s dedicated checklists, ensuring nothing slips through the cracks during quality approvals. It’s like having a personal construction GPS!

2. The Power of Collaboration

Construction is a team sport, and SMEs often struggle with collaboration. But fear not – our next hack brings stakeholders closer than ever. No need for everyone to be in the same room when you’re connected on the VisiLean platform. The common platform enables collaboration through the flow of information on a single location across trades. With VisiLean, you can create multiple organisations, as per your project workflow. This gives you the power to filter planning, monitoring, as well as performance review accordingly.

On VisiLean, there are dedicated sections for Notes and Files so that the teams can easily attach them and tag responsible users from the team. All file transfers are recorded under the History log on VisiLean and are directly linked to the Task being addressed. Such unified Task allocation, adjustments, progress reviews, and changes create an environment of a virtual meeting room that’s open 24/7!

What’s more, you can effectively visualise trades by their unique colours in our collaborative planning window to review flow and handovers across packages and locations! Read further about VisiLean’s true definition of collaboration here.

3. Unveiling Critical Activities and Their Impact

Ever wish you had X-ray vision to see which project activities are critical? Well, put on your superhero cape because, on VisiLean, the integration of top-down planning with a bottom-up collaborative approach is here to save the day. Our dedicated auto-schedule window will help you identify critical activities that directly affect your project’s completion date. Any changes in the execution observed throughout the day will be reflected on the upcoming tasks as well as the overall project. The Impact log on VisiLean will allow you to review the highlighted critical activities being impacted on making the desired changes. Be woke and take control of your project like a boss!

4. The Blueprint Connection

Imagine linking your 2D markups with your project plan – it’s like constructing a bridge between visual communication and the nitty-gritty details. It creates transparency between teams, reduces misunderstandings, and subsequent delays. On VisiLean, you can create a comprehensive project record for historical documentation, dispute resolution, and future reference. It’s the blueprint for success!

5. Real-Time Monitoring Magic

In the age of instant gratification, waiting for project updates is a thing of the past. Even if you can collect real-time information, immediately reflecting its impact on the overall project is cumbersome. VisiLean’s real-time Dashboard is your project’s command centre. Integrated with your tasks, it allows you to input live updates, ensuring the dashboard always highlights the true status of the project. It’s like having a construction crystal ball, helping you steer your project to success.

To learn more about our interactive dashboards read here.

Construction project management for SMEs

There you have it, folks – five hacks that will transform your SME construction projects into a well-orchestrated symphony of efficiency and success. With the detailed schedule, seamless collaboration, the Impact log, blueprint connection, and real-time Dashboard, you’ll have all the tools you need to build and deliver construction projects on time and within budget.

So, gear up, put on your hard hats, and let VisiLean’s construction project management guide you to victory! It’s time to build a brighter, more efficient future for your SME construction projects. To get started with it, book a demo with us now!