Considering all of the tech advances in the last decade, why have AEC Contractors been so resistant when it comes to implementing new software technologies?
According to a 2020 FMI Corp. survey of 650+ AEC contractors, did you know that approximately 70% of the companies surveyed didn’t have a technology road-map to follow?
Interestingly enough, in the same survey, many contractors stated that they feel there’s no ability to draw insights from the data their software produces. Now this explains some of the technology resistance… But why is this happening?
Here are 6 problems AEC Contractors face when implementing new software technologies:
Generational Disconnects
In the ever-evolving construction industry, there’s one thing for certain. There will always be a significant knowledge gap between generations in the workforce. For most people, construction tends to be a life-long occupation. With each passing year, the skill-sets and knowledge gaps between teams continue to widen as companies expand their diversified workforce.
This makes it nearly impossible for “cookie-cutter” solutions to gain traction among growing teams. To further complicate the issue, key decision makers, some with over 20+ years of proven experience, are at times detriments to improvement and further innovation. It goes back to the age old saying, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” Right?
Well… it’s sad to say, but in today’s turbulent landscape, this isn’t a viable option for most companies. Now’s the time for survival. Companies able to adapt and successfully implement new technologies will outperform their competitors. Organizations that fail to act will be left behind. It’s life or death at this point.
Business leaders are now painfully aware of this, and corrective action plans are probably being drafted as you read this. But what else is causing this “resistance culture” among your teams?
Keep reading!
BIM Implementation Pitfalls
I don’t think anyone would argue that BIM (Building Information Modeling) has been extremely impactful to the entire industry. It’s become the epicenter of collaboration between trades and can greatly improve the accuracy and outcome of the end product. However, there’s some major pitfalls this technology creates for the rest of the workforce.
In order for your BIM execution strategy to truly be effective, your company needs to restructure roles to better promote collaboration and technology across your teams. Multifaceted personnel with seasoned BIM skills need the proper authority to influence and optimize your BIM process.
Chances are, you’re probably not leveraging your model’s ability to store and share real-time project information. And unfortunately, it’s the downstream teams that suffer the consequence. This data should be dynamic and easily accessible to project stakeholders outside of the traditional BIM spectrum.
To be clear, entire departments are dedicated to producing BIM models to create key project deliverables. But what about everyone else on the project that doesn’t have direct model access? Or even more likely, they don’t have the skills to get the information they need.
Do you feel like your company’s BIM process is somewhat of a “black box”? You seem to have no clue of what’s happening until the model’s finished and now there’s barely any time to react? You’re not alone.
The good news is that it doesn’t have to be this way!
Siloed Organizational Structures
In construction, it’s the norm to structure departments as silos and operate them as “mini companies”. Each using different software technologies to facilitate their team’s process.
Siloed information sharing makes cross-departmental collaboration more challenging considering each team speaks a different language. At each hand-off, it translates to highly redundant and time consuming tasks. This offsets any efficiency or productive gains from the software being used.
Any of this sounding familiar?
Think about this: Each year, business leaders define key objectives for the company to execute their road-map. After yearly objectives are established, each department lead creates quarterly goals to meet those objectives. Next, each middle manager creates monthly goals to contribute to the quarter. This process repeats itself until each individual has clearly defined tasks each week.
Considering this process and the topic of implementing new technology, if a neighboring team’s goal doesn’t directly affect your team’s performance for the quarter, why should you fork out the resources to help them do it. Your team’s needs are more important right? Wrong! Having this mindset is contributing to your technology struggles!
(More on the importance of complete buy-in later.)
Absence of Technology Road-maps
The lack of having a clearly defined technology road-map increases the likelihood of encountering “resistance culture” and failed product implementations. Every department lead needs to understand the landscape of the company and how each individual data source contributes to the performance of the business. Amazing things can happen when your leaders are fully aligned and move in sync towards the same direction!
Here’s a tip: When creating your next technology road-map, list out the departments in your company. Next, list out the tools each department team uses to facilitate their process. Once the software is listed, map your data flow in chronological order from start to finish. This gives you the foundation for planning your technology road-map effectively.
Refer here for tips on creating your next technology roadmap!
Fragmented Software Solutions
Another hurdle contributing to your technology struggles is the limitation of software interoperability. Every product on the market is targeted to a specific user group. But why? Why should universal project data be translated into different software for different teams? This manipulates teams to see and understand only their side of the fence further re-enforcing the “silos” mentality.
When this happens, you get an ecosystem of fragmented software solutions. Now don’t get me wrong, targeted solutions for specific teams fulfills it’s purpose. But are you leaving major cost savings on the table?
With fragmented data sources, in order to provide updates to peers or perhaps leadership, you have to resort to manual and time-consuming data compilation. This process enables biased perspectives and increases the likelihood of skewed data. Aside from the nuances of office politics and individual aspirations, accurate information reporting is critical for anyone making decisions on a day-to-day basis.
”Clean data” should be the source of truth and all too often decision makers are left piecing together fragmented data. This creates a “Picasso” like snapshot of your business performance. (And I don’t mean his earlier stuff!)
Lack of Organizational “Buy-In”
The individual mindset approach will almost always hinder your companies technology ambitions. Managers will largely promote a software that works for their team. This frame of mind isn’t wrong but the outcome is short sided. Your fellow decision makers won’t see the true value in the data the software stores or facilitates. This makes it difficult to maintain consistent effort across team lines.
For the best chance of success with implementing new technology, your teams need to follow stringent processes and pay attention to detail. This initially takes more time but the delay is temporary and will save you a ton of time later. You have to be willing to put in the work.
In order to capture the true benefits digital solutions provide, company wide buy-in is paramount to obtaining the precious “clean-data” you strive to produce. You know, the stuff that’s actually useful later!
Conclusion
Remember this, you should never have to recompile data that already exists. When creating your technology road-maps for 2021, focus on the opportunities where you can streamline your data sources and remove the waste from your process.
After reviewing your technology road map, prioritize producing “clean data” from your tools. If you haven’t already, create strict processes to maintain consistency. And most importantly, establish a complete understanding of the data insights the software produces to get a complete “buy in” from your teammates before implementation.
At the end of the day, people care about themselves. If everyone understands how new technology can make their lives easier everyday, your peers will be more willing to endure the minor obstacles along the way!
Are you encountering some of the issues mentioned in this article? Here’s the good news: These problems can be addressed and shouldn’t take extraordinary effort or a large sum of investment to do it… We can help!
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