What strengths do you bring to the table as
Director of CM?
I bring experience in successfully executing a wide
variety of projects, both as a contractor and as
an owner’s representative. I have been fortunate
to be part of a number of project teams that have
been successful, so I think I have a pretty good
understanding of what is required to successfully
complete projects. I have been involved in proposal
preparation for a number of projects as well as
interview prep for a number of these proposals. I
have also been the recipient of mentoring from a
number of very capable people and I would like to
pass along some of those lessons and help our CM
teams to be successful.
is to continue developing the relationships with our
existing clients to encourage repeat business, which
will allow us to be more selective in the projects we
pursue in the public bid realm.
What makes a good Construction Manager?
Of course, you must have the technical knowledge—
you need to know how to read and interpret plans
and specifications, how to read a schedule, how
to determine if change orders have merit and
evaluate the proposed pricing. That comes either
The construction process continues to evolve and
change, and I also bring a willingness to learn, and
evolve with those changes. Throughout my career, I
have taken on new challenges and had to learn new
skills and I think that willingness is even more critical
now than it was back then.
Where do you intend to focus your efforts as
Director of CM?
We’re currently focusing on a number of different
areas. One focus is on growing the CM practice,
which means finding projects and putting together
the teams to execute that work. The thing that
attracted me to P2S was the firm’s reputation for
doing really good work and doing it with integrity.
That is the same reputation that I would like the CM
division to be known for. Another area of focus is
developing the support resources for our CM teams.
We have some good people and part of my job is
making sure that they have the resources to do
their job. That includes training. I am encouraging
all of our people to have training goals and a plan
to achieve those goals. Then it is my job to provide
them the means to achieve those goals. The main
industry association for construction management
is the Construction Management Association of
America (CMAA). CMAA has a credential called
the CCM which stands for Certified Construction
Manager. I am encouraging every member of the
CM division to pursue that credential, as well as any
other credential that will further their professional
career. Just as in building design, showing that you
are the best means obtaining credentials to back up
your expertise.
In growing the CM division, we are focusing on
working with existing P2S clients, as well as public
notice type opportunities. Going forward, the plan
from education or on the job experience. Technical
expertise is important, but I think a large part of
being a successful construction manager has to
do with people skills. That means working well with
people and as part of a team. Actually, it means
working well as part of a team, that is a part of a
larger team, that is linked with other teams: the
CM’s team, the design team, the contractor’s team,
the owner’s team and all the other stakeholders
associated with a project. Getting all those groups
with diverging agendas to work together and
accomplish goals can be tricky. You need to check
your ego, you can’t take anything personally, you
just need to keep focused on resolving issues and
keep the work moving forward.
It helps to be calm under pressure—panic is
contagious, but so is calmness. If you can keep
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