The growing demand for construction projects in both the private and public sector means a lot of opportunities for profit and business development. Unfortunately, cashing in your investment in equipment and in business won’t amount to much if you don’t have an efficient construction workforce.
An efficient construction workforce involves workers who are skilled and competent. Your workforce must be qualified to handle certain rental equipment, and they must be trained enough to manage small to large-scale projects. Without the proper staff, project opportunities can quickly go to waste.
Some companies choose to turn down lucrative projects because they don’t have enough people. Other construction firms choose to hire only slightly skilled to moderately skilled workers to meet the demand. This can lead to safety risks and even legal issues.
Ways to Develop the Efficiency of Construction Workers
Construction companies should ensure an efficient construction workforce to meet the goals of a safe, productive, and profitable working environment. Here are five ways to ensure that your workforce is efficient and competent.
#1: Invest in training programs
Training your workers to manage and work in different construction projects is one big way to ensure efficiency. Training programs should be crafted to teach protocols on safety, as well as strategies to increase productivity while on the job.
Don’t be selective when it comes to training programs. Everyone should have the competence needed to work in construction, even for senior workers. Many studies have shown that productivity can increase with training.
#2: Focus on hiring the people you want
Having standards when hiring people is an industry practice. When screening applicants, construction managers should look for the qualities that would increase efficiency in the workforce. These qualities include dependability, initiative, and ability to work in a team.
To make this process work, your construction managers should keep these values in mind when screening applicants and training them afterwards.
#3: Communicate and monitor progress
For increased efficiency, there should be an open two-way channel for communication in place. Managers and supervisors should focus on monitoring progress and ensuring goals are met in a timely fashion. These types of progress reports should be transparently done. This creates a sense of motivation.
Workers should have the opportunity to voice out concerns. When there’s new equipment shipped in a site, or disputes happening between workers, there needs to be clear avenues where workers can voice out their concerns. This increases trust and a sense of teamwork in the work environment. You may also find ways to create more efficient strategies based on suggestions from your employees.
#4: Perform individual assessments and personalized training
Not all workers are the same. Though everyone can have the same baseline understanding of safety and productivity strategies, some employees can struggle at different points. Having individual assessments on top of project monitoring can help you place individuals to the jobs which would make them the most productive.
#5: Provide rewards for efficient labor
Finally, providing incentives for efficient labor is a tried and tested way of ensuring a competent and efficient workforce. Rewards can come in many forms. More hours and better pay are tangible and highly-appreciated ways to incentivize workers. Recommendations to join other projects, as well as free lunch, can also go a long way in promoting efficient labor.
Creating and maintaining an efficient construction team is possible with these tips and strategies. What are you doing to ensure an efficient workforce?
Written by Lindsey Rentals. Lindsey Rentals offers the best equipment rentals in Columbia, MO.