Many companies use key performance indicators (KPIs) to gauge and compare performance in terms of meeting both strategic and operational goals. However, aside from Experience Modification Rate (EMR) in construction, the industry lacks a standard set of commonly used and accepted benchmarks, or a way to measure excellence across the industry.
Autodesk commissioned a study with Dodge Data & Analytics to survey more than 200 US-based contractors in order to identify and analyze current processes for planning and executing projects. The study examined how contractors and trade professionals are currently operating around some common project processes and found that 50% of contractors do not consistently capture and review project data.
The study also revealed seven KPIs for construction that most companies agree are useful for interpreting overall performance and suggest that by adopting specific processes for project management, contracting firms and trades professionals can reduce risk and minimize downstream problems, improving performance.
While the construction industry lacks a standard set of accepted benchmarks to help owners and contractors define success and measure comparative performance, there’s now a tool available to get you started. Autodesk created the Construction Health Check – a free 15-minute assessment, a “checkup” if you will – that measures if your current processes give you the proper data to measure and maximize performance to reduce risk, avoid downstream problems, and improve quality. After completing four easy steps, you will receive a personalized report that shows how your team stacks up against others in the industry, along with ideas on how to improve the way you and your company collect and analyze project information.
The health check tool is designed for anyone in a construction company – those in the field, the trailer, and the office – to use to start the conversation around improving a company's performance using the data that’s already being collected. Responses are measured against the results from the KPIs of Construction survey, and scores are broken down into seven key areas:
- Construction Documents
- Requests for Information (RFI
- Change Orders
- Schedule
- Safety and Inspections
- Labor Productivity
- Quality and Close Out