The Design Team
You have performed your Due Diligence, Planned the project with all the available information, and now it is time for the professionals to join the effort in making your project a reality.
Your team of design professionals included, but are not limited to the following:
Architects, Engineers, Planners, Contractors and Construction Managers
The three things to consider when hiring design professionals are:
- Competency
- Trust
- Responsiveness
No. 1: Competency. Can they perform the design work required to ensure a safe project that meets all state and local codes and accomplishes the goals of the owner? What is their experience with projects like yours? Do they have adequate staff to dedicate to your project, what effort do they estimate will be required to complete this project? Do they have the ability/willingness to try something new or search for new design if the project or owner requires it?
In summary, Competency boils down to education, experience, and creativity. A design professional that can demonstrate all three of these is almost always worth their fees.
No. 2: Trust. You should never hire a design professional that you do not trust. It is the duty of the design professional to explain EXACTLY what you are getting for your money. If you do not understand the scope of work for what you are hiring a design professional, then you ask them to explain it to you so that you understand. You do not necessarily need to know all the particular details (unless you just want to…that is why you are paying them), but you should be able to understand where one consultant’s work stops and another’s starts. If you have a design professional that is willing to ensure that you understand his/her scope of work, then most likely you have a design professional that you can trust.
Trust plays a critical role in the life of a project. You have to trust that the design consultant has your best interests in mind. If mistakes happen (and they do!!!) you have to trust that the design professional will bring those mistakes out in the open and work diligently to solve them, no matter where the fault lies. You have to trust that your design professional will try to save you time, money, risk, or all of these things when given the opportunity. And most importantly, your design professionals must trust that you will allow them to perform the duties assigned without questioning their abilities or experience. (That’s why establishing No. 1 is important.)
No. 3: Responsiveness. You may have found a competent and trustworthy design professional that really works hard on your project and meets all the goals set for him/her, but you can not get him/her to call you back. You need to make changes in the size or scope of the project, but you can not meet with the managers in a timely manner to implement these changes. You have sent three e-mails asking a question about a certain area of design and no response. How do you avoid this situation? Determine how or when the design professional(s) will be able to respond to you in a timely manner. Most competent, trustworthy design professionals are very busy, but the ones you want to hire place an emphasis on interacting with the owner. Voice mails are returned within a day, and e-mails and other correspondence are organized and distributed efficiently.
A word on Responsiveness for the small project or the small developer…
You can be sure that you have a quality design professional when he/she makes you feel like you are one of the Big Boys. One sure sign of a high quality design firm/professional…someone returns your call the same day. They may not be able to respond to that need that day, but they place an emphasis on communication and letting you know that you and your project are important.
If you find a design professional with the three qualities above, you will probably find fees that are slightly higher than other consultants, but you should recover those costs throughout the life of the project because of fewer changes, faster response, and a safer and higher quality project.
10 Things To Consider Before Acting As Your Own Contractor
You may have a garage full of tools, a truck with empty Mt. Dew bottles in the bed, and your Saturday afternoon free for This Old House, but, a General Contractor, these do not make.
Everybody says that you can save money by being your own General Contractor, but what no one says is how much time it will take out of your normal daily life and the value of that time. Yes, you may save money, but like any complicated process, it may not be worth it.
You may want to consider the following items before embarking on this new adventure: Read more
Paradigm Shift Needed for Small Projects
“I thought the architect we hired was supposed to take care of that.”
“Doesn’t the engineer usually provide those services?”
“The General Contractor charged us for things that I thought were included in the contract.”
“It seems like we have wasted a lot of time trying to get the information required to start this project.”
Have you ever found yourself saying any of the above items, or would you like to avoid saying such things? Read more
A Construction Manager? What does that mean?
We hear this question quite often, and it is one with a broad answer that covers many areas and issues related to development and construction.
CMAA defines the Construction Manager (CM) role as follows: Read more
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