At Continuum, we get a little excited when baseball starts. We love the game, and of course the weather that comes along with it. If you’re in the same boat, our recent Big Builder article is for you. We see a big opportunity for builders to transition their strategy to a “small ball” approach, one that has seemed to work well for MLB teams in the post-steroid era (see the San Francisco Giants).
Take an ‘everything matters’ approach to operations, and ‘small ball’ will get you the wins. “Pitchers and catchers reporting.” There may be no sweeter four words in the English language when they are assembled in the preceding phrase. Along with…
The operational challenges of serving the first time homebuyer segment in 2015 are different and more problematic for most builders than they were between 2000 and 2007. With significant margin risk, working capital management requires a sharper focus from management…
Continuum Advisory Group advises homebuilders on how to eliminate waste from their business, develop scalability, achieve profitable growth, and realize enterprise value.
A strong estimator that is trained to accurately estimate a house and understands material management at the field level can be a home-run hire for any homebuilder. Unfortunately, in-house estimating functions were largely eliminated during the downturn. Most builders outsourced their estimating needs, allowed the trades or suppliers to do their own estimates, or transitioned from direct-buy to turnkey. Choosing to recreate an estimating function and finding space for it in your budget may seem unrealistic. But would $83,000 in direct savings change your mind?
Banks are re-entering the market and are looking for new customers. Funds have been raised and investors are looking for opportunities to achieve strong returns. The question is how builders will handle the situation.
Here is the latest installment of Continuum Advisory Group’s Survivor or Victim series, published on Hanley Wood’s BuilderOnline.com, Turning the Tables: Get Capital Sources to Compete to Work With You.
How well do you know the supply base in your market or markets? Are you controlling the best resources or are you taking second or third best as compared to your competitors? As demand recovers, the ability to control the best trades and crews within those trades is a significant competitive advantage. How will you take advantage of this opportunity and how will you mitigate your exposure to this threat?
Part 1 of Continuum Advisory Group’s Survivor or Victim series, published on Hanley Wood’s BuilderOnline.com, addresses these questions. Read the full post here.
I’m pleased to announce that Continuum Advisory Group’s Survivor or Victim series is now being published on Hanley Wood’s Builder Online under the Big Builder marquee. The series introduction on how to excel in a resource constrained environment, originally posted on the Continuum Advisory Group blog, kicked off the guest blog series today. Stay tuned for Part 1 of the series in just a few weeks.
For the full Big Builder, Survivor or Victim series introduction, click here.
Imagine that you were lost in the Arctic for months, or 7 years as the case may be. It has taken every ounce of your strength, endurance and resources to make it back to civilization alive, barely. You have lost…
Virtually all large U.S. builders are losing an average of $2,000 to $4,000 per home due to inaccurate takeoff procedures, inflated waste factors and careless use of materials on site, according to research conducted by Continuum Advisory Group. Continuum has…