What every public sector real property owner, facilities manager, procurement professional, and construction contractor should know about Job Order Contracting and Spreadsheets,
The Power of Collaboration, Partnership, and Current Actionable Information
Simple fact list…
1. Spreadsheets have serious limitations
Few people truly understand spreadsheet function or their limitations. For example, spreadsheets lack basic database integrity and functionality. They are chaotic, costly, and virtually impossible to interpret and manage real time. Spreadsheets are also not designed to store files, annotations, conversations, documents, and related information, all of which are essential parts of repair, renovation, maintenance, or new construction project communication and collaboration.
To be truly effective and productive, project schedules and information needs to be available to a wide range of users with varying technical skills.
Using spreadsheets limits project access and insight to a small user community (or even a couple of people), with appropriate technical skills.
2. Forget about collaborating!
Relying on spreadsheets for project estimating and management eliminates any chances to effectively collaborate on project information. We’ve all experienced what happens when project information is emailed around and team members update different versions of the same document… confusion, waste, frustration, and project delays. In short, using a spreadsheet for JOC is far more difficult for users than spreadsheets.
3. Lack of Compliance, Audit Capability, or Access/Change Management
Spreadsheets don’t give teams commenting features and audit trails that are essential to tracking how information and processes change over time. This can become a big problem, especially when public funds are used and compliance is a necessity. Sure… Office 365 and Google Doc have some limited capabilities in these areas, however, they simply can’t handle LEAN workflow management and associated financial transparency and cost validation/verification.
You can easily assure compliance on a purpose-built cloud platform, but not using a spreadsheet.
4. It’s impossible to access updated project information.
Management by spreadsheet is extremely disjointed. As spreadsheets are sent around to team members, users can’t control views, changes, etc. And who really knows how updated the schedule and plan truly is? Today, cloud applications let project managers and teams view their project data, issues, and tasks, via a range of views that suits their information and consumption needs. The better planning and workflow tools automatically enable changes in workflows and monitor updates and changes in information plans as they occur… in real time.
5. There’s no spreadsheet model for program or project management.
Job Order Contracting is a LEAN construction procurement and collaborative construction delivery framework that is program-based. Workflows and participant interactions, combined with current, verifiable information are critical to quality, cost control, and project timelines. Purpose-build cloud technology embeds LEAN construction processes and workflows, as well as locally researched dynamic detailed construction cost data. There have been no similar investments to improve spreadsheet information management or modeling. Are spreadsheet really a tool in which you want to invest your JOC Program’s or your organization’s success?
6. Custom-made spreadsheet-based project management solutions are a costly time sink.
When custom-made spreadsheet tools and processes are used, it’s human nature to invent workarounds or have individual user function creep. The results are so-called “project management spreadsheets” that are part of a team’s home-grown project management process. There are generally multiple versions that perform differently and control over content is lost. These spreadsheet-based customized project management solutions are rarely worth their continued investment.
Learn more?
