In this article we cover:
- Why arguments arise
- How to approach relationships with those on site
- How to defuse situations
- What you can do to help
- What you need to have in place for a smooth build
In the construction industry and particularly in circumstances that involve building or renovating someone’s home, the relationship between the builder and homeowner is often the bedrock on which many long-lasting friendships are built.
The early stages in any new relationship will come with a host of emotions. The excitement, euphoria and joy of finally starting down the path to the construction of a new home is completely normal.
So why therefore do things go wrong, and why so often do those who start out as friends, end up as foes in the building world?
To understand why this occurs, it’s important to understand the simple logic around why disputes generally occur within the construction industry.
In the main, disputes that arise in the industry can be categorised within two main buckets, the first is what I refer to as cabin politics and the second relates to records and paperwork. It is stated as a matter of fact that differences will occur in all relationships, it is how we deal with them decides if we are in conflict or not.
Cabin Politics
Cabin politics is the phrase I use to describe the interaction of people with people. As long as people are involved, there will always be a strong chance that disputes, and conflict will occur.
The human brain works to trigger threat-protection and at other times it will drive competition mechanisms. The necessity to develop or form associations with others results in the necessity to make choices and decisions. This is what drives human nature into dispute and conflict.
From the outset it is important to understand that conflict is, to a large degree, a natural part of the hustle and bustle of life which is elevated when parties join into a commercial arrangement. There will always be competition, jostling for the best outcome, the need to win and this can create personal interactions that can easily break down under stain or anxiety.
In the context of a new house project, one party wishes to have their dream home built for as little cost as possible, and they are engaged with someone who wishes to build that home for as much financial gain for them as is possible.
This by its very nature is a rope with parties pulling in opposite directions from the very outset. No matter how close those two parties are, the simple reality of their commercial necessities means a point will come when the parties find themselves with issues/disagreements or disputes to deal with. How the parties deal with those disputes will decide if they turn into conflict.
Records and Paperwork
Whilst many disputes centre on the interaction of humans, many more arise out of paperwork produced, or not produced in the construction process.
In circumstances where the industry is often rushed and under pressure, documents regularly get produced with errors and ambiguity. Drawings are often issued by an architect that have not had an engineer overlay the structure. Or it could be that an M&E consultant did not overlay the services to ensure the items fit together. This results in clashes that often only come to light on site and as a variation to the contract… and a further bill for Dealing with conflict.
Remember both parties are there for one goal, to deliver a project. It’s ok that they come at it from different perspectives and have different needs, but that is no reason not to work effectively together to try and achieve both parties’ needs. the client. This can not only create conflict between the contractor and the client but often creates conflict between the client and the design team.
Why it happens is generally down to a lack or absence of time to properly plan the process. Other examples of this are documents copied from previous projects and not updated, incorrect specifications and items like incomplete contract documents.
Many conflicts have arisen from an absence of agreement as to the starting position on a project. Did the parties for example enter a contract on the revision E or revision G drawings?
All of these disputes arise because of a failure to properly administer paperwork for a variety of reasons. The question is how we can work to prevent these issues arising.
Remember both parties are there for one goal, to deliver a project. It’s ok that they come at it from different perspectives and have different needs, but that is no reason not work effectively together to try and achieve both parties’ needs.
Conflict Prevention
In the simplest of terms, conflict can be avoided through proper planning and clear communication. To prevent conflict, we must as a starting point manage ourselves. If everyone manages their own role in a project, every aspect required gets the time it needs to be done properly, to create, review, comment and correct.
The rush to site must be replaced with a rush to get things correct. The more time that is given to the accuracy of documents, the selection of all materials, at tender stage the more accurate the contract sum, the more accurate the programme and the less delays for contractors waiting on decision making, incurring delays and suffering costs.
In addition to time, the evolution of the digital age has brought with it a fundamental breakdown in effective communication between humans. In the current world of text message, email and the likes, parties have grown accustomed to not actually speaking or effectively communicating with each other.
This may benefit wide sections of how we live our lives, but it is also the bedrock of conflict as it is the opposite of how humans were designed to communicate.
Human communication skills are founded on having two ears for listening and one mouth for speaking. In the digital world we use neither of these tools as we simply use our eyes to read what we understand the words that someone has placed on a page to mean.
Very often we can read the intent differently to how it was written and how we react is not visible to the other party. We often place the blame for this at the door of the keyboard warrior but then why is a keyboard warrior so different in real life. This is a conflict founded purely on a lack of effective communication. The answer to resolving this issue is again very simple. Bring communication back to person-to-person meetings, discussions and workshops with a view to collaborating and working together to resolve any issue that arises.
This removes misunderstanding, miscommunication, delays in decision making, the blame game and the human needs to have their say documented, none of which works to ensure a project gets completed on time and within budget.
The bottom line is given as much time to planning as you do to building, give as much time to a site meeting as you do to surfing social media. Take the time to workshop an issue to find a solution that both parties can live with and remove the need to win with the need to progress.
And remember both parties are there for one goal, to deliver a project. It’s ok that they come at it from different perspectives and have different needs, but that is no reason not to work effectively together to try and achieve both parties’ needs.
