Real Life Construction Management Guide From A-Z

The Real Life Construction Management Guide From A-Z is an excellent handbook written for contractors and construction managers. It breaks down a number of scenarios and gives examples of what to do in different situations. Author Jamil Soucar emphasizes the importance of “having a construction manager who is a focal point of communication coordinating, acting as a liaison, and facilitating everyone’s problems so the project runs smooth.” The importance of the construction manager staying on top of all of the procedures will determine if the project runs smoothly or not. The book is written unlike a textbook and is instead easy to understand and implement.

The book describes the key players in a construction project. It describes who is involved and what their responsibilities are and even has some easy-to-understand diagrams to visualize the chain of command. Included are guidelines for each player to make the project successful. I really appreciated the scenarios the author laid out, including the example of a construction manager who is also representing the owner versus agency management. The pros and cons are outlined so the reader clearly understands that it’s not a matter of wrong or right but more so an issue of what responsibilities are and who answers to whom. For example, if the construction manager is representing the owner, he/she would need to build a rapport with the owner and create a relationship with the owner to make sure things are done to the owner’s liking. Without this rapport and constant communication, a project could fail.

The different phases of construction include Planning, Design, Bid/Award, Construction, and Close Out. The author does a thorough job of describing each step, how it fits into the big picture, who the key players are, and what happens if one of the steps goes terribly wrong. He gives examples of each stage and the different options he has experienced. He includes what to do and what not to do and even gives examples of notes from the California Public Contract Code and urges the reader to look up the codes for his/her own state since the laws may vary. Another positive point of the book is that the author includes examples of spreadsheets needed for each phase. This would be useful to a construction manager who is just starting out and does not realize he/she will need something like an “Application and Certificate For Payment.” Overall, I found this book to be full of useful information that takes the construction manager through every step of a project.