Enhancing financial success among electrical contractors
This paper provides electrical contractors with significant information related to enhancing company financial performance. The methodology involves understanding the determinants of contractor financial success through: (1) an extensive literature review; (2) collection of financial- and management-related data from electrical contractors; and (3) analysis of data to identify management trends that are more prevalent in profitable firms. Ninety-six usable responses were collected from small, medium, and larger electrical contracting companies. General trends reveal that more profitable firms place greater emphasis in the areas of certain management initiatives (higher lines of credit and supporting continuing education), marketing initiatives (involvement in formal alliances and partnering), and technology initiatives related to spending more capital resources on computers and software. Significant differences are revealed with financial ratios as well. A Financial Success Scorecard is created for firms to compare their management inputs to those of successful firms. Findings from this study could provide helpful guidelines for nonelectrical contracting firms. Recommendations for achieving future financial success are also provided.
Quantifying the impact of the Great Recession on the AEC industry—a call to reevaluate home office overhead costs
ABSTRACT The 2007–2009 recession significantly affected the U.S. construction industry, with unemployment peaking at approximately 20%. In such circumstances, construction companies must devise strategies to adapt to and even counteract declining revenue. One tactic is to reduce home office overhead costs, such as bonuses, rent, and business development expenses. The purpose of this study was to examine the degree to which construction companies reduced overhead costs in response to a market downturn, and whether these reductions are correlated with companies’ demographic attributes. A total of 437 contractors across the United States completed a survey on how much their companies reduced expenses; 92% of the respondents reported that their companies reduced overhead in at least one area, by an average of about 15%. Companies with revenue of $100.1 million to $500 million and that primarily performed manufacturing work tended to reduce overhead costs more than other types of construction companies. This study also reveals that larger companies made fewer reductions to overhead, with the exception being roofers who made very minimal reductions regardless of their annual revenue. The Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) industry can use the data presented in this study to anticipate reductions in overhead spending that future distressed market conditions may necessitate.
Application of the Kano Model for a Better Understanding of Customer Requirements in Higher Education—A Pilot Study
Various pieces of information and knowledge turn into “know-how” simply by their application in the market. This applies to all spheres of activities. It is therefore important to know and understand the requirements of customers already in the stage of making a product, and to confront these with the possibilities of a producer. In this article we are exploring the possibilities of a better understanding of the requirements of customers and stakeholders in the process of the creation of products in educational services. In particular, we examined seven general requirements: practice orientation, ethical orientation, research orientation, quality resources, innovation orientation, skills orientation, and quality staff. We use the Kano model on a pilot sample of respondents at an institution of higher education. Our results showed that “practice orientation” and “quality resources” are the most stable requirements, while “quality staff” is the least stable. The most linear requirement (the same effect on satisfaction and dissatisfaction) is “innovation orientation”. “Research orientation” belongs to attractive requirements and we also found that in the case of “ethical orientation” there are weak relations between positive and negative responses in our survey. The “skills orientation” proved to be too general, and our research shows that it could be indifferent. It is therefore advisable to specify the investigated skills when investigating requirements on educational services. The main contribution based on the proposed research procedures is an effective linking of customers and producers already from the beginning of constructing a value chain. Investing in sophisticated management approaches when modelling products and processes can thus become a significant source of the competitive advantage of an educational institution. At the same time, it is a contribution to better placing of its graduates in the labor market.