If you’ve been in the construction business for years, as a salaried worker or contractor, you’ve likely been frustrated for some time about the way your career appears to be stalling. One would think that construction would be a recession proof industry. After all, whatever happens in life, people will always need places in which to live and work. The 21st century, however, represents a paradigm shift that is fundamentally changing the world as we know it, especially challenging our notions of economics and commerce. One may think that they can shift the balance a little by starting their own construction business. While it’s absolutely true that you may be able to make your fortune combining your business nous with your years of industry experience. There are several barriers you will have to leap in order to find success and prosperity…
Funding
In an age where new startups are popping up left right and center, you could be forgiven for thinking that lenders are tripping over themselves to fund emerging small businesses. After all, we’re always being told about how small business is good for the economy. Unfortunately, however, construction businesses are notoriously difficult to fund. An online startup can be funded for comparatively little but the massive overhead costs and comparatively low profit margins of the construction industry mean that lenders usually have to wait a while. If there’s one thing lenders don’t like doing, it’s waiting for their money, which can prove prohibitive to ambitious professionals looking to start their own business.
Productivity and Profitability
When running a project you face a constant battle to keep the project profitable. This includes finding ways to make the project easier and more manageable but it also includes battling against adversity provided by the weather and the land you’re working on. It’s easy for a seemingly straightforward job to be mired by swampy ground, in which case click here to check out some swamp mats which could make the project a whole lot easier. The construction industry is also a saturated marketplace with heavy competition, meaning that businesses have to quote low to keep their competitive edge, leaving them with little profits to re-invest in new technologies and practices.Skilled labor shortages
As the education system bends and flexes to adapt to the changing faces of 21st century industry and economy, construction companies expect a profound crunch in skilled labor in the coming decades. With four different generations currently in the workforce; traditionalists, baby boomers, generation Xers and millennials, all industries are seeing a change in skill sets work ethics and attitudes with a growing emphasis on digital technologies and disciplines like marketing which does not bode well for the construction industry.
Focus on sustainability
In today’s more enlightened age, consumers are increasingly concerned about the sustainability of the resources their products use. The construction industry is no exception as one of the world’s largest consumers of natural resources and one of the biggest contributors to global carbon emissions. In this landscape businesses have to adapt to new technologies and practices that consume fewer natural resource and while this is commendable it also tends to come with a hefty price tag, making it difficult for new outfits to attain.
If you can hurdle over these four barriers, you have cracked the code to a long and prosperous career as a construction business owner.
