Much of what you find online related to project management is theoretical. Examples feel like they’re straight out of a laboratory, lacking real-world context and reliability. Our website isn’t exempt – many of our articles related to project management and construction management are academic in presentation. While we try to provide as much context and as many examples as we can, we feel the need to create something a bit more relatable for our readers. Construction is a field that everyone can relate to in some way. Perhaps they had a new home built at some point, or were fascinated watching a huge mega-project in full-swing, cranes and all. Those of us pursuing engineering, business or a design field like architecture begin to wonder: What is it like being a construction manager? In this article, we’re focusing on a day in the life of a theoretical project manager in construction.
Our Theoretical Project: A New Office Complex
To give this example some context, we’re imagining that the office building below is in the midst of construction. Say, 25% complete. Although the project is in full-swing, there’s much work left to be done.
The Construction Manager: Infinnite Construction Management, Inc. has been hired by the Owner to oversee the project and its’ contractors.
The Project Scope: New construction of a 100,000 SF office building in downtown with modern architectural style.
The Value: This building is owned by a private investment group, who has agreed to pay $35,000,000 for the brand-new property.
The Construction Managers: On a project like this, there are multiple Project Managers who are in charge of various aspects of the building. Each has a couple of assistants working with them, and they report to a Sr. Project Manager.
We will focus on the daily life of one of these PMs.
Click To Read More About The Construction Project Team: Roles And Responsibilities.
What Is It Like Being A Construction Manager? A Day In The Life Breakdown, Hour By Hour
So what is it like being a construction manager? Let’s explore the tasks, responsibilities and experiences that construction managers navigate through regularly. Describing the experience of being a Construction Manager is best done with an hour-by-hour breakdown:
- 06:30am – Arrive At Job Site Field Office & Prepare For The Day
- 07:00am – Make Critical Phones Calls & Follow Ups (Plus, A Surprise!)
- 08:00am – Attend Site Meeting With Superintendent, Safety Personnel & Subcontractor Foremen
- 09:00am – Hop On A Conference Call With A Specialty Fabricator To Work Through Design Questions
- 10:00am – Monitor Incoming Emails – Prioritize, Reply, Etc.
- 11:00am – Review Submittals & Document For Approval (Plus, A Surprise!)
- 12:00pm – Make Calls, Forward Emails Along & Write New Ones (Plus, A Surprise!)
- 01:00pm – Lunch; Continue To Review Incoming Documents/Queries; Meeting Prep
- 02:00pm – Meet The Client & Their Design Team For A Status Meeting
- 03:00pm – Walk The Job Site With A Client, Review The Latest Bill
- 04:00pm – Issue Updates & Comments Back To Various Subcontractors Regarding Their Most Recent Invoices (Plus, A Surprise!)
- 05:00pm – Forward Emails From Design Team Back To Subcontractors (Plus, ANOTHER Surprise!)
- 06:00pm – Finalize The Scope Of Work & Contract Terms For A New Subcontractor
- 07:00pm – Complete & Send Out The New Subcontract; Follow Ups; DONE (We Hope!)
Let’s go through a bit more about each of the tasks outlined above! In many sections, we’ll include links to related articles we’ve written.
06:30am – Arrive At Job Site Field Office & Prepare For The Day
Construction project managers start the day early, and the reason for this is simple. Field crews typically start work at 7:00am for most commercial projects, so construction managers are usually onsite early enough to prepare before work begins onsite.
There’s also a lot of moving parts involved in a large construction project. This requires time to prepare.
Construction project managers spend their early morning hours planning for the day ahead. This includes going over to-do lists and reviewing the project schedule. Practicing efficient work methods is essential in construction management.
07:00am – Make Critical Phones Calls & Follow Ups (Plus, A Surprise!)
Once a PM has a handle on their to-do list, it’s time to get to work! When it comes to handling critical information, deadlines and urgent items, time is always of the essence.
A typical morning in construction management involves following up on items that are late or still open. This can include confirmation of an upcoming meeting, seeking out vital information, chasing someone for a late assignment or any other number of things.
Project managers spend a lot of time with their phones and computers. Follow ups can include calls, emails and texts alike.
Surprise! The phone rings – a waterproofing contractor onsite has several questions they need answered ASAP. Their question involves how they should be waterproofing a concrete wall adjacent to a glass curtainwall. They must be done working in this area by week’s end.
The construction PM must walk out to the site, review the conditions and discuss next steps. The subcontractor will take pictures and submit an RFI clarifying their questions to the PM by the end of the day. This will then be submitted to the Owner’s Design Team for comment.
Related: Basic Jobsite Safety For Project Managers In Construction
08:00am – Attend Site Meeting With Superintendent, Safety Personnel & Subcontractor Foremen
On a large project, many subcontractors will be working simultaneously onsite. Each of their crews will include a site foreman. There will most likely be a superintendent from each contractor overseeing all of the workers, too. It’s essential that all of these key field personnel are aware of safety practices and updates related to the job site.
A superintendent working for the construction manager typically chairs this meeting along with any other personnel in safety management. Construction project managers often sit in on these meetings and take part in the discussion as needed.
Topics can include recent changes to the job site, accidents and near-misses, upcoming weather changes or other new conditions, changes to onsite protocol, etc. Holding these meetings frequently is vital to the well-being of workers onsite and for optimum safe productivity.
Related: What Is A Project Safety Plan? Free Construction Safety Plan Template!
PROMOTION
09:00am – Hop On A Conference Call With A Specialty Fabricator To Work Through Design Questions
This new office building will feature a modern, sleek facade. The metal and glass components of the facade are being fabricated overseas and shipped to the USA as portions are completed.
With highly-intricate projects like this, the process of fabricating custom components is very design-heavy, in that there’s lots of work to be done up front before components are 100% in fabrication-only mode.
A typical call will include the fabricator’s designers asking questions, bringing up concerns, offering solutions to unique onsite conditions and requesting information.
In turn, the construction manager will discuss schedule, deadlines, payments and other administrative matters.
On this particular project, the facade fabricator will be submitting a set of shop drawings for their facade system, which will be reviewed by the Owner’s Design Team. They’re due by the end of the week!
Related: How Do You Run An Effective Status Meeting? 10 Best Practices
10:00am – Monitor Incoming Emails – Prioritize, Reply, Etc.
In case I haven’t clarified, the average construction PM is on their second cup of coffee at this point.
So much of construction management is conducted through email. Whether it be issuing letters and documents, messaging back/forth to clarify details or trying to plan an upcoming meeting, so much of a construction manager’s time is spent jockeying through emails.
Obviously, some emails are much more important than others from a time perspective. Urgent emails must be dealt with immediately, while others need to be put on the to-do list for later.
Organizing and prioritizing tasks is a fundamental requirement for being a successful construction project manager!
Related: How Do You Manage Multiple Projects Effectively? Our Top 10 Techniques
11:00am – Review Submittals & Document For Approval (Plus, A Surprise!)
While reviewing this morning’s emails, the construction manager notes a few that contain important documents.
For example, one contractor onsite is resubmitting a set of shop drawings for final approval. The drawings are for concrete work that must begin by the end of the month, so these drawings are reviewed by the PM and resubmitted to the Owner’s engineer for final approval.
In turn, the PM also receives a returned submittal package with review comments from the Design Team. This package contains samples, catalog info and product data sheets for various interior finishes.
Submittals like these are key to the schedule and overall flow of the project – they must be handled quickly.
Vital information related to project documents, such as the date it was submitted and when it’s approved, must be tracked. The PM copies one of their Assistant Project Managers on these emails so they can keep the submittal log up to date.
Related: How Do You Organize Project Documentation? A Few Must-Know Methods
12:00pm – Make Calls, Forward Emails Along & Write New Ones (Plus, A Surprise!)
Construction project managers are most responsible for the management and administration surrounding the work onsite – not so much directly managing the work taking place. That level of management is left to the individual contractors hired to work onsite. Instead, the construction managers are focused on the big picture – this includes keeping all of those contractors on track!
As said earlier, PMs spend a lot of time on the phone & computer. Multiple hours per day are spent by Project Managers as they “make their rounds”.
This includes making calls to get work in motion, emailing people for items that are due, outlining the requirements of a contractor/service/vendor, setting up meetings, sending out meeting agendas/minutes, etc.
Being A Project Manager Is Like Herding Cats.
-Project Managers Everywhere
Surprise! The boss stops by. The Sr. Project Manager gathers the PMs for a brief meeting. They want an updated budget report and a cost-to-complete forecast. They need to know how profitable the project has been to-date and what the expected costs are going to be moving forward. They need this by the end of the week!
The cost-to-complete forecast has now been added to the to-do list.
01:00pm – Lunch; Continue To Review Incoming Documents/Queries; Meeting Prep (Plus, A Surprise!)
The PM sneaks away for a quick lunch. Even when super busy, it’s important to get proper nutrients and rest for longterm success. When we don’t take care of ourselves, we burn out!
After that, the PM gets back to work. This includes reviewing more documents, sending emails and making phone calls.
They’re also getting ready for a Client meeting at 2pm. The Design Team will also be present. An agenda has already been issued for this meeting, which requires copies of related drawings and some information.
While the PM is busy trying to prepare…surprise! The phone rings. The PM ignores it and it rings a second time. It’s a scaffolding contractor calling to say they’ll have to start two days later onsite than planned – rain from the last couple of days has delayed all of their projects.
The PM sends a text to all related project staff & site superintendents letting them know of the change and to adjust their schedules accordingly.
02:00pm – Meet The Client & Their Design Team For A Status Meeting
The Client meeting consists of the Construction Manager and Design Team providing a status update. Common discussion points include:
- Adherence to the schedule
- Discussion of progress and hold ups
- Open submittals, RFIs, information, etc.
- Ideas for accelerating the project schedule
- Upcoming and pending change orders
The Client wants to be reassured that their money is being put to good use. Making sure that the project’s schedule, budget and quality are maintained is essential. These meetings are to provide the Owner with transparency – the project’s status must be clearly communicated and the opportunity given to ask questions.
The group also discusses this month’s payment requisition – an invoice that bills the Client for the month’s work onsite. This includes invoices from the contractors, purchases, materials, management and more. More of this will be discussed in the next section…
Related: How Does Progress Billing Work In Construction? The 8 Essential Steps
03:00pm – Walk The Job Site With The Client, Review The Latest Bill
After the meeting takes place, the Client, Design Team and Construction Managers walk the job site. This is to see the latest progress, of course, but also to review any open items discussed during the meeting, plus to review the progress against what is being billed.
Monthly requisitions are first submitted as ‘pencil requisitions‘, which essentially means it’s a draft only. Monthly requisitions are submitted mid-month and reflect what the contractors onsite expect to have completed by the time the month is through.
PROMOTION
This site walk is happening at the end of the month, so it’s time to compare what contractors expect to have done in the pencil req vs. what’s actually done onsite right now.
Some items are not as far along as expected, so the Client and Design Team reduce the month’s bill by 20%. The Construction Managers must get all of their contractors to revise their monthly invoices.
04:00pm – Issue Updates & Comments Back To Various Subcontractors Regarding Their Most Recent Invoices (Plus, A Surprise!)
Back in the field office, the Project Managers write emails to their contractors. These emails include updates from the Client meeting on open items, etc. These emails also address the reductions to the month’s requisition and changes that each contractor must make.
The PMs also request things like certified payroll reports and signed documents in addition to the revised bills.
Surprise! A email comes from the head Superintendent. A major storm will be blowing through tomorrow and the site will be closing at 11am. In turn, the site logistics will be adjusted to get a few critical work tasks done before then.
Much of what a Project Manager does is “on the fly” – reacting to surprises as they come and rolling with the punches that surprises bring.
The PM must pivot and reach out to the contractors they’re in charge of to formulate a new plan.
05:00pm – Forward Emails From Design Team Back To Subcontractors (Plus, ANOTHER Surprise!)
Depending on the day, it may be time for a third cup of coffee.
In the past couple of hours, emails have continued to trickle in. The PM continues to review what’s important, take action if necessary, add items to their to-do lists and reply when need be.
This includes more documents being forwarded along to contractors as they’re returned approved or rejected, particularly items that are tied to the schedule.
Time is of the essence and every day counts in construction – while it’s the end of the day for many, there are urgent items to take care of before the PM calls it a day. Vital documents must be forwarded as quickly as they can.
Yet ANOTHER surprise! The Client’s Attorney calls. They have some feedback on various contract changes that a new subcontractor has requested before they sign. More about this in the next section…
Related: How Do You Manage Subcontractors? 7 Essential Tips
06:00pm – Finalize The Scope Of Work & Contract Terms For A New Subcontractor
The Project Manager hops on a call with the Client’s Attorney.
They have reviewed a new subcontractor’s proposed legal terms and have some comments in return. The Attorney has agreed to some terms but have concerns over others.
The result of this call is a contract covered in markups, insertions and changes. The Construction Manager and Client alike know how important it is to get this subcontractor on board. In turn, the Construction Manager will stay late to make sure the revised markups make it to the subcontractor tonight.
Related: Is Construction Management Stressful? 7 Causes Of Stress
07:00pm – Complete & Send Out The New Subcontract; Follow Ups; DONE (We Hope!)
The Construction Manager finishes the day by drafting another email to the new subcontractor. This includes all of the legal changes that have been agreed to, plus any additional comments from the Attorney.
The PM makes note of how important it is to get this agreement finalized.
Then, it’s time for few last-minute follow ups. The PM writes a couple of emails – some new, some as replies.
Emails continue to trickle in, but they can wait until tomorrow. The Construction Project Manager heads home to get some rest. Tomorrow morning, it’ll be time to do it all over again!
Being A Construction Manager: In Summary
It’s easy to talk about what a Construction Manager is responsible for, but it’s even more helpful to provide an in-depth look at exactly how a PM spends their time. Back to our original question of “What Is It Like Being A Construction Project Manager?” – I hope you’ve found this article insightful and helpful for what it’s actually like to work as a Project Manager in construction! Thanks a lot for reading.
