Your organization needs to change. You might not know it yet, but you’ll find out. You may learn it when your costs are rising faster than your prices can increase. It might be obvious when skilled staff don’t come flooding…
The 4th quarter is a time most homebuilders should be coasting to a smooth finish. It’s a time to prepare a new budget, brainstorm new strategies, and learn from the highs and lows of the past twelve months.
Unfortunately, this period often finds homebuilders struggling to finish homes in an effort to save their bottom line. The delays and procrastination from prior months come crashing down into a hectic, fiery December.
We all know that planning ahead is always wise. Yet in the homebuilding industry, many find themselves in a last minute December scramble.
In a time where you should be discussing next year, drafting a budget and coasting into the holidays, you instead find yourself crushed under deadlines in an effort to save your bottom line. Here at Continuum Advisory Group, we call this the Q4 Fire Drill.
My dad built my first sandbox. Located a few paces on to the back lawn, it was a place where I met my friends for hours of fun. All of our 6-year-old worries were parked outside of the homemade wooden…
Centers of excellence should be a catalyst for developing a process-driven culture that is focused on delivering world-class results.
Clark Ellis, Principal with Continuum Advisory Group, and author of the recent article featured on builderonline.com “Moneyball for Homebuilders: Take an ‘everything matters’ approach to operations, and ‘small ball’ will get you the wins”, was recently invited to join an outstanding lineup of speakers at the 5th annual UBS Homebuilder University on April 9th in New York City. The theme of this year’s conference was how homebuilders can overcome increased lot, material and labor costs to build a profitable home that addresses the desires of the First Time Homebuyer. The conference is attended by professional investors who are interested in learning the true challenges that are facing today’s homebuilder, and which builders are best positioned for overcoming these challenges.
At Continuum, we get a little excited when baseball starts. We love the game, and of course the weather that comes along with it. If you’re in the same boat, our recent Big Builder article is for you. We see a big opportunity for builders to transition their strategy to a “small ball” approach, one that has seemed to work well for MLB teams in the post-steroid era (see the San Francisco Giants).
Take an ‘everything matters’ approach to operations, and ‘small ball’ will get you the wins. “Pitchers and catchers reporting.” There may be no sweeter four words in the English language when they are assembled in the preceding phrase. Along with…
The operational challenges of serving the first time homebuyer segment in 2015 are different and more problematic for most builders than they were between 2000 and 2007. With significant margin risk, working capital management requires a sharper focus from management…