Three stories jolted me in quick succession last week.   A close friend who leads a residential home building firm in Chicago responded glumly when…

A good predictor tool for rework and cost impact on a construction project is the Field Rework Index (FRI). Take a past project on which you have…

This 2,800-square-foot plan utilizes Lean design to combat narrow-lot woes. One of the most important aspects of Lean design is value. It makes no…

  In his 2008 book, Outliers, Malcolm Gladwell popularized the idea of the 10,000-Hour Rule. That is, the essential component in developing expertise…

As we continue to distance ourselves from an economic downturn that had a deep impact on the remodeling industry, one key variable is still evolving…

  We were winning by several touchdowns when I got the nod. “Just hand the ball off, stay in bounds, & keep the clock running...”  Those were my…

  Sometimes numbers alone can tell the story of an organization’s leadership.    Here is the Win/Loss record for the NY Giants:           1964: 2-10-…

Benchmarking is a technique in which a company measures its performance against that of best in class companies, determines how those companies…

Imagine you are in a cement box quickly filling up with water. The box is sealed on all sides, yet you still find a way out and survive. How? I will…

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to visit a group of homes that were featured in Chicago’s first GreenBuilt Home Tour. Sponsored by the U.S. Green…