Okay -so you have everything in place for your team to operate effectively. You have a killer production management system that includes pre-construction meetings, weekly project meetings, an app to track schedules and change orders, and most importantly, a detailed project manager job description. In your mind, everyone on your production team knows exactly what you expect from them.

Except at almost every project meeting, the discussions seem to center on schedule overruns, missed change orders and profit slip. How can this be?

I feel your pain! This was a huge source of frustration for me while running my company. And it wasn’t only related to production, but the other departments as well.

My business coach at the time, that I was lamenting (okay -complaining) about this to, asked if I could read his mind, to which I answered no. He then asked if I thought my team could read my mind. Again, I said no (thankfully). But with all the systems we have in place, they should know what I expect from them without having to read my mind. Well, yes, he said, but have they agreed to do what you expect? That’s when the light went on.

An expectation is a strong belief that something will happen in the future. I expect you to complete this project on time and on budget, after all, that is one of the job description requirements. But that is my expectation, your expectation may be that neither of those are likely as our subcontractor base is stretched and the budget was created six months ago. That is the insidious nature of expectations. If you do finish the project on time and budget, well, you just did what I expected. If you don’t, then I’ll be disappointed in your performance and feel let down.

An agreement, however, is a negotiated arrangement or understanding between people as to a course of action or outcome. Unlike expectations, agreements require discussion, negotiation and a common goal. We agree that in order for you to bring the project in on time, I will provide additional subcontractors. We also agree that the budget is low due to recent price increases, but that you will see what price concessions can be negotiated with the suppliers. We further agree, that we will update each other on our progress at the next project meeting. Our agreed upon obligations are clear and any violation will be readily evident. So, no mind reading, but a lot fewer unexpected outcomes resulting in stronger and more trusting relationships.

Good systems and processes are important, but you have to have an environment of open and clear communication for them to work. Embracing a practice of agreements is critical in establishing that.