February 10, 2025

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The Golden Thread: Building the foundation for success with construction CRM

The Golden Thread: Building the foundation for success with construction CRM

In the wake of the Grenfell Tower tragedy, the concept of the ‘golden thread’ of information has gained significant traction in the construction industry. The ‘golden thread’ is a crucial chain of the building information and its management process along with maintaining it involves keeping a digital record of critical building information throughout the construction process. This ensures information is easily accessible, reliable, up to date and accurate.

Jonas Dahlkvist is founder and operations director at KMS Software

This digital record of critical building information, spanning from design to delivery, ensures accessibility, reliability, and accuracy throughout a building’s lifecycle. However, there is a need for the industry to focus on extending this ‘golden thread’ to pre-construction phases, from the conception of the project.

How CRM tools can help extend the ‘golden thread’

While there are tools, particularly Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems that help with the golden thread of information for on-site construction, it is also crucial to maintain the business development side prior to on-site construction, managed through Customer Relationship Management (CRM) tools.

Daniel Parkin is sales director of KMS Software

The construction industry is witnessing a gradual but significant transformation in its approach to client management. Traditionally reliant on fragmented data systems and spreadsheets, the sector is now recognising the need for specialised CRM solutions that cater to its unique demands. This shift is driven by several factors including the rise of remote and hybrid work models accelerating need for unified, accessible systems and the importance of maintaining a ‘golden thread’ of information. Cloud-based platforms, such as Microsoft Dynamics 365, are emerging as solutions to these challenges, offering a single source of truth accessible from any device or location. These systems provide centralised reporting, GDPR compliance, and mobile access, ensuring teams can operate effectively in a connected and distributed environment.

Biases around CRM adoption

Historically, the construction industry has been reluctant to adopt new technology, particularly in areas like CRM. This hesitation stems from several misconceptions and challenges with many perceiving tailored CRM solutions as an unnecessary expense, preferring to rely on spreadsheets.

Additionally, companies often assume that generic CRM platforms will suffice, not realising the unique demands of construction require more tailored solutions. Even when business development and sales teams recognise the value of CRM, they often struggle to get support from upper management. Procurement processes in construction can also be disproportionately complicated, with firms sometimes prioritising spend on non-essential items like event participation and sponsorship than on critical systems. Another hesitancy around adoption of CRM is around data security, particularly concerning sensitive project and client information.

Benefits of adopting construction-centered CRM

To overcome these biases, it is crucial to clearly communicate the implementation process and benefits of construction-specific CRM systems. Emphasising how these solutions can streamline operations, improve customer satisfaction, enhance safety and ultimately boost profitability can help shift perspectives.

The adoption of specialised CRM systems in construction offers numerous advantages including providing a unified data source of information, streamlining project type tracking, including win/loss analytics, comprehensive data-driven insights, tracking bidding analytics and risk management. Additionally, a construction CRM system also enhances collaboration across the value chain, integrates workforce planning and offers construction-specific customisation.

Construction-focused CRM in digitising risk assessment

For example, digitising risk assessments through a construction-specific CRM system is pivotal in ensuring compliance with the Building Safety Act 2022. This legislation mandates that building owners manage safety risks with clear responsibilities throughout a building’s lifecycle, from design and construction to occupation.

By integrating risk assessments into a CRM system, construction firms can centralise and automate the management of safety data, ensuring that all information is up-to-date, accessible, and compliant with the Act’s requirements. This approach facilitates the creation and maintenance of comprehensive safety case reports, a key component of compliance.

Moreover, digitising risk assessments enhances transparency and accountability, enabling stakeholders to monitor and address safety concerns proactively. This proactive management aligns with the Act’s emphasis on continuous safety oversight throughout a building’s lifecycle. Leveraging CRM systems to digitise risk assessments not only streamlines compliance with the Building Safety Act but also fosters a culture of safety and accountability within the construction industry.

Risk assessments are also crucial in shaping effective bid/no bid strategies for construction firms. By evaluating potential risks early in the process, businesses can make informed decisions about which projects to pursue, avoiding high-risk opportunities that may stretch resources or expose them to compliance issues. This enables firms to assess whether the potential rewards of a project justify the associated risks.

Identifying risks upfront also strengthens bids by allowing firms to address mitigation strategies within their proposals. This not only improves the quality of the bid but also demonstrates preparedness and a proactive approach to potential challenges.

By integrating risk assessments into the bid/no bid process, construction firms can focus on projects that align with their capacity and risk tolerance, ultimately leading to a more strategic and focused approach to business development. This ensures that efforts are concentrated on the most promising opportunities, increasing the likelihood of successful project acquisition.

Role of emerging technologies and the future of construction CRM

The construction sector is undergoing a digital transformation, driven in part by the need for greater compliance and traceability. Emerging technologies like artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) are gradually making their way into business operations. In sectors with faster turnover, AI can automate and streamline processes with ease.

However, in construction, the personal touch is still vital. Despite this, there is an emergence of several promising applications in construction CRM including opportunity health assessment, intelligent email assistance, opportunity scoring, meeting preparation, Voice-to-Text and natural language processing among other tasks.

It is clear that CRM systems will play an increasingly vital role in shaping the future of business development in construction. The industry is moving towards a more connected, data-driven approach, where transparency and accountability are paramount. The concept of the ‘golden thread’, traditionally confined to on-site operations, is beginning to extend into CRM, ensuring that the entire lifecycle of a project – from sales opportunity to completion – is fully traceable and aligned with the broader project goals.

As the industry continues to evolve, overcoming the hesitancy to adopt new technologies and addressing the challenges of integrating CRM will be crucial. The shift towards remote and hybrid work models, coupled with the emergence of AI and ML technologies, will continue to drive this transformation. Furthermore, the extension of the ‘golden thread’ into CRM represents a significant opportunity for the construction industry to improve efficiency, transparency, and project outcomes. By embracing specialised CRM solutions and overcoming adoption biases, construction firms can position themselves at the forefront of the industry’s digital transformation, ensuring they have the tools needed to thrive in an increasingly competitive landscape.

  • Jonas Dahlkvist is founder and operations director at KMS Software
  • Daniel Parkin is sales director of KMS Software

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