Partnering Tips – Change Your Actions Not Your Team

By Jim Eisenhart One of the biggest excuses people make about fixing problem projects is that “So and So won’t/can’t change. There is no point in even trying to change them, so we must remove them, cope with them, complain about them or, more typically, use them as an excuse for lack of success on our project.” Equally prevalent is the assumption that a particular company or organization will never

Three Ventura Consulting Group facilitated projects were among the recipients honored at the International Partnering Institute’s (IPI) 2018 Partnered Project of the Year (PPY) Collaboration 2018 Award Ceremony.  VCG Partnering Facilitator Paul Crotty attended the annual event along with other design and construction professionals from across the country. Held in San Francisco this past May, The IPI John L. Martin Partnered Project of the Year Awards honor individuals and organizations

The Virginia Street Bridge replacement project in Reno, Nevada not only ensured a means of transporting residents and visitors over the Truckee River into the heart of the “Biggest Little City” in the country, but it also brought together the project team, various project stakeholders and the local community in a phenomenal way. Highlighting the project’s collaborative partnership, the team was recently honored with the International Partnering Institute’s 2017 Partnered

Collaborative Partnering was instrumental to the success of the La Pata Avenue Gap Connector project in San Clemente, Calif. Completed in August 2016, the $60 million project recently won the ASCE Project of the Year Award and was named #2 on Road & Bridges magazine’s Top 10 Roads for 2016. Created in 2000, the publication’s annual ranking recognizes the top projects in North America based on project challenges, impact to

In honor of Elvis Presley’s birthday this month, we are sharing news about the $92 million Guest House at Graceland Hotel project which opened this past October. We are thrilled to have been a part of this iconic hospitality project, which is fit for a king, particularly the “King of Rock ‘n’ Roll! As you can imagine, the 450-room hotel was featured in People magazine, as well as many other

Neal Flesner of Ventura Consulting Group recently gave a talk to members of the AGC of California on the topic of “6 Tips for Increasing Effective Communication on Your Projects.” His presentation was part of the AGC of California Annual Convention which was held in Monterey, California this past October. More than 50 conference attendees participated in the educational session, which focused on the factors that contribute to poor or

By Neal Flesner, MIPI Many construction professionals I work with say that people skills are equally important, if not more important, than technical ability is for achieving professional success. We all come across challenging individuals with difficult personalities from time to time, and that’s when our people skills really make a difference. The larger the project, the greater the likelihood that you will encounter an unruly personality who can adversely

It’s that time of year again! Whether you are ordering a peppermint mocha in Starbucks, waiting for your flight in an airport or buying gifts at the mall, the sounds of the season fill the air.  (While many of us welcome the feeling of good cheer these joyful tunes evoke, I feel a great deal of empathy for the employees who must endure the same soundtrack for 30-plus days straight.) Along

Congratulations to the world class project team on the official opening of the General Services Administration’s (GSA) new $350 million United States Courthouse in downtown Los Angeles. The design and construction team joined with local, state and federal public officials to celebrate this momentous occasion during a recent ribbon cutting ceremony. Built by the design-build team of Clark Construction Group and SOM, the 633,000-square-foot project was substantially completed this past