10 benefits and challenges of construction collaboration

No construction professional wants to see collaboration on a project fall apart. When it does, the consequences are often missed deadlines, costly rework, budget overruns, and diminished team morale.

Teamwork is the glue that holds a project together. It ensures timelines are maintained, decision-making is swift and accurate, projects are documented throughout the lifecycle, and the different stakeholders are happy with project delivery. 

There is widespread agreement among contractors that collaboration is vital, with benefits ranging from increased on-site safety to more efficient problem-solving and project lifecycle management.

This article will show you how to identify and overcome common collaboration challenges, build a collaborative culture, and ensure your project planning comes off without a hitch. 

Let’s get into it.

Key takeaways 

• Collaboration issues most commonly arise in response to poor communication and documentation, a lack of clear, well-understood project goals, and misalignment between contractors, subcontractors, and stakeholders. 
• The top benefits of collaboration are on-time project delivery, adherence to budget, stakeholder satisfaction, and long-term client retention. 
• 43% of the most trusted construction firms put collaboration at the heart of their approach to managing projects. 
• Construction management professionals can lay the groundwork for collaboration by ensuring clear lines of communication, shared (not just individual) goals, and pooling resources.
• Many challenges can also be overcome by using construction project management software, which has easy-to-use tools for real-time communication and troubleshooting.

Understanding collaboration in construction 

Collaboration in construction is achieved when all members of a team—subcontractors, contractors, site managers, safety inspectors, investors, and so on—work in alignment. 

This means they understand the shared goals of the project, communicate quickly and effectively, and have access to the resources they need. Ideally, collaboration will stay strong at all stages of a project, from initial planning right through to the final inspection. 

According to a report by FMI corporation, 43% of the most trusted construction firms make collaboration central to how they work across projects. In another study sponsored by the Lean Construction Institute, 24% of projects that prioritized collaboration finished ahead of schedule compared to 6% of “typical” projects, and 46% of collaboration-focused projects completed under budget compared to 10% of other projects.

So how can you build trust, gain clarity, and overcome collaboration hurdles to speed towards better-than-average project completion?

Effective collaboration starts with identifying the challenges you encounter.

10 biggest challenges of collaboration in construction & how to overcome them

Creating a culture of collaboration is an ongoing challenge on construction projects, mainly due to the sheer range of obstacles that can arise. 

So why is a breakdown in collaboration so problematic? In a word, efficiency. 

From poor technology literacy among subcontractors to a lack of timely quality control, collaboration issues lead to hampered efficiency, often in a significant way. Many reports show that operational efficiency in construction is alarmingly low compared to other industries, with a lack of collaboration as a key driver. 

With that in mind, let’s take a look at the main collaboration challenges that arise during the construction process.

1. Poor and inconsistent communication

Real-time, effective communication between subcontractors, team leaders, stakeholders, and office management can be a persistent challenge in construction projects, especially on larger sites with dozens of subcontractors with separate responsibilities.

Yet communication is the bedrock on which collaboration rests. The reliable flow of status updates, safety alerts, and resource requests is essential if a team is to function collaboratively. In addition, documentation with multiple contributors, such as architectural designs, blueprints, and BIM drawings, needs to be readily accessible to all stakeholders when any changes are made. 

Traditional communication channels that work in a siloed way, like phones, text messages and/or Whatsapp, email, and ad hoc in-person meetings, are often to blame. What’s more, relying on an unintegrated tech stack prevents the distribution of real-time updates and notifications to everybody involved, again an essential factor for collaboration. 

The end result of poor and inconsistent communication is delays in decision-making, a greater likelihood of errors, rework, missed deadlines, and often conflicting information. 

How to overcome communication issues

Establish clear, easy-to-use communication channels at the individual, team, and project levels, with particular emphasis on the flow of information between the office and the job site. Also make sure that your team’s communication tool is specifically tailored to the construction industry, as this will allow you to specify relevant tasks, timelines, and documentation in chats. 

Platforms like Buildbite include specific features for real-time communication, one-on-one chats, groups for specific teams, and the storage and sharing of important documents. For example, if you need to share a safety checklist or an updated BIM representation, you can do so quickly with all relevant stakeholders involved. 

Regular meetings in which open dialogue is encouraged are also essential for transparent, effective communication. All contractors and managers involved in a project should have regular, scheduled opportunities to voice concerns. 

2. Early-stage misalignment

Early-stage alignment happens when the different “layers” of a construction project are in sync at a high level of understanding. In practical terms, this means the construction crew understands the broad scope outlined by the designers and architects, the subcontractors have a clear idea of how their tasks connect with the work of their colleagues, and that project overseers and managers have articulated clear milestones and delegated responsibility. 

This foundation creates a basis for greater collaboration between all key players when it comes to specific daily, weekly, and monthly tasks and expected outcomes. 

The cause of early-stage misalignment is usually a mix of the following factors:

• Lack of clarity around timelines and milestones
• Poor task allocation and distribution of responsibilities
• Unrealistic timeframes and limited resources
• Absence of clear points of contact with whom to raise issues
• Infeasible and unrealistic budget leading to on-the-ground changes to designs

While a project's scope will evolve to a degree as it progresses, early-stage alignment will go a long way in mitigating many other collaboration challenges, such as resource misallocation and skills gaps, that can arise later on. 

How to overcome early-stage misalignment

Early-stage misalignment is best avoided by providing a mix of readily accessible documentation outlining the vision of the project and ensuring clear work remits and allocation of responsibilities. Resources like BIM representations, digital twins, and high-level timelines all provide contractors with a broad understanding of the project scope. 

Detailed schedules that explicitly stipulate individual roles within the context of larger project goals are also vital. Construction project management software can prove invaluable by creating a mutually accessible source of information for everybody involved, remedying any confusion with easy access to documentation and communication channels with other team members. 

Finally, the benefits of in-person meetings during the early stages of a project are difficult to understate. They provide an opportunity for the whole team to connect, ask questions, and share feedback about the proposed project outlay.

3. Inconsistent technology adoption

Standardized technology infrastructure helps foster a collaborative environment by providing communication channels with all team members, overcoming the office-and-site disconnect, and providing regular notifications about timeline statuses, safety inspections, changes to the scope of the project, and so on. Technology also prevents information silos from arising, which can significantly hamper collaboration and limit access to critical information when it’s most needed. 

However, technology adoption can be problematic. Integrating new applications into existing workflows requires investment, onboarding, and IT expertise. This is made all the harder when multiple teams and organizations are involved that are already busy.

Technology literacy among contractors unfamiliar with a platform can also be an issue, especially in regards to complex features like BIM integrations and compliance monitoring tools. If you're considering adoption, choose solutions that are user-friendly and can be swiftly implemented, minimizing the need for extensive time and resources, so you can start seeing benefits and a return on investment as quickly as possible. 

Tools that offer quick and effortless implementation are rare in the construction industry. That's why Buildbite was designed to get you up and running in just 30 seconds.

How to overcome inconsistent technology adoption

Onboarding assistance and continuous training are two crucial aspects of ensuring technology adoption. Money allocated to ensuring tech fluency may meet with resistance from budget-conscious stakeholders but is almost always well-spent, and it may be worthwhile to have a contingency explaining benefits if such a situation arises. 

In addition, it’s critical to pick the right tech. For example, construction management platforms like Bulildbite are designed for ease of use and eliminate much of the need for specialized training. Buildbite also caters directly to small and medium projects. 

Implementing some form of oversight or governance to ensure that users are adhering to technology standards can also prove useful. This approach allows you to identify issues early on, such as failures to use appropriate communication channels or record status updates.

Finally, remember that it’s possible to track adoption using metrics like training completion rates and issue resolution times, giving a complete picture of the health of tech usage. 

4. Variable access to documentation and data 

Many construction projects lack infrastructure for the proper creation, sharing, and storage of project data and important documentation like drawings, reports, and regulatory guidance. 

This is problematic for two reasons. First, it creates inconsistencies in the flow of information, which leads to misaligned decision-making and potentially incorrect or out-of-date instructions about the nature of work to be completed. 

Second, it prevents teams from reliably referencing the same specifications, timelines, and supporting documentation (like regulatory guidance). Without this ability to collaboratively work with the same information, errors and delays become much more likely. 

How to overcome sharing documentation and data

A centralized digital document management system allows team members to store and access important files easily and quickly, whether weekly status reports or specific BIM drawings. Because documentation can be tied to specific tasks and workflows, there’s no need for users to navigate complex storage dashboards.

When implemented with an onboarding program, a document-sharing solution will help keep all team members in sync and provide scope for collaboration, with regular automated updates about new documentation. It will also provide a means of enforcing version control to prevent the circulation of outdated information.

Centralized platforms also work very well with some degree of human oversight to ensure that team members are regularly updating and cross-referencing digital documentation. 

5. Safety and regulation issues

When there is misalignment around potential hazards and safety standards, team members will often approach tasks requiring collaboration in different and sometimes dangerous ways, opening up the possibilities of errors and delays.

This uncertainty and even mistrust hinder collaborations. What’s more, stakeholders may be reluctant to make speedy decisions because of concerns about adherence to regulations. 

Construction industry regulations are complex and often sizable. Ensuring that all team members understand and abide by them is difficult for site managers, even with regular checks, safety checklists, and site safety plans. 

How to overcome safety and regulation issues

Regular training and compliance checks are the most straightforward way of eliminating safety and regulation issues. This should happen at both a general level, accounting for the whole project team, and for specific applications where appropriate. 

Software that makes safety documentation available, such as regulatory guidance, hazard analyses, incident reports, permits, safety checklists, and so on, is also vital for ensuring that all team members have access to the right information once training is completed. This documentation should, of course, be tightly version-controlled. 

Finally, ensuring that safety officers are approachable and proactive will also help to cultivate a safety-first culture where problems are shared and addressed quickly. 

6. Misallocation of resources

Teams require appropriate materials, equipment, and sometimes additional labor if they’re to adhere to timelines. If it is not provided, collaboration suffers and scarce resources lead to unhealthy competition between team members. 

Resource imbalances between contractors typically lead to delays that have a knock-on effect on contingent tasks, and the progress of the whole project can suffer. For example, if insufficient skilled labor is allocated to the electrical team, subsequent tasks like drywall installation must go on hold. Any idle time must be paid for, further increasing costs. 

How to overcome the misallocation of resources

An integrated, continuously monitored resource-allocation strategy is essential to avoid issues. Once this is in place, obstacles to collaboration will naturally diminish.

Implement the following measures to avoid resource misallocation:

• Resource planning: Put together a detailed resource allocation plan that adheres tightly to the project schedule.
• Real-time adjustment: Use real-time tracking tools like Buildbite to monitor resource usage and make adjustments if imbalances become apparent. 
• Cross-team communication: Encourage regular communication between teams to identify resource needs and reallocate where needed. 
• Prioritize project-critical tasks: Focus resources on critical tasks to avoid delays that may affect the broader project timeline.

7. Poor budget control

Poor budget control is linked to but not equivalent to the misallocation of resources. Funding shortages are due to an absence of resources rather than mistakes in provisioning. 

In many ways, budget control is more harmful to collaboration than resource misallocation. It leads to direct delays in schedules, tension among team members, and stakeholder uncertainty. Often, budget shortfalls lead to scope changes, and if these are not communicated clearly, misalignment occurs. 

Because limiting overspending is a team effort, it requires that all contractors and managers work proactively to track expenditures. This includes labor as well as equipment and material costs. When this is done well, progress occurs according to schedule and problems are preempted before they become an issue. 

How to overcome poor budget control

Detailed planning that covers all tasks, no matter how small, is the backbone of budget control on construction sites. Plans should also include contingencies and preparedness measures for large potential hazards like fire or flooding.

In addition, real-time reporting, which demands full involvement of all on-site management and contractors, is key. Software will allow for much of this to be automated—such as through contractor time tracking and logs for spending on materials and equipment—but sometimes the back office will need contacting directly. Standardized communication channels, preferably on a mobile app, will help with this. 

Finally, it is important to ensure that overspending and requests for additional funds are reported as quickly as possible, allowing for thorough cost-control reviews. 

8. Uncoordinated quality control

Construction projects have many moving parts, all of which will require some degree of oversight. A lack of ongoing quality control can lead to inconsistent standards among team members, thereby their ability to collaborate effectively.  

If teams working on the same or related projects have differing interpretations of project requirements, the level of quality is likely to be irregular. Quality control reviews overcome this, facilitating collaboration through shared standards and understanding.

However, these reviews must cover a project comprehensively and coordination among those responsible for assurance is a must. 

How to overcome uncoordinated quality control

You can overcome uncoordinated and irregular quality control by ensuring the following measures are in place. 

• Regular and comprehensive reviews
• Clear project-wide quality standards
• Centralized assurance processes
• Regular feedback sharing between teams
• Real-time quality monitoring tools
• Training around implementing quality standards

 It’s also important to provide all team members with clear documentation like quality management plans, checklists, audit reports, and so on. Apps like Buildbite provide document management and let assurance professionals set up effective communication channels through which quality issues can be addressed quickly. 

The presence of all these conditions will create a positive context for collaboration by ensuring parity and consistency of outcomes.

9. Skills gaps

For a team to collaborate effectively, skill levels need to be relatively well-matched. Less skilled workers are more likely to struggle to complete tasks, misunderstand instructions, make unnecessary errors, and place a burden on more experienced workers. 

In comparison, when skill levels are generally of a high level, collaboration becomes possible through straightforward communication and a clear understanding of how responsibilities interrelate. 

This isn’t to say that less experienced subcontractors like apprentices can’t participate in construction projects. However, clear mechanisms to prevent inefficiencies like mentorship, training, and increased quality assurance are required. 

How to overcome skills gaps

Though representing an up-front cost, investment in training and hiring of the most skilled contractors is likely to lead to long-term cost savings. A well-trained, experienced team is much better placed to collaborate effectively. 

Here are some of the most effective ways to overcome skills gaps:

• Run skills assessments: Assess the skills of team members to identify areas of potential improvement.
• Offer training programs: Provide on-the-job training and mentorship to account for identified gaps.
• Hire where necessary: Contract specialists to fill gaps that cannot be dealt with internally.
• Use technology for support: Specialized equipment can sometimes supplement human skill. 
• Set clear expectations: Clearly define responsibilities for each team member to avoid mismatched expectations. 

An environment that supports mentorship and knowledge sharing will help compensate for the absence of skill or experience. Make sure that senior contractors are happy to guide newer ones during the hiring process. 

10. Cultural differences

Modern construction teams often draw individuals from a diverse set of cultural backgrounds. This creates significant opportunities for misunderstanding and miscommunication if an atmosphere of inclusivity is not actively encouraged. If offense, lack of shared values, or even straightforward communication barriers are present, effective teamwork becomes very difficult.

How to overcome cultural differences

An atmosphere of inclusivity is imperative for preventing issues from arising on construction sites and a direct approach can help lay the basis for this. 

Cultural competency training, whether delivered in person or digitally, can give team members the understanding they need to navigate complex cultural differences. 

If issues do arise, it’s also important to provide specific points of contact where they can be addressed and resolved, ideally by a trained professional in a confidential setting. 

The benefits and importance of collaboration in construction 

Let’s run down the research-backed benefits of a collaboration-first approach to construction project management: 

1. On-time delivery: In one study, nearly 25% of construction projects that prioritized collaboration finished ahead of schedule. 
2. Improved project documentation: According to a McKinsey & Company report, construction projects that effectively use collaborative tools and integrated project delivery (IPD) can see up to a 30% improvement in project performance metrics, including documentation accuracy and overall efficiency.
3. Budget adherence: High-collaboration firms are 25% more likely to complete projects within the initial budget estimates. 
4. Stakeholder satisfaction: Projects with strong collaboration practices tend to increase stakeholder engagement and satisfaction irrespective of industry. 
5. Responsiveness to client requirements: Effective collaboration contributes to improvements in team members’ understanding of client needs and their ability to respond to these needs. 
6. Risk mitigation: 91% of construction professionals agree that increased collaboration reduces risks on construction projects and 
7. Efficient resource use: Research from PlanGrid shows that 52% of rework on jobs is due to poor collaboration. 
8. Respects traditional contractual arrangements: Research has shown that novel collaboration practices drive innovation without disregarding traditional contractual arrangements (such as design-bid-build).
9. More efficient data sharing: A study by Dodge Construction Network found that 91% of general contractors saw improvements in productivity after eliminating “data silos” that prevented collaboration around and access to critical project information. 
10. Overcomes industry challenges: Collaboration can help overcome industry-specific challenges like unnecessary waste and incomplete quality assurance. 
11. Fosters shared project vision: Collaborative practices have been shown to unite construction team members in a shared vision of the project, which leads to better decision-making and operational alignment.

Improving construction collaboration to maximize its benefits 

Understanding the challenges and benefits of collaboration in construction work environments is one thing. But how can you take practical steps to foster a culture of collaboration? 

Here’s how to improve construction collaboration for maximum benefits:

1. Use a mobile-first communication platform: Clear communication is the bedrock of collaboration. It’s essential for preventing rework, assuring quality, and flagging problems so they can be addressed quickly. A mobile-first communication platform offers chat channels at the individual and team levels, and these channels can be tied to specific tasks and workflows. This allows everyone on-site and in the office to communicate in real-time, making it easy to find important information without wasting time searching through old messages.
2. Adopt advanced project management tools: According to a study by McKinsey, adopting advanced collaboration tools can increase project efficiency by 20-30%. Modern construction platforms like Buildbite offer an array of tools for enhancing communication, sharing data in real time, storing documents, assigning tasks and instructions, sharing videos and images, tracking progress, and more. All of these features help create an environment successfully focused on collaboration. 
3. Pool resources: Create a shared equipment and material inventory that team members can access from a central digital dashboard and log usage. On a more general level, make it known that requests for resources, whether human or financial, are welcome and will be met as quickly as possible. 
4. Focus on shared goals: In addition to individual goals tied to job tasks, common goals are vital. Hold joint planning and status sessions where all stakeholders come together. Real-time updates in relation to broad project goals also go a long way in boosting morale. 
5. Build trust through team-building: Build trust by holding regular team-building initiatives over the course of a project. In terms of decision-making, you can add transparency by informing team members and leaders of the reasoning behind high-level decisions rather than just providing instructions. 
6. Build a supportive workplace culture: It’s easy to think that creating a workplace that values inclusivity and accessibility is an abstract goal. But you can take specific steps to achieve it. Rewards in exchange for good work, formal mentorship programs, and training to fill skill gaps identified in performance reviews are all good examples of practical initiatives.
7. Define roles clearly: Create detailed role descriptions for every team member, with clear responsibilities, expectations, and areas of authority. A RACI matrix (Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, and Informed) is a useful tool for defining the responsibilities of everybody involved in a task. 
8. Onboard with new systems: Offer hands-on training for new systems before a project starts and appoint an individual as a “system champion” who can offer ongoing support, troubleshooting, and training for new contractors throughout the project. 
9. Provide conflict resolution: Conflicts will inevitably arise and the bad feeling this can create is inimical to long–term collaboration. Ensure that clear processes and escalation paths are in place for conflict resolution and that trained facilitators are involved in any disputes. Consider outsourcing a conflict training workshop. 
10. Set clear goals and milestones: Goals and milestones should be quantifiable, specific, and tied to realistic timeframes. Project management software will allow you to track a range of milestones and goals, from specific task completion to the overall project process, in a clear and detailed way, with potentially thousands of inputs from across your sites and automated aggregation of this data.

How a medium-sized construction company enhanced collaboration and saved 2.5 hours daily

Trähus specializes in the restoration of old, wooden houses. Despite a team with years of battle-tested experience, the company struggled to build lasting, long-term customer relationships. 

It overcame this problem by increasing client collaboration in projects. They used Buildbite’s extensive communication features to include customers in project planning stages and implementation workflows. 

Customers were kept in the loop about task-specific updates, timeline tracking, and the completion of big milestones. And all of this data was made available by hyper-efficient communication among team members on the ground. 

The results? Over 2.5 hours saved every day, fewer invoice queries, and a rework rate of 0.1%. Oh, and according to CEO Thomas Noreila, there were “many” referrals. 

Improve your construction team collaboration with digital tools

Many construction teams have successfully turned to digital tools to improve collaboration and teamwork. Often, these tools provide analytics-based oversight, allowing managers and stakeholders to track results in concrete, measurable terms. 

Construction management platforms provide the following benefits: 

• Improved project efficiency: Automation tools streamline processes and operations that typically require a high level of human input. Examples include employee time tracking, sending safety notifications, updating project schedules, and data analysis. 
  
  
• High return on investment (ROI): Better project management leads to more favorable financial outcomes and profitability. Use Buildbite’s ROI calculator to see potential savings. Firms using advanced collaboration software often see an average return on investment (ROI) of 150% within the first year.

• Fast real-time, on-site communication: Mobile-first apps allow for instant communication from the field, making it possible to flag problems, track project progress in real time, and request information. 
  
  
• Easy data and document management: Most digital platforms provide centralized, easily accessible storage for important documents like safety checklists and BIM drawings.

Best tools for construction collaboration

Let’s look at five of the top construction collaboration tools: 

1. Buildbite

Buildbite offers a suite of features for managing construction projects. These include extensive real-time communication and data-sharing tools in addition to task and milestone tracking. It’s also very easy to use, limiting the need for onboarding training, with a full-feature mobile app. 

Pricing has three plans: Basic at $85/month for up to 5 team members, Standard for $138/month for up to 20 team members, and Premium for $193/month for up to 50 team members. There is also a 30-day trial with no feature limitations. 

2. Procore

Procore caters to a wide set of construction industry professionals and includes tools for pre-construction tasks (like bid management) and managing day-to-day tasks. 

Contact the sales team for pricing (unavailable on the website). 

3. eSUB

eSUB caters to the small business side of the market, especially subcontractors and general contractors. It allows users to share information with project managers, track time, manage RFIs and project deals, and collaborate with stakeholders. 

Contact the sales team for pricing (unavailable on the website). 

4. Fieldwire

Fieldwire focuses on in-the-field collaboration and communication. It offers powerful BIM integration, real-time messaging and data sharing, and in-depth project scheduling features (including Gantt charts).

Pricing starts at $54/month per user. A limited free plan is available. 

5. PlanGrid

PlanGrid is a collaboration tool with a mobile-first approach for those working with blueprints in the field. Collaboration features include on-site messaging, field reporting, and document storage. 

Pricing starts at $49/month. 

Read our in-depth article on construction project management software to see the best 15 apps currently on the market.