On any given day, project managers at construction sites must make decisions and answer questions. Although such demands often require a time-consuming review of documents and computer files, they may also necessitate rapid responses because of urgency and time sensitivity.
While working as a construction manager immediately after leaving college, I experienced this problem firsthand. I was told that my daily tasks were mainly to communicate, coordinate, and collaborate with various project stakeholders on- and off-site while ensuring that the project was on time and on schedule. In reality, however, I was constantly being bombarded with questions that required immediate answers such as “20 workers called in sick and did not show up; what should we do?”, “How much delay do you anticipate by the end of the month?”, and “What is our cash flow projection for the end of the quarter?”