This is related to the busy, busy, busy thread. Most of us are in the same boat now, having more work out there than we can possibly do.
What is a good strategy for lining up work that you want to do? Fortunately this summer we will begin a large lucrative project that will keep half of our company busy for a year. One reason we got this job is that we were available to do it. We heard a rumor from one of our subs that this job would be commencing in the spring and that we were one of the companies in consideration for the work. We turned down other work that we might otherwise have taken and are now rewarded with this plum job.
Though it worked out well this time, we seem to get locked into a schedule that is a year or more in advance and this has caused us to miss out on jobs that would benefit us monetarily and more importantly would be an interesting challenge. This is obviously not a grave problem but I hope someone out there has some insights that will help us plan for the future.
Replies
I have dealt with this problem a lot as a PM in a company with 10+ field guys. The owner's mandate was invariably "we are taking this job on their schedule and you are going to find a way to get a crew on it". I always tried to maintain a roster of licensed subs who took on carpentry and a list of carpenters who liked to come and go from the payroll as the workload shifts (invariably guys who were working on their own houses and wanted time for that as well as income part of the time). With some notice you can fit in a job that you have to have, but it's tough on everyone. You're stealing a crew from a lead guy who needs them to finish his job, you're rushing a lead guy off a job to another job (or even worse, putting in a pinch-hitter to finish the details). Bottom line is that it's disruptive but if you have reserve troops you can do it. It all depends on who you have and whether or not they're willing to handle it.
I try to stay friendly with my competition and this is one of the biggest reasons. I often get the job and sub my competitors if they hit a slow spot in their schedule. We've formed sort of a loose coalition where everyone has their thing they prefer to do (or are best at) and try to get the right person wearing the right hat at the right time. Usually works out great.