There’s a threshold of backlog work that can make it seem as if you’ve made it into the big leagues. The number varies for every contractor, but when you hit it, you feel like a million bucks. And maybe your backlog is worth a million bucks – or more. That’s a huge milestone, and should be celebrated, but it’s not time to stop looking forward and building your pipeline. Here’s why.
If you’re feeling flush with cash and content with the amount of work you’ve got lined up for the next few months, you could be at risk of relaxing a little too much. That multimillion-dollar backlog of yours is a precarious beast and can give you a sense of false comfort.
Don’t give in to the temptation to claim your company is too “covered up” with work to continue bidding. Now more than ever, construction projects are rife with risks, and with thinning margins, small mishaps can lead to large problems.
If any areas of the project were missed during preconstruction, those lucrative jobs could end up costing you instead of lining your pockets. One or two missteps can be recovered, but when the impact of past errors meets a situation in which no new work is starting up, your cash flow can dry up, leaving you vulnerable to layoffs or even closing your doors.
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