One poorly performing construction job does not necessarily mean you should stop taking that type of work.
A better decision starts by comparing similar completed jobs and looking for repeated financial and operating patterns.
Use this worksheet to organize what happened across comparable jobs, identify what may deserve further investigation, and determine whether the evidence points toward improving, repricing, restricting, or reconsidering that type of work.
This worksheet is an educational review tool. It does not score jobs or determine which work your construction business should accept or reject.
Define the Type of Work You Are Reviewing
Start by defining the kind of work you want to evaluate.
The goal is not to compare every job your company has completed. Choose work that is similar enough for the comparison to be meaningful.
Project type, size, complexity, location, labor requirements, subcontractor reliance, delivery method, and schedule demands can all affect whether two jobs are reasonably comparable.
Consider project type, size, complexity, location, labor requirements, subcontractor reliance, delivery method, or schedule demands.
Select the Completed Jobs You Want to Compare
Choose several completed jobs that fit the type of work you defined above.
There is no universal number of jobs that proves a pattern. The purpose is to gather enough comparable evidence to look beyond the result of one project.
You do not need to fill every field. Use the completed jobs that provide a meaningful comparison.
Compare the Financial Results
Record the financial results that help you understand how these jobs performed.
Do not use one number by itself to decide whether a type of work is worth pursuing. The purpose is to see whether similar jobs show recurring financial differences or patterns that deserve investigation.
Use only the job blocks you need for the completed jobs selected above.
Look for Repeated Cost-Performance Problems
A job can miss expectations for many reasons. Look across the comparable jobs instead of assuming that the same issue caused every result.
Mark the areas where you see repeated differences, overruns, or questions that deserve a closer review.
Review What This Work Requires From the Business
Profitability is important, but it is not the only consideration when evaluating a type of work.
Similar jobs may also place recurring demands on cash, Working Capital, management attention, crews, scheduling, or other business resources.
Record the demands that consistently show up with this type of work.
Separate One Bad Job From a Repeated Pattern
Now step back from the individual projects.
A problem that appeared on one job may be specific to that project. A problem that appears repeatedly across comparable jobs may deserve more attention when deciding whether this type of work fits the business.
Do not treat repetition as proof of the cause. Use it to identify what deserves further investigation.
Identify What May Be Driving the Pattern
Repeated underperformance does not automatically mean the type of work itself is the problem.
The evidence may point toward pricing, estimating, job execution, project conditions, operating fit, or another factor.
Use this section to identify possibilities that deserve investigation—not to assign a diagnosis before you have enough evidence.
Evaluate the Four Possible Responses
The decision does not have to be limited to “keep taking this work” or “stop taking this work.”
Review the evidence and consider what would have to be true for each possible response to make sense.
You are not choosing a response based on a score. You are identifying which possibilities deserve serious consideration and what evidence would support them.
Define What You Need to Know Before the Next Bid
Finish the review by turning what you learned into better questions for the next opportunity.
The goal is not to make the next bid decision automatically. It is to know which financial and operating evidence should be reviewed before deciding whether similar work deserves another commitment of the company’s time, cash, and capacity.
Better Job Selection Starts With Better Evidence
Deciding whether to keep pursuing a type of construction work should not depend on one difficult project or one financial measure.
Comparing similar completed jobs can help you see whether a problem was isolated, whether a pattern is developing, and what may deserve further investigation.
The purpose is not to eliminate every challenging job.
It is to create enough Financial Visibility to understand which work fits the business, which work may need a different approach, and which opportunities deserve a more careful decision before you commit resources again.
Review the Job-Selection Decision
Use the primary guide to review how job profitability, repeated performance patterns, financial demands, and operating fit can help you evaluate which types of construction work deserve continued pursuit.
NEED CLEARER FINANCIAL VISIBILITY?
Understand Which Work Is Helping Your Construction Business
Reliable job-level financial information makes it easier to compare similar work, recognize recurring patterns, and understand which questions deserve a closer look.
Schmidt Bookkeeping helps contractors maintain reliable financial information and turn that information into the Financial Visibility needed to make better business decisions.