Stop floating subcontractors with your own cash.
Build a contracting business that compounds.
We work with general contractors and design-build firms doing $165K-$3.3M in annual revenue who are tired of cash-flow whiplash, scope creep, and finishing projects in the red. Our monthly engagement, no minimum term works toward disciplined job costing, payment-milestone structures, and 10-12%+ net margins on every project. How fast it moves depends on how seriously you work the plan - what you will see from the first meeting is exactly what is holding the business back.
8 patterns we see in most general contractors
Cash flow whiplash (front-loading subs, back-loaded payments)
Root cause: GC pays subs at 30 days. Owners pay GC at 60-90 days. GC floats $100K-$500K every month from own capital or credit line.
What we do: Restructured payment milestones: 10% mobilization / 25% rough-in / 25% mid-completion / 30% substantial completion / 10% punch list. Match sub-payment schedule to owner draws. Float reduces 70%+ within 6 months.
No job costing - profit known only after project closes
Root cause: Estimating is intuition-based. Mid-project tracking is non-existent. GC discovers profit (or loss) at close-out.
What we do: Real-time job costing, with the accounting ledger and the project system reading one set of numbers. Weekly project-margin dashboards. Estimate-vs-actual variance tracked at line-item level.
Scope creep eaten by GC (not billed as change orders)
Root cause: PMs and superintendents don't enforce change order discipline. Owner asks for 'one small thing,' GC absorbs. Adds up to 4-8% of project margin gone.
What we do: Documented change order process: every scope change → written CO → signed before work proceeds. Train PMs to enforce. Adds 3-7 points back to project margin.
Subcontractor management is reactive (no-show, late, quality issues)
Root cause: GC uses cheapest sub for each trade. No vetting. No insurance verification. No scoring system. Every project has the same fire drills.
What we do: Subcontractor tiering and scoring: Tier 1 (reliable, insured, on-time), Tier 2 (acceptable), Tier 3 (last resort). Insurance verification automated. Tier 1 subs get priority on best projects.
Estimating wins 20-30% of bids (race-to-the-bottom)
Root cause: GC bids everything that comes in. Bids based on competitor matching. No project qualification.
What we do: Project qualification framework: owner type, project size, timeline, design completion, financing confirmed. Bid only on qualified projects. Target: win rate jumps from 22% to 45%+ on fewer, higher-quality bids.
Owner-GC running every project personally
Root cause: Owner doesn't trust PMs to run projects. Owner is on every site daily. Can't take vacation. Can't grow.
What we do: Project Manager role professionalized: defined responsibilities, weekly project review with owner, monthly margin review. Owner role shifts to estimating, sales, and PM oversight. Target: owner site visits drop from 5/week to 1/week per project.
Marketing is referral-only (no digital presence)
Root cause: GC says 'we don't need marketing.' But referrals are unpredictable and limited to existing network. No project pipeline visibility.
What we do: Google My Business + project portfolio website + completed-project case studies. Local SEO for service areas. Builds pipeline visibility 90-180 days out.
No succession plan / unclear path to exit
Root cause: Owner-GC plans to work until 65 then 'figure it out.' No documented systems, no buyable business, no successor identified.
What we do: Documented operating procedures. Identified successor (internal PM or external acquirer). Clean financials for due diligence. GCs valued at 3-5x EBITDA when systematized; 0.5-1.5x without.
The numbers we aim at
These are the targets we work toward in an engagement - a bar to measure against, not an average anyone measured for you.
| KPI | Typical starting point | Plan B target | 12-month goal |
|---|---|---|---|
| Net profit margin per project | 3-7% | 12%+ | 8-14% |
| Days of GC float (sub paid vs. owner pays) | 30-50 | <10 | 12-25 |
| Bid-to-win rate | 18-28% | 45%+ | 35-50% |
| Change order capture rate | 40-60% | 95%+ | 85-95% |
| % projects on-time at substantial completion | 55-70% | 85%+ | 75-88% |
| Owner-GC site days per week | 4-5 per project | <2 per project | 1.5-3 |
| Backlog (months of confirmed projects) | 2-4 months | 9+ months | 6-10 months |
What working with us looks like
- 01
Month 1: Project + financial audit
We pull last 24 months of project P&Ls (every project, every line item). We map cash-flow patterns, subcontractor reliability, change-order capture rate, bid-win-loss. You leave with the 1-2 highest-leverage actions.
- 02
Months 2-3: Job costing + payment milestones
Live job costing deployed - accounting and project management on one set of numbers. Payment milestone restructure rolled out on new contracts. Change order discipline training with PMs and supers.
- 03
Months 4-6: Subcontractor system + bid qualification
Subcontractor tiering and scoring system live. Project qualification framework rolled out to estimating. Bid-win-loss tracking. Marketing/website foundation built.
- 04
Months 7-12: Operations + ownership freedom
Project margins lifted by 4-7 points. Cash float reduced 70%+. Owner role shifted from site supervisor to estimating + PM oversight. We shift to quarterly cadence. The business now compounds.
Common questions from general contractors owners
What size GC is this for?−
Residential, commercial, or both?+
Our subs hate change orders. How do we enforce them without burning relationships?+
What about design-build vs. traditional GC?+
What software do you recommend?+
Will you help with hiring?+
What about bonding and insurance?+
Who does the work?+
Fee structure?+
Stop finishing projects in the red.
30-minute strategy call. We'll diagnose your top 2 levers and tell you if we're a fit. No pitch. No pressure.