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Relationships between contractors and consultants can be tricky to navigate, but when working together as a cohesive team the partnership can deliver much better results than either could if working alone. 

As well as delivering great results for the job at hand, good relationships between contractors and consultants can also lead to lucrative future opportunities for both, and so are worth investing in. And while the strongest relationships are built gradually, there are ways to fast-track the basics to quickly create positive experiences with new contacts.

Before we even get into the list though, let's not forget the basics. Creating a good project brief, and showing mutual respect. One of the best ways to create a good working relationship with any new contact is to reliably meet agreed deadlines, be punctual, and respect each other’s time. Yes, it sounds obvious, but it the rush and stress of an important project it can sometimes be easy to forget.

With that said, now here are some of the common frustrations contractors meet while working with consultants, and five ways to avoid them coming up.

1 - Being unforgiving of the unexpected

Consultants should set reasonable timescales for contractors to deliver work, but also understand external factors such as shipping delays or adverse weather can unexpectedly impact project delivery times. 

Similarly, contractors should avoid overpromising and under-delivering. An experienced and reliable contractor will be able to give a realistic estimation of how long a project will take to complete, taking into account possible shipping delays, key worker availability, and any other potential blockers.

Where issues are unavoidable, both contractors and consultants should be prompt and upfront about the problem and ready to discuss solutions together.

2 - Shifting budgets

Perhaps the biggest frustration for both contractors and end clients is budget changes. While it’s not always possible to know every exact cost before starting a project, it's important to set a realistic budget and avoid deviating from this too much. 

For a contractor to deliver the highest quality of work, they need to understand the scope of the budget they’re working with. This can affect the solutions they suggest and the materials purchased to deliver them. If budgets continue to shift throughout the project it can make it difficult for the contractor to make informed decisions and can lead to frustrations with their staff. 

One way to combat this is to work out a clearly defined range of budget. You might anticipate changes, but if you know it’ll never be more or less than a certain figure you can communicate this to contractors and avoid any nasty surprises down the line.

3 - Shifting timelines

Just as shifting budgets can cause tensions, shifting timelines is another common frustration for contractors. Again, these can occasionally be unavoidable, but to maintain a good working relationship, contractors and consultants should clearly communicate important deadlines and potential barriers to progress. 

Any significant deadlines should be communicated in advance, if possible, to avoid unnecessary stress or unreasonable workloads. Sudden changes to deadlines can be challenging and hard to manage and might deter a contractor from wanting to work with you again in the future. It might also result in an unachievable turnaround time that, with a little more notice could have been possible. 

Also key to fostering positive working relationships is recognising when your contractor or consultant partner has gone above and beyond to ensure a deadline is met. Thanking colleagues and partners for the good work they've done goes a lot farther than you may think. 

4 - Complex sign-off hierarchies

When decisions need to be made quickly, lengthy sign-off processes can be a huge barrier to progress - not to mention stressful for the people waiting on the decision. When agreeing on sign-off points, it's important to challenge how many levels of input are really necessary.

Try to agree in advance what kind of decisions need senior management approval and which can be agreed at a lower level. 

Where complex hierarchies are absolutely necessary, ensure these are communicated and documented as clearly as possible and that everyone involved understands the urgency of the decision.

5 - Unclear or non-existent communication

Communication is the most valuable - and often most under-appreciated - building block of all effective working relationships. It has the potential to either improve or ignite all the other possible frustrations discussed in this blog, and is key to earning respect and trust from the people you work with. 

Clear communication starts before the project scope is agreed and extends beyond delivery. It involves honesty in the face of difficulties and gestures of appreciation for a job well done.

If expectations, deliverables and potential issues are well understood by both sides it’s far easier to build a strong relationship. Where this fails is when one side of the partnership is not properly briefed or doesn’t share their concerns while there's still time to address them. Either of these things can lead to bigger issues and growing resentment.

Want to see how we put our top tips into practice?

From our salespeople to support reps, and project managers to project engineers, at Hutchison Technologies we all take pride in the great working relationships we’ve built with consultants.

We have a track record of successful partnerships working directly with leading brands in the Health & Fitness, Corporate, Retail and Hospitality sectors, as well as partnering with architects and M&E consultants to help them deliver successfully for their own clients.

To experience for yourself how we put these top tips into practice, speak to a member of our team about how we can help plan and integrate technology into your build or refurb project.