From safety standards to power tools, numerous innovations have advanced the construction industry over the years. Yet nothing has had as profound an effect as information technology.

Although leadership teams have long understood that digitization is the path of the future, it wasn’t until the COVID-19 pandemic that many companies were forced to take the leap and transform from within. 

Hit by supply chain disruptions, lockdown orders, social distancing measures and new safety guidelines, contractors turned to virtual management tools and new onsite technologies to help maintain productivity and prevent delays at job sites. Convenience suddenly outranked quality—and companies that had been lagging in digital transformation found themselves on the losing end of the crisis. Convenience suddenly outranked quality.

The construction ecosystem comprises a highly integrated mix of contractors and subcontractors acting in concert to achieve a common goal: a successful, safely built project. Adopting new technologies—artificial intelligence and machine learning, robotics within workflows, 3D printing, or Internet of Things (IoT) solutions—will be critical to remaining efficient, effective, and profitable. Forgoing this transformation will likely result in increased difficulty staying viable within the industry.

Our guide outlines six steps construction managers can take to move their companies toward a digital transformation—and competitive advantage.