For the first 20 years of her career, 2022 ABC National Board Chair Stephanie Schmidt was “typically the only female in the room.” Now she wants to spotlight the career opportunities that construction offers for women—and everyone else. She explains what to expect from her term in an exclusive interview with <i>Construction Executive</i>.
In September 1999, the United States was heading into a presidential election year. The world was gearing up for Y2K. Prince’s album and song of the same year—actually released in 1982—had gained new relevance. And Stephanie Schmidt joined Poole Anderson, product of the freshly inked merger of L.C. Anderson & Sons with S&A Commercial Construction.
This achievement was the latest step on an ambitious career path that began at Pennsylvania State University in a five-year undergraduate program in architectural engineering, specializing in construction management. The rigorous program helped land Schmidt a first-rate position after graduation as a management trainee with Gilbane Building Company, after which she returned to her alma mater for a job on the owner’s side, overseeing the design and construction of academic and administrative buildings. While she left Penn State once again in 1999 for Poole Anderson, the Nittany Lions are close to her heart. Schmidt looks forward to tailgates and game days the way some families anticipate Thanksgiving or Christmas (although holiday festivities are also a big to-do in the Schmidt household).
Now president of Poole Anderson, a commercial contractor headquartered in State College, Pennsylvania, Schmidt says that when she first onboarded as vice president of business development, her background was in project management. “I had not run a company before, and there was a lot I needed to know,” she says. She immediately began networking and encountered Associated Builders and Contractors at a local level, joining the ABC Central Pennsylvania chapter before getting involved in committees and becoming a part of the national executive board (Poole Anderson is now aligned with ABC Keystone, as well as a member of both ABC Central Pennsylvania and Western Pennsylvania).
“Stephanie is a leader in its truest form,” says Jason D. Sheffield, vice president and senior project executive at Poole Anderson. “She sets high expectations of accountability, leadership and commitment for the overall success of the company; she demonstrates those same qualities.”
After more than 21 years with ABC, including serving five years on the executive committee, Schmidt has risen through the ranks to become ABC’s 2022 National Board Chair. That’s not a surprise to anyone who works with her—or for her. “Stephanie is an extremely capable and brilliant woman,” says Stefanie Kyle, marketing manager at Poole Anderson. “As unusual as it is to have a woman running a commercial construction company, Stephanie is a pro.”
In an exclusive interview, Construction Executive speaks to Schmidt about everything from high-school basketball, teamwork and family traditions, to HGTV, major achievements and pivotal moments.
Q: Have you always been interested in leading ABC as chair?
A: I was fortunate in that I attended regional events and became friendly with our regional vice chair at that time. My regional leadership, then, tapped me for the succession plan and, once I got involved in the executive committee, I thought, “I’d really like to chair the organization. I think I can make a difference.”
Q: What do you think the impact is of your being just the fourth female chair in association history?
A: One thing about being a female in the industry is that you’re memorable. Literally, for the first 20 years of my career, I was typically the only female in the room in most meetings. People remember you.
I don’t know if that is impactful as ABC Chair, I just know that I have a platform and I want to do the best job I can—for ABC and everyone who works in this industry.
Q: What advice do you have for other women considering the trades?
A: Considering the workforce shortage we are facing, I’d like to showcase the great opportunities for women in this industry. In addition to the variety of career paths available and the excitement of being involved in the creation of great facilities, the pay gap is next to nothing. Women make 99.1% of what a man in the same job in construction does. So, I am interested in making opportunities more visible to females, as well as people of all backgrounds and ethnicities who have an interest in construction.
Q: Were you always interested in a career in construction?
A: As a kid, I was always a tomboy. My sister was playing with Barbies, and I was climbing trees, playing with Lincoln Logs and riding horses.
In high school, my original plan was to go to a liberal-arts school and study psychology, after which I would go to medical school and become a psychiatrist. A guidance counselor pulled me aside and said, “Hey, Stephanie, your strengths seem to be in the maths and sciences. Have you thought about engineering?”
Q: Did you love your engineering program immediately or did you have to fall in love with it over time?
A: I loved the architectural engineering courses and the construction management courses. I don’t think anybody loves some of the other physics, math and “weed-out” courses you have to take, but it’s important to get through those, because that’s when you can see the really cool stuff that you’re going to be studying. I enjoyed the program immensely.
Q: What sports did you play in high school?
A: I played point guard for the basketball team, ran track and played on the powderpuff football team, too. At 5’1”, I was small but mighty. I have a huge competitive nature, and I think that is what has driven me over the years.
Q: Do you find that a background of competition helps you in construction?
A: Our industry tends to be bid- and proposal-based. It’s not always about the numbers—it might depend on how well you put together a proposal to showcase your team’s strengths—and I get energized by that. It really gets your adrenaline going when you’re working with your team and you want to figure out how to win a project. And when we do land win a project, we always try to celebrate with our team.
Q: How do you approach landing a project?
A: I think it’s all about our collaborative internal process—getting our operations team, marketing and business development people and estimators involved to really dissect the project. It’s a huge team effort to build it in our heads and then figure out how to translate it into the best presentation or proposal.
Q: What do you like most about the work culture that you’ve created at Poole Anderson?
A: I’m most proud of the fact that anybody in our organization would do anything for anybody else. Everybody pitches in if they need to on something that may not be their job. Everybody has each other’s backs. We all get excited about winning work. We all get excited about finishing a great project. We all get excited about winning an award. Everyone has so much personal stake in our success. I think everybody has ownership of what they do here and gets great satisfaction from that.
Q: Has dealing with the pandemic over the last two years changed how you approach your roles—at both Poole Anderson and ABC?
A: The last two years have altered the way we look at life and do business in general. My real aha was when the pandemic first hit and none of us knew how to deal with any of it. When the governor of Pennsylvania shut down all construction, we had to deal with all that. This was the only state in the country that completely shut down construction as non-essential except for health care.
I always knew ABC was valuable, but seeing upfront what a huge resource ABC is to our industry and our members—helping to get all the facts straight, as well as put together safety and COVID-19 plans—solidified that for me.
Q: What do you bring to the table as chair that no one else does?
A: I bring a diverse professional background. I worked for a national construction company. I worked on the owner side for a large university. We grew from a small local general contractor to a regional construction company. So, I bring a perspective from across the various platforms of construction.
I’ve also been a female in a male-dominated field for over 35 years. I think that brings a unique perspective that there’s no one-size-fits-all for what we do at ABC. We have varying needs and varied chapters in various geographical areas that each contend with different issues or priorities. I have an understanding that it’s not just black or white, sometimes there are shades of gray.
Q: What are your main goals for 2022 as chair?
A: Based on a survey that our board members completed during the strategic planning process, the number-one objective was to stop the Protecting the Right to Organize Act from becoming law. To be successful in this, we need the credibility to fight that fight. One of my goals is to illustrate that participation in ABC programming (e.g., workforce programs, safety training programs, STEP, AQC) doesn’t only benefit you as a company and a member, but will provide ABC with the performance data we need to show that merit shop contractors are as safe and as well-trained as union workers.
It blows my mind that only 20% of our members participate in STEP. One major initiative this year is to get to 50% participation so that we can achieve 100% participation by 2027. But that’s not an easy lift; so, in addition to educating our members on the benefits of STEP, we have removed all national fees associated with STEP participation from this year’s budget.
In addition, much can be done to magnify our political advocacy efforts and, considering that this is an important election year, I want to focus on how we can do that. We’re the voice of the merit shop construction industry, and as the economic and political environments continue to change, we need to keep that voice heard.
The knowledge, passion and integrity amongst ABC members is powerful. My goal is to work hard to harness that power to execute our strategic objectives. By doing that, we can continue to change the industry and improve our companies. We can attract and educate a diverse workforce, change policy, become a leader in innovation and technology in construction and make sure our employees work safely and all go home at night.
Q: You’re chairing ABC, but do you feel attached to the industry as a whole?
A: I think the industry and the association are very close. ABC supports and is trying to make the industry better through its members. To me, they’re almost one and the same.
Construction marketing systems should help firms win the right work, not simply generate more bid invitations. A growth strategy becomes operational when it identifies desirable projects, assigns responsibility for pursuing them and tests whether the resulting backlog fits the company's people, finances and delivery capabilities.
That distinction matters in an uneven market. In the 2026 AGC-NCCER Workforce Survey, 42% of respondents reported project delays caused by shortages of their own workers or subcontractors' workers. Meanwhile, 55% reported having a non-data-center project canceled, postponed or scaled back during the previous six months. Contractors need a system that addresses both uncertain demand and constrained capacity.
WHAT CONSTRUCTION MARKETING SYSTEMS SHOULD CONTROL
A construction marketing system is a coordinated process for identifying target clients, demonstrating relevant capabilities, qualifying opportunities and tracking pursuits through award and completed-project performance. Its purpose is to connect business development with estimating, operations and financial planning so growth produces deliverable, profitable work.
The system includes technology, but software is not the starting point. Leadership first needs shared definitions of a qualified opportunity, an acceptable project and a successful outcome.
Marketing should own positioning, evidence and demand generation. Business development should own relationships and opportunity advancement. Estimating, operations and finance should determine whether the firm can price, staff and finance the proposed work. One executive should be accountable for resolving conflicts among those priorities.
DEFINE THE BACKLOG THE FIRM ACTUALLY WANTS
A useful growth strategy specifies the composition of future work before setting acquisition targets. Revenue alone does not describe whether that work fits the business.
Build a target-project profile around market sector, geography, contract size, delivery method, expected start period and required capabilities. Add commercial criteria: acceptable payment arrangements, customer concentration, margin expectations and exposure to unfamiliar contract terms.
Review completed jobs alongside current work-in-progress reports. Compare original estimated gross profit with the latest forecast or final result, using consistent accounting definitions. Examine which clients and project types consumed disproportionate estimating time, supervision or collection effort.
Use those findings to choose specific growth priorities. Expanding with existing owners, entering an adjacent geography and pursuing an unfamiliar building type are different decisions. Avoid treating them as interchangeable ways to reach the same revenue goal.
USE SECTOR DATA TO NARROW THE TARGET MARKET
National spending data should inform where to investigate demand, not substitute for a local opportunity assessment. Preliminary July 2026 construction spending reached a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $2.1576 trillion, down 3.8% from July 2025. Private nonresidential spending was down 3.3%, while public nonresidential spending was up 1.9%.
Figure 1. Total public and private spending by category, July 2026 against July 2025. A single national direction tells a contractor very little; the spread between manufacturing and power is what should drive a targeting decision.
The differences among sectors were substantial. The following figures cover total public and private construction in each category and compare July 2026 with July 2025.
Construction category
July 2026 annualized spending
Year-over-year change
Manufacturing
$169.8 billion
−21.2%
Power
$181.5 billion
+5.3%
Highway and street
$151.5 billion
+4.5%
Health care
$74.6 billion
−2.4%
Commercial
$122.5 billion
−4.9%
These are estimates of construction put in place, not new awards, available bid volume or inflation-adjusted growth. They are subject to revision. A contractor should therefore combine sector direction with named projects, owner capital plans and its own competitive position before changing market priorities.
Build the addressable market from projects the firm can realistically pursue. Exclude work outside its service area, licensing coverage, bonding capacity or relevant experience. Then identify which remaining owners have funded needs and a procurement path the company can enter.
For an adjacent market, authorize a defined validation effort before a broad campaign. Business development should establish buyer access, estimating should test scope familiarity and operations should verify the delivery model. Leadership can then decide whether to invest, partner or defer entry using evidence specific to the firm.
DISTINGUISH INDUSTRY SENTIMENT FROM REALIZED DEMAND
Expectations are useful context, but they are not sales forecasts. The early-year 2026 AGC-Sage outlook reported a positive net demand reading of 57 percentage points for data centers and 34 points for power, compared with negative 18 points for retail. Net readings subtract the share expecting a decrease from the share expecting an increase; they are not projected spending growth rates.
Figure 2. Net readings measure expectation, not money. A sector can post a strongly positive reading while local funding and procurement conditions move the other way.
The outlook surveyed 951 respondents in late 2025. Treat it as a dated planning signal and test assumptions against subsequent spending releases and direct owner conversations. Do not carry an attractive sector forecast into the next budget unchanged when local funding or procurement conditions have shifted.
TEST THE COMBINATION OF PROJECTS, NOT JUST EACH PURSUIT
A project can fit the target profile individually while creating an unacceptable workload when combined with other likely awards. Review prospective work by expected mobilization period, superintendent availability, critical trades and cash requirements.
Bonding also deserves an early check. Surety approval involves credit, capacity and character requirements; marketing interest does not establish bonding eligibility. Confirm project-specific and aggregate constraints with the firm's surety representative before making commitments.
Figure 3. Collapsing these into a single backlog figure is what allows a full-looking schedule to leave crews idle, or a comfortable-looking one to overcommit them.
Keep awarded backlog separate from unawarded pipeline. Within awarded work, distinguish projects with a confirmed start from those awaiting financing, permits or an owner's release. A signed contract and an immediately deployable job should not be treated as equivalent scheduling inputs.
The 2026 workforce survey found craft openings at 87% of responding firms and salaried openings at 82%. Among firms with the respective openings, 75% reported difficulty hiring superintendents and 72% reported difficulty hiring estimating personnel. Set pursuit and award targets against named resource constraints, not an assumption that hiring will automatically follow sales.
Ask operations to show the incremental supervisory load of likely awards. Ask estimating to distinguish hours available for new pursuits from hours committed to revisions, buyout support and existing-client requests. When either function is constrained, favor opportunities with stronger fit rather than requiring the same team to process every invitation.
MATCH MARKETING TO HOW THE BUYER SELECTS CONTRACTORS
Channel selection should follow the procurement path and the people involved in selection. Use the following framework to decide where to concentrate effort rather than applying the same campaign to every market.
Target work
Marketing emphasis
Evidence to prepare
Progress to track
Negotiated private construction
Named owner accounts, referrals and relevant sector content
Comparable projects, proposed personnel and preconstruction approach
Qualified owner meetings and authorized preconstruction opportunities
Publicly procured construction
Solicitation monitoring, required registrations and compliant submissions
Qualifications and documentation specified by the solicitation
Eligible pursuits and submission readiness
Specialty subcontracting
Relationships with selected general contractors and estimating teams
Scope-specific experience, coverage area and verified capacity
Invitations that fit scope, schedule and commercial criteria
Service and small-project work
Local visibility, clear service pages and responsive intake
Service capabilities, coverage boundaries and approved customer evidence
Qualified appointments and awarded work
Public procurement requires particular care. Where FAR 15.304 applies, solicitations must disclose evaluation factors and their relative importance. The provision addresses quality through non-cost factors and generally requires past-performance evaluation for negotiated competitive acquisitions above the applicable threshold, subject to exceptions. Follow the actual solicitation and applicable agency requirements; do not assume relationship strength substitutes for compliance.
For private work, map the owner, developer, owner's representative, facilities team and design participants where relevant. Record each person's role rather than labeling every contact a decision-maker. Tailor follow-up to the person's responsibilities and the project's stage.
GIVE EACH CHANNEL A SPECIFIC JOB
Assign channels to identifiable stages of the buying process. Use sector-focused website content to establish capability, targeted outreach to open relevant conversations and approved project evidence to support shortlist decisions. Use paid campaigns only where the audience, service area and next action can be defined clearly enough to evaluate the resulting opportunities.
For account-based business development, maintain a short list of priority organizations with a documented reason for inclusion. Record known facilities, anticipated capital needs, incumbent relationships and the next appropriate contact. An account without a credible need or access plan should not receive unlimited pursuit attention merely because it is a recognizable name.
For local service work, make intake operationally useful. Capture location, requested scope, urgency and whether the requester controls the property or procurement decision. Evaluate campaigns on suitable appointments and accepted work, while excluding employment applications, supplier solicitations and out-of-area inquiries.
The response standard: Measure elapsed time to a substantive response and whether the next step occurred. An automated acknowledgment should not be recorded as a completed qualification conversation.
BUILD ONE OPPORTUNITY RECORD FROM INQUIRY TO HANDOFF
A customer relationship management system should maintain a shared record of each pursuit, its status and its next decision. Start with a manageable set of required fields that people can keep accurate.
At minimum, record:
Client, project name, location and market sector
Estimated contract value, scope and delivery method
Procurement stage, proposal deadline and expected start window
Relationship owner, source of the opportunity and next action
Known funding status, decision participants and selection criteria
Qualification decision, unresolved risks and reason for closure
Separate organizations, contacts and projects. One owner may have multiple projects, while one project may generate invitations from several general contractors. Link those invitations to the underlying project so the same construction opportunity is not counted repeatedly in the forecast.
Define stages by observable events: identified, qualified, approved for pursuit, proposal submitted, selected pending contract and awarded. Track delayed, lost and declined opportunities separately. A salesperson's confidence is not an adequate stage definition.
Require a responsible person and dated next action for every active pursuit. Automation can flag stale records, missing information or an approaching deadline, but a person should verify changes in funding, schedule and selection status.
TRACK AWARD PROBABILITY AND START READINESS SEPARATELY
Winning a project and starting it in the planned period are different forecasting questions. In the 2026 workforce survey, 34% of respondents cited increasing costs and 27% cited unavailable or expensive financing as reasons for non-data-center project cancellations, postponements or reductions.
Figure 4. A single probability-weighted dollar total hides simultaneous start dates and shared external risks. Separating the two questions is what lets management see which jobs could move together.
Maintain separate fields for competitive position and project readiness. The readiness assessment should identify the status of financing, design, permits, site access and authorization to proceed. Mark unknown conditions as unknown rather than allowing a default probability to imply that someone verified them.
Use scenario reviews when several projects depend on the same external condition or compete for the same crew. A probability-weighted dollar total can conceal simultaneous start dates and shared risks. Show management which jobs could move together, which can be resequenced and which require a decision before additional pursuit spending.
KEEP THE CRM CONNECTED TO FINANCIAL RESULTS
Use a common project or opportunity identifier to connect the CRM, estimating records and job-cost system. At award, transfer relevant commitments, assumptions, exclusions and client expectations into a documented operations handoff.
After delivery, return final commercial results to the opportunity record. Include margin changes, payment experience and whether the client generated additional work. This creates an internal basis for deciding which markets and relationships deserve further investment.
PUT A GO/NO-GO DECISION BEFORE DETAILED ESTIMATING
Pursuit approval should protect estimating capacity and expose commercial concerns before the firm commits substantial effort. Establish explicit criteria rather than relying on the enthusiasm of the person who brought in the opportunity.
Figure 5. Revisit approval when scope, start date or commercial terms change materially. The gate is not a one-time formality at intake.
Review strategic fit, relevant experience, access to decision-makers, selection criteria, project readiness and available delivery resources. Finance should evaluate payment terms and projected cash needs. Operations should assess supervision, labor and subcontractor availability against other commitments.
Treat unresolved licensing, bonding, insurance and contractual requirements as escalation items. Do not allow a strong relationship score to average away a condition that could make the job unacceptable.
For each exception, name an approver and the evidence needed to proceed. If additional information resolves the concern, document it; if not, decline or limit the pursuit. Revisit approval when the scope, start date or commercial terms change materially.
Track why the firm declines work. Frequent declines for timing suggest a different problem from frequent declines for project type. That distinction should shape future campaigns and business development priorities.
Review losses with the same discipline. Separate price, qualifications, relationship access, scope misunderstanding and an owner's decision not to proceed. Where the buyer provides no explanation, label the reason unconfirmed rather than converting an internal assumption into a reporting fact.
Tie corrective action to the reason. A qualification weakness may call for better evidence or a different target sector. A pricing loss may require an estimating review rather than more advertising. A project that never received funding should inform readiness screening, not be counted as proof that the proposal team performed poorly.
CREATE EVIDENCE THAT SUPPORTS A BUYING DECISION
Marketing content should answer the questions an owner or general contractor needs resolved before shortlisting the firm. Organize the website and qualifications materials around actual capabilities, sectors and service areas.
Build project profiles that identify the contractor's role, scope, delivery method and relevant operating constraints. Explain the work performed and support outcome claims with approved records. Distinguish original milestones from revised schedules before describing a project as on time.
For sectors where the firm has documented experience, address specific execution concerns such as occupied-site phasing, shutdown coordination, site logistics or turnover documentation. Have project staff review technical explanations before publication.
Maintain a controlled library of approved project descriptions, personnel resumes, references and qualification documents. Assign an owner and review date to each item. Keep restricted financial, security and project information out of public-facing materials.
Match calls to action to buyer readiness. An early planning discussion, a prequalification request and a bid invitation need different intake paths. Route recruiting inquiries and vendor submissions separately so they do not inflate the sales pipeline.
USE OPERATING DATA TO MAKE DIFFERENTIATION CREDIBLE
Replace broad claims about reliability with approved measures that explain what the firm delivered. Possible measures include schedule performance against a defined baseline, estimate-to-award cost movement, punch-list completion and response time for assigned issues. Use only measures supported by project records and permitted for disclosure.
Define the comparison before publishing a percentage: State whether a schedule claim refers to original or revised completion dates, whether cost performance includes owner-directed scope changes and which projects are included. Do not combine materially different project types into a favorable average that obscures the underlying results.
Where a client cannot authorize public numbers, use a factual scope description and approved explanation of the execution approach. Detailed evidence of relevant capability is preferable to an unsupported performance claim. Retain the underlying approval and calculation so proposals, website copy and interviews remain consistent.
SET A BUDGET AROUND PURSUIT ECONOMICS
A construction marketing budget should make the cost of winning work visible. Separate foundational spending, such as website maintenance and CRM administration, from account development, paid campaigns and pursuit-specific costs.
Include internal labor when evaluating acquisition effort. Executive meetings, estimating hours, proposal preparation and site visits consume resources even when no external invoice arrives. Keep the accounting treatment consistent so comparisons remain useful.
Figure 6. Calculate the win rate from comparable, decided pursuits, keep it distinct from a count-based rate, separate canceled projects from competitive losses, and test how the result changes when unusually large awards are removed.
Use the firm's own history to work backward from its award objective:
Required qualified pursuit value = target new award value ÷ historical dollar-weighted win rate.
This is a planning relationship, not an industry benchmark. Calculate the win rate from comparable, decided pursuits and distinguish it from a count-based win rate. Separate canceled projects from competitive losses and test how results change when unusually large awards are removed.
Then test whether the estimating team can support that pursuit volume and whether operations can deliver the likely awards. If either constraint fails, reconsider project selection, conversion performance or the growth target before increasing lead-generation spending.
EVALUATE THE COST OF A WIN AGAINST THE PROFIT IT CAN SUPPORT
Gross contract value should not be the only denominator for acquisition decisions. Compare acquisition and pursuit cost with expected job gross profit, then reconcile the result as the job develops. Keep gross profit distinct from company net income because overhead, financing and other expenses still need to be covered.
Calculate both external campaign cost and fully loaded pursuit cost. The first helps a marketing manager evaluate advertising or vendor performance; the second helps leadership assess the complete investment required to win work. Neither should be presented as the other.
Track incremental estimating hours alongside cash spending during a campaign test. If inquiries rise while qualified opportunities remain flat, pause expansion and correct targeting. If qualified opportunities increase but proposal turnaround deteriorates, the next investment may belong in pursuit capacity or qualification discipline rather than another channel.
Set the test budget, evaluation period and stop conditions before launch. Use the firm's historical buying cycle and current capacity to choose the review period, not a universal promise that construction marketing should produce awards within a fixed number of days.
MEASURE THE PATH TO PROFITABLE WORK
An executive dashboard should connect acquisition activity to qualification, award and delivery results. Review performance by market segment and opportunity source rather than relying on one companywide average.
Use a compact set of measures:
Qualified-opportunity rate: Qualified opportunities divided by reviewed inquiries, with a consistent qualification definition
Pursuit win rate: Wins divided by wins plus competitive losses, measured separately by count and dollar value
Acquisition and pursuit cost: Allocated marketing, business development and estimating costs associated with the evaluated group of opportunities
Expected gross profit at award: Estimated contract revenue less estimated direct job costs under the firm's accounting policy
Margin movement: Change from gross profit expected at award to the latest forecast or final result
Start-date movement: Changes in expected mobilization dates and the resulting effect on workload
Compare opportunities that entered the pipeline during the same period and have had sufficient time to reach a decision. Dividing this month's marketing expense by this month's awards can obscure the earlier work that produced those awards.
Record the original opportunity source, important subsequent interactions and the client's explanation of how the firm entered consideration. Avoid presenting attribution as proof that one touchpoint caused the award.
For paid search, Google Ads supports qualified-lead and converted-lead goals using offline conversion information. Where applicable, connect verified qualification events to campaign measurement instead of counting every form submission as equal. Retain the CRM's longer-term commercial record independently of advertising-platform reporting.
CONTROL FOR SMALL SAMPLES AND CHANGING PROJECT MIX
Always display the number and value of decided pursuits beside a win-rate percentage. A result dominated by a single large contract is not a stable basis for setting companywide conversion assumptions. Compare like-for-like segments and flag periods with too few outcomes for a dependable conclusion.
Review median time between meaningful stages as well as total sales-cycle length. Separate time spent awaiting an owner decision from time spent inside the contractor's process. That distinction identifies whether the next improvement belongs in follow-up, qualification, proposal production or market selection.
Track revenue, gross profit and outstanding receivables by client group to assess concentration. Repeat business is worth developing, but a strong repeat-client share should not conceal dependence on one owner or one capital program. Use account-development planning to build alternatives before that dependence becomes urgent.
DEVELOP EXISTING CLIENTS WITHOUT LOSING COMMERCIAL DISCIPLINE
Existing-client growth should have an explicit account plan rather than depend on an informal expectation of another invitation. Assign responsibility for post-project conversations, upcoming facility needs and unresolved service issues. Connect relationship development to project delivery so the client is not receiving promotional outreach while closeout problems remain unanswered.
Use the completed-job review to identify which capabilities the client valued and which concerns need correction. Record additional sites, future phases and appropriate introductions only when they are confirmed. Distinguish an expressed future need from an authorized project in the pipeline.
Include payment experience and scope administration in the account review. A client producing frequent awards may still require disproportionate collection effort or repeated commercial exceptions. Growth decisions should reflect the total relationship, not only the ease of obtaining the next meeting.
Give operations a formal route to recommend expansion, corrective action or reduced exposure. Marketing can prepare the evidence and business development can manage the conversation, but neither should override unresolved delivery or financial concerns to preserve a favorable sales report.
ESTABLISH GOVERNANCE BEFORE EXPANDING AUTOMATION
Marketing governance should define who may publish claims, access prospect data and approve outbound communications. Assign review responsibility for safety statements, technical descriptions, contract-related promises and client permissions.
Commercial email requirements also apply to business-to-business messages. The FTC's CAN-SPAM guidance addresses accurate sender information, nondeceptive subject lines, advertising identification, a valid postal address and an opt-out mechanism. Opt-out requests must be honored within 10 business days.
Synchronize suppression records across the CRM and email platform, including campaigns handled by an agency. Separate commercial outreach from project correspondence and review mixed-purpose messages appropriately.
If AI tools are used to draft qualifications or summarize notes, require review against approved source records. Do not allow generated text to invent project experience, client endorsements or performance outcomes. Review vendor data-handling terms before entering confidential owner, employee or project information.
The early-year 2026 outlook reported that 45% of respondents used AI for office and administrative functions, 23% for estimating and 20% for design or preconstruction. These adoption figures do not establish an improvement in marketing return or proposal accuracy. Evaluate any proposed automation against a defined internal task and a reviewed baseline.
Begin with controlled activities such as organizing approved project descriptions or identifying incomplete CRM fields. Measure time saved after review, correction effort and whether source references remain traceable. Retain human approval for qualifications, pricing commitments and external representations of capacity.
IMPLEMENT THE SYSTEM IN A CONTROLLED FIRST QUARTER
The first quarter should establish a usable operating process and test it in a defined segment. The following is a proposed implementation sequence, not a promised time to revenue.
First month: establish the baseline. Review recent pursuits and project results, define the target-project profile and agree on qualification criteria. Assign system ownership and clean active opportunity records.
Second month: connect the workflow. Implement stages, required fields, go/no-go review and award handoff. Prepare approved evidence for the selected segment and correct website intake problems.
Third month: test and adjust. Run a focused account-development or acquisition effort. Review inquiry quality, qualification decisions, pursuit workload and forecast start dates together. Change targeting when unsuitable work dominates; improve follow-up when suitable opportunities stall.
Hold a short weekly pursuit review and a monthly executive review of pipeline, capacity and commercial results. Maintain longer-term relationship development even when near-term delivery capacity is full, while making availability clear.
As the system matures, completed-project results should change the next targeting decision. That feedback is what allows a construction firm to pursue a more valuable mix of work instead of repeatedly buying access to the same unsuitable opportunities.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Does a small contractor need a dedicated CRM?
A shared spreadsheet can support a limited pipeline if ownership, stages and follow-up dates remain clear. Consider a CRM when multiple people manage relationships, project records are duplicated or missed handoffs make the current process unreliable.
Should marketing be managed internally or outsourced?
Keep target-market decisions, qualification authority and project-claim approval inside the firm. Outside specialists can support research, content, advertising and system administration. Assign an internal owner who can connect that work to estimating and operations.
How should a firm market when its backlog is full?
Concentrate on future start windows, existing-client relationships and selective replacement opportunities. Communicate realistic availability. Avoid promoting immediate capacity unless operations confirms it exists.
How should contractors handle projects with multiple bid invitations?
Create one underlying project record with separate linked pursuits for each inviting contractor. Track each relationship and submission, but avoid adding every invitation's full value to the project-level demand forecast.
When should a firm stop funding a marketing channel?
Set review criteria before launch: target-account fit, qualified opportunities, pursuit progression and acceptable acquisition cost. Review after enough of the relevant buying cycle has elapsed. Diagnose weak targeting and poor internal follow-up separately before deciding whether the channel is unsuitable.
Sources
Associated General Contractors of America and NCCER, 2026 Workforce Survey Analysis, 2026. agc.org
U.S. Census Bureau, Monthly Construction Spending, July 2026, Sept. 1, 2026, release CB26-140, Table 1. Preliminary July estimates; the linked release is a rolling publication. census.gov
Associated General Contractors of America and Sage, Dampened Expectations: The 2026 Construction Hiring and Business Outlook, 2026. Survey conducted Nov. 4 to Dec. 15, 2025. agc.org
U.S. Small Business Administration, Surety Bonds, accessed September 2026. sba.gov
Acquisition.gov, FAR 15.304: Evaluation Factors and Significant Subfactors, current page accessed September 2026. acquisition.gov
Google Ads Help, About Qualified Leads and Converted Leads, accessed September 2026. support.google.com
Federal Trade Commission, CAN-SPAM Act: A Compliance Guide for Business, accessed September 2026. ftc.gov
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