Think...

The Q4-2024 Newsletter from ATLAS consultants llc

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Happy Holidays & the Best of Luck in the New Year!

I suppose it's better late than never. The Q4-2024 newsletter is released in the nick of time, as 2024 winds down.

It's the Winter Solstice, and a bit of snow this week has reminded us that it's a Chicago Winter. Accepting this reality, I decided to delve into the origins of Chicago's nickname, the Windy City. Many believe it comes from either the verbose politicians who were full of hot air or the cold winds that blow through the city's streets in winter. Having had enough of politics this year, I prefer Carl Sandburg's poetic interpretation of the nickname.

The Windy City

Winds of the Windy City, come out of the prairie,

all the way from Medicine Hat.

Come-out of the inland sea-blue water, come where they nickname a city for you.

Corn wind in the fall, come off the black lands,

come off the whisper of the silk hangers,

the lap of the flat spear leaves.

Blue-water wind in summer, come off the blue miles of lake,

carry your inland sea-blue fingers,

carry us cool, carry your blue to our homes.

White spring winds, come off the bag-wool clouds,

come off the running melted snow, come white

as the arms of snow-born children.

Gray fighting winter winds, come along on the tearing blizzard tails, the snouts of the hungry

hunting storms, come fighting gray in winter.

Winds of the Windy City,

Winds of corn and sea blue,

Spring wind white and fighting winter gray,

Come home here—they nickname a city for you.

The wind of the lake shore waits and wanders.

The heave of the shore wind hunches the sand piles.

The winkers of the morning stars count out cities

And forget the numbers.

Up to this point, the "gray fighting winter winds" haven't been too fierce, but I’m certain the hawk is on its way! Apart from the cold and snow, this season invites reflection, so I thought I would look back a bit. I officially launched ATLAS Consultants in December 2022, marking this month as the two-year anniversary of ATLAS. Reflecting on my initial two years in an "advisory" role, I can unequivocally say it differs from "being in the ring." Whether that was building, or simply doing. But even with that difference I often found myself in a familiar role coaching, collaborating on business or project strategies with my clients, and in a small way becoming part of their team.

Therefore, I'd like to express my "thank you" once more to my clients for their trust and the opportunities they've extended to ATLAS consultants. I'm looking forward to the new year, and new opportunities to provide seasoned guidance.

If you're interested in connecting, either for a specific reason or just to learn more about ATLAS, feel free to get in touch. I'm available for a call or an in-person meeting. The best way to reach me initially is by emailing me at gmulac@atlasguidance.com or visiting the website www.atlasguidance.com.

In addition to the newsletter, ATLAS consultants llc can be found on LinkedIn. Please visit the website and subscribe to the Think... quarterly newsletter.

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This marks the fifth edition of the quarterly ATLAS newsletter, inspired by the Think.. section of the ATLAS website. The term think was deliberately chosen for the page title. In my experience, the ability to engage in critical thinking is often obstructed by numerous competing demands. Without the chance to truly think and understand an issue, we tend to fall back on default positions. Although these default reactions are typically rooted in experience, or a particular experience, and they may not be "wrong", but they could cause us to overlook opportunities for greater benefits. I discussed this briefly in a blog post from February 2023 ("Seasoned, Learning from Lessons Lived"). Thus, the newsletter aims to explore a topic from various perspectives, provide observations, recommendations, and opinions, and hopefully inspire us to Think. 

In the Q4-2024 Newsletter, I decided to do some reflection. The focus of the Q4-2024 newsletter is on the Big Three: Quality, Budget & Schedule. These were all topics of the 2024 Think... newsletters and I will highlight the Top Three recommendations for each of the Big Three.

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The Big Three: Quality, Budget & Schedule

Quality:

In the Q1-2024 Newsletter I used the old Levis slogan "Quality never goes out of style." as the opening line. Over the decades all industries pursued, and continue to pursue, quality to the extent it benefits the customer and their bottom line. Here's the top three for Quality in the Design + Construction Industry:

• Develop, and maintain a culture of Quality

  • Engage the Project Team; align and define roles, responsibilities and accountability

• Customer Focus

  • Determine value from the customer's perspective

• Identify Definable Features of the Work

  • Clarify and secure Project Team agreement on expectations. Identify and evaluate each component of the project.

Budget / Cost:

The Q2-2024 Newsletter spent some time on the Estimate. The starting point of any budget discussion, this newsletter discussed a number of topics, within the topic. Here's the top three for Budget / Cost:

• Benefit from the team you assembled

  • Engage the Project Team; align and define roles, responsibilities and accountability

• Understand the Estimate

  • Go beyond the Grand Total in the bottom right-hand corner; understand the stage of design,the estimate's relative accuracy, and its assumptions and clarifications.

• Develop, and maintain a Risk Matrix

  • Identify the challenges, develop the countermeasures; define contingencies, do the work up front.

Schedule:

The Q3-2024 Newsletter's topic was the Schedule. The discussion in this newsletter was largely from the Owner's perspective in setting up a project. Here's the top three for the Schedule:

• Get after it early

  • Develop and execute a site / existing conditions investigation workstream and coordinate those efforts with the development of the design.

• Define your Procurement Strategy

  • Spend time to develop and incorporate your procurement strategy into the Master Schedule.

• Understand your "end-game"

  • Define your Occupancy Plan early; develop contingencies.

Please take a look at the earlier posts as they detail out these recommendations and others. In closing, you'll find that there are a number of common verbs in all of the Big Three: define, align, develop, maintain, and you'll see that it all boils down to one word, yes, you guessed it.

Think...

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Coming next time....."TBD"

For the Q1-2025 Newsletter, I decided to change things up a little. Please consider this a general invitation for all readers to submit any topics you would like us to cover, or let me know if you are interested in contributing to the newsletter.

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Current work

As we wrap up 2024, here's a quick update:

• Fifty percent of the fabricated parts for a major Fine Art installation have been delivered. Stone fabrication is nearing completion, and the installation is approaching the halfway mark. ATLAS is still collaborating with Quarra Stone Company on a retained basis. ATLAS worked with the Quarra team to establish the contract framework, commercial terms, and service procurement. Due to the project's Non-Disclosure Agreement, I am unable to share any details at this moment.

• ATLAS is presently engaged in providing advisory services in risk mitigation, functional effectiveness, value management, procurement, and expert opinion and testimony.

• ATLAS' present clientele consists of Builders, Fabricators, Specialty Contractors, and Owners, all actively engaged in the Design + Construction Industry.

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