Construction Hot Takes

When a company invests in a major technology transformation, buys the new system, and spends the money, but nothing actually changes, the problem may never have been the software at all. More often than not, the real issue is people or process, and the company ended up changing the wrong thing.

In this episode of Construction Hot Takes, Adam Cooper, Greg Gorman, and Jeff Robertson react to Greg's recent LinkedIn post on what it really takes to transform a business, along with the thoughtful comments it sparked. The conversation centers on a simple idea: transformation is rarely about one thing. It is the work of untangling people, processes, and technology that have drifted out of alignment over time, and a change to any one of them ripples through the rest of the organization.

The hosts talk through why transformation is never really finished, what companies like Kodak and Nokia teach us about the cost of standing still, and why so many software rollouts fail even when the implementation itself goes smoothly. They also break down the three camps you'll find in almost every company (the early adopters, the fence sitters, and the resistors) and explain why choosing the right champions early can make or break a change effort.

Later in the episode, they respond to a listener who challenges the premise entirely, arguing that transformation should start with what the organization is trying to achieve. They also discuss how workarounds and homegrown tools quietly become the real process when nobody designs it on purpose. As one of the hosts puts it, your system works exactly the way it was designed, whether you meant it to or not, so it pays to turn the light on before you start moving the furniture.

To gear up for Procore Groundbreak, we pulled every Procore conversation from Construction Hot Takes into one video: whether Procore is right for your company, how to get value after you buy it, the integration headaches we see with real clients, and where the market is going.

These are clips from past episodes. If one grabs your attention, the full episode is linked below.

Chapters:
00:00 – Intro: The Procore Supercut
00:23 – Is Procore Right for Your Company? (Ep. 3)
10:05 – So You Bought Procore. Now What? (Ep. 11)
15:40 – New Software Gone Wrong: An E-Signature Integration Story (Ep. 46)
17:45 – Procore, Sage & Kojo: When the Data Won't Flow (Ep. 46)
22:15 – Mapping Your Data Flow Before You Pick an ERP (Ep. 46)
23:25 – Can AI Fix AP Invoice Matching? (Ep. 46)
28:15 – Best in Class vs. Best in Breed (Ep. 46)
29:05 – New Construction Tech and Procore's Place in the Market (Ep. 46)
33:00 – Wrap-Up

Full episodes in this supercut:
Ep. 3 – The Truth About Procore:   • The Truth About Procore: Is It Right for Y... 
Ep. 11 – So You Bought Procore—Now What?:    • So You Bought Procore for Your Constructio... 
Ep. 46 – New Software Gone Wrong:    • New Software Gone Wrong: Construction's Bi... 
Procore playlist:    • Procore Insights 

Procore Isn't Broken, It's Just Not Built Around You Yet: https://blog.ascentconsults.com/proco...
Build a business that runs without you: https://ascentconsults.com/build-it-b...
Check out all the Construction Hot Takes episodes on the Ascent website!: https://ascentconsults.com/constructi...

Follow Ascent Consulting on:
LinkedIn:   / ascent-consulting-inc- 
Facebook:   / ascentconsult 
Instagram:   / ascentconsults 

Follow the Construction Hot Takes Podcast on:
Facebook: https://www/facebook.com/constructionhottakes/
Instagram:   / constructionhottakespodcast 
TikTok:   / construction.hottakes   

Is buyout just a nicer word for shorting your subs? Sometimes, but it doesn’t have to be. Buying the work competitively is the job, and it crosses a line when a GC takes a project without enough money in it and pushes the shortfall down to the trades. If you are a subcontractor who has watched a buyout call land on your margin, or a project manager handed a fee that you cannot see a path to, this is the conversation both sides usually have separately. 
In this episode, Greg Gorman, Adam Cooper, and Jeff Robertson react to the comments a clip on bidding drew, take the sub's side and the GC's side honestly, and get into contingency, scope, and why the worst job on your books is often the one you won and should not have. 
Here is the TikTok video source for the comments: 
‘Buyout and the Subs’: https://www.tiktok.com/@construction.hottakes/video/7664578504482163981
Build a business that runs without you: https://ascentconsults.com/build-it-better-ebook/ 
Chapters: 
00:00 - Introduction & General Conditions Budgeting
01:46 - Reading Online Comments on Buyout Strategies
03:12 - Strategic Budgeting & Subcontractor Margins
06:50 - Market Dynamics & Sustainable Bidding Practices 
03:26 - Closing Remarks & Producer Summary
 
Markup and Margin: The Math Matters: https://blog.ascentconsults.com/markup-and-margin 
For strategic business planning and margin discipline: https://ascentconsults.com/strategic-business-planning/ 
 
Greg Gorman:https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregory-gorman-hern%C3%A1ndez-mba-115ba34// 
Adam Cooper: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adamcooper/ 
Jeff Robertson: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffrobertson72/ 
Check out all the Construction Hot Takes episodes on the Ascent website!: https://ascentconsults.com/construction-hot-takes-podcast/ 
 
Follow Ascent Consulting on: 
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ascent-consulting-inc-/ 
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ascentconsult 
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ascentconsults/ 
 
Follow the Construction Hot Takes Podcast on: 
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/constructionhottakespodcast/ 
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@construction.hottakes 
#Construction #Preconstruction #Subcontractors 

How do you lose $25 million on one job? By building exactly to the construction spec while a second engineering spec, signed off by your own leadership, sat unread until the systems were turned on. If you run design-build work, sit between an engineering department and an estimating department, or have ever assumed someone upstream read the owner's performance criteria, this is the failure that nobody catches on a walkthrough.

In this episode, Adam Cooper walks through the job with Greg Gorman and Jeff Robertson, answers the comments it drew, including whether submittals should have caught it and whether the estimator deserves the blame, and gets into what it actually cost the people involved.

Here is the TikTok video source for the comments:
‘$25M Spec Miss’: https://www.tiktok.com/@construction.hottakes/video/7657698121111129358 

Build a business that runs without you: https://ascentconsults.com/build-it-better-ebook/

Chapters:

00:00 – Cold Open and Episode Introduction
00:24 – The Specification Mistake That Cost $25 Million
02:02 – How Did the Error Escape the Submittal Process?
04:33 – Why Didn’t the Owner Catch It Earlier?
05:47 – Was It Really the Estimator’s Fault?

5 Reasons Construction Projects Fail: https://blog.ascentconsults.com/5-reasons-construction-projects-fail
For operational assessments and process review: https://ascentconsults.com/ops_assessment/

Adam Cooper: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adamcooper/
Greg Gorman: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregory-gorman-hern%C3%A1ndez-mba-115ba34/
Jeff Robertson: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffrobertson72/
Check out all the Construction Hot Takes episodes on the Ascent website!: https://ascentconsults.com/construction-hot-takes-podcast/

Follow Ascent Consulting on:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ascent-consulting-inc-/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ascentconsult
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ascentconsults/

Follow the Construction Hot Takes Podcast on:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/constructionhottakespodcast/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@construction.hottakes
#Construction #DesignBuild #ConstructionManagement 

Will AI replace the superintendent who won't use it? Not completely, but it could help your most experienced employees perform better and share their knowledge. A superintendent who knows how to build keeps the job. The one who also uses these tools gets better information can make the same calls sooner.
If you run the field and have been told AI is coming for the trailer, or you are deciding whether to put these tools in front of your supers at all, the hosts do not agree with each other here and that is the useful part. In this episode, Greg Gorman, Adam Cooper, and Jeff Robertson work through this issue, sort out where the tools genuinely help when expert judgment does not transfer, and get into what happens to institutional knowledge as the most experienced people age out.

Here is the LinkedIn video source for the comments:
‘AI and the Superintendent’: https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7483899974649409536/

Build a business that runs without you: https://ascentconsults.com/build-it-better-ebook/

Chapters:
00:00 – Cold Open and Episode Introduction
00:45 – Will AI-Savvy Superintendents Replace Those Who Aren’t?
02:54 – Balancing Human Expertise and AI
07:50 – Judgment, Paperwork, and Better Decisions
11:39 – Agentic AI vs. Basic Automation

Procore Isn't Broken, It's Just Not Built Around You Yet: https://blog.ascentconsults.com/procore-isnt-broken-its-just-not-built-around-you-yet
For AI in construction, in firms with clean data and disciplined process: https://ascentconsults.com/ai-for-construction-companies/

Greg Gorman: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregory-gorman-hern%C3%A1ndez-mba-115ba34/
Adam Cooper: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adamcooper/
Jeff Robertson: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffrobertson72/
Check out all the Construction Hot Takes episodes on the Ascent website!: https://ascentconsults.com/construction-hot-takes-podcast/

Follow Ascent Consulting on:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ascent-consulting-inc-/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ascentconsult
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ascentconsults/

Follow the Construction Hot Takes Podcast on:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/constructionhottakespodcast/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@construction.hottakes 
#Construction #AIinConstruction #Superintendents 

You can feel the money moving. You can't tell if any single job is making it. In this episode, Greg Gorman breaks down job cost management and why hidden jobs that quietly bleed can still occur in a profitable company. Plus the three fundamentals that make job costing work and why you can still save a job at 40 to 50 percent complete (but rarely at 75).

Chapters:
00:00 - Why job cost management is a top priority
02:13 - How does company profit hide a bleeding job?
03:45 - What actually counts as a job cost?
09:54 - The three fundamentals of job costing
15:51 - How do you catch profit fade in time?
19:42 - Why acting at 40-50% beats a locked-in loss

For fractional CFO support: https://ascentconsults.com/fractional-cfo/
The operator's playbook for scaling construction: https://ascentconsults.com/build-it-better-ebook/

Greg Gorman: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregory-gorman-mba-115ba34/

Check out all the Construction Hot Takes episodes on the Ascent website! https://ascentconsults.com/construction-hot-takes-podcast/

Follow Ascent Consulting on:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ascent-consulting-inc-/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ascentconsult
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ascentconsults/

Follow the Construction Hot Takes Podcast on:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/constructionhottakespodcast/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@construction.hottakes
#Construction #JobCosting #ConstructionFinance

In this episode, Adam Cooper and Jeff Robertson break down how contractors go from siloed systems to one source of truth for their data, why Procore is built for projects (not company management), and the three ways to actually connect your stack. Including: Off-the-shelf connectors, custom middleware, and a data lake, plus where AI is heading over the next 12 to 24 months.
Chapters:
00:00 - The 300-job treasure hunt
03:35 - Why don't your systems talk to each other?
05:54 - What is a data lake, really?
08:03 - Connectors vs. custom middleware
16:08 - Where is AI taking system integration?
19:33 - How contractors end up with a messy tech stack

See if your data's ready for AI: https://ascentconsults.com/get-your-ai-score-card
A helping hand with AI in construction: https://ascentconsults.com/ai-for-construction-companies/

Adam Cooper: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adamcooper/
Jeff Robertson: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffrobertson72/

Check out all the Construction Hot Takes episodes on the Ascent website! https://ascentconsults.com/construction-hot-takes-podcast/

Follow Ascent Consulting on:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ascent-consulting-inc-/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ascentconsult
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ascentconsults/

Follow the Construction Hot Takes Podcast on:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/constructionhottakespodcast/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@construction.hottakes
This week, try to build one company-level view of your active jobs. Where it breaks is where your systems aren't connected.
#Construction #ConstructionTech #ConstructionAI

Holding your hot takes to the fire in this episode, Adam Cooper, Jeff Robertson, and Greg Gorman take on what our audience actually posted: Do we even need general contractors? Does safety paperwork do anything? Does one platform really fix the chaos? Plus the E-Myth, GCs with skin in the game, one big job versus ten small ones, and whether LEED earns its cost.

Chapters:
00:00 - We went ‘viral’ on TikTok
01:18 - Should you pay yourself first?
03:57 - Do we even need general contractors?
12:39 - Does safety paperwork actually do anything?
19:28 - How do GCs lose money on a bid?
25:41 - Can you really force a jobsite to be safe?
31:17 - One platform for everything, and is LEED worth it?

For operational design and process help: https://ascentconsults.com/operational-design/
The operator's playbook for scaling construction: https://ascentconsults.com/build-it-better-ebook/

Adam Cooper: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adamcooper/
Jeff Robertson: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffrobertson72/
Greg Gorman: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregory-gorman-mba-115ba34/

Check out all the Construction Hot Takes episodes on the Ascent website! https://ascentconsults.com/construction-hot-takes-podcast/

Follow Ascent Consulting on:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ascent-consulting-inc-/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ascentconsult
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ascentconsults/

Follow the Construction Hot Takes Podcast on:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/constructionhottakespodcast/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@construction.hottakes
Drop the take you disagree with in the comments. The sharpest ones become a future mailbag episode.
#Construction #GeneralContractor #ConstructionManagement

In this episode, Greg Gorman and Jeff Robertson breaks down the key differences between a CFO and a Controller, why so many growing construction companies hire without clear expectations, and how defining the right role can lead to better financial decisions and long-term growth.

Chapters:
00:00 - Pre-Show Banter & Studio Setup
01:50 - Trending LinkedIn Discussion
05:43 - CFO vs. Controller Roles Defined
10:03 - Financial Strategy & Risk Management
17:27 - Audience Insights & LinkedIn Feedback

Check out our whole catalog of Construction Hot Takes episodes on our website! https://ascentconsults.com/construction-hot-takes-podcast/

Interested in learning how Ascent's consulting services could potentially help improve your business's operations? 📈
Click here to schedule a free 30-minute consultation with one of our expert construction consultants: https://info.ascentconsults.com/meetings/acooper/30-minute-performance-consultation

Follow Ascent Consulting on social media! 🤳
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ascent-consulting-inc-/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ascentconsult/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ascentconsults/
X: https://x.com/ascentconsults/

Subscribe to our YouTube channel for alerts on our new episodes!
https://www.youtube.com/@constructionhottakes

In this episode, Jeff Robertson and Adam Cooper uncover why adding more software and even AI won't solve your biggest operational problems. If your systems don't communicate, your data is scattered, and your team is stuck entering the same information multiple times. Learn why integration matters, what AI can and can't do, and how Ascent Consulting helps construction companies evaluate, simplify, and integrate your technology stack to improve efficiency and support long-term growth.

Chapters:
00:00 - Introduction and Studio Set Discussion
00:17 - The Problem with Fragmented Tech Stacks
02:57 - Client Case Study & Custom Middleware Solutions
13:51 - Automation vs. Artificial Intelligence (AI)
24:33 - The Future of APIs, AI Agents, and Outro

Check out our whole catalog of Construction Hot Takes episodes on our website! https://ascentconsults.com/construction-hot-takes-podcast/

Interested in learning how Ascent's consulting services could potentially help improve your business's operations? 📈
Click here to schedule a free 30-minute consultation with one of our expert construction consultants: https://info.ascentconsults.com/meetings/acooper/30-minute-performance-consultation

Follow Ascent Consulting on social media! 🤳
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ascent-consulting-inc-/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ascentconsult/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ascentconsults/
X: https://x.com/ascentconsults/

Subscribe to our YouTube channel for alerts on our new episodes!
https://www.youtube.com/@constructionhottakes