Elevate Construction

Jason records from the car with his daughter Effie Lee Schroeder and Brandon Montero on the way to a boot camp, and they tackle a topic that hits home for nearly every leader: creating capacity in your personal life so you can keep showing up at your best. They reflect on people Jason and Brandon both know who started powerful improvement efforts but stalled out under overburden. They share what each of them does to recharge, why delegation only works when paired with real training, and why protecting buffer time isn't a luxury, it's the only way to live remarkably.

What you'll learn in this episode:

• Why turbulence calls for slowing down, not speeding up

• The hidden cost of holding onto work you should be delegating

• How morning runs, meditation, ukulele, and refinishing furniture all serve the same purpose

• Why Kingman's formula applies to your life: cycle time plus variation plus utilization

• The right delegation question: can they do it, or should they do it after I train them

You can't help people if you don't have the help you need. Build the buffer first, and the remarkable work follows.

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free, and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw

Jason continues recording from his hotel in Mexico and takes on the short interval scheduling responsibilities of foremen and assistant superintendents. He walks through the history from 1965 push CPM lookaheads, through the last planner system with weekly work plans and percent plan complete, all the way to today's gap where many new foremen and supers can't even create a three week schedule themselves. He lays out the good, better, and best progression and lands on Takt control as the highest expression of short interval execution, where standard work steps inside each Takt wagon get refined cycle after cycle.

What you'll learn in this episode:

• Why every superintendent and foreman must be able to build a Gantt chart in Excel at minimum

• The history of short interval planning from CPM lookaheads to last planner to Takt control

• Good, better, best: super made lookaheads, last planner pull plans, then Takt control

• Why Takt control targets 100 percent completion of work steps inside each Takt wagon, not just 80 percent PPC

• How standard work sequences inside cycle times let foremen perfect a plan instead of inventing a new one each week

If every week is a fresh round of chaos, the system is broken. Standardize the cycle, control the Takt, and let the work get better every time around.

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free, and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw

Jason records from a hotel room in Guadalajara, Mexico, before delivering a Takt training at LCI Mexico, and tackles one of the biggest reasons projects say Takt planning didn't work for them: the rigid five day Takt time locked between Monday and Saturday. He walks through when a five day Takt is the right call (early conceptual and schematic design schedules), when it stops working (during optimization and execution), and why locking yourself into the week prevents eating into buffers when interruptions hit. The episode is a direct invitation to open up to other Takt times and to let the phase shift by a day or two when reality calls for it.

What you'll learn in this episode:

• When a five day Takt with weekend buffers is the right tool: conceptual and schematic design

• The 20 percent gap between bid duration and actual duration that macro level Takt planning closes to about five percent

• Why locking into Monday through Saturday prevents real optimization with Little's law

• How over packing Takt wagons turns Takt planning into push planning the moment something delays

• Why shifting a phase by one, two, or three days to eat into buffers is the right response to interruption

Don't lock the calendar to the calendar. Let the math, the optimization, and the buffers do their job.

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free, and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw

Jason coins the Jack in the Box Effect to describe what happens when leadership teams implement strategic decisions in a silo and accidentally trigger the opposite of what they wanted. He shares the story of being asked to back up two car lengths at a Jack in the Box drive thru so the timer would reset, then maps that exact pattern onto leadership teams that issue safety policies, performance metrics, and other initiatives without ever asking the field for input. The episode is a direct challenge to stop armchair managing culture and start including the people who actually have to live with the decisions.

What you'll learn in this episode:

• What the Jack in the Box Effect is and why it punishes the customer to protect the timer

• Why culture eats strategy and you can't enforce a culture you don't live in

• The trap of grading people on outcomes they have no influence or control over

• Why every decision affecting the field must be vetted with feedback from the field

• The Petticoat-Schmitt model: leaders on every consult, every site visit, every boot camp

If Congress wouldn't pass laws they're exempt from, leadership shouldn't either. Total participation isn't a buzzword. It's the antidote to the Jack in the Box Effect.

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free, and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw

Jason records a short, enthusiastic podcast from the road about Miro and how it's transformed the way he coaches, consults, and runs Elevate Construction. He traces his journey from using Mural during Felipe Engineer-Manriquez's Scrum course to discovering Miro through Niklas Modig's work, and how it's now the visual backbone of every client coaching board, podcast outline, and church service project. He also makes the case that Miro belongs all over a construction site: scrum boards, last planner pull plans, weekly work plans, daily huddles, and team meetings.

What you'll learn in this episode:

• Why visual collaboration tools like Miro change how clients retain information and stay engaged

• How using Miro live with clients wows them, builds clarity, and reduces follow up confusion

• Why mapping out coaching, problems, and planning visually is therapeutic for everyone involved

• How Miro fits into a tacted system as the pull side of scrum supporting flow

• The seven interaction rule: you'll likely need to use it about seven times before you're addicted

Stop trying to remember everything in your head. Map it visually, map it once, and let the picture do the heavy lifting.

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free, and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw

Jason sits down with Hal Macomber for a deep, substantive conversation on Takt construction, the production laws behind it, and why most of the industry still doesn't understand what flow actually means. Hal shares the story of his master class at LCI Congress with George Hunt of Touchplan, the Cory Hackler twin towers project in La Jolla, the Doyle Wilson Builders half day Takt homes in Austin, and how Toyota's Camry line in Georgetown actually works. The episode lands on the three things other industries do that construction in North America has stopped doing: use flow as the principal improvement measure, design the production system around the production laws, and tap into the expertise of every worker in the field.

What you'll learn in this episode:

• Why Takt planning belongs on non repetitive work as much as it does on repetitive sequences

• The Cory Hackler twin towers lesson: one month later start, two and a half months earlier finish through flow

• How a five day Takt with Saturday as a square up day creates the integrity that lets Mondays start on time

• Why "stacking the trades" is just CPM cover for failing to design the production system

• The simple heuristic: start from what the smallest crew can do, then scale up from there

• How to measure flow: are wagons starting and finishing as planned, and are stops trending down

Takt isn't optional anymore. It's the path forward for an industry whose productivity has been declining since 1987.

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free, and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw

Jason takes on a hard truth in this episode: if a superintendent doesn't create, manage, and live inside the project schedule, that schedule is toilet paper. He walks through the cycle that plays out on jobs everywhere, where the PM produces a schedule, the superintendent doesn't use it, and the project pivots to the huddle board in someone's head. The episode is a direct call for superintendents to stop abdicating the role and to start owning the rhythm, the strategy, and the future of the project through the discipline of using and updating a real schedule every day.

What you'll learn in this episode:

• Why a schedule a superintendent doesn't own becomes toilet paper on day one

• The five things superintendents can't do without a schedule: see the future, strategize, control the site, keep rhythm, and trigger work

• Why Snagit and print screen are core daily tools for triggering action from the schedule and the plans

• The clear roles: senior supers see the future, assistants execute short interval, foremen plan daily, workers craft

• Why "I'm not good with computers" is a choice, not a condition

The schedule isn't the PM's paperwork. It's the superintendent's nervous system. Own it, live in it, update it, or accept that the project is running on guesswork.

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free, and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw

Jason continues the personal coaching series with a candid episode on professional conduct. He shares the story of interviewing a candidate who sounded like he was talking to a parole officer, references John Wayne's "I can't stand a liar" moment from The Cowboys, and walks through the foundational standards every worker, foreman, superintendent, and leader needs to live up to. From confidentiality and drive to communication, harassment, conflicts of interest, ethical behavior, and moral conduct, the episode is a long honest audit anyone can run on themselves no matter their position.

What you'll learn in this episode:

• Why confidentiality protects both you and the people you talk about

• Why putting in an honest day's work is non negotiable, including not stealing time or resources

• How to think about cussing and language in the right times, places, and audiences

• The protected classes and the difference between intent and impact when something lands wrong

• The list of moral and ethical standards that have ended professional careers when ignored

Wisdom is the long way around sad experience. Get the standard right now, and reap what comes with it for the rest of your career.

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free, and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw

Jason records a quick podcast on the side of the road while waiting for a Lyft and shares a powerful analogy that builds on his earlier conversation with Kevin Rice. He uses the simple goal of losing 10 pounds to show how a single clear target requires a system of supporting elements: eating healthy, exercise, sleep, a plan, and an accountability partner. Then he goes one step deeper and asks the question most people skip: have you reduced the friction so the system can actually run? It's a short episode with one big takeaway for anyone leading an organizational transformation or trying to improve any part of life.

What you'll learn in this episode:

• Why a singular goal like losing 10 pounds still requires a multi part system

• The five key elements: nutrition, exercise, sleep, a plan, and accountability

• How to reduce friction on each element so willpower stops being a bottleneck

• Why pairing a new habit with something you already love makes it actually stick

• The same principle applied to training, financial systems, and software rollouts

The goal might be singular, but the path is always systemic. Reduce the friction, look at every part, and let the grind do the rest.

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free, and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw

Jason sits down with Kevin Rice, business owner and trained business professional, to dig deeper into the aggregation of marginal gains. They revisit the Dave Brailsford story of British cycling, then push past the surface to ask a harder question: is it better to improve one percent over and over in a single area, or one percent across many domains all at once? The conversation turns into a candid look at why so many companies and individuals sympathy bully themselves into picking just one thing to improve, and why true mastery in construction, business, or life comes from aggregating dozens of marginal gains in service of one clear goal.

What you'll learn in this episode:

• The Brailsford story and the real lesson behind British cycling's transformation

• Why picking just one thing to improve leaves you lopsided in a complex system

• How "lopsidedness" reveals itself: when you stop winning, the system is telling you

• Why one singular goal with many supporting domains is the right model

• Why 90 day years of focused effort aggregate into mastery faster than people expect

Marginal gains across many domains in service of one clear goal. That's the real path to mastery. The shortcut everyone wants doesn't exist.

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free, and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw