As a fan of zombie movies, you can probably guess that The Walking Dead is one of my favorite shows. If you’ve never watched it before, it’s a series that follows a group of survivors that try to adapt in a world overrun by zombies. Now I’m going to let me tell you in on a secret – don’t get attached to any of the main characters, because they probably will die. It’s the unfortunate reality for any zombie themed show or movie. Although your firm isn’t facing a zombie apocalypse, they do face several threats that can affect profit margins on fixed fee projects. Let’s find out if any of these zombies are lurking in your fixed fee projects.
The Runner Zombie
Runner zombies are always sprinting after survivors, and often only injure the victim as they frantically run to attack another survivor. You can probably identify these frightening zombies and know how hard it is to avoid them.
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As a result, the RFP contains incomplete plans and poorly explained specifications that don’t noticed until after the project has launched. These overlooked mistakes often result in change orders and unpaid worktime.
The Surprise Zombie
The surprise zombies hide in the shadows and pop out from the beginning to the end of the movie or show for quick surprise attacks on the survivors. They appear randomly and periodically in order to keep the audience on the edge of their seat. In a project management sense, this might sound like your subcontractors who love to surprise you and keep your on the edge of their seat.
Your firm develops project proposals and budgets based on the estimates provided by the subcontractors. But far too often, these estimates contain errors like omissions and bad assumptions. Now the overlooked permit fee or low estimate on a materials allowance increases the budget out and eats the