Course Description

What is the winner's curse? Whoever makes the biggest estimating mistake wins the job. First, the bad news: Successful companies rarely "buy work" through discounting, and profitability is not the reward for hard work, good intentions, or being a "good guy."
 Now, the good news: Profitability is the reward for smart work. This means having good systems in place. Trying to minimize costs is always a goal when tendering contracts. And too often, contractors focus solely on price, adopting strategies and pricing that can kill the rewards of winning the contract. These tactics can go so far as to threaten the company's financial health.

Key take-aways: 

  • Builders will have an improved understanding of how estimating works and how to price their bids
  • Builders will gain knowledge on the best-practice estimating process and be able to implement these steps into their existing process

Key learning components:

  • How estimating works – the theory behind winning bids
  • Common bidding errors

  • A broad overview of a best-practice estimating system
  • How estimating fits into the overall sales process

Approved for CPD credits: 2.0 in Construction Management
Note: If you have already taken this course in-person, repeating it online will not qualify for additional CPD points.

Course curriculum

  • 1

    Chapter 1

    • Before You Get Started

    • Agreement to HAVAN Academic Integrity Policy

    • Download the presenter slides and follow along

    • Part 1
  • 2

    Chapter 2

    • Part 2
  • 3

    Chapter 3

    • Part 3
  • 4

    Chapter 4

    • Part 4
  • 5

    Chapter 5

    • Part 5

    • Feedback

    • Declaration of Completed Work Assignment

Adam Holcombe, MBA, Bellrock Benchmarking Inc.

Adam brings a well-rounded set of professional skills gained through progressively more senior roles in small business. Using his knowledge of the science and psychology of change, Adam is passionate about making real, lasting improvements in small businesses.After working through more senior roles in hospitality and retail, Adam honed his research skills in academia where he specialized in neuroscience, social psychology, and consumer behaviour. His research has been featured in major publications including the L.A. Times, Huffington Post, and CBC. He earned his MBA from the Beedie School of Business at SFU. Since earning his MBA, Adam has been implementing organizational change all over the lower mainland, working primarily with general contractors, renovators and property developers to improve their profits.