Architects Falling Behind on Business Management Systems - M4D in the Media

In any business, having the right systems is critical. Yet many architects, engineers and consultants throughout Australia lack the systems required to deliver optimum outcomes in their practices. According to a recent survey conducted by financial and business management consultancy Management For Design (M4D):

Less than one in five architecture, engineering and consultancy (AEC) firms have a formal and functioning system to manage resources

• 44 per cent of firms do not have a resource management system in place, and of those which do, the level of effectiveness of these systems is very low

• 60 per cent have no system for managing customer relationships (or if they do, the system is not considered to be effective)

• More than 40 per cent lack a formal document management system

• Microsoft Office programs such as Word and Excel remain the most common platform for managing contract administration.

Of those who do have systems in place, there is a lack of enthusiasm about the value of these. Only two finance and accounting packages achieved a ‘very effective’ rating whilst no systems across project control, resource management, CRM and document management were consistently rated as ‘very effective.’

Cautioning that the results reflect a higher proportion of smaller firms (with up to 10 people), M4D managing director Robert Peake says problems revolve around several areas.