Colliers Project Leaders, a division of Colliers Engineering & Design, provides project management services for public and private clients in sectors including education, healthcare and municipal government. But its clients all have one thing in common: day jobs.

“As busy executives, whether they are school administrators or healthcare facilities managers, our clients typically don’t have the bandwidth to manage multimillion-dollar capital projects or even large building renovations or restorations,” said Ken Guyette, Colliers Project Leaders regional discipline leader based in Florida.

To make sure their projects get the level of attention they need, they seek the help of an experienced owner’s project manager, or OPM, to oversee all aspects of the work while they focus on their core responsibilities.

“That's where we come in,” Guyette said. “We act as an extension of the client’s technical staff and take on those projects for them from start to finish, then go to the next one.”

Matthew Cyr, North Carolina-based geographic discipline leader, said it isn’t unusual for clients to become repeat clients, thanks to the work and worries that Colliers Project Leaders’ approach to project management can take off their desks.

“Project management is about creating alignment, managing complexity and proactively managing risk while keeping the client’s goals at the center of every decision,” Cyr said. “We work alongside our clients every day as an extension of their team.”

Bisnow asked Guyette and Cyr to explain how clients can benefit from Colliers Project Leaders’ approach to project management.

Bisnow: How did the role of the OPM evolve to be what it is today?

Guyette: It used to be the role of the architect to be the end-all, be-all on a project. They were kind of the master builder, taking on everything. And then the construction manager evolved away from the general contractor and into more of an owner's advocate as well. But each approach has its own vested interest, whether it's on the construction or design side.

Our job is to become the sole advocate for the owner who wants to reduce risk and have a single point of accountability. They bring us on to help them bring their project in early and under budget, and that's historically how it's worked out for us.

Bisnow: And that sets you apart from other construction service providers?

Guyette: This is all Colliers Project Leaders does. We are the owner’s advocate, project manager and representative, and a provider of commissioning and energy services. We've been doing it for 30 years, starting out in private schools and then working our way into public K-12 schools and higher education. We've leveraged all of this combined experience, including lessons learned, to the benefit of our clients.

Cyr: There is also the advantage of being under the Colliers Engineering & Design umbrella, which itself is majority-owned by Colliers International. That gives us access to a deep bench of technical expertise and specialized resources. I think that's a huge advantage for the client and for us as well.

Bisnow: With so much of your work in the education sector, the summer must be a busy time for you.

Guyette: Absolutely. Summer is often the most critical construction window for educational clients because there’s a very limited time frame to complete disruptive work before students and faculty return to campus. And we make sure we build in time with the schedule so that if anything does happen, we can account for it within the desired time frame. By the time school starts back up in the fall, we're done and everything's nice and ready for the kids to come back.

Cyr: By the time summer arrives, the real work has already started months earlier during preconstruction. A tremendous amount of planning and coordination goes into preparing for that window: procurement of long-lead items, phasing plans, logistics, safety planning, contractor coordination and permitting.

Bisnow: As the project manager, how often do you communicate with stakeholders during the life of the project?

Cyr: It's very project-specific and based on what's happening at any given time. At the very minimum, there's a recurring weekly client meeting, but we could meet several times a week or even daily during critical phases. A large part of our work is keeping stakeholders aligned and informed, and that sometimes means meeting with groups separately based on the project demands.

Bisnow: What trends are you noticing that an OPM is well suited to address for the client?

Cyr: Things like electrical gear and mechanical equipment have always had long lead times, and now they are even longer. Making informed decisions in a timely manner, especially during the early planning stages, brings a ton of value to the job.

Guyette: An important part of it is asking during design if there are alternatives for certain long-lead items to try to truncate some of that impact. We need to have those kinds of conversations early and often with the owner to ensure that they make timely decisions.

We also talk about material and equipment cost escalation when we’re building the budget: This might be what it costs now, but when you guys are looking to build this building three years from now, it's going to be totally different. It can change pretty significantly depending on what's happening outside of our control, and we need to account for that.

Bisnow: What sort of questions should an owner ask before hiring an OPM?

Cyr: I think clients should first look at the firm’s experience. Beyond that, they should understand how the OPM approaches communication, decision-making and managing risk.

It’s important to ask how involved the OPM will truly be. A lot of firms take a more administrative approach, focusing on reporting and checking boxes rather than serving as a proactive adviser for the client.

Guyette: A lot of it comes out during the interview process as well, when you're able to have those conversations and develop a rapport. That's extremely important. You're going to be working very closely with the client team for probably three to five years. It's important that you're able to trust them and communicate with them effectively.

It's a relationship, and most of our clients become repeat clients because they enjoy the process and understand the value we bring to them.

This article was produced in collaboration between Colliers Engineering & Design and Studio B. Bisnow news staff was not involved in the production of this content.

Studio B is Bisnow’s in-house content and design studio. To learn more about how Studio B can help your team, reach out to studio@bisnow.com.