5 Essential Questions to Ask Before Hiring a Contractor

This Fall I'll be speaking at the upcoming Georgia Libraries Association conference they are holding with the Society of Georgia Archivists in October.  The theme of the conference this year is Leading Georgia Forward, Together and it's being held in Athens, Georgia.  The dates are October 2-4.  If you haven't already registered, you can do so HERE.  One of the speaking topics I will be covering is How to Hire the Right Contractor.

Whether you handle your Library design project yourself or you hire a team of pros to orchestrate every last detail, the one common denominator is making sure you have the right contractor.  And that task in itself can be exhausting if you don't know the right criteria to look for.  My overall checklist is pretty extensive when helping teams consider the right contractor, but for this blog post, I'll shorten it to this essential 5 for the sake of time. 

If indecision paralysis is slowing down your Programming Documents, then Schedule a free zoom call with me today and I'll help you take the next step. 

5 ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS TO ASK BEFORE HIRING A CONTRACTOR

1.  HOW IS OUR COMPATIBILITY?

This one may not be your number one on the list.  It might not even make most number one's, but it's the one I encourage on every single project I coach because compatibility matters.  If you and your contractor, or even designer or architect, do not have a compatible relationship, your project will be miserable for everyone involved.

Interviewing multiple contractors from the beginning will give you a large enough sampling to get a stronger feel for who you might work best with.  You're searching for a group that you have a good rapport with.  Someone you can talk to comfortably and someone that won't make you feel silly for asking all the questions.  It's not enough that they know what they're doing and that they charge the right amount of money.  If they're difficult to work with, you will find yourself limited in being able to accomplish all your goals with great success.

I worked with a Library Director once that was a little apprehensive about taking on a new design project because of her previous experience with a design team.  They had come in and sort of just taken over the vision and design intent.  Even when the Library Director expressed her dislikes of the design concept that was presented to her, they insisted that they knew what they were doing and that the end result would be the best possible design for her Library.  

Well when it was all complete, it most definitely wasn't her vision and instead belonged to the designer alone.  And rightfully so, she was concerned about working with anyone new.  She felt like her back and forth communication process with this team was just completely out of sync.  She didn't feel like she could express her concerns without getting pushback.  

This should NEVER happen.  Don't get caught up in that kind of working relationship with anyone when designing your next Library project.  There's just too much at stake and most Libraries only get a go at this once every 20 years or so.

2.  ARE THEY KNOWN FOR GOOD COMMUNICATION?

This one ties into the first one, but I want to separate it because communication can still be its own issue even if you do feel compatible with your contractor.  They need to be able to truly hear your concerns and questions.  They should be able to explain things that you don't understand for no other reason than construction and design may not be your specialty.  If it were, you'd be the contractor and not a Library pro.  So don't feel ashamed of asking questions, just make sure they communicate effectively.

That being said, you also want someone who can talk you off your proverbial ledge every now and then.  Design projects can be complicated and sometimes you may find yourself overwhelmed and in a bit of a panic about something that you don't understand or have construction knowledge of.  This is a great time to have a highly effectively communicator on your contractor team that can reassure you that things are headed in the right direction without causing you to lose your cool.  

3.  ARE YOUR FEES REASONABLE?

So, yes, their fees are important.  You most likely don't have an endless budget.  Most people don't.  So I coach my Library pros to assess fees with a careful understanding of what all the fees cover.  When you are evaluating multiple contractor's fees, they should be pretty close within range of each other.  If you have one out of five that is significantly higher than everyone else, you can bet they're taking advantage of you, or they just don't really want to do the project.

If you have one that is significantly lower than all the others, you can be absolutely sure they've missed vital information and that they will eventually submit enough change orders over time to make up the difference.  So be leery of large fee gaps.

4.  HAVE YOU HAD SUCCESS IN SIMILAR PROJECTS?

When you select your contractor, make sure they have experience in the type of project you're working on; most specifically Library projects.  Ask for references and find out how many Library projects they've done in the past.  This is important so that you know they won't be thrown for a loop when dealing with industry-specific construction issues.

Consider the fact that shelving is its own animal in and of itself.  If you're working with a contractor that happens to be unfamiliar with support systems for such items, this can effect your project significantly.  There are other areas of Library design that fall into these kinds of categories, and so it's important that you hire a contractor that you can trust to build a healthy Library.

I had a project once where the furniture contractor was hired by the local board of commissioners.  They were hired because their pricing on shelving was much lower than their competitor.  We tried to make them understand that in this case, cheaper would most likely not be better, but their price difference was significant, so they won the bid.  There were multiple roadblocks we hit with them along the way to install day.  My faith in them dissipated more and more as time went on.  And on the day of installation, they put everything in without bolting anything down.  We had leaning shelves all over the place and had to call them back in to correct the error.  They just didn't have the Library experience that was necessary for that project and we all suffered loss of time and labor. 

5.  HOW'S YOUR REPUTATION IN THE CONSTRUCTION COMMUNITY?

This ones seems to be a pretty standard tip, but it's important enough to make my essentials list.  The last thing you want is a contractor who has a poor reputation.  And it's such an easy thing to evaluate.  The name of the contractor in itself should speak volumes in your community.  But if it doesn't then get references.  And plenty of them.  Know who they are and ask previous clients what they loved about their contractor and what they hated.  So many people hire for the lowest price without knowing who they're really dealing with.  Do your research and know who you're bringing into your house.

FINAL THOUGHTS

There are plenty of questions you will ask your potential contractors.  But when putting together your list, make sure these five are on it.  Designing your next Library project requires a great deal of attention to detail.  Stay ahead of it and don't overlook hiring the right contractor.  And if you still have questions, join me on my Off the Shelf Library Design Facebook page and ask me anything you like.