7 Proven Strategies to Manage Time for Construction Company Owners (And Stop Losing Profits)

Running a small or medium-sized construction company often feels chaotic—but there are proven strategies to manage time that can change that. Between managing crews, responding to clients, chasing suppliers, and handling endless admin tasks, it can feel impossible to stay on top of it all.

But here’s the hard truth: when time slips away, so do profits. Missed deadlines, rushed estimates, and poor scheduling often lead to lost jobs, unhappy clients, and even burnout for owners and managers.

The good news? With the right systems and habits, you can take back control of your time—and your business.

In this guide, we’ll share 7 proven strategies to manage time effectively, drawn from successful small construction businesses around the world. These are practical, field-tested tips you can start applying this week—whether you run an electrical, plumbing, or other type of construction company.

By the end, you’ll not only save hours every week but also build a business that runs more smoothly and profitably—even when you’re not on-site.

The Unique Time Challenges in Construction Companies

If you’re running a small or medium-sized construction company, you know time isn’t just money—it’s everything. Unlike larger firms with dedicated departments for scheduling, estimating, and admin, smaller businesses often put the weight of all these roles on the owner or manager’s shoulders.

Here are some of the biggest time management challenges holding back construction business owners today:

1. Juggling Too Many Roles

As the owner, you’re not just leading the business—you’re also the estimator, scheduler, project manager, and sometimes even the on-site problem solver. Every day is a balancing act between running the office and keeping things moving in the field.

2. Unpredictable Workflows

In construction, no two days look the same. A delayed delivery, a surprise inspection, or an urgent client call can throw off your carefully planned schedule in minutes. Without systems in place, small issues often snowball into major disruptions.

3. Constant Interruptions

Phone calls, texts from the crew, and last-minute changes pull your focus in every direction. You start the day with a plan, but by noon you’re reacting instead of leading.

4. Inefficient Admin Processes

For many small businesses, quotes, invoices, and job tracking are still done manually or with scattered spreadsheets. This eats into evenings and weekends—and increases the risk of errors.

5. Crew and Resource Coordination

Managing multiple crews across different sites is like solving a puzzle that keeps changing. Without clear communication and scheduling, you risk idle crews, wasted trips, or even missed deadlines.

If any of this sounds familiar, you’re not alone. The good news? These challenges aren’t permanent. By adopting a few key time management strategies, you can streamline your operations, reduce stress, and free up time to focus on growing your business—not just running it.

Take Control: 7 Strategies to Manage Time in Your Construction Business

Time is the one thing you can’t buy back—but you can manage it better. Here are seven strategies used by successful construction business owners to take control of their schedules, reduce chaos, and improve profitability.

1. Plan Your Week Before It Starts

The most productive construction business owners don’t start Monday morning in firefighting mode—they plan ahead.

Set aside 30–60 minutes every Sunday evening or Friday afternoon to map out:

• Crew schedules for the week
• Priority jobs and deadlines
• Client meetings and site visits

This high-level planning helps you anticipate bottlenecks and assign resources more effectively.

Example: For an electrical contractor juggling 5 jobsites, blocking time for ordering materials on Monday prevents midweek supply delays that waste crew hours.

Quick Win Tip: Use a shared calendar (Google Calendar, Microsoft Outlook, or Remato’s scheduling tools) so your team can see updates in real time and you avoid endless back-and-forth calls.

2. Adopt Job Management Software

If you’re serious about finding strategies to manage time, start by replacing manual spreadsheets and paper-based systems, which are productivity killers. Job management software helps you centralize:

• Scheduling
• Quotes and invoices
• Task tracking
• Crew communication

Solutions like Remato, Jobber, or ServiceTitan are designed for small construction businesses. They streamline operations, reduce errors, and save hours every week.

Example: A plumbing company used Remato to assign daily tasks to technicians and track job progress. The result? Fewer missed steps and 30% less time spent on admin.

Quick Win Tip: Start small. Even setting up a digital calendar for job bookings can free up significant time.

3. Delegate More (And Better)

One of the biggest time traps for owners is trying to do it all themselves. Instead:

• Empower crew leaders to make on-site decisions.
• Outsource repetitive admin tasks like bookkeeping or payroll.
• Create checklists for common workflows so staff can handle them independently.

Example: An HVAC business owner trained a foreman to handle daily scheduling. This freed up 10+ hours a week to focus on growing the business.

Quick Win Tip: Write down 3 tasks you’re currently doing that someone else could handle, and assign them this week.

4. Batch Similar Tasks Together

Switching between tasks burns time and focus. Instead, group similar tasks and handle them in focused blocks.

• Set specific times for returning client calls.
• Batch all estimates at the end of the day.
• Do invoicing twice a week instead of daily.

Example: A plumbing contractor started batching supplier orders every Monday instead of placing them ad-hoc. This reduced delays and saved two hours a week.

Quick Win Tip: Block 30 minutes in your day for admin and refuse interruptions during that time.

5. Prioritize High-Value Activities

Not all tasks are created equal. Focus on activities that directly grow your business or keep jobs moving smoothly:

• Meeting with top clients
• Solving critical site issues
• Training your team

Delegate or automate everything else.

Example: A small electrical business owner stopped handling every customer query personally and used Remato’s customer portal to keep clients updated automatically.

Quick Win Tip: At the end of each day, write down the 3 most important things to focus on tomorrow.

6. Build in Buffer Time

Construction schedules rarely go as planned. If you pack your calendar too tightly, one delay can throw off the whole week.

• Leave 15–30 minute gaps between meetings and site visits.
• Avoid scheduling crews at 100% capacity—aim for 80% so they can absorb surprises.

Example: A plumbing company started adding 30-minute travel buffers between jobs. The result? Happier clients and less overtime.

Quick Win Tip: Add a “contingency slot” in your calendar each day to catch up on anything that runs over.

7. Say No to Time-Wasting Jobs

Not every job is worth your time. Low-margin work and high-maintenance clients can drain your schedule and profits.

• Evaluate jobs based on profitability and fit.
• Politely decline work that doesn’t align with your goals.

Example: A small contractor stopped accepting “emergency” one-off jobs from non-regular clients and focused on longer-term contracts instead.

Quick Win Tip: Review your current pipeline and identify at least one job or client you should say no to.

Bringing It All Together

Managing time in a small construction company isn’t about working harder—it’s about working smarter. By implementing even a few of these strategies to manage time, you can:

• Save hours every week
• Reduce stress for you and your team
• Improve job profitability

Modern tools like Remato, Jobber, and others support these strategies to manage time by taking the heavy lifting out of scheduling, communication, and admin. That means you can focus on running—and growing—your business.