In this episode of Risk Management: Brick by Brick, Jason speaks with Steve Dell’Orto, Founder and CEO of ConCntric, a company that transforms the fractured pre-construction environment by unifying processes and providing a dynamic view of the project.
Steve Dell’Orto: De-Risking Projects for Everyone Involved
Not only is Steve the Founder and CEO of ConCntric, but he is also a Venture partner of both Builders VC and Argonautic Ventures, He also works as a Member of the Advisory Board for SafeAI, QuoteToMe, TargetDocs (just to name a few!)
Why the Inner Core of Construction Teams Matter
When it comes to planning a project, especially in pre-construction, it is crucial that every possible risk is analyzed and carefully considered; it requires a level of acumen which must be harnessed and trained over time. Afterall, what is Risk Management if not problem solving?
No one knows this better than Steve Dell’Orto, who insists that not only should Risk Management teams be ironing out potential risks for the inner core of construction teams (the owner, architects, and builders) but also for the secondary people involved (insurers and sureties). “If we can drive the risk out of the project then we're going to be successful, in part, by reducing the risk on the builder side, just like we're going to reduce the risk for the design team and the owner.” Steve begins, very impassioned by the topic. This is a foundational belief he’s had for a long time.“But if you use the builder as an example, you can drive the risk out of the project. You're de-risking the company itself, and think about the insurers and the sureties that are backing the performance of that builder. If you can de-risk that, loss and outcome becomes much better.”
Solving problems is no cakewalk. If it was, then perhaps everyone would be able to solve a Rubik's Cube or fix the world’s many struggles. Famous fictional problem solvers like Sherlock Holmes and Benoit Blanc would be seen as mediocre at best, but that is not the world we live in, for nothing is as predictable as we’d like it to be. Steve knows this all too well, arguing that we need to consider all factors involved in risks, especially in the financial department. “I think everybody strives for and would love to have far more predictability,” he claims. “But that should not be at the expense of cost.”
Money Won’t Solve All of Your Problems
But finding resolutions to a risk in any sort of project, construction or not, involves more than simply throwing money at it or trying to come up with a quick solution. Just like with any issues you come across in your life, you first need to dig into the root cause of it. Once you’ve done that, fixing it will become a lot easier. “It’s fundamental to the vision of ConCntric, where we’re not just solving a problem by putting a bandaid on it or adding more money to something” says Steve, principled as ever, discussing the mission behind ConCntric. “We’re implementing things that are eliminating them by addressing it at the root cause.” As is often the case, the solutions to problems are found within the origin. We have to be scrupulous about it.
When speaking with Steve, it quickly becomes evident just how much passion he has for what he does. As we’ve established countless times, risk management is all about problem solving and resolution, and although he is unlikely to admit it, he is obviously the master at these.
