Features - Business

How to Start 2026 in control

16 Jan 26

Six leadership moves for more profitable construction firms in 2026

Most £1m–£3m construction companies assume the next breakthrough comes from stacking more projects.

In practice, that thinking creates more pressure, thinner margins and longer weeks. Revenue goes up, but control goes down.

After two decades running and advising UK construction firms, I have seen the same pattern repeat. The businesses that stabilise and grow profitably do not chase volume. They build structure. They lead differently. They drop habits that worked at £500k but quietly break the business at scale.

Here are six leadership moves that consistently separate calmer, more profitable firms from those stuck in organised chaos.

1. Build a 12-month financial forecast you actually use

Many growing contractors head into a new year with ambition but no financial clarity. A rough turnover target is not a plan.

A simple 12-month forecast forces decisions early. It shows true overheads, realistic margins, delivery capacity and the gap between what the business earns and what it costs to run properly.

This does not require complex software. A single, well-structured spreadsheet is often enough. Once the numbers are visible, owners quickly see whether the business needs more work, better work, or tighter control.

Forecasting reduces reactive decision-making and improves confidence around staffing, cashflow and pipeline.

2. Run a programme, not a collection of conversations

As firms grow, informal coordination breaks down. WhatsApp threads and memory do not scale.

A live programme becomes the backbone of delivery. It should clearly show project phases, task durations, trade sequencing, long-lead items and client decisions. When reviewed weekly, it highlights capacity issues before they become site problems.

The biggest benefit is predictability. Trades are booked properly. Clients are managed with confidence. Pressure shifts from firefighting to planning.

3. Price with margin discipline, not optimism

At £1m–£3m turnover, profit rarely disappears in one dramatic mistake. It leaks quietly.

Unpriced prelims. Underestimated supervision time. Missed overhead recovery. Risks absorbed rather than allowed for.

A disciplined pricing template brings these costs back into view. When supervision, waste, access, admin time and contingency are consistently included, quotations reflect the real cost of delivering quality work.

4. Plan the week before it starts

When every week feels frantic, it is usually because the week is running the business.

Twenty minutes of structured planning before the week begins creates control. Key tasks are identified. Materials are ordered on time. Client updates are planned rather than reactive. Admin stops slipping to late evenings.

5. Maintain a steady, simple lead flow

Most established builders do not need more enquiries. They need consistency.

A simple weekly routine is often enough: follow up live quotations, check in with architects or consultants, share a meaningful project update, and reconnect with past clients.

This is not about aggressive marketing. It is about staying visible to the people most likely to send work.

6. Standardise delivery with a one-page system

As businesses grow, inconsistency creeps in. Jobs are delivered differently depending on who is running them.

A single-page delivery system brings alignment. It covers pre-site setup, procurement checks, key client decisions, variation tracking, quality control and snagging.

Used on every project, it creates predictability for clients and teams alike. The business feels calmer because fewer decisions are being reinvented on site.

Leadership at scale

A contractor I worked with in Kent grew to around £1.2m turnover. Demand was strong and quality was high, but his weeks were chaotic. He was on site early, on calls all day and pricing late into the evening.

The issue was not workload. It was structure.

Once he introduced a 12-month forecast, a rolling 90-day programme, disciplined pricing and a weekly planning rhythm, the business stabilised. Margins improved by around 15–20%. Projects ran cleaner. Most importantly, he regained time to focus on visibility and leadership.