Ever feel like you just aren’t being heard? Ever feel like you aren’t sure exactly what someone’s talking about? I do.
We hear a lot about how we work in “silos” today; we often work a little bit too independently from the rest of the people we’re supposed to be teaming with. We make assumptions about the work of others (and then build our work from there); we sometimes make incorrect assumptions (and that affects our work negatively).
I love working independently, and I love working with other architects, but… the more I understand about the other people affected by my work, the better I can do my work.
When architects understand more about the point of view of a contractor, a subcontractor, a manufacturer, a supplier, or an owner, we can understand them better, we can make ourselves understood better, we can have a better team. We can have a better construction process!
I often work on trying to learn more about the perspectives of others in the construction industry, but my first big step towards a better understanding was taking the CSI CDT exam.
The CDT (Construction Documents Technologist) exam covers a lot of information about preparing, understanding, and interpreting construction documents, and the roles of different groups in the construction process.
It was my first non-project-related introduction to the processes involved on the contractor side of the team. There’s a lot I’d still like to learn, about the perspectives of the owner and the contractor during construction, but the CDT exam was a good start.
Learning more about where others are coming from can help you avoid communication breakdowns.
- Final registration deadline for CSI Spring Certification Exams is February 28th.
- Exams will be offered April 1 – 27, 2013, in the U.S. & Canada.
- Learn more at http://csinet.org/certification
Comments From a Spec Writer 
Great post, Liz. I worked in construction for three years and in and out of other offices for ten more years before I took the CDT exam. I wish I had taken it sooner.
I wish I had, too! It would have helped me a lot in my job in an architecture firm, especially with construction contract administration.
In my 50 years of CSI, I have written around 200 articles on a wide variety of construction industry related subjects. As an old man looking back at these writings I discovered what CSI is truly all about, “Advancing Ethics in Constructon.” Why did the word ethics never appear in those writing? As chapters retool for the new CSI brand, I suggest that Chapters individually adopt their chapter tag something like “Advancing Ethics in Construction.”
Good Ethics is Good Business,
Maynard