Interviewed Todd Miller to Bring his Perspective to Light on Construction Digital Transformation

Construction is one of the largest industries and the least digitized sectors. According to researchers, the health crisis has forced 72% of construction companies to change their processes, methods, and ecosystems. Construction companies have realized they must adopt emerging digital tools to stay competitive in the market.

Digital transformation for construction companies is all about harnessing the power of digital technologies to make operations more productive, efficient, and safe.

So, we interviewed Todd Miller to understand his perspective on digital transformation in the construction industry:

Let Us Quickly Get To Our Expert’s Point Of View.

Question 1: How do you see the construction industry in the year 2023? Do you think this year will be a "digital year" for construction professionals?

2023 will likely catch many companies by surprise. The last couple of years has been "all out" for most sectors and verticals of the construction industry.

The inevitable slowdown is starting to happen, though, and that will cause heartburn for many companies as it hits in late 2022 and throughout 2023.

While this will cause some companies to draw back and not know what to do, leaders will use this time to catch up on things like team member development and technology adoption.

Slow times can provide great opportunities to do the things necessary to be even stronger in the future. As always, the leaders will come out of a slowdown ahead of the pack.

Question 2: The construction industry has undergone dynamic changes over the years. What do you consider as the biggest challenge for this industry now?

The biggest challenge is the retirement of baby boomers. Everyone talks about the labor shortage, and yes, it's real.

But even more real is the retirement of older workers who absolutely must adopt and mentor younger generation workers now and bring them into the fold. They need to pass along what they know while encouraging the younger generation's attributes and never using the phrase "That's not how we do things."

This is the time for our older generation to cement their legacy in the incoming workforce.

Question 3: What potential do you see in the latest construction technology trends? Are they capable of boosting the productivity of construction professionals?

I always caution companies to refrain from grabbing onto every shiny bit of technology that comes along. You need to set priorities and be wise.

It takes time and resources to integrate new technology. But the key is figuring out which things will increase productivity, reduce costs, reduce required skill level and "tribal knowledge" in your company, and increase customer delight.

Many of the growing technology trends I see right now have to do with worksite management and productivity. Those things seem like no-brainers, but companies must be careful to avoid trying to accomplish too much change in too short of a time.

To some degree, having a startup is nice right now because starting fresh in a new organization can help reduce the pain of adding new technology.

Question 4: Where do you see the construction industry in the next five years? Please share your valuable insights with our readers.

I think that two things will rule in the coming years. One is repurposing and rebuilding older structures. Many older structures still have "good bones" that can be preserved and restored at a lower cost than rebuilding.

We need to quickly increase housing stock and prevent many older commercial buildings from becoming urban blight will increase the need for rehabbing older structures. This also becomes apparent when you look at the number of older buildings.

The second thing that I think we will see a lot more of is offsite and modular construction. Many great minds are working in that arena right now, and helpful developments will be seen to have made more sense to build modular rather than site-built, stick-built.

Get to Know Our Influencer

Question 5: In four words or less, what's your prediction about the transforming construction industry?

Efficiency and client comfort

Question 6: What's your success mantra?

We're all God's children worthy of the same time and respect.

More Details

Todd is a frequent speaker and host of the Construction Disruption podcast, a ground-breaking podcast/vodcast that is uncovering the future of the $1.6 trillion construction industry. It uncovers various aspects of construction and disruptive change. He has won several awards for his commitment to delivering quality services in the roofing industry.