Building Insights: What Custom Residential Demands at the Highest Level

By Anthony Chiles, Senior Project Manager

I spent nearly a decade managing high-end residential projects for a contractor and now, as an owner's representative for G&T, many of the lessons learned on the contractor side carry over.

A project manager in the high-end residential construction niche must balance meeting the complex demands of working alongside a client’s staff, holding space for the personal nature of the project, and building trust with clients who have plenty of reasons to be wary of new people.

A Team Effort

Every high-end residential project I’ve done has had a stakeholder list that included estate staff.

There may be an estate manager, an executive chef, security staff, family office, or all the above. Each come to the project with a specific list of priorities for the home and a dedication to providing an unobtrusive service to their clients. The best performing project managers understand that even though they are the leader of the construction process, they team up with the estate staff to meet the client’s needs.

If the chef has a kitchen layout preference different than the architect, as project manager, I’d present those preferences to the architect to discuss. If the cleaning staff wants to add a second washer and dryer unit, I request the pricing from the contractor and present the potential change to the client with the context that this was a staff request.

The high-end residential client has a standard of care they’ve become accustomed to at their other properties, or the property being renovated, and it’s critical that the design and construction teams communicate with the estate team to ensure that standard is upheld after construction.

And it’s common during renovations that portions of the property are still inhabited while work is underway. Clients and their families expect to live their private lives, expect their staff to provide their usual service, and expect that I ensure scope, schedule, and budget guidelines are met.

The estate staff and project manager team up to perform the balancing act of driving the project forward while maintaining the client’s day-to-day life.

Treat the Job Like a Home, Not a Job Site

I can never lose sight of the fact that this project isn’t just business, it’s personal.

People are putting their families into these houses. Their kids. Their parents. Their whole life.

That comes with a level of care closer to hospitality than construction. Constant check-ins. Active listening. Understanding what the client values personally: beauty, security, health, hosting, privacy, ease of use.

Then pairing those personal values with the project parameters of budget, schedule, and quality.

Each client’s unique blend of values shapes every decision and molds every project.

And every designer and trade partner is constantly reminded to treat this house like it's their own. As the project manager I must embody the golden rule so that everyone involved knows that they need to give this person’s home the same respect they would want at their house.

Trust Isn't Given. It's Built.

The foundation that teamwork and respect is built on is trust.

But I can't simply tell a client to trust me. Trust gets built brick by brick. One conversation and commitment at a time.

If I say I’ll have an answer by end of day. I have it. Or explain exactly why I don't, and when they can expect it.

If I find out bad news, I gather the information and get it to them as soon as possible. When the client hears of a problem from the contractor or estate staff before me, it can be misinterpreted as deceit and trust is damaged.

The client’s trust in the project manager is evaluated over months by thousands of small moments, each one either adding a brick to that foundation or chipping one away.

And the hope is that with a strong enough foundation built, the client will ask to build with me in the future.

Gardiner & Theobald provides independent owner's representation and project management for high-end residential clients nationally. To discuss how disciplined, trust-driven project management can protect your next home, contact our residential team.