Not everyone needs to be a Revit Rock Star!

Not everyone wants to be a rock star, some team members are quite happy keeping their head down and do the work assigned to them and they have no desire to take on additional responsibility or step out of their comfort zone. These are my “Steady Eddy’s”, team members who focus on getting the work done!

And that’s OK!

Not everyone needs to be a Rock Star!

It’s your job to recognize these individuals and guide them to be the best they can possibly be (or want to be), some individuals are goal oriented achievers, whereas others will make it quite clear to you that they have no interest in taking on responsibility, they just want to do their job, and do it well.

By recognizing this you can adapt the direction you are “encouraging” each of your team members. Don’t try to push someone to be a “rock star” who is not interested, it’ll backfire on you and end badly. By understanding each team member you can gauge how best to utilize their skills and how comfortable they would be stepping out of their comfort zone.

Utilize your “steady “Eddy’s” in positions where production is key, you can typically rely on these people to produce clear accurate work when provided with clear accurate direction. 

These team members are your foundation to the productivity of the project and should not be neglected. Your steady “Eddies” will progress on their own time, they will wait to see what has been proven and when they are ready and have seen firsthand the proven path they will be ready to move forward.

I’ve spoken previously on team members who are either not read, or willing to move forward, here you have two options; either redirect their knowledge into a position where you still can utilize their depth of knowledge or let them move on where their comfort level is more in line with another company. Reluctance to do this will result in your team working to the lowest denominator. Don’t let someone’s reluctance to move forward inhibit the rest of your team, this will only result in frustration of those wanting to move forward and hold back potential team members from reaching their goals. Ultimately you will lose the key people who are beneficial to your company and you will be left with those who are holding you and the company back.

Do whatever you can to provide encouragement to your team, make resources available for those who want to explore their possibilities, praise and reward your “steady Eddy’s” you may be surprised as to who takes up the challenge and becomes your next Rock Star!

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Project Stingray

If you havent already check out Project Stingray from Autodesk.

Stingray for Design Visualization

A direct link to 3ds Max and real-time rendering enables you to walk through designed spaces before they’re built.

View images of Stingray, a 3D game engine that helps advanced and novice game makers create visually stunning games. Stingray is also a real-time rendering engine that helps design professionals better visualize their projects and present their ideas to clients. Stingray is integrated with 3ds Max, Maya, and Maya LT software.

Image taken from http://autodesklivedesign.com/

Imagine combining the power of 3DsMax and Revit!

Check out more here: Designliving

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Another Successful RTCNA

Had a great time at RTCNA again this year.

This was the biggest so far with over 580 people in attendance and such a high level of presenters!

It was great, they had the original founders of Revit up on stage talking about the beginnings of the program, amazing to see how they had such an impact on the industry.

Just got back in the office after spending a couple extra days in DC.
Got to go and sort out all the info from the conference now and reply to dozens of emails!

Thanks to all who attended my session, I'll be updating my handout asap with the feedback from my round table session. 

Thanks to Steve Stafford for introducing me!

 Some souvenirs from RTCNA 2015.

IrisVR announced the release of their new APP...check it out!

I asked people who attended my session to sign my cup.

Great to hang out with old friends (too many to mention), great speakers (again too many to mention here) and meeting new people. Thank you for introducing yourself, I such wonderful comments back from my presentation :-) I hope people enjoyed it and got something out of it.

I also found a David R Chatterton on the Vietnam Wall Memorial, would like to find out more about him...

Being a Leader

Being a leader means adapting to change, and change is inevitable.

I recently read Bob Murray's article on "how we can lead in harmony with all five generations of people in today's workforce".

As a BIM manager you will be working with with people spanning all generations, people who think and work on problems differently.  Bob explains how each generation is different and gives us five-steps to working in harmony with up to four different generations.

Bob graciously has allowed me to post his article below. 

Back in the day, Baby Boomer leaders (1946 to 1964) had a group of employees that were married to their jobs, had a predictable set of expectations, and only wanted to work from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Then things started to change.

Generation X (1965 to 1980) entered the workplace, and they were driven, individualistic and not committed to any specific career. We can thank Gen X for the 12-hour workday!
Then, not too long after, enter the Millennials (1981 to 1995). This group grew up with omnipresent parents and don’t know a world without computers. They lack delineation between work and personal lives (they see working in the office and still being on social media just as normal as doing work related projects and email during their “own time”). 
And, they want flexibility in virtually everything.

Now, we add in Generation Z (1995 to 2010). They are savvy, know exactly what they want and are demanding it right from the start — yes, including your corner office.
So, as a leader, how do you maintain sanity in the workplace, build a high performance culture, satisfy customers and grow profitably?

The answer is simple. Here is my quick five-step approach to working in harmony with up to four different generations:

1.  Let go of any prejudice you may have about the behaviour of a certain generation. Embrace the difference. Learn the value each generation brings.

2.  Make it a daily habit to ensure that everyone understands your vision and strategies. Make them understand your why – it will help them understand their purpose.

3.  Ensure that everyone clearly understands their individual role and responsibility.

4.  Turn goals and objectives into a game, with a scoreboard and outcome if they win.

5.  Communicate often through multiple media, because all five generations all consume their information in different ways.

Thanks Bob! Great advise.

About Robert Murray:
Robert is based out of the Vancouver Lower Mainland, is a critically acclaimed Author, Global Speaker and Business Strategist.

Check out Bob's web site and I recommend you subscribe to his blog.

Also check out his books "It's Already Inside" and "Unlocked" on Amazon, he'll even sign them for you if you meet him in person ;-)

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Collaboration for Revit Crash

We recently experienced our first "glitch" with Collaboration for Revit

One of my users recently experienced C4R crashing when opening up the project.
We couldn't find any obvious triggers for the crash, other users on the project went having any issues and the project and linked files were all audited and working fine as were the families being used, there was no obvious reason for the crashing for this specific user.

So if your getting unexpected crashing on your C4R project try deleting the recently opened files/families directly from your Revit.ini file.

Seems to be working fine now for us...

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Becoming BIM Certified

Have you thought about becoming BIM Certified?

Currently there are few options for becoming BIM Certified including Autodesk Certification, Associated General Contractors of America  and the RCIS in the UK.

In Canada, the Canada BIM Council has developed a comprehensive multi-level BIM Certification based upon multiple aspects including knowledge, education and experience.

The CanBIM Certification Program for Individuals is a tiered certification based upon nationally standardized and recognized levels of BIM Competency and Process Management.

Why get Certified? 

Certification is a formal way to recognise your competency in BIM. Gaining certification from a nationally recognised organisation indicates attainment of specific BIM competencies which indicate to employers and clients an assurance that those with certified designation have undergone a formally assessment process based on rigorous peer review of knowledge, application and experience.

CanBIM Certification includes four levels, the final being CanBIM Certified Professional, attainable after providing documented proof of having completed 3 building projects utilizing integrated, multi-discipline BIM or the previous three level.

The three levels building up to Certified Professional are based upon any academic training that you may have as well as the number of hours working on relevant BIM projects in your discipline.

As a CanBIM-certified individual you will:

Receive a certificate that entitles you to use one of the following exclusive, designations:

• CanBIM BP1 – CanBIM BIM Professional Level 1
• CanBIM BP2 – CanBIM BIM Professional Level 2
• CanBIM BP3 – CanBIM BIM Professional Level 3
• CanBIM CP – CanBIM Certified Professional

Join a respected and developing group of BIM professionals.

Gain a competitive advantage by being listed on the CanBIM website as a CanBIM-certified individual.

Here is an opportunity to be recognized in your field as BIM certified giving credit for your experience and knowledge in BIM in the AEC industry.

I'm Certified... are you?

Click HERE to access the site.

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Happy Canada Day

Happy Canada Day

Some fun Canadian facts:

• There are over 3 million lakes in Canada
• Canada has more than  54,716 km of coastline
• Canada is the second largest country in the world
• Canada's lowest recorded temperature was -63C (-81.4F) in 1947....brrrrrr
• Residents of Churchill, Manitoba, leave their cars unlocked to offer an escape for pedestrians who might encounter Polar Bears...!