COURSE OVERVIEW:
Welcome to the Strategic Planning for Building & Construction Projects course. This training is designed to provide you with the knowledge, tools, and practical frameworks necessary to lead projects with foresight, structure, and control. Strategic planning is fundamental to the success of any construction endeavour, allowing project teams to anticipate challenges, allocate resources effectively, and align all stakeholders toward a common objective.
The course begins by defining the purpose and scope of strategic planning within construction environments. Participants will distinguish between strategic and operational planning, gaining insight into how long-range decisions and early-phase actions directly influence site safety, build quality, and project efficiency. A structured planning approach minimises risk, reduces variation, and sets clear direction for all involved.
Understanding project requirements is essential for setting an informed strategy. This section focuses on how to review the client brief, interpret design intent, and extract deliverables from contract documentation. Participants will learn how to define performance benchmarks, identify constraints, and ensure alignment with client expectations and key performance indicators (KPIs).
Construction strategies must respond to the physical and regulatory environment. This section covers how to analyse site conditions, access limitations, local infrastructure, and environmental considerations. Stakeholder engagement, community relations, and subcontractor coordination are addressed to ensure smooth execution from mobilisation to completion.
Project objectives guide the planning process. This section supports participants in defining success measures for time, cost, safety, and quality, and shows how to balance competing goals under real-world constraints. Strategic alignment across all teams ensures clarity and cohesion throughout project delivery.
Work breakdown structures (WBS) create a roadmap for action. This section introduces techniques to break the project into logical components, assign cost codes, and group deliverables by trade, discipline, or construction stage—forming the basis for resource planning, budgeting, and performance monitoring.
Strategic scheduling is essential to manage time and dependencies. Participants will learn how to develop Gantt charts, critical path method (CPM) programs, and lookahead schedules, adjusting sequencing to accommodate resource availability, weather, site access, and construction lead times.
Integrating resource planning into the broader strategy ensures the right materials, equipment, and labour are available when needed. This section focuses on estimating resource demands, coordinating subcontracted vs internal labour, and aligning procurement with the construction sequence.
Risk must be embedded into planning—not treated as a reactive task. Participants will learn how to identify project delivery risks, implement mitigation strategies, and develop contingency plans. Ongoing risk review is encouraged through integration with the project's broader management structure.
Cost control begins with budget alignment. This section explores how to ensure strategic decisions reflect financial parameters, forecast expenditures over project phases, and manage cash flow, claims, and variations without jeopardising project viability.
Procurement planning underpins construction continuity. Participants will learn how to coordinate procurement timelines with construction staging, manage supplier relationships, and avoid bottlenecks in material supply or service delivery that could derail project progress.
Effective communication is critical to stakeholder alignment. This section teaches how to develop a communication strategy for clients, consultants, authorities, and internal teams. Meeting schedules, approval timelines, and reporting structures are addressed to ensure consistency and transparency.
Safety must be embedded from the outset. Participants will learn how to integrate WHS principles into strategic planning, sequence high-risk activities around controls and staging, and prepare Safe Work Method Statements (SWMS) in advance of key work phases.
Design and documentation must align with build delivery. This section focuses on coordinating consultant outputs with construction milestones, managing shop drawing schedules, and controlling design changes to minimise disruption and maintain compliance.
Site mobilisation is a key early-stage focus. Participants will plan for the setup of amenities, traffic controls, temporary fencing, and service connections. Induction scheduling, site rules, and signage requirements will also be discussed as part of early strategic execution.
Quality assurance must be planned, not assumed. This section addresses how to integrate ITPs, coordinate hold points, and plan certification activities across project stages. Document control, compliance verification, and final handover preparation are all part of the quality strategy.
Strategic plans must remain flexible. This section explores how to use dashboards, KPIs, and reporting tools to monitor progress and detect deviation from scope or schedule. Re-forecasting and re-sequencing practices will be introduced to support adaptive project control.
Project completion requires forward planning. Participants will learn how to schedule defect inspections, plan client walkthroughs, and organise commissioning, cleaning, and demobilisation. Final documentation, warranties, and defect liability period (DLP) responsibilities will also be addressed.
By the end of this course, you will be equipped with the knowledge and tools to lead construction projects with clarity, coordination, and foresight. Strategic planning will become a core competency in your ability to deliver safe, high-quality, and commercially successful building outcomes.
Each section is complemented with examples to illustrate the concepts and techniques discussed.
LEARNING OUTCOMES:
By the end of this course, you will be able to understand the following topics:
1. Introduction to Strategic Planning in Construction
- Purpose and scope of strategic planning in building projects
- Key differences between strategic and operational planning
- Benefits of structured planning for safety, quality, and efficiency
2. Understanding Project Requirements and Scope
- Reviewing client brief, design intent, and contract documentation
- Clarifying deliverables, constraints, and quality benchmarks
- Identifying performance expectations and KPIs
3. Analysing the Construction Environment
- Site conditions, access, logistics, and surrounding infrastructure
- Environmental, legal, and regulatory considerations
- Stakeholder, subcontractor, and community interface
4. Establishing Project Objectives and Planning Priorities
- Defining success measures for time, cost, safety, and quality
- Balancing competing project goals under realistic constraints
- Aligning team objectives with contractual and client requirements
5. Developing a Construction Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)
- Breaking down the project into manageable components and stages
- Categorising work packages by trade, discipline, or building phase
- Assigning cost codes and deliverables for each segment
6. Creating Project Schedules and Timelines
- Developing Gantt charts, critical path method (CPM), and lookahead programs
- Identifying milestones, dependencies, and lead times
- Adjusting sequencing for subcontractor availability and site access
7. Integrating Resource Planning into Strategy
- Estimating and allocating labour, plant, materials, and equipment
- Coordinating internal vs subcontracted resources
- Aligning resourcing with construction stages and demand
8. Risk Management in Strategic Construction Planning
- Identifying and assessing risks to project delivery
- Applying mitigation, contingency, and response planning
- Embedding risk review into ongoing project management
9. Budget Alignment and Cost Control Strategies
- Linking strategic decisions to approved budgets and financial plans
- Forecasting expenditure across project phases
- Planning for cash flow, claims, and variation management
10. Procurement and Supply Chain Considerations
- Planning material and service procurement schedules
- Aligning lead times with construction activities
- Ensuring vendor and contractor alignment with the strategic plan
11. Communication and Stakeholder Engagement Planning
- Developing a communication plan for internal and external parties
- Scheduling site meetings, reporting, and approvals
- Managing client, consultant, and authority engagement
12. Integrating Safety into Strategic Plans
- Embedding WHS principles at the planning stage
- Aligning construction sequence with risk controls and SWMS
- Planning high-risk activities around safe access, permits, and staging
13. Coordinating Design and Documentation Stages
- Managing consultant deliverables in line with the build program
- Planning for design finalisation, shop drawings, and approvals
- Ensuring changes are controlled and recorded
14. Planning for Site Establishment and Mobilisation
- Setting up site offices, amenities, fencing, and temporary services
- Establishing traffic and pedestrian controls
- Coordinating inductions, safety signage, and site rules
15. Quality Assurance and Compliance Planning
- Scheduling inspections, ITPs, and sign-offs across project stages
- Aligning construction processes with standards and specifications
- Planning for certification, documentation, and final handover
16. Monitoring and Adjusting Strategic Plans
- Using dashboards, KPIs, and checklists to track progress
- Identifying deviations from schedule or scope
- Re-forecasting and re-sequencing to stay on target
17. Final Stages and Project Close-Out Planning
- Planning for defect inspections, client walkthroughs, and documentation
- Managing commissioning, final cleaning, and site demobilisation
- Ensuring compliance with retention, warranties, and DLP obligations
COURSE DURATION:
The typical duration of this course is approximately 2-3 hours to complete. Your enrolment is Valid for 12 Months. Start anytime and study at your own pace.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS:
You must have access to a computer or any mobile device with Adobe Acrobat Reader (free PDF Viewer) installed, to complete this course.
COURSE DELIVERY:
Purchase and download course content.
ASSESSMENT:
A simple 10-question true or false quiz with Unlimited Submission Attempts.
CERTIFICATION:
Upon course completion, you will receive a customised digital “Certificate of Completion”.