The best way to cooperate with subcontractors is to sign an agreement. Both parties should understand their responsibilities, rights, and guarantees. The best relationships can take place not only between a contractor and a subcontractor. One more variant for individual specialists who would like to scale up their business and meet the deadlines of their clients is to hire other subs.
If the role of the general contractor is well understood by most building market players, the model “subcontractors + subcontractors” should be explained from the point of legal and comfortable business relationships. When the GC cooperates with subs, most processes are tracked and monitored by cost estimating software. At the same time, subcontractors should control all the operations themselves including legal backgrounds and other arrangements in the initial stage.
Why Hire Subcontractors If You Are a Sub as Well?
This is the best way to find the referral for your work and spread recommendations about your trustworthiness. You can play in the local markets as a contractor and a subcontractor at once. For example, some clients hire you as a professional in insulation. You announce to your standing customers about supplementary services for their interior (trimming, painting, HVAC installation works, etc.).
This way, these specialists will be your subcontractors and your scaled-up business. But the satisfaction of your clients depends directly on you. You stay with the same responsible party in the context of the final result. In summarizing, your task is to sign a well-thought agreement with all the parties. The contract is better to entrust to experienced attorneys.
How to Hire a Sub If You Are a Subcontractor?
First, you need to understand that you are going to play several roles at once. For your customers, you will be the same subcontractor with the discussed and approved scope of work. For other subs you hire, you become a general subcontractor of the project. If you are ready to share responsibilities and sign various agreements while providing a range of guarantees, here you are!
Start with the general tips that are applicable for both models (contractor + subcontractors; a subcontractor + other hired subs):
- Think of the agreement first. If you have some special items to discuss, start with them in the initial stage of negotiations.
- Describe the scope of work and services that are covered by the individual specialists you hire. If we speak about plumbing, you can hire only plumbers as well.
- Specify all the payment terms. Your subcontractors should understand all your financial responsibilities. The more payment terms are clear and transparent – the better.
- Gather and sign all the permits, licenses, etc. Remember that legal backgrounds contain specific documentation for builders, designers, architects, and other narrow-direction experts.
Speaking about other peculiarities of such a process as hiring subcontractors when you are a sub, almost all of them are concentrated in the contract. Try to make everything properly from the legal point not to disappoint your customers, The general contractor should observe the same hierarchy. Do not make accents on the hired subs to avoid negative consequences from the GC.
The general contractor can consider your efforts as a way to steal the leadership over the project. Do not provoke conflicts. You can sign the agreement directly with the subs and inform the customer that these are the members of your dedicated team of builders, designers, and other individual specialists.
Tips for Subcontractors Who Would Like to Hire Other Subs
Think of various insurance policies. If you are interested in new networks, you can face unreliable specialists or ones who perform their work poorly. According to the statistics, uninsured subcontractors risk losing more money even while sharing work with colleagues and other individual specialists.
Do not forget about changing orders. Think of the way the customers will change various requests to be processed. Add the pricing and assigning stages to this process as well. Additionally, all the subcontractors should provide to other parties the main reasons for the contract breach. This way the communication level will be higher and the number of possible issues during collaborations will be reduced.