Subcontracts issued from the prime contractor (referred to as “contractor” in this article) contain very descriptive language regard- ing the change order process. The language clearly outlines the pro- cess for written direction to pro- ceed and the process to be fol- lowed for the issuance of a change order document, required for the subcontractor to invoice and col- lect payment. Changes to the work can occur in several ways: • Owner-initiated request for pro- gram change • RFI response that results in a change • Submittal response that results in a change • Value engineering acceptance • Contractor issues a change docu- ment (i.e., ASI, CCD, RFQ) • Contractor directs work authori- zation by email Changes can come rapidly and sometimes several in a day, espe- cially for the contractor. The con- tractor’s goal is to protect its interest by managing the risk with an effi- cient method of change manage- ment, all the while continuing to perform work to prevent changes from affecting the schedule. The change order approval process and the progress billing process don’t occur as rapidly as the changes that must be put in place. Therefore, the contractor must establish the responsible party for the change, obtain and submit pricing as quick- ly as possible, and obtain owner approval if necessary. Then the con- tractor must direct the subcontrac- tors per the terms of their agreement to perform the work with a promise of a subsequently-issued subcon- tract change order. What goes wrong? The problem with this process The change order process – what goes wrong? BUSINESS FEATURE ––––––––––––––––– By Ron Meler, RW Meler Consulting 62 TileLetter | September 2018