Our Services

Provide an Independent Expert Facilitator from Project Inception

A Project Neutral® is most effective when embedded in a construction project from its very inception, even before design has begun. Unlike traditional dispute resolution professionals who are called upon only after conflicts have surfaced and positions have hardened, a Project Neutral® becomes an integral part of the project's framework from day one. This early engagement allows the Project Neutral® to develop a deep understanding of the project's nuances, stakeholder dynamics, contractual relationships, and technical complexities. By learning each stakeholder's interests, concerns, and influence at the outset, the Project Neutral® establishes the trust and credibility needed to guide discussions effectively throughout the life of the project, fostering an environment of prevention rather than mere resolution.

As an independent expert facilitator, the Project Neutral® actively monitors the project's progress, participates in regularly scheduled one-on-one calls, group meetings, and team update sessions, and maintains open lines of communication with all stakeholders across the job. This ongoing engagement provides the Project Neutral® with diverse perspectives and real-time information essential for informed decision-making. By detecting early warning signs of disputes, such as unanswered submittals, schedule slippage on critical path activities, communication breakdowns, or increasing documentation of potential claims, the Project Neutral® can intervene before these issues escalate into significant conflicts. All conversations with the Project Neutral® are protected by mediation privilege, ensuring that stakeholders can speak candidly without fear that their words will be used against them in future proceedings.

The value of having an independent expert facilitator from inception extends well beyond dispute resolution. The Project Neutral® acts as a project advocate and experienced coach, guiding decision-making processes, ensuring adherence to contractual obligations, and facilitating clear communication among all parties. They may assist in gaining agreement on the baseline schedule or the appropriate schedule of values, which are often sticking points that slow fieldwork and payment authorizations. By keeping all stakeholders aligned with the project's goals and ensuring their concerns are addressed proactively, the Project Neutral® contributes directly to maintaining project momentum, preventing the hostile work environments and abrupt terminations for default that can derail even the most carefully planned construction endeavors.

Evaluate the Best Project Delivery Method

A Project Neutral® can play a critical advisory role in helping project owners evaluate and select the most appropriate project delivery method before construction begins. The choice between delivery systems such as design-bid-build, design-build, construction manager at risk, progressive design-build, or integrated project delivery has profound implications for risk allocation, cost control, scheduling, and the likelihood of disputes. A Project Neutral® draws on decades of industry experience to assess the owner's capabilities, the project's technical complexity, the regulatory environment, and the relationships among potential project participants, providing an impartial analysis of which delivery method best aligns with the project's unique circumstances.

This evaluation goes well beyond simply comparing delivery models in the abstract. A Project Neutral® examines the owner's experience level, the availability of qualified contractors and designers in the market, the project's funding structure, and the degree of design certainty at the time of procurement. For instance, an owner who infrequently undertakes construction projects may benefit from a delivery method that provides greater collaboration and shared risk, while a seasoned public agency with well-established procurement procedures may be better served by a traditional approach. The Project Neutral® also considers how each delivery method affects the allocation of risk for cost overruns, schedule delays, and design errors, helping stakeholders understand the financial and legal consequences of their choice. Public disclosure of realistic cost estimates is particularly vital when comparing various project delivery systems, and contingency amounts must be carefully calibrated, typically at least ten to fifteen percent of overall project cost and far higher for particularly risky projects.

By engaging a Project Neutral® at this early stage, owners can avoid one of the most consequential and often overlooked sources of construction disputes: selecting a delivery method that is poorly suited to the project's needs. A mismatched delivery system can create adversarial dynamics, ambiguous responsibilities, and misaligned incentives that fuel conflict throughout the project lifecycle. The Project Neutral® ensures that the chosen approach supports clear communication, fair risk allocation, and efficient decision-making, setting the foundation for project success from the very beginning and materially reducing the likelihood that disputes will arise as work progresses.

Risk Management and Mitigation Strategies

A Project Neutral® brings a rigorous, systematic approach to risk management that goes far beyond the typical contractor or owner perspective. Drawing on deep construction expertise, the Project Neutral® conducts a comprehensive risk evaluation that identifies the full universe of potential risks, both those common to the construction industry and those specific to the project at hand. This evaluation utilizes a risk management spreadsheet populated with each identified risk, its probability of occurrence, minimum and maximum adverse outcomes, the expected values of those outcomes calculated by frequency and severity, the availability and cost of insurance for various durations, a list of reasonable mitigation steps and their costs, and an evaluation of the party most likely to prevent, absorb, or insure against each risk. After this overall survey and in-depth project evaluation, a risk management plan is developed and implemented as a living document throughout the project's duration.

What distinguishes the Project Neutral® approach is its emphasis on proactive, ongoing risk monitoring rather than a one-time assessment. As the project evolves, the Project Neutral® continuously tracks emerging risks, reassesses existing ones at each milestone, and adjusts mitigation strategies accordingly. This includes evaluating risks across multiple categories: operational, financial, contractual, legal, reputational, and environmental. The Project Neutral® also facilitates collaborative Risk Discovery and Mitigation Workshops that bring together stakeholders from across the project to brainstorm, prioritize, and develop response plans for the most critical threats. These workshops address natural hazards, construction accident risks, economic risks, human resources risks, and supply chain vulnerabilities, with participants categorizing and agreeing on the top risks in each area, developing specific mitigation steps, and even conducting emergency response drills for worst-case scenarios.

By embedding risk management into everyday project decision-making, a Project Neutral® helps stakeholders avoid the costly surprises that derail budgets and schedules. They ensure that risk responsibilities are clearly mapped to the stakeholders best equipped to manage them and that contractual language supports fair and unambiguous risk allocation, paying special attention to clauses where notice or paperwork lapses may create waiver of claims. The Project Neutral® also identifies choke points that may trigger domino effects, where a single delay disproportionately impacts multiple milestones, and implements targeted mitigation strategies ranging from workforce expansion and material substitution to phased openings and subcontractor diversification. This disciplined, ongoing approach prevents disputes from forming around ambiguous responsibilities, uninsured losses, and unforeseen conditions, keeping the project on track toward on-time, on-budget completion.

Structured Negotiations

A Project Neutral® employs structured negotiations as a primary tool for resolving disputes efficiently and preserving the working relationships essential to project success. Unlike informal discussions that can devolve into positional bargaining or emotionally charged confrontations, structured negotiations follow a disciplined process designed to produce fair outcomes. The Project Neutral® begins by confirming that all negotiators have genuine decision-making authority, then develops a clear agenda that moves methodically from objective issues to more subjective ones. All parties are ensured access to the necessary information, and the Project Neutral® facilitates systematic discussion of each issue, guiding the conversation toward problem-solving rather than personal differences or entrenched positions.

Through the Project Neutral® Stakeholder Agreement, all signatory stakeholders commit to use every effort to resolve their disputes without resorting to legal warfare, withholding goods and services, delaying approvals, or abruptly terminating important contracts. They agree to consider structured negotiations, non-binding neutral evaluations, and, for lower-dollar disputes, binding decisions that will be respected during the course of the project. This contractual commitment to a structured resolution framework creates a culture of collaboration and accountability from the outset. When disputes do arise, the Project Neutral® brings the conflicting parties together, encourages open communication, and uses collaborative techniques such as brainstorming sessions, joint problem-solving workshops, and scenario analysis to identify creative solutions and compromise opportunities.

In cases where direct communication between parties proves challenging, the Project Neutral® may assume a more traditional mediation role, facilitating a structured negotiation process where each party's viewpoint is heard and understood. The Project Neutral® may also provide impartial advisory opinions based on their expertise and understanding of the project, offering non-binding insights that pave the way for resolution. Once agreement is reached, the Project Neutral® assists in formalizing the outcome, which may include drafting settlement agreements or change orders and ensuring that all administrative and procedural aspects are adequately addressed. Research consistently demonstrates that early, structured negotiation, before positions harden and costs accumulate, delivers superior outcomes for all stakeholders at a fraction of the cost and time required by traditional litigation or arbitration.

Early Neutral Evaluation of Claims

Early Neutral Evaluation is the signature service of Project Neutral®, delivering a comprehensive, confidential assessment of disputed issues through a structured twenty-one-day process. During the first week, the Project Neutral® conducts an in-depth review of key project documentation, including contracts and amendments, project schedules and updates, change orders and requests for information, project correspondence and reports, financial documentation, and safety and insurance records. This thorough document assessment establishes the factual foundation and identifies the critical issues requiring further investigation, applying the FIRAC analytical approach of Facts, Issues, Rules, Analysis, and Conclusion to ensure rigor and consistency.

The second week is devoted to structured stakeholder interviews with five to ten key project personnel, providing essential context and diverse perspectives that documents alone cannot convey. The Project Neutral® conducts focused, factual discussions rather than positional arguments, creating space for meaningful information exchange. These interviews reveal not only each party's position but also underlying concerns, communication breakdowns, and systemic issues driving the dispute. By engaging with stakeholders across the project, the Project Neutral® gathers the diverse perspectives and information essential for developing balanced, implementable recommendations.

In the third week, the Project Neutral® synthesizes the document review and stakeholder insights into a detailed evaluation that assesses technical and contractual issues, analyzes schedule impacts and critical path effects, evaluates financial implications and likely outcomes of formal proceedings, and delivers practical recommendations for resolution along with an implementation framework for moving forward. Protected by mediation and settlement privileges, the resulting confidential report provides stakeholders with an objective basis for informed decision-making. Research from the Construction Industry Institute indicates that disputes addressed during active construction typically cost thirty to eighty percent less to resolve than those addressed after project completion, and given that nearly ninety-nine percent of civil lawsuits ultimately settle through negotiation, the ENE process creates a window for resolution when it delivers maximum value.

California Civil Code 8850 Compliance

California Civil Code Section 8850, which took effect for contracts executed on or after January 1, 2026, establishes a mandatory statutory procedure governing claims and disputes on most private construction projects in the state. The law applies broadly to private nonresidential projects and mixed-use residential projects over four stories, requiring that when a contractor submits a claim related to payment, time extensions, damages, or change orders, the project owner must respond in writing within thirty days, clearly identifying disputed and undisputed portions. Undisputed amounts must be paid within sixty days, with late payments accruing interest at two percent per month. These requirements are non-waivable; any attempt to waive the statutory rights and responsibilities is deemed void and contrary to public policy. A Project Neutral® helps owners, contractors, and subcontractors understand and comply with these strict timelines and procedural requirements, ensuring that no party inadvertently triggers the statute's severe consequences.

The law prescribes a three-step dispute resolution process: first, the contractor may demand an informal conference that the owner must schedule within thirty days; second, the owner must specify remaining disputed and undisputed portions within ten business days after that conference, with undisputed amounts paid within sixty days; and third, if disputes remain, they must be submitted to non-binding mediation with costs split equally. A Project Neutral®, already embedded in the project and familiar with its documentation, stakeholder relationships, and technical issues, is ideally positioned to guide parties through each of these steps. They can facilitate the informal conference, help parties articulate and narrow the genuinely disputed issues, and serve as or recommend an appropriate mediator for the mandatory mediation phase. Their ongoing involvement ensures that claims are documented properly, responses are timely, and the procedural requirements of the statute are met at every stage.

The consequences of non-compliance with Section 8850 are significant. If an owner fails to follow the prescribed procedures or fails to timely pay amounts due, contractors have the right to suspend work without penalty after providing proper notice, a provision that is broader than existing prompt-payment laws and may apply even when amounts are in dispute. Disputed amounts later found to be owed are also subject to the two-percent monthly interest from the date they would have been due. A Project Neutral® helps mitigate these risks by ensuring that all parties maintain the administrative discipline the statute demands, that undisputed amounts are identified and paid promptly, and that the structured dispute resolution process is followed in good faith. By proactively managing compliance, the Project Neutral® prevents the procedural missteps that can lead to work stoppages, compounding interest penalties, and the very litigation the statute was designed to avoid.

Dispute Avoidance Training

Dispute Avoidance Training is a foundational service through which a Project Neutral® equips all project stakeholders with the skills, awareness, and shared understanding needed to prevent conflicts from escalating in the first place. Recognizing that familiarity with collaborative dispute resolution varies widely among project participants, the Project Neutral® provides tailored training sessions for different levels of the organization, from senior executives and project managers to field-level staff. These sessions cover the Project Neutral® methodology, the importance of timely and constructive conflict management, communication protocols, documentation standards, and the ground rules for civil and respectful interaction throughout the project. Training may also extend to third parties such as subcontractors, suppliers, permitting agencies, community groups, and third-party funders, ensuring that everyone involved in the project is comfortable with the process and understands their role within it.

The training content is customized based on an assessment of each organization's specific needs, which the Project Neutral® determines through stakeholder comments and interviews. Sessions are designed to strike a balance between being substantive and engaging, avoiding oversimplification while remaining accessible to participants with varying levels of experience. Practical materials accompany the training, and the sessions address identified gaps in knowledge or skills, focusing on topics such as proactive risk identification, informal conflict resolution techniques, early recognition of dispute warning signs, and the formal dispute resolution frameworks that will govern the project. By establishing clear expectations for how disputes will be handled before they arise, the training creates a shared vocabulary and set of norms that make constructive problem-solving the default response to disagreements.

The impact of Dispute Avoidance Training extends well beyond the classroom. When all stakeholders understand the project's dispute resolution framework and have committed to the Project Neutral® Pledge, a culture of collaboration and mutual respect takes hold across the project. Problems are surfaced early, addressed constructively, and resolved before they can threaten the project's budget, schedule, or stakeholder relationships. The training also reinforces the confidentiality protections that govern all communications with the Project Neutral®, giving participants the confidence to raise concerns candidly. By investing in this training at the outset, project owners and contractors build the collaborative foundation that makes every other Project Neutral® service more effective, transforming the project environment from one of reactive crisis management into one of proactive, cooperative project delivery.