People > Process > Tech: AJ Waters (Kahua) on Real-World Digital Transformation in Construction
Construction isn’t “slow to adopt tech”—it’s struggling to integrate it. In this Finance at the Jobsite episode, AJ Waters (Chief Evangelist, Kahua; ex-Kiewit, Google) shares hard-won lessons from major ERP and project platform rollouts: why people-first change wins, how to meet the field where they are, and the true cost of doing nothing.
What you’ll learn
Why the order of operations matters: People → Process → Technology
How to involve the field early (and what to do if they hate the tool)
The cost of doing nothing vs. subscription fees and implementation costs
Where AI helps today (data entry, retrieval, predictive alerts) vs. where it’s overhyped
Training that works: flip the classroom and go heavy on short, on-demand videos
Why connected stakeholder networks (owner ↔ GC ↔ subs ↔ agencies) beat walled gardens
How to balance speed with adoption and avoid sunk-cost death spirals
Memorable quotes
“If the field hates it, you’ve failed. Adoption is the metric that matters.”
“Stop counting the price of new software and start counting the cost of doing nothing.”
“Innovation isn’t a project—it’s a culture.”
Guest
AJ Waters — Chief Evangelist at Kahua; former Kiewit training lead for enterprise rollouts and former program manager at Google for construction tech selection and deployment.
Topics
Digital transformation, change management, construction ERP, project platforms, AI in construction, field adoption, training design, connected data, risk & ROI.
Tags
#construction #constructionfinance #ERP #projectmanagement #digitaltransformation #changemanagement #AI #Kahua #Kiewit #jobsite #CFO #PM
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