Every Fundi Says, "Nimefanya Hii Kazi"

One of the things I enjoy most about construction is that no project is ever built by one person. Every building is the result of many minds and many hands working together.

It all starts with a client who has an idea.

The architect then turns that idea into drawings. The structural engineer ensures the building will stand safely by designing the structural elements and specifying the materials. The quantity surveyor prepares the Bill of Quantities, and contractors submit their bids. After the tender process, one contractor is awarded the project.

That is when the real work begins.

Whether we are building a house, a bridge, a dam, or any other civil works project, the construction site becomes a meeting point for many different professionals. Engineers, foremen, supervisors, masons, plumbers, electricians, welders, painters, tilers, and countless skilled workers all play their part.

As a project manager, however, I have discovered that managing concrete is often easier than managing people.

One challenge has followed me from project to project.

Almost every fundi claims to know everything.

Ask someone whether they have built a septic tank before, and the answer is almost always, "Yes, I've done many."

Ask another whether they know bridge works, slab reinforcement, formwork, or steel fixing, and you hear the same confident response.

"I've done it several times."

The problem is that confidence and competence are not always the same thing.

I remember supervising a bridge project where a young man assured me he had worked on several bridges. Everything sounded convincing until the consulting engineer visited the site.

He asked a simple question.

"How are you checking your levels?"

The young man froze.

He had no answer.

In that moment, it became obvious that he had never done the work he claimed to know. I had no choice but to replace him.

Recently, I experienced something similar while constructing a relatively straightforward septic tank.

I even had detailed engineering drawings showing every measurement and reinforcement detail.

An experienced-looking mason confidently told me he had built many septic tanks before.

But as soon as work started, something didn't feel right.

The foundation wasn't correct.

The wall layout didn't follow the drawings.

Even basic construction details were off.

Thinking perhaps he simply needed assistance, I brought in another mason from a different site. He too confidently assured me he had recently completed a septic tank.

To my surprise, both of them were equally lost.

What they were building bore little resemblance to the engineering drawings in front of them.

Only when the engineer arrived on site did they begin to appreciate how technical the work really was.

It left me asking myself the same question I have asked many times over the years.

Why do people pretend to know what they don't?

Perhaps unemployment pushes them to take every opportunity they can get.

Perhaps they fear losing the job if they admit they need guidance.

Or perhaps they genuinely believe that they will figure it out along the way.

I honestly don't know.

What I do know is this:

If one of them simply told me, "I haven't built this before, but I'm willing to learn," I would gladly provide guidance or pair them with someone more experienced.

There is no shame in learning.

The real danger lies in pretending.

Construction has very little room for guesswork.

A mistake hidden inside concrete may remain invisible for months or years before revealing itself in the worst possible way.

As project managers, we therefore learn to stay vigilant.

Drawings must be checked.

Measurements must be verified.

Workmanship must be inspected constantly.

Trust is important, but verification is even more important.

Sometimes that vigilance comes at a cost.

A wall may have to be demolished and rebuilt.

Concrete may have to be broken out.

Days of work may be lost because someone chose confidence over honesty.

Those moments are frustrating, especially when they could have been avoided.

Yet they also remind me what project management is really about.

It isn't simply about completing a building.

It is about protecting quality, managing risk, making difficult decisions, and ensuring that when the client finally walks into that completed building, they can do so with confidence.

Every project eventually reaches completion.

The drawings become walls.

The walls become rooms.

People move in and begin new chapters of their lives.

Long after everyone has forgotten the frustrations of construction, the quality of the work remains.

That is why, on every project, I remind myself of one simple principle:

Never assume.

Inspect.

Because in construction, what you fail to check today may become tomorrow's biggest problem.