After nine months' work and full commitment to the expansion project at the University of Virginia's McIntire School of Commerce, Senior Associate Dean Gerry Starsia hit a snag. A few unresolved issues remained that would extend the project's time frame and increase costs. Starsia was in a meeting with university administrators to talk about the problems. Should he recommend moving forward, come up with other options, or reconsider the whole thing? Excerpt UVA-OB-1057 Jan. 6, 2015 PROJECT MANAGEMENT: “CONSTRUCTIVE” BUILDING After nine months' work and full commitment to the expansion project at the University of Virginia's (U.Va.) McIntire School of Commerce (McIntire), Gerry Starsia hit a snag. Starsia, the senior associate dean of administration, and the rest of the project team were excited—they had sketches, plans, and costs put together by the spring of 2002. Things had moved forward. But there were a few issues that remained unresolved. The contractors had tested for asbestos and found it in floor tiles and pipe insulation throughout the Monroe Hall building. In addition, the extensive renovation required bringing the building up to current-year building code, which meant adding sprinklers to all the ceilings. That would make it a multiphase project with extended periods of disruption and higher costs. Starsia was in a meeting with university administrators to talk about the problems. Should he recommend moving forward, come up with other options, or reconsider the whole thing? Gerry Starsia In the spring of 2001, Gerry Starsia found himself tired of the construction business. For more than two decades, he had worked in the private-sector construction industry, first as a carpenter; then as an estimator, a project manager, and a project executive; and later as the owner of a design/build/real estate firm. Starsia recalled: I started out working for others, and my specialty was trading room construction. I worked on Wall Street at some of New York's most well-known financial services buildings, including the World Trade Center, 2 Broadway, and 60 Broad Street. I met my wife, Marianne, who was a trading room designer there. The New York building scene was primarily high-rise construction and often very complicated work. After working my way up in the business working for others, I started my own company in 1988 in the medical design/build business. I was really interested in complicated projects and realized I could just continue to do what I was doing, project after project that I knew very well, or try to do things other people either wouldn't, couldn't, or didn't have the patience to do. I carved myself out a niche in the medical-equipment installation and construction business. We installed radiation therapy centers, medical imaging centers, special procedure rooms, neonatal intensive care units—the more complicated the better. Although Starsia liked his work, there was a downside. He dealt with complaining clients, uncooperative subcontractors, weather delays, labor shortages, and endless staff turnover. Those issues left Starsia stressed out and not feeling great physically: . . .