Checklist · 4 pages · version 2026-09-18.1
Owner's Project Control Checklist
The controls an owner needs in place — authority, documents, money, schedule, information — before construction makes decisions irreversible.
- Written for
- Owners and owner representatives carrying delivery risk
- Decision it supports
- Whether you actually control your project, or only receive reports about it.
- Dates
- Published September 18, 2026Updated September 18, 2026
What is inside
- Five control domains with specific tests
- Authority thresholds and who holds them
- Document control that survives staff turnover
- Payment and change controls
- A monthly owner review agenda
The full contents
Authority
- One written authority matrix: who approves what, to what value, with what evidence.
- Named alternates for every approver, so absence does not stall or bypass control.
- A rule that verbal direction on site is not an approval and does not bind the owner.
- Separation between the person requesting a change and the person approving it.
- A record of every approval in one place, not across individual mailboxes.
Documents
- A single current set marked as current, with superseded sets clearly retired.
- Version control on drawings, specifications and the assumptions register.
- A log of requests for information and their answers, with dates.
- Consultant scopes in writing, including what each consultant is not doing.
- Permits and conditions tracked against the work they govern.
Money
- A cost report tied to committed values, not to early estimates.
- Pay applications checked against installed work, lien waivers and retainage terms.
- Change orders priced, approved and reflected in the current cost report before work proceeds.
- Contingency drawdown tracked with the reason for each release.
- Allowances and unresolved scopes listed openly as exposure, not as settled cost.
Schedule and information
- A baseline schedule and a current schedule kept as separate records.
- Float ownership stated, so it is not consumed silently.
- Long-lead items tracked from order date, not from installation date.
- One reporting format the owner actually reads, on a fixed cadence.
- An escalation rule: what must reach the owner within 24 hours regardless of cadence.
Monthly owner review agenda
- Decisions taken since the last review, and by whom.
- Open decisions the owner must make, with deadlines and consequences.
- Cost position: committed, changed, remaining, exposed.
- Schedule position: baseline, current, causes of movement.
- Risks that became real, and the assumptions that failed.
This is the document's actual contents — the PDF is the same material set out as a working sheet, with room to write against each item.
Where it applies
Owner Representation
Owner-side advisory, review and representation work.
Construction
Owner-side oversight, distinct from regulated contracting or inspection.
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General working material, not advice for a specific project. Nothing in this document is an offer of financing or securities, a commitment of funds, an appraisal, or a legal, tax or engineering opinion. Verify every item against your own counsel, licensed design professionals and the authority having jurisdiction.
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Control is cheapest to install before the irreversible decisions.