Most AEC firms using Autodesk Forma® are generating more project data than ever before. But more data doesn’t automatically lead to better decisions.
Across planning, design, and construction workflows, teams are capturing RFIs, submittals, cost events, issues, and schedule updates in real time. The information exists. The challenge is that most organizations don’t have a clear way to turn that data into something usable. This isn’t a technology problem. It’s a translation problem.
The platform changed. The data problem did not.
Autodesk Forma represents a shift toward a more connected project environment. Planning, design, construction, and operations data now live within a more unified ecosystem. That’s a meaningful step forward.
But even with better platforms, the core issue remains: Having access to data is not the same as using it effectively. Most teams still rely on manual reports, disconnected spreadsheets, or static exports to understand project performance. The data is there, but the connection between information and decision-making is still missing.
Out-of-the-box analytics is a myth.
There’s a common assumption that once data is available, insights will follow. In reality, exporting data through tools like the Forma Data Connector is only the starting point. Raw data is not a dashboard. It’s not structured for analysis, and it doesn’t answer questions on its own. Turning that data into something useful requires:
- Understanding how the data is structured
- Building relationships between datasets
- Designing visualizations that highlight what matters
Most AEC teams are not set up to do this internally. They have project expertise, not data modeling expertise. The connector gets you to data. The real value comes from translating that data into answers.
Project dashboards and executive dashboards are not the same.
One of the most common mistakes we see is trying to build a single dashboard that serves everyone. Project teams and executives are not asking the same questions. Project teams need visibility into day-to-day execution, including RFI aging and response times, submittal status and bottlenecks, issue counts by type and location, and cost event pipelines.
Executives need a completely different perspective, generally focused on portfolio-wide performance trends, turnaround times across projects, cost variance distribution, and risk indicators at a high level.
When one dashboard tries to serve both audiences, it ends up serving neither well. The result is confusion, underutilization, and ultimately, a return to manual reporting. Effective analytics starts with understanding who needs to make decisions, in addition to what decisions they need to make.
Inaction costs more than you think.
The gap between available data and usable insights has real consequences. According to industry research, AEC firms with strong data capabilities see significantly better financial performance. One study found a 56 percent profit growth advantage for organizations that effectively leverage data compared to those that do not.
The reality is that most firms already have the data they need. It’s just spread across logs, spreadsheets, and systems that don’t communicate clearly with one another. Without a structured way to analyze and compare that information, teams are left reacting instead of proactively managing projects.
ENGworks Global builds analytics that support your outcomes.
We don’t start with dashboards. We start with decisions. What does your team need to know? What are you trying to improve? Where are delays, risks, or inefficiencies showing up? From there, we work backward to structure the data and build analytics that support those outcomes.
Our approach includes:
- Configuring account settings and data flows to support reporting
- Building Power BI dashboards aligned to your project structure, naming conventions, and workflows
- Creating separate views for project teams and executive stakeholders
- Establishing governance so dashboards remain accurate and consistent over time
Analytics, like integration, is not a one-time setup. It’s an ongoing process that requires structure, ownership, and alignment across teams. When done correctly, it gives organizations both a clearer understanding of what’s happening across their projects, and the ability to act on it.
Discover a faster path forward.
If your firm is running projects in Autodesk Forma, but still relies on manual reporting, there is a more efficient way to turn your data into decisions.
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