Construction is often a rewarding and profitable business, but like everything, it also has its share of drawbacks. For starters, it has never been more difficult to find and retain a skilled workforce than it is today. Project durations may be long, forcing construction firms to attempt to manage elements outside of their control, like weather and material cost fluctuations. And finally, profit margins are notably small. According to Ready Ratios, the median profit margins for three construction categories are shown below.