What if the estimates we fight so hard to defend are actually the very thing slowing us down? In this episode, Felipe sits down with Vasco Duarte --- Agile coach, author of #NoEstimates, and host of the Scrum Master Toolbox podcast --- for a candid conversation about why traditional estimation may be creating more illusion than clarity... and what to do instead. Vasco brings serious field credibility. He led initiatives at Nokia involving 500 people, 100 teams, across four continents. And he saw projects fail not because the work was impossible --- but because leaders trusted the plan more than the evidence unfolding in real time. This conversation hits home for construction and project management professionals who operate under pressure, contracts, and commitments. Key Takeaways - 📊 Throughput beats upfront estimation --- forecasting based on actual delivery rate consistently outperforms speculative planning. - 🔁 Scope is the real lever --- when time and budget are fixed, scope becomes the only honest variable. - 🧠 Reality always wins --- complex work behaves stochastically. Plans that ignore this get punished. - 🏗️ Pull planning isn't new --- software and construction independently discovered the same backward-planning principle. - 🤝 Scrum is human work --- frameworks don't save teams; people do. This episode isn't anti-planning. It's anti-delusion. Whether you're running a job site or leading a software team, this conversation will challenge how you think about forecasting, commitments, and control. 👍 Like and Subscribe Connect with Vasco Website: https://about.me/duarte_vasco Connect with Felipe Social media & free Lean and Scrum training resources: https://thefelipe.bio.link Registered Scrum Master (RSM) Course: https://store.theebfcshow.com/rsm Subscribe on YouTube: https://click.theebfcshow.com/youtube Watch The EBFC Show Podcast: https://click.theebfcshow.com/YouTube-Podcast Thank you Field Verified for Sponsoring today's show! Elevate your construction career and enhance your company's performance by mastering the crucial aspect of building enclosure management with Field Verified's specialized training. Managing building enclosures remains one of the most common sources of construction failure. Field Verified addresses this challenge through hands-on learning with real-world construction scenarios and mock-up installations, combined with leadership and team-focused strategies. By joining the program, you gain access to proven technical practices and better construction management strategies that improve both performance and reliability in the field. Visit https://fieldverified.com for more insights or call 480-719-5090 ---

In the FINAL EBFC Show episode of 2025, host Felipe Engineer-Manriquez sits down with Adalia Zhao, founder and CEO of BuildTrace, to talk about how AI is reshaping the future of construction—starting with change management. Adalia’s journey from counting 4,823 windows on a set of plans to becoming a Microsoft engineer and now AI startup founder is nothing short of inspiring.

Together, they dive deep into:

* Why “this doesn’t make sense” is the best way to spot innovation opportunities 🚨

* How BuildTrace automates drawing comparisons, estimates, and change tracking in minutes, not months ⏱️

* The power of learning on the job and betting on yourself 💪

* Overcoming barriers as a woman and immigrant in construction tech 🌍

* What GitHub for blueprints really looks like (hint: it’s amazing)

💡 Plus, Felipe reveals why he became an advisor to BuildTrace and why Adalia’s solution is exactly what construction needs right now.

🔥 If you’ve ever been buried in RFIs, confused by change orders, or frustrated by endless PDFs, this episode will hit home.

👉 Ready to build smarter in 2026 and beyond? Listen now, then connect with Adalia to explore if your team qualifies as an early design partner!

---

Connect with Adalia via

LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/adalia-zhao/

Website at https://build-trace.com/

Connect with Felipe via Social media and Free Lean and Scrum Training Resources at https://thefelipe.bio.link

RSM Podia Course Link: https://store.theebfcshow.com/rsm

Subscribe to never miss new videos here: https://click.theebfcshow.com/youtube

Watch The EBFC Show Podcast https://click.theebfcshow.com/YouTube-Podcast

---

Elevate your construction career and enhance your company's performance by mastering the crucial aspect of building enclosure management with Field Verified's specialized training. Address the major challenge of managing building enclosures, a common source of construction failures. Get hands-on learning experience with real-world construction scenarios and mock-up installations for skill-building with leadership and team-focused strategies. By joining our course, you gain access to a proven program that not only covers technical aspects but also better practices for effective construction management. Don't miss this opportunity to transform your approach. Visit https://fieldverified.com for more insights, or contact us at 480-719-5090.