Brad Leavitt Podcast

Construction Instruction with Mark LaLiberte

Nov 1, 2020

01:05:32

Mark LaLiberte is the co-founder and president of Construction Instruction. He has dedicated over 30 years to the building industry. Through his lectures, site assistance, Building Better Homes video series and his mobile App, he provides builders, architects and manufacturers with an in-depth look at the current and future state of housing. His work has earned him a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Energy and Environmental Building Alliance (EEBA), where he developed the highly acclaimed Houses that Work lecture series. The HTW Series has been delivered for over 16 years by the Ci team in 100’s of North American cities.

He works with various manufacturers to assist in developing products and services for the next phase of efficient homes. Mark is the co-creator of the Ci App and animation studio, which developed the number one mobile App in the construction industry and builds realistic state of the art contextual animations on building science concepts and technical installation practices.

He is also President of Sales Instruction Inc., helping to bridge sales and marketing efforts to our industry. Working with leading industry suppliers and manufacturers, his sales training company creates a common language to drive sales and increase productivity for sales teams.

His passion for educating lies in knowing how vital the building industry is. Building healthy, safe, durable and efficient homes has an effect on the buyer, the builder, the economy and the planet.

Listen in as Mark discusses why he believes builders should adopt a path of continuous improvement, waterproofing best practices, and why you shouldn’t ever need to factor in leaks when pricing your services.

Topics Discussed:

06:46 The biggest mistakes builders are making right now
11:12 Creating a solid training program for your tradesmen
15:17 Appreciate your tradesman
18:17 Set proper expectations to encourage excellence
27:14 Tried-and-true methods for waterproofing homes
33:29 Working with stucco contractors whose standards are different from yours
36:02 How to properly flash a window
41:24 Tools to secure exterior walls
45:56 The importance of capillary breaks
51:36 Why Mark created the Houses that Work lecture series
54:55 Why Mark started Construction Instruction and how to work with him

Connect with Mark LaLiberte:

Connect with Brad Leavitt:

Resources & People Mentioned:

Key Quotes from Episode:

It can’t just be about price. Craftsmanship and workmanship comes from the heart. What I leave is a legacy; not just “slap it on, get it done”.
The tradesmen like doing work carefully and professionally. They just need to be appreciated for it.
Set your standards, your process, and your educational expectations. Drive those to be exceptional, and you’ll get better performance.
Whenever you take on a new project, tell yourself: “I have one chance to do this well, and I’m going to do it right this time.” When you always set that standard for yourself, one day it becomes a habit.
COVID-19 has raised our awareness about the importance of the indoor environment. Houses should be our safe haven.
Continually learn and invest in your marketplace and invest in learning. Train people. Listen, learn, watch, and question. Hold people accountable for good workmanship. If we do that, we’re going to have this amazing industry, and deliver phenomenal product that will last for generations and be healthy and safe. I think that’s a fair expectation.