Construction Brothers Training In The 21st Century (feat. Jordan Smith)
Sep 21, 2022
43:02
If you need to learn a construction skill or train an employee on a specific skill, Jordan Smith has you covered. Jordan is the Head of Education of MT Copeland (in addition to owning and operating his own design/build firm). MT Copeland provides affordable, professional-grade video courses for specific construction skills. Jordan does several of the videos, but a whole array of specialized instructors also share what they’ve learned in their many years on the job. Jordan shares how the craziness of COVID led him to head to the shed. He proceeded to turn that shed into a small custom video studio and record construction tutorials. Eventually, Jordan was hired to structure the curriculum of MT Copeland’s construction videos. Now MT Copeland has over 70 hours of video instruction on their website. The content ranges from more big-picture commercial principles to the mechanics of doing a good paint job. Jordan has come to see that the process of training has two parts: head-knowledge insights and hands-on training. The video content that he and MT Copeland offer is designed to help with the head knowledge. Most trainees then work with practicing local contractors to get the necessary hands-on experience. Here are some other things you’ll hear in our conversation with Jordan:
- A discussion about one remodeler who has his crew earn “digital passports” for training on specific tasks such as properly hanging a door.
- A story about a cynical Irish guy at a trade show
- A surprise connection between the novel Cheaper by the Dozen (the novel, not the movie) and efficiency in masonry.
- Connections between proper training and employee retention–as well as some thoughts about how to deal with employees to take off after you’ve invested in training them.