Bridging the Gap: Insights & Innovations in Construction

What does your marketing team focus on? Are you paying attention to what reels in a consumer? Join host Todd and guest Tim Brown as they discuss Tim’s transition from web design into the world of contracting, unique challenges that are present in the construction industry, how to provide your company with a strong and communicative brand, pushing quality over quantity, and more. Tim Brown is the CEO and Founder of Hook Agency. He is an experienced Technical Director, Director of Marketing and Strategy, and Web Designer. Todd Takes If you don’t have clarity around what your brand is and more importantly how others perceive your brand, stop what you are doing and find out. Having a strong brand is one of the most important things you can do for your business in generating leads and revenue. Don’t overthink and therefore overcomplicate your marketing, especially when it comes to video. Your iPhone camera will provide a good quality video. The important thing is to start posting content to see what is going to resonate with your audience. I am a big believer in fostering a natural sense of curiosity. What do you find interesting about your industry, work, and clients? Then lean into that and learn more.

When you picture “blue collar” jobs, what comes to mind? Do you carry any misconceptions with that term? Join host Todd and guest Ken Rusk as they discuss the “blue-collar crisis,” how to get more people interested in construction as a concept, how to take control of and manage our careers in the best way possible, and much more. Ken Rusk is the President of Rusk Industries and the author of Wall Street bestselling book, “Blue Collar Cash.” He describes himself as a professional ditch digger, entrepreneur, and proud advocate of following your dreams.

If there are a hundred ways that something can go wrong on a project, there are now a thousand ways to fix it. So what’s best for you and your company? Join host Todd and guest Bob Armbrister as they discuss the benefits of technology adoption, the difference between adoption by field workers and every other department, how our choices now impact us in the future, and more. Bob Armbrister is the President and CEO of SPARK Business Works. As a member of the leadership team for several organizations over the past decade, he has served as a forward thinking, mission-driven information technology executive. He desires to impact and create significant advancements in efficiency, productivity, and accountability. He enjoys the never-ending challenge of turning complex computer information into understandable and easy-to-access data for strategic thinkers. Todd Takes: When starting to implement new technology, it is important to start with user center design. Think through how people are actually going to use and leverage the technology. What needs to change in their workflow and how are you going to streamline that process. Challenge your assumptions by taking time to sit down with the people that are experiencing the pain points. By getting them involved early in the process, you are helping to ensure you are on the right track that will actually and practically address the issue at hand. Bob brought up the different personas that should be involved in the implementation process. Think through which personas and stakeholders need to be involved and recruit them to join the team.

When you picture modular construction, what comes to mind? Do you have some preconceived notions that should be challenged? Join host Todd and guest Chip Parsley as they discuss the ins and outs of modular construction, everything that goes into modular manufacturing, and how prefab saves time, money, and effort in the long run. TODD-TAKES We all need to be aware of our presumptions about things and regularly take time to make sure they are still accurate. With that in mind, be patience with others and take time to educate them on the realties of the industry. Help spread the word on the innovative trends happening like modular to show these trends are practical and actively happening. Take time to reimagine what it means to be productive and learn from those outside the industry, like manufacturing. We can pull valuable, hard learned insights into construction. Chip Parsley is the Director of Prefabrication Solutions at Poynter Sheet Metal. He has additional experience as a National Sales Director, Business Development Manager, Sales Project Manager, and an Owner/President.

In your experience, does construction have a PR problem? What can be done to fix that problem? Join roundtable speakers Todd Weyandt, Travis Voss, Brandon Patterson, and Adam Davis as they take a closer look at each major facet of the industry and discuss target audiences, the need to share success and growth stories, whether we need to have a “massive PR campaign,” and embracing both success and failures. Travis Voss is a Leader of Innovative Technology at Helm Mechanical. He uses his background in the tech field to explore, adapt, and perhaps develop technologies and workflows for the construction industry as it is thrust into its digital transformation. Helping Mechanical, Inc. stay on the cutting edge. Adam Davis is a Virtual Design Construction Manager at Lighthouse Electric Company, Inc. His specialties include developing and mentoring talented individuals in creating innovation in construction; modeling, virtual design and construction using AutoCAD/Revit, Navisworks; Compressor Station construction, oil and gas, fabrication, pre-fabrication, and Trimble; and Enterprise, Project, and Model-Coordinated scheduling. Brandon Patterson was Iowa born and raised with a history in the Building Industry. He enjoys working with the Iowa Skilled Trades Team and collaborating with the industry leaders to build the next generation of tradesmen and women.

As the year wraps up, what have we learned about the industry? What needs to be fixed, and in what ways have we made great strides? Join host Todd and guest Cameron Page as they talk about the jobs that set us up for success in the long run, how to pull together different industry groups for the better, the best ways to convince the industry to adopt new tech and tools, and how a workflow would look in a perfect world. Cameron Page is CEO of Extracker, the industry’s only change order communication platform. Leaning on his experience as a project manager, Cameron understands the risks involved in processing change orders and how detrimental mistakes can be to a project. Cameron is available to offer listeners the keys to processing change orders faster and how to mitigate risks when speeding up the process. TODD-TAKES Technology and collaboration have made the need for visibility all the more important. Leverage technology to help firm up your processes to give greater confidence that you aren’t missing important pieces of information. Cameron used the example that at a previous company they ran decisions through a simple question of “does this make us a better builder?” I love that. Having a north star that you can measure new initiatives, workflows, software and more against is a handy tool. It will go a long way to set you up for success in the long term by understanding the value and business case behind the action. Finally, document your processes to minimize disruption as things change and people leave the company. You want to make sure you don’t lose the intuitional data and information that has been learned.

Would you fit in if you were working in a construction industry job? A lot of people looking for work don’t think so. There is a long-standing perception in our society that construction industry jobs are dirty, difficult, back-breaking labor. And yes, there are certainly jobs like that. However, the added reality is that there are literally hundreds of jobs in or linked to the construction industry that do not require carrying bundles of fiberglass insulation on your shoulder, roofing a building, digging ditches, or muscling around sheets of drywall. Coralee Beatty joins us this week on the podcast to talk about women in construction and the perceptions surrounding the industry. She urged everyone to look past only what they see or hear passing by a construction site, and research further into the vast sea of opportunity in this industry. We need to spotlight different faces and voices around the industry to show leadership positions are attainable for all. There is tremendous value in embracing and leveraging a diversity of thought and backgrounds. Teamwork, active listening and creating understanding are crucial to a healthy and productive work environment and jobsite. Give people permission to have these conversations and make those personal connections at work. Finally, it is ok to ask for help. A lot of people can feel it is a weakness to not be able to do everything. In fact, it is a strength to admit that you in fact need someone else. Only once we tap into our collective strength can we truly accomplish great things.

As the year comes to a close, what has changed? What have we learned about collaboration, data, and teamwork? Join host Todd Weyandt and guest Eric Whobrey as they discuss the newest opportunities in the world of technology, the boldness of taking a good calculated risk, the education component of the AEC industry, “data for the sake of data,” and much more. Eric Whobrey is fascinated by technology and how it continues to make businesses more successful, and he finds himself delving deeper the applications of smart design, data analysis, and application development with each new endeavor. He has managed web and data development teams, build technology, established a technology strategy for a billion-dollar business, and actively invests in technology startups. Previously, Eric managed the Operational Effectiveness program at Centro and now runs the technology department for ARCO/Murray, a Design-Build Construction company, and he co-leads a small investment fund. TODD-TAKES There is tremendous value in bringing in an outsider perspective to gain fresh eyes. By providing a blend between technology and industry experience you are expanding your scope of knowledge while increasing your chance of success. Once you have a diverse array of perspectives, it is important to listen and learn from others when trying to implement new technology. Pull in and give ownership to the stakeholders that are experiencing the problem instead of just forcing new technology. Finally, Eric said “we don’t necessarily have a technology problem. We have a communication, education and empathy problem.” I think that is a great framework to operate in when implementing technology. Develop a plan for all three areas – communication, education and empathy.

Join host Todd and guest Mark Lamberson as they discuss construction trends that are here to stay, doing your “due diligence” in the industry, how to evolve alongside the constant changes in tech, how to represent your own interests as well as those of your team with technology, and remembering to apply empathy to every aspect of the industry. Mark Lamberson began his construction career as a plumbing apprentice for his stepfather’s plumbing company in Detroit in 1992. He completed an apprenticeship program through the Plumber's Local 98 training center in 2000. He has worked in the roles of journeyman, welder, foreman, project manager and estimator. He began his role as a plumbing detailer in 2006 and advanced to leader, manager, and finally National VDC Manager for the Limbach Company. Mark’s accreditations include a Certificate in Plumbing Design, Certified Autodesk Professional, and a Certificate in Construction Supervision. In 2018, Michigan’s chapter of American Society of Sanitary Engineers awarded Mark the John E. Matthews Engineer of the Year Award. Mark is involved in technology implementation, fabrication, and standardization committees throughout Limbach.

Are you ready to turn the volume up and rock the trades loud? Join host Todd Weyandt and guest Christopher Brenchley as they discuss the state of the trades today, the absolute importance of skilled tradesmen as essential workers, how Rock the Trades is helping to revitalize the workforce, and how there would be “no white-collar world without blue-collar workers.” A digital evangelist for nearly three decades, Christopher Brenchley is co-founder and CEO of Surehand, Inc.—an industrial talent sourcing platform provider—and the driving force behind the Rock the Trades workforce development movement. He is deeply committed to expanding awareness of blue-collar career paths, reducing industrial labor shortages, and ending underemployment. Get involved at https://rockthetrades.com.   TODD-TAKES: This conversation really gets at one of my soapbox topics around helping to change the perception problem that exists around the skilled trades. Loved that Chris is working to help, in his words, “elevate the perception of the skilled trades back to the industrial artists that they were decades ago.” To help increase exposure to the trades and reach a younger audience, we need to humanize the trades while getting information out about the reality of this industry in current and creative ways. The key to accomplishing this rests in our ability as an industry to lock arms with each other around a single message and rallying cry. I love the “Rock the Trades” mindset to bring people together to turn the cameras around and show the amazing things happening in the industry. So, let’s go rock the trades together!