Beyond Seasonal Surges

Year-round internships to mentor next-gen superintendents in real-world settings By Miguel Arguelles The construction industry has been facing a well-known crisis — a shortage of qualified workers that continues to grow. Last year, Associated Builders and Contractors projected the industry needs to hire over a half-million workers to meet the growing demand — assuming the pace of work doesn’t slow down. While hiring more workers seems simple, there often isn’t enough education or awareness about the diverse roles within the construction industry and the viable career opportunities it offers. Internships play a crucial role in bridging this knowledge gap and … Read more

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Leadership Skills: Promoting Teamwork, Productivity

By Brian Hook Back in the day, construction sites were no place for the thin-skinned, and not just because of the extreme weather swings in locations like the Upper Midwest or the Southwest. If work was falling behind or somebody had messed up, a superintendent often would just yell, and then everybody would suck it up and get to work. So-called “soft skills” were out of step with the gritty reality of field work. Times have changed, however, and if your field team hasn’t yet honed those leadership skills relating to emotional intelligence, conflict resolution, teamwork and effective communication, it’s … Read more

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Bridge the Gap: 3 Ways to Attract, Retain Skilled Workers

By Andy Williams Thirty-one million U.S. skilled-trades positions will be unfilled by 2020. In the manufacturing industry, 32 percent of $1 billion-plus companies estimate they will lose more than $100 million each year as baby boomers retire during the next five years. And it’s not much rosier in construction. Executives are seeing cracks extruding from the gap, expanding closer and closer to their company’s profitable foundation, and many leaders are branching out to solve this crisis in new and innovative ways. Here are three tips we’ve employed to bridge the gap: 1) Look to new labor markets As the construction … Read more

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