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In 2016, we launched a webinar series for subcontractors and it has been one of the most enjoyable experiences of my entire construction career. It keeps me connected to our customers and up-to-date with the latest trends and ongoing changes in the construction industry.
Two recurring themes I keep hearing about are the lack of resources available for learning perform our jobs better and the growing shortage of qualified workers for skilled positions. You can’t put just anybody in roles such as project managers, estimators and field superintendents and expect them to be successful. We need programs to better train the next generation and equip them with the knowledge base and experience to succeed. We need to ensure that not only can they do things correctly, but safely, and in a manner that allows our companies to be profitable.
At the start of my webinar series, we received a lot of requests to cover topics related to project management and estimating. Your requests have been heard loud and clear—we’ve added the Estimating 101 webinar taking place later this month. We are putting the final schedule together for our 2017 webinar series, which we will post in the coming weeks. If you have specific requests or feedback, send them in, we always love to hear from you.
Be sure to register here for the Estimating 101 webinar scheduled for October 25, 2016, at 11:00 p.m. EDT.
Why I started this webinar series
My goal from day one was to help people realize how their company can be more successful by:
- Understanding their company’s identity
- Identifying their capabilities
- Exploiting their talents
- Growing their business in a controlled manner
- Establishing a business plan (and reviewing it often)
- Acknowledging their failures and understanding their weaknesses
As a construction professional with over 30 years of experience, I learned that my weaknesses defined my opportunities. Perhaps we should avoid projects where the size and scope are beyond our current capabilities. Delivering a project on time and within budget without the right expertise, manpower and equipment rarely works out. Finding the right projects allows all of us to be more profitable and will result in a stronger industry. No company can do all things for all people. With a strong network, we can assure our clients that we will deliver a successful project every single time.
Why I love construction
I teach a class to every new hire at iSqFt about the people in the construction industry. I remind them that every road they drive on, every school they attend, every house they live in and every hospital they receive care at was built by the people in our industry. I joined the construction industry because of the godlike feeling you get after finishing a new project. Arriving at a cleared jobsite with nothing and then leaving that same jobsite a year later with a new structure is an incredible feeling. That sense of accomplishment and pride needs to be infectious and handed down to our next generation. Let’s take the time to teach the next generation the right way to produce the results we are after.
Ken Yingling, Sales Development Manager, comes from an industrial and commercial construction background spanning over 35 years. He has worked as a project manager and estimator for general contracting firms, served as National Sales Manager and Vice President of a cast stone manufacturing firm and owned his own architectural millwork firm.
He has worked in all levels of construction, serving in a subcontractor role and working with GCs, selling directly to subcontractors, working with architects and engineers and selling manufactured goods. On the industrial side, he began his career in the oilfields building natural gas dehydration and purification plants.
