Drew Yantis, Senior Vice President for Holder Construction Company in
Atlanta, Georgia discussed the topic of Employee Recruitment and Retention.
He had a very organized presentation and offered some interesting
insights into the corporate mind on employee recruitment issues.
The among the most interesting issues that he brought forward are those
on management expectations, being a defining relationship company, and that of
graduate student recruitment.
In discussing the appropriate expectations for recruits by management,
Yantis explained the early years in an organization are the learning phases that
a new recruit goes through. The
first five years in an organization are the times when you orientate yourself to
learning processes, refining process, and developing new or better processes.
This is a very important period for a new employee because this is also
when they formulate their ideas of whether they like these processes as well.
It is important that the company take and active role and evaluate
whether the employee is fitting into the methods that are being developed.
It is also vital that the manager realizes when the employee is not
fitting in, and may need to be moved into a new area, trained differently, or
let go from the company. In other words, if this much time is taken to learn the
processes by the employee then the company must evaluate whether the company is
getting the effort expected from the employee.
After an employee has been acclimated to the overall learning process in
the company, they may anticipate taking on a leadership role. The employee must then be required to focus on the people
side versus the technical side of the company typically seen in management.
The areas that an employee can look into include recruiting, business
development or strategic planning.
Yantis also stressed the importance of new recruits looking at the
culture of the company. These
internal factors include what the company does, where they do business, and who
the company actually is. One of the
important culture comments about Holder Construction is that they strive to be a
relationship company. It is
important to analyze what this means to new recruits.
The responsibility that the company owes to its clients is to balance
cost, schedule, and quality. This
area is what Holder strives to achieve, and it will be expected that the
employee play a role in trying to achieve these goals.
If this commitment to company success is communicated in the beginning of
employee training, encouraged during every day work and rewarded, then the
recruit will definitely feel part of a team.
Therefore, it is important for the employee to be aware of what is
expected of them in terms of company culture as well.
Finally, Yantis provided insight into what developments graduate students held over undergraduate students. One advantage that graduate students had was the non-technical skill of communication. The communication skills that the graduate students develop over their coursework are invaluable. Presentation, verbal, analytical, and writing skills are all tools that graduate students should have a firm grasp on and be able to use as leverage when searching for employment. I believe these are the skills that the departmental faculty should communicate to their contacts in construction as valuable assets for any firm. In some larger companies such as Holder, the new recruit would have to go on the same track of learning as mentioned previously but they could find themselves on a faster track into higher-level management.
Mike Waller, Senior Project Manger for Brice Building, Inc. in Birmingham, AL discussed the topics of effective meetings as well as jobs of the Project Manager. It is the latter topic that provided insights for me that were memorable, including protection from liability and subcontractor relations.
Project Mangers have the difficult
task of not only being responsible for the project, but also to keep the company
he works for out of serious legal trouble. Waller had a lot of practical
experience in writing plans and specs. His
idea on writing the specs was to make them definitive but as ambiguous as
possible. This was a very ingenious
statement. In order to cover all the intrinsic details of the job, the person
who is writing the specs must make sure that they cover every possible detail
for the subcontractor to follow. Using
such statements as “including, but not limited to” helps the Project Manager
make sure that they cover those bases. I
assume that these statements will hold up in court if the subcontractor left out
such details.
The example Mike Waller gave of broad scope
statements was a very useful one. The
fact that the architects made the contractor redo the work leaves a picky, but
solid impression on your mind since rework is often costly and time intensive. I
thought this was a great example.
Waller also had some very good comments on how to treat subcontractors. The communication between the general contractor and subcontractors is a very important topic. Any barriers that exist between these two groups can cause a project time and money. Communication is vital when it comes to problems. There are several factors that can become barriers to communication as found by the Critical Communication Article. The critical categories of communications that were formulated were accuracy, procedures, barriers, understanding, timeliness and completeness. An explanation of these categories follows.
Accuracy - The accuracy of the information received maybe influenced by the frequency of conflicting instruction. If the information is frequently conflicting in it’s intent, then the instructional information is hampered and can become a barrier. Poor communication between the established relationships can become channel barriers also and can distort the accuracy of the information.
Procedures - The existence of ineffective procedures can also be a barrier. Defined procedures that outline the scope and existence of methods are an effective aspect of communication. If these procedures are not clear then a project execution cannot begin.
Barriers - The presence of barriers such as interpersonal relationships, accessibility, and logistics can interfere with communications between supervisor and other groups. If interpersonal relationships developed between a supervisor and employee are on bad terms, then the communication is blocked due to personal reasons.
Understanding - In order for communication to be effective the understanding of the information by the receiver must be interpreted properly. If the employee does not understand what their supervisor is expecting then they cannot be expected to succeed. Also the generation of expectation from other groups for the employee is important. If they do not know what is expected of them, they come across a barrier for effective communication.
Timeliness - The timeliness of information received can become a barrier if impeded. The frequency of information and how it affects a worker is very important. If the information is not given to the person in a sufficient amount of time, then the information may become outdated or invalid. Activity scheduling and design are examples of time related information that must be delivered with accuracy and on time.
Completeness- Completed information is important for communication to be effective. The amount of relative information received must be complete in order for it to be done. Complete instructions can also be important when dealing with the other barriers of communication listed above. If the information is not complete because of timeliness, understanding, interpersonal barriers, and ineffective procedures, then the information is useless to the subcontractor.
Waller mentioned treating all subcontractors equally because they talk and many have the same lawyers. This is a great statement to keep in mind when dealing with subcontractors. As a Project Manager, you represent your company and therefore should always be mindful of your actions around others. This includes subcontractors who may be able to use the words you say against you if you are not careful.
Finally, it is important to remember that group success comes in partnership with subcontractors and architects. This was an important statement coming for the builder point of view. Waller mentioned bringing in the architects when you are ready to begin, since they will know what is important to them. Architects can also show you some things that you missed in the specs. In order to cover the small details that may pose litigious problems for a project manager, it is important to have clear channels of communication between himself, the subcontractor and the architect. If this can happen, then ultimate production can be achieved.
John
Teeples, President of DE/TE Builders in Columbus, GA, discussed the topic of
construction business start-up. Teeples
generated discussion by relating how he himself started a new construction
business in Columbus nine year ago. Portions of Teeples plan is discussed and commented upon.
When
starting out Teeples commented that he tried to consult the Small Business
Authority (SBA) but found them to be “no help at all.”
They discouraged him from starting the business and told him that he
would never make it. Teeples was
fortunate enough to have a partner in the start up from Columbus but together
they didn’t have many helpful contacts. To
me, these two discouraging facts that have had me reconsider starting my own
business. The risks that these two
men faced were not only discouraging but with not having worked in Columbus
before, coupled with the fact that they didn’t have a lot of cash start-up,
compounded the problem.
Teeples’
strategy included looking at hiring local “heavy hitters” to help him with
different services. These services
included: banking, accounting, bonding, legal and insurance. I thought it was very decisive that he named these areas to
specifically look towards when starting a business. These seem to be the
critical areas that he needed help in to even take the first step in achieving a
business start up.
For Teeples to be a success inn the area of
banking, he had to basically “beg, borrow, promise” to establish a line of
credit. He also mentioned advantages to the customer are out there,
but that the institution does usually not volunteer them. In order for Teeples to find these advantages he had to fend
for himself and dig around to find out exactly where the advantages were and who
had them. It would have been more
beneficial if there were experts in the area that were available to him to help
get those advantages. Since Teeples
only visits his banker twice a year now, constant contact in the beginning phase
and open communication would be beneficial.
Teeples
also offered valuable information in starting a general contracting company.
He mentioned that working for a small company for a while would be very
beneficial. This would allow
someone to see the “ins and outs” of the business and get the hands on
experience that is invaluable. He also mentioned that there would be less exposure to the
complete business if you were to work in a large company. I tend to agree. I am
sure that working for a large company would be beneficial, but I am trying to
consider whether to work for a large firm when I complete my master’s degree
here at Auburn. I can see potential benefits in going that almost
“traditional” route for our building science graduates, but I am not
interested in being put into a working environment that grinds its new recruits
hard and burns them out. I think a smaller company may offer smaller and
intimate work settings as well give you the guidance and work-face experience
that may be beneficial in starting a new business.
When considering the five essential areas that Teeples concentrated on, I wondered if there are business firms that specifically would handle these areas for a small businessman who wants to start up a business. I decided to focus my research component on finding firms that may offer these services. For the most part, I could not find a primary business firm that would handle all of these areas in-house. I was able to find a C.P.A. firm in Savannah, Georgia, that would assist new entrepreneurs.
(http://www.garybrandcpa.com/) They proposed three steps to assist new businessmen:
1)
Determining the viability of proposed business 2) Choosing the best form of
operation 3) helping set up the business for operation.
What I came across more often were a variety of websites that provided
valuable information to a person who wanted to start up a small business. Many of these websites provide a checklist of areas to look
at when thinking of starting an entrepreneurship.
Probably the most helpful place that I found on
the web was the U.S. Small Business Association. (http://www.sba.gov/)
Congress created the U.S. Small Business
Administration (SBA) in 1953 to help America's entrepreneurs form successful
small enterprises. Today, SBA's program offices in every state offer financing,
training and advocacy for small firms. SBA offices in every state, the District
of Columbia, the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico, deliver these programs. In
addition, the SBA works with thousands of lending, educational and training
institutions nationwide. This website contained targeted
information whose sole purpose was to help individuals who are interested in
starting their own business. The
information was presented in different forms including FAQ’s, Business
research tips, workshops in state, and other outside resources.
One of the most helpful items listed under the SBA was a business
start-up kit. This kit included
helpful information on getting started, finding the funding that you need,
government regulations, and SBA resources. Among these topics I found a list of
financial information that would be beneficial to keep in mind when starting up
a construction business.
The Financial Six C’s are a list of
determinations that banks, bonding agents and other lending institutions would
look at in regards to starting up a new business.
Character – The degree to which a borrower feels a moral obligation to pay his/her debts, measured by the credit and payment history
Capacity to Pay - A subjective determination made by a lender based upon an analysis of the borrower’s financial statements and other information
Capital - The amount of capital in a business is equal to the total of capital from debt and equity. Lenders prefer low debt-to-asset and debt-to-work ratios and high current ratios. These indicate financial stability.
Collateral - An asset owned by the borrower, but promised to a lender against non-payment of the loan. The amount of collateral varies from lender to lender. The closer the collateral value is to the loan amount, the more comfortable the lender will be that the loan will be repaid.
Conditions - General economic, geographic and industry conditions
Confidence
-
A successful borrower instills confidence in the lender by addressing all
the lender’s concerns on the other five C’s
These six issues would have been critical for a
person like John Teeples to be successful at the start point.
I think this information would be beneficial for the Executive Issues
class to have in topic discussion as a reference point. This is what financial
institutions would look at in regards to a business start-up.
There were also Internet website that would
provide useful information to a business start-up.
Business plan writing, research analysis, shareware, and other resources
were just a few of the other information posted that would benefit an
entrepreneur. The U.S. Census
Bureau has manufacturing, mining, and construction statistics for research
purposes. (http://www.census.gov/mcd/)
This information would help someone look at the viability of the proposed
business and view like businesses in the area.