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Matt Verderamo is a consultant with Well Built Construction Consulting, a Baltimore-based firm that provides strategic consulting, facilitation services and peer-to-peer panel discussions for construction executives. The opinions are the author’s own.
There are many construction companies that are getting work done, making a lot of money, and have a good reputation in the markets they serve. And the leaders of these companies should be proud, because none of this is easy to achieve.
But there is another level of success that far fewer construction companies achieve. In our work with contractors across the country, it’s rare that the external success mentioned above aligns with an internal success of a happy culture and generally positive feelings about the business.
Whether it’s universal burnout, high employee turnover, or a culture dominated by gossip, internal strife plagues even the most outwardly successful companies.
There are many reasons why this is a problem, and #1 is that internal problems often make external success fleeting. It’s only a matter of time before the superstars of the business are willing to deal with the depressing culture.
Matt Verderam
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Usually, the same superstars who brought external success eventually start to annoy their bosses and give up, either out loud or by slowly making them less and less of a business.
I feel bad when I enter companies that suffer a lot of burnout, because what these people are going through is not easy. It’s sad to see that money is made but no one feels happy.
However, more and more, I get excited when I encounter these cultures because I know it can be fixed.
Learning curve
The solution starts with creating leaders of high integrity who demonstrate empathy. Many construction leaders have never received any form of formal leadership training. So while they may not be a great leader, it’s often because they never learned how.
We start by helping them realize their impact on their people and business. We encourage them to recognize how people do what their leaders do and the importance of leading by example. We encourage them to see themselves through the lens of others:
- Would your people describe you as a great leader?
- How would your people describe the ethos of the business?
- If you were one of yours, would you like to stay here long term?
These questions can cultivate a much deeper empathy for people at all levels of the organization. This cultivation of empathy and awareness that they must lead by example are the two fundamental pieces to building leaders of high integrity.
After four to six months of regular coaching and development, you can see the leadership team begin to change their tone. Suddenly there is less external blame and more thoughtful discussion. Emotional intelligence soars.
Create a safe environment
As an employee, it can be difficult to let your guard down when you’ve dealt with bad leaders who push you to the brink of burnout to achieve external results. If you have many reasons not to trust these leaders, you will do everything you can to avoid trusting them in the future. I don’t blame a single person for feeling that way.
So if you’re a leader trying to overcome this trust deficit, you also have to recognize that you haven’t given your people any reason to trust you. As hard as it is, you have to admit your past mistakes out loud.
Tell them that you want to improve and that you are working to cultivate empathy and demonstrate behaviors of high integrity because you recognize that it is all necessary to create a successful business internally.
As scary as it can be to admit your faults, it works really well to build trust with people who have no reason to trust you otherwise. Then you have to show up every day and act like it. Over time, people will begin to recognize the alignment between your words and actions.
Once they do, trust can be built. And when that happens, you’ll create a safe environment where people feel seen and heard and are willing to share ideas and contribute to a positive culture.
The success of construction companies starts at the top. Many companies have used external measures of success to run their businesses, but more and more are recognizing the need for internal success to truly build a company that will last.
Build a culture of empathy and high integrity, and you will be externally successful as a result. Then enjoy owning one of the best construction companies in the country.
