“New Age Superintendent: Coach, Mentor and
Drill Sergeant.”
Years ago, especially in regions of the country where unions were strong, young craftsmen followed a well-defined path to become experts in their field. In those days, when a carpenter, electrician or plumber walked onto your jobsite, you could be reasonably sure that he really knew his business and would do a great job.
Not anymore. Young people no longer have the advantage of rigorous, systematic industry-wide training. Training today is mainly company-based, and it’s inconsistent at best. Some train their people well, while others provide no training at all. And especially in a tough economy, all companies feel a lot of pressure to cut back on training expenses.
The result is that a tradesman who arrives at a jobsite today may not be capable of completing work even close to the quality that an “old timer” hit every day on the job, 10 or 20 years ago.
Because of this fact of life in construction today, the role of the superintendent has changed dramatically. The “New Age Superintendent” must be more watchful than ever, engaged with each sub-contractor throughout the project. He (or she) must be deeply knowledgeable about every sub-contractor’s trade, and he must be ready to step in as coach and mentor whenever necessary.
The superintendents I admire most are the older guys who grew up in a different age, but have made this transition gracefully. It takes a lot of patience, believe me! But superintendents who are willing to be generous, lend a hand and help his sub-contractors succeed (and occasionally hold their feet to the fire of our quality standards!) are the ones who will consistently complete projects we can all be proud of.
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Joe Kish
Vice President - Operations
Employee Owner |
