Money Isn't Everything When It Comes to Attracting Top Construction Talent

A clear and compelling common vision. Employees want to know the direction of your company. Is this company headed in a direction that is consistent with where I want to head as an individual? And does my personal mission (whether written and formal or informal) align with the company’s vision? Can I see myself sharing this journey with everyone else to achieve our common goals?

An open and transparent culture. We are proponents of some form of open book management where you communicate openly with your employees. Here's where we are, ahead of plan and behind plan. Here are the corrective actions we're taking, and here are the opportunities we will pursue. Open culture means an open-door policy. Decades ago, I worked for a bank that took office doors off the hinges! An open-door policy doesn't mean, of course, that your door is open 100% of the time. There are some business and personal situations that demand privacy. An open-door policy means you're reasonably accessible to your people for questions, input and interaction. You make yourself a part of the team, and you're open to communicate with anyone. Transparency means that there are few or no secrets in the organization. Communication is frequent and open and, while considerate and tactful, brutally honest.

Clear roles, responsibilities and accountability. You doubtless have some employees who don't want accountability, and they are likely among your worst contributors. They want to stay under the management radar. Your good employees want clear roles, responsibilities and accountability. They genuinely want to know how they're doing. That's the purpose of a review, right? You say, "You're doing great" or "you're doing poorly.” "You did great on these areas, but here are a couple of places you need a little work." It's as simple as that. Unfortunately, the job description in most construction firms is do whatever it takes–-that is the worst possible job description! Good workers want to know what they're going to do, but they don’t want to be told how to do it. That's micromanagement. They want to know their specific responsibilities and how are they going to be graded at the end of the month, week or year.