The MBI EDGE

Scott Friauf has a lengthy and admirable resume with MBI. Hear about his journey and how important community is to Scott and his company.

Mike Espeset is entering 2024 as the new MBI Chairman of the Board. We had a chance to sit down with Mike and talk about his experience leading Story Construction, and how he envisions his role as Chair playing out.

Introducing Dr. Tara Rinehart to the MBI family.  Tara has recently joined MBI as our Director of Industry Education and is responsible for all things education programming.  She’s a passionate learner, teacher and coach and we wanted to take this opportunity to let you all hear from her. 

Dr. Ben Hardy, organizational psychologist and author, will be keynoting this year’s Masters Award luncheon speaking about his philosophy and book “ 10X is better than 2X ”. Join us for this podcast and event in February as we discuss how world class entrepreneurs achieve more by doing less.

Every three years, MBI members have the option to attend the out of country excursion with their MBI peers. In 2024, the group will be traveling to a sunny destination that is revealed in this podcast episode. Tune in to check it out!

When MB Eye On The Future graduates hear the name Ken Bradford, they immediately harken back to a time they spent with this charismatic coach and master mentor. After 20 years of teaching these graduates, many have gone on to lead companies, sit on the MBI Board and lead philanthropic efforts in their own communities. Take the time to listen to what that’s all meant to Ken, and what he has planned...

Bill Schmarzo returns for his 2nd podcast on The MBI Edge. Bill is known in the data world as the “Dean of Big Data” and wears many hats including professor, business coach and strategic thinker. Bill’s going to be headlining the Technology and Innovation Breakfast and also run a breakout session at the Annual Winter Conference. Catch a sneak peek here!

Jason Schroeder is a former Field Operations and Project Director who has worked for 23 years in about every position. He now champions and teaches Project Management through his immersive bootcamp and will be the lead instructor at the Annual Winter Conference in February.

Jeff Espenship, or “Odie”, as his call-sign declares is an international airline pilot, retired USAF fighter pilot, husband, father and professional speaker. Odie is joining us this year for the Winter Conference and has an inspiring message about cutting corners. As he says, “ Pay attention to the size of the shadow you cast in the eyes of others. Fresh eyes and ears are always watching and liste...

Jake Thompson will be joining us as a keynote speaker this year at the Annual Winter Conference. Jake joins us for a preview of that keynote and how you can Compete Every Day.

In this episode, hear from Darell Butcher of SE Polk High School. SE Polk has been a leader in work-based learning programs available for high school students and has personally been fundraising for a new building on school grounds that will create a local talent pipeline for those entering the trades.

In this episode, MBI’s CMaR Consultant Larry Cormicle talks about the public bidding landscape in Iowa. He talks with the audience about what he’s seeing in RFQ’s and RFP’s, how respondents are treating the process and what he’s been doing to educate owners, contractors and design professionals.

Joani Wolfe is the Iowa Area Director for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention and is focused on eliminating the loss of life from suicide – something plaguing our industry.

Sonya Bohmann is the Executive Director of the Construction Industry Alliance for Suicide Prevention. Sonya gives the audience an in-depth understanding of how much words matter when talking about the loss of life from suicide and how we can all bring a better awareness.

Lars Peterson is a licensed therapist, family business consultant and trainer. He works through the Employee and Family Resources non-profit with clients to help manage challenges at work, home, community and in school.

In this episode, we spoke to John Greenwood from Goldfinch Health. John has been a keynote speaker at our past Winter Conference speaking to our industry about the dangers of opioid use. John and his team has put together the Billion Pill Pledge, essentially eliminating the use of opioids after surgery and how doctors and medical professionals are changing the way we treat patients. Hear about how...

Jennifer Bryant is a human resources expert and creator of the Human Pivot – a firm she created after spending a working lifetime in the H/R corporate world. This was a very informative conversation we had about unique differentiators that employers are using to recruit and retain leaders.

In 2023, MBI is supporting and partnering with Construction Angels – a charity dedicated to provide immediate assistance and grief counseling to the families of construction workers who have unfortunately lost their lives while working on the jobsite. Here more about the mission from CEO Kristi Gibbs and how our members can support the cause!

Bill Schmarzo has many titles. Dean of Big Data. CDO Whisperer. Global Innovator. Professor. Currently, he’s the Customer Advocate of Data Management Incubation for Dell Technologies. In this episode, we explore the AI transformation and how it impacts data collection to fuel business growth in the future.

On this episode, we sat with Elisa Brewer-Pratt, who recently led a group of young professionals in this industry through an extensive exercise regarding the future of workforce. Hear what she had to say!

Cal Beyer is many things. Communicator. Catalyst. Change Agent. Coach. Certified Wellness Practitioner. All of these titles fit. But at his heart and core, Cal is changing lives by sharing stories of struggle and survival through his role as Vice President of Workforce Risk and Worker Mental Wellbeing dedicated to construction risk management.

Renee Schulte, Mental Health Professional and Former Iowa Legislator, joins the podcast this month to talk about some staggering statistics in our industry. She's been in the trenches - navigating Iowa's mental health system for years - and is uniquely qualified to provide strategic advice for employers in implementing new healthy work strategies.

Since 1949, Mental Health Awareness Month has been observed in May across the United States. We feel it is not only important, it is our duty to talk openly about the mental health crisis in our industry. Brad Churchill joins the podcast this month and we are especially appreciative of the work Brad is doing to help #stopthestigma.

MBI has long supported the UNI Construction Management program and the Construction Engineering program at Iowa State University through the annual awarding of scholarships to students enrolled in these programs. We talked with one recipient of such scholarships, and how that helped propel him to become the business owner he is today.

At his core, Alan Stein Jr. is a performance coach with a passion for helping business leaders change behaviors. Alan joined us at the MBI Winter Conference to talk about how business leaders can apply the principles he’s used in coaching some of the best basketball players on the planet (including NBA superstars Kevin Durant, Steph Curry, and Kobe Bryant).