The Construction Leadership Podcast: Executive Strategies to Build Elite Teams & Consistently Deliver On-Time, Under Budget

In episode 153, Jenna Duett brings her enthusiasm and insights to the Behind Your Back Podcast. Jenna is the Director of Media and Regional Marketing for one of the largest franchisors in the construction space. Jenna details how she thinks about traditional marketing channels (TV, print, radio) versus digital (email, social media platforms, video, podcasts) and how she frames the opportunities fa...

In episode 152, host Bradley Hartmann outlines how teams can invest 90 minutes every 90 days to build stronger, more insightful teams that leverage the commodity of information to bring more contextual information to customers and prospects.  

In episode 151, Tim Lyons (VP of Sales at Brockway-Smith Co. aka BROSCO) joins the podcast to discuss sales and leadership at the 130-year-old firm. Founded in 1890, BROSCO is the largest distributor of millwork products in the Northeast. Tim and Bradley discuss how to honor the past sales methodologies that have proven resilient at the firm while continuing to innovate. Tim also shares a poignant...

In episode 150, Dr. Ben Bigelow joins the show. Ben is an Associate Professor and the Director of the Construction Science program at the University of Oklahoma. After graduating from Texas A&M, Ben built homes for Centex before being pulled into academia, studying and teaching at several of the strongest Construction Management programs in the country—Arizona State (Masters), Colorado State (PhD)...

In episode 149, Bradley Hartmann shares the timeless components of remarkability as defined by Michel de Montaigne: utiles-doux in Latin meaning, useful-delightful.  

In episode 148, Bradley Hartmann and Jenny T. welcome Tricia Kagerer (Executive Vice President of Risk Control at Jordan Foster Construction) to the show to discuss her new book, The B Words: 13 Words Every Woman Must Navigate for Success. Far from an episode solely for women, this discussion will help everyone collaborate more thoughtfully, especially during this pandemic as many of us juggle the...

As COVID-19 has made face-to-face selling harder than ever, communicating well via email is as important as ever.  In episode 147, Bradley Hartmann and Jenny T. dissect a series of real-life email sales pitches—the good, the bad, and the ugly—to review what to do, what not to do, how to stand out, and how to get your readers leaning in. Visit behindyourbacksales.com/podcast to download the PDF tra...

"Because its purpose is to create a customer, the business enterprise has two—and only two—basic functions: marketing and innovation." - Dr. Peter Drucker   In episode 146, Bradley Hartmann connects with one of his former MBA professors, Corinne Miller. Corinne is an expert on innovation, with innovation-based roles in various fields: the defense sector, at Motorola during its last dynamic peak, a...

In episode 145, Russ Kathrein joins the show to talk about his recent departure from Alexander Lumber, a few of his lessons learned, and leadership principles that can guide us all.    

Part II of Bradley Hartmann's conversation with Bruce Merrifield, President of Merrifield Consulting Group and partner at WayPoint Analytics. They continue the discussion on profit models, customer profitability rankings, the importance of identifying Gazelles (the 4% of companies that are growing 2-4X faster than the competition due to continuous innovation), and the parable of Charlie The Milkma...

"To succeed in business, you have to have a genuine, honest-to-goodness interest in profitability. And most people don't."     — The Art of Profitability by Adrian Slywotzky Our guest on episode 143 is Bruce Merrifield, President at Merrifield Consulting Group, Inc. and a partner at Waypoint Analytics. As you'll hear, listening to Bruce is like studying with an entertaining professor in a graduate...

On today's episode, Hartmann and Jenny T. are joined by a pair of guests from WindsorONE. Corbin Rinehart is a Regional Sales Manager at WindsorONE, a wood science expert, and an avid fisherman—all of which were assembled into a unique collegiate curriculum at Penn State University. Joining Corbin is Brian Bunt, Director of Marketing at WindsorONE. You may remember Brian from episode 104, where we...

In episode 141 you'll meet Jim Thillen, the Regional General Superintendent at The Beck Group, an international commercial construction firm based in Dallas, TX. Jim is a 3rd generation builder, an early adopter of technology in the construction space (Jim made the switch to digital schedule management back in the early 80s), and a keen observer of leadership across all generations on the job site...

In this emergency podcast, Jenny T. and Bradey Hartmann discuss the Muji bankruptcy (in the U.S. only) and its effects on the supply and demand of .38 gel ink ballpoint pens. They also discuss the world's longest-running corporations.  

In episode 139, host Bradley Hartmann recounts his impromptu one-on-one session with Coach Herm Edwards, former NFL player and coach who is currently the Head Coach at Arizona State University in Tempe, AZ. Coach Herm shared his insights on football, leadership, and life in general in a way that changed Hartmann's life for the better. 

In episode 138, Bradley Hartmann connects with Sean Reid of Arrowhead Coaching and Facilitation Solutions based near Hamilton, Ontario (CA). Sean shares lessons learned from writing a speech for the Queen of England, a situational leadership framework to make more of an impact in less time, how to raise the awareness of mental health challenges, and how to ensure your stated values and strategy di...

In episode 137, a bit of (meaningless) history is made as Bradley Hartmann's role of podcast host transitions to past guest, VP of Trade Marketing and Sales Training at Hearth and Home Technologies, Tim Rethlake. Joining Tim on the podcast is two developers from episode 9, Nathan Marsh of V&M Development  (Chicago) and Bobby Krueger of Mavrek Development and The Krueger Group (Chicago and Clevelan...

In episode 136, Bradley Hartmann is joined by Kimberly Simonson, President of Simonson Design USA. In her firm, Kimberly and her team, which includes family, leverages the power of 3D design software to help dealers and home owners improve the speed, clarity, and enjoyment of their projects.   

In episode 135, Bradley Hartmann shares an excerpt from his upcoming book project with Carl Moyer (Director of Human Resources at Parr Lumber Company) titled, Yes, Fear Works (But There's a Better Way). This episode deals with attempts at motivation, incentives, and the often perverse unintended consequences that follow. Examples include cobras—as you might assume—as well as rats and sparrows. Vis...

In episode 134 Bradley meets Jonathan Slain, co-author of Rock the Recession (with Paul Belair) and founder of Autobahn Consultants. Use the promo code BEHIND to receive 29% off everything sold at Rock The Recession website, including Jonathan's workbook, his reports, and his do-it-yourself recession planning kit.

In episode 133 Bradley is joined by Ronda Conger, author, podcaster, public speaker, and home building executive at award-winning CBH Homes in Boise.   

In episode 132, Bradley is joined by Jon Vaughan, President of Brand Vaughan Lumber, and Mark Scherer, COO of Scherer Bros. Lumber Co., to analyze leadership lessons they took from ESPN's Michael Jordan Documentary 'The Last Dance.' As always, thank you for listening!

In episode 131, Bradley is joined by Jenny T. to talk about the D.A.M. Problem with Salespeople. They give their tips on how to help you and your salespeople overcome the drift to account management.  

In episode 130, Bradley is joined by TJ Shaheen, Owner and EVP of Builders' General in New Jersey. TJ gives an inside look at the COVID-19 pandemic from his perspective and shares what his company is doing to keep employees and customers safe.

In episode 129, Bradley is joined by Jillian Sobeck Whalen, Founder & Strategist at Sobeck Studio. She gives her advice on: How to make your message stand out on social media How to improve your digital presence in only 1 hour per week How to ensure your company avoids online mistakes Thanks for listening!