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

Beyond humorous sketch comedy involving beer, the Dilly Dilly Dilemma is about a common challenge among industry manufacturers, distributors, and dealers. The dilemma results in sales people consistently frustrated by a lack of relevant and helpful sales tools—online or off—that leads them to feel like they are dialing for dollars instead of delivering value. The dilemma results in sales managers...

On this week's episode of the Behind Your Back Podcast the tables are turned as the dynamic duo of Grant and Clay Leavitt are the hosts as they ask me the hard questions— those that are most important to them and their business. Grant and Clay Leavitt are 4th generation owners of Marcus Lumber in Marcus, Iowa. If this sounds familiar, they were guests on the show last year. In this episode, the Le...

The 2018 ProSales 100 list was released recently: "Dealers are generating more revenue with comparatively fewer resources even as they invest for future gains." To dig deeper into the insights and further question your own business in light of this year's data, Craig Webb, editor-in-chief of ProSales, joins the Behind Your Back Podcast. Thanks for listening.

When coaching sales teams, inevitably the selling/buying process for cars comes up. Everyone has been on the buy side and earned a war story or two. Or three. And yet, there are sales similarities between vehicles and lumber and building materials—both call themselves Dealers, both interact and negotiate with B2B and B2C customers, and many are multi-generational, family-run businesses. That's why...

Aman Khan, founder and president of Houston's Titan Homes, launched his home building business in 2004 has grown Titan Homes to seventeen multiple unit projects totaling close to $60M in sales. In this episode, Aman shares insights about the value of referrals from suppliers looking to earn his business, why long-term relationships drive his partnerships—not price—and the counterintuitive value th...

It's been said only babies with wet diapers enjoy change. This week's guest, Jim Sobeck of New South Construction Supply in Greenville, South Carolina, kindly disagrees. Sobeck is one of those rare people who loves change. Jim was the VP of Sales for Builder Marts of America before becoming the CEO of Enterprise Computer Systems, a software solutions provider for the building materials industry. I...

In the sales profession, the phrase "deliver value first" is bandied about frequently. When was the last time you truly evaluated the methods in which you deliver value first — in your prospecting efforts or when individuals in your market research you online? In this episode we'll share specific tactics sales reps can apply immediately and an important exercise sales managers can lead to ensure y...

Episode 22 is a 2-for-1 special as we feature two men, Tony Palcheck and John McLinden, who bring unique insights to the LBM industry with their two very different backgrounds. Tony Palcheck is a venture capitalist and Managing Director of Zebra Technologies. He was also an outstanding professors in my MBA program. John McLinden is a real estate developer and builder with 30 years of experience in...

On this episode of the Behind Your Back Bullet Point, we give you a step-by-step guideline on how to improve your sales meeting and make sure your meetings are valuable for everyone who attends.

My guest on Ep. 20 of the Behind Your Back Podcast is Bill Lee, business consultant, sales training expert, and author. Bill is a giant in the industry. I do not know of any other individual to whom more people describe as a mentor—a really powerful sentiment considering how much time and attention proper mentorship requires and how much a great mentor can change a career—and life. I consider Bill...

Over the past 12 months, we've had numerous discussions with listeners who expressed an interest in shorter episodes focusing on tactical ideas and insights to ovecome common challenges. While we will continue to share insights from thought leaders with longer episodes twice each month as you've come to expect, this episode is our inaugural Behind Your Back "Bullet Point"—an abbreviated episode fo...

My guest this week on the Behind Your Back Podcast is Bill Pulte, the founder and namesake of national homebuilder Pulte Homes. Bill passed away earlier this month at the age of 85. In reconnecting with colleagues who worked with Bill and discussing how much impact he had on our lives, I recalled an interview I did with him 10 years ago. It was March of 2008. What would become The Great Recession...

My guest this week on the Behind Your Back Podcast is Ken Kuehn, Partner at CK Solutions. Ken's career is a case study in executing the career crossover—the challenging move to excel in Operations and Sales, in management and leadership roles. Ken is an entrepreneur, founding his firm CK Solutions in 2013 to help dealers improve their recruiting and training efforts. In this episode, Ken discusses...

Today we are introducing you to an updated version of a beloved sales tool, the Mackay 66. The Mackay 66—a list of 66 questions that, if answered, demonstrate a deep understanding of your customer or prospect—was created in 1983 by business legend and sales expert Harvey Mackay. The Mackay 66 demonstrates exactly how he leveraged relationships, business insights, caring, and a deep understanding o...

My guest this week on the Behind Your Back Podcast is Isaac Oswalt, founder of digital agency 21 Handshake. Through a combination of engaging content, social outreach, and search optimization, 21 Handshake assists brands in creating a tailored online presence. In this episode, Isaac and I discuss ways technology can build your brand, increase your sales, and most importantly—build relationships wi...

Imagine a job that required you to take FBI interrogation classes to learn negotiators "tells" and how to demand payment with empathy to ensure the lifeblood of your company—cash flow—is maintained while risk is minimized. Well, if you're an expert in the business of credit management, you've likely done both. My guest this week on the Behind Your Back Podcast is Thea Dudley, Vice President of Fin...

How many times have you asked yourself, "What's going on inside that Purchasing Manager's head? What does he really care about?" Well, in this episode of the Behind Your Back Podcast, you'll actually have the opportunity to get inside the head of Paul Schmit, Vice President of Purchasing at Taylor Morrison. In this episode, he digs into what the best sales people do to get his attention, and how h...

If one of your goals for 2018 is to improve your ability to connect with prospects and customers, you'll kick off the new year right with this episode featuring Natalia Dittmer, Marketing Director for TAL Holdings in the Pacific Northwest. After meeting Natalia in our pre-work for a panel discussion on social media at the 2017 LBM Journal Conference, I knew she'd be a great guest. In addition to s...

The holidays are nearly here. Family members convene to rejoice, reconnect, and of course, to reopen old wounds with copious amounts of antagonization and alcohol. Now, imagine for a moment, y'all own a business together! For many, the thought alone calls for another splash of E&J brandy in their egg nog. Well, brothers and 4th generation business owners of Marcus Lumber, Grant and Clay Leavitt, h...

Do you own a standing desk? Do you know someone that does? With each passing day, the number of people who answer "no" to those two questions diminishes. And a big reason why is our guest on Episode 10.
 
David Patton is the Director of Design at VARIDESK, the company that is leading the sit-stand revolution at workplaces around the world.  An industrial designer by education, David shares the VAR...

Wouldn't it be great to listen to what successful home building operators really think about industry sales reps? It would, but it depends on whom. After all, small developers building luxury homes in urban markets think very differently—and have different pain points—than national home building executives focusing on McMansions in suburbia, right? Right. In today's episode, you get the best of bo...

In Episode 8, you'll meet the man who will change the way you think about the linchpin of your business success: your strategy. The term "strategy" is so often misunderstood, miscommunicated, and misapplied in business today, it often hinders more than it helps. In a business climate where over 81 percent of CEOs indicate that less than half of their managers are strong at strategic thinking, it i...

As more and more of the buying process begins online, we set out to understand how the largest LBM firms were leveraging the digital space to connect with prospects and customers. Over the past 2 years, Bradley Hartmann and the Behind Your Back team has researched how the Top 100 LBM dealers have been creating digital content—and how they've been sharing that content on social media platforms like...

In Episode 6, you'll meet actor and screenwriter—and former national homebuilder superintendent—Jack Kennedy. Jack has spent the last 15 years selling himself in the most hostile sales environment in the world—Hollywood. Jack explains how, in just a few short years, he went from holding suppliers and subcontractors accountable on the job site to holding screen legend Martin Short in his arms while...

In this episode of the Behind Your Back Podcast, you'll get to know Jason Behunin, the Director of Sales for ProBuild BFS in the Pacific Northwest. Jason began his career through entrepreneurship—launching a framing company with his brother. Behunin discusses how balancing the personal and professional challenges of running what would become one of the largest framing companies in Metro Portland b...