Misalignment of star markets plunged its regional revenue into a free-fall in the wake of the recession, but Southfield, Mich.-based contractor Barton Malow Co. has soared back on the strength of a better business model and organizational blueprint.
Regional revenue in each of the last three years has rocketed from $109 million to $424 million to $619 million, establishing the firm as Michigan's largest builder. But all this success came only after management "hit the reset button," says Ryan Maibach, president of the firm. "If I had to point to a single initiative that's made a difference, it would be the time we spent during the downturn deciding what we wanted to accomplish as a culture."