Amid construction labor shortages, crunched schedules and supply chain delays, field workforce manager “burnout” is becoming more of a concern, according to some firms ranked on this year’s list of ENR Top 600 Specialty Contractors.

“Jobsites that are well organized, clean, and safe allow our [field leaders] and field forces to be both effective and efficient,” says Paul Wiederhold, operations manager at SPC Mechanical, ranked No. 225 on this year’s Top 600 list. “A chaotic site is a leading indicator that we will not have the desired outcome."

Superintendents and other field leaders often feel the brunt of industry-wide construction challenges, and Top 600 firms say dwindling labor pools have added a greater strain on an already demanding role. 

“One challenge we are seeing on the jobsite is customers wanting real time information and job updates,” says Mark Ward, CEO of No. 339-ranked Ward Electric. “While this is possible, it presents challenges.”

As a result, firms seek to provide jobsite leaders with more tools and training to embrace technology and focus problem-solving. Ward says the firm’s adoption of new technology and more workforce training has helped improve jobsite productivity with “a focus on safety and quality.”

Wayne Brother Cos, ranked No. 182, says it has also invested in a robust training program to combat field manager burnout across jobsites. “What we have found is if we can give them the skills and confidence to handle high stress situations, so they experience less frustration and mental fatigue, leading to less burnout,” says Chief Human Resource Officer Joel Riddle. 

Training includes monthly sessions on conflict resolution, stress management and emotional Intelligence, he says. 

With positive reception across some firm jobsites, Riddle says there are plans to roll the program out company-wide. The “unintended consequence" is that the effort “creates a sense of purpose and engagement, further reducing burnout and decreasing turnover," he adds.

The No. 312-ranked Pittsburg Tank & Tower Group says simply acknowledging employee burnout can go a long way. The firm has found that having field leaders "home for holidays, company events and more often in general, has helped minimize burnout,” says Paul Blanford, director of the inspections maintenance division. “We realize extensive travel is hard on families, and we do our best to acknowledge and mitigate that."

Retooling Management Skills

Poynter President Joseph Lansdell says its success in managing burnout “stems from our company’s ability to maintain an open-door policy” throughout its growth. The open-door policy has given field leader Kyle Wilson insight into who needs breaks from traveling and large projects, and extra support on-site,” says Lansdell. “While finding the right people for the right job is always challenging, having open discussions between our field and management team has allowed us to prevent unnecessary burnout when possible.”

The company also conducts two yearly trainings to review and update management strategies, including technology adoption. “These are designed to provide valuable on-site tools for management, introduce new technology, and provide insight into the larger picture of the company,” says Lansdell.

Craftworkers with Poynter assemble an industrial HVAC duct system at the IU Health University Hospital in downtown Indianapolis, Ind.

Photo courtesy of Poynter

Communication and critical skills can challenge field leaders in managing jobsites and crews, adds Christine Washington of Congruex.The No. 58-ranked specialty contractor provides a 12-month manager development program for high-potential frontline managers to develop the skills they need to run high-performing teams and projects.“Our curriculum includes topics like emotional intelligence, time management, and other modules that build management skills and healthy stress coping habits to help prevent burnout,” she says.

A similar approach is benefitting jobsite leaders at National Construction Enterprises Inc., says CEO Pino Mancina. “Management training, dispute resolution and supplying additional field supervision have taken some load off jobsite leaders,” he says. “This is a necessity because the complexities of the projects require [them] to spend multiple hours each day in coordination meetings.”  The specialty contractor is ranked No. 146 on ENR’s Top 600 list.

Changing Expectations

Baker Construction Enterprises CEO Karl H. Watson Jr. says it is heavily investing in all aspects of the company’s talent pipeline to upskill workers into areas where they are needed most. In effect, this has changed how the firm recruits to focus more on potential. 

“We are expanding our intern programs and offering job shadowing opportunities for students in high school. We are also putting more resources into development of those who are just entering the workforce and those with more experience,” he says. “This fall, we started rolling out what we call the Five Tours program, which exposes new co-workers to all aspects of our business. We are also expanding our [field] leadership training programs to provide more structure and support to those ready to take on greater responsibility. Programs like these reinforce our emphasis that the next best move isn’t always up; sometimes it’s lateral."

For Associated Construction and Engineering, "a happy worker is a productive worker,” says President and CEO Larry Wombles, related to burnout. “Find jobs to keep them close to home near family.”

He says the firm’s “biggest hurdle” has become talent poaching, noting that “others are offering more and more to hire away talent that they cannot find, train, and retain themselves.” 

Top 600 firms say addressing burnout and related challenges illustrates how employers can show they care and help retain talent. “Burnout is a real issue,” BMWC President and CEO Chris Buckman says. “The industries we work in are under pressure to deliver their facilities faster than ever before, and that pressure is passed down to our employees. Fortunately, our field construction supervisors and the entire BMWC team are motivated to deliver projects on time.”

Buckman attributes company success to a focus on providing “safe and reliable solutions to the most complex construction projects.” The specialty firm is ranked No. 72 on the Top 600 list. “We have fatigue management policies that ensure our team can get time off during extended work schedules,” he says. “We understand the importance of recharging the battery and try to enable this time away as much as possible.”