Conversations Around The Corner

Bart Ricketts is the CEO of Lease Crutcher Lewis. In our conversation today, we talk about growing up with parents as teachers, making company values intrinsic, the most engaging podcasts, and the value of diversity of thought.

Ryan Maibach is the President and CEO of Barton Malow, a general contractor based in Southfield, Michigan. In our conversation today, we talk about developing your emotional intelligence, construction theory vs. practice, the best Will Ferrell movie, and how technology will reshape the built environment.

Dirk Elsperman is the COO of Tarlton Corporation, a St. Louis-based construction company started by his grandfather in 1946. This year, Dirk has also been serving as President of the Associated General Contractors of America. In our conversation today, we talk about running a business with your sibling, competing in adventure races, the child-like instinct to build, and the number one highlight of Dirk’s AGC term so far.

Kevin McClain is the President and CEO of The Weitz Company, one of the oldest architectural/engineering/construction firms in the United States. Kevin, who graduated from Iowa State with a B.S. in Construction Engineering, held numerous positions within Weitz before becoming CEO in 2017. The company ranks in the Top 100 of ENR's Top 400 Contractors List.In our conversation today, we talk about running a cross country meet barefoot, the value of a liberal arts education, the best routes to bike in Colorado, and moving from employee to public ownership.

In this episode, Matt and Eric sit down with Bill Abromitis, CEO of Clune Construction Company, at Clune's Chicago headquarters. A Chicago native himself, Bill graduated from Northern Illinois University and has over 30 years of experience in the construction industry. Clune repeatedly ranks on ENR's Top 400 Contractors List.In our conversation today, we talk about growing up on the South Side of Chicago, working during the 1992 Chicago River floor, hunting for pheasants in South Dakota, and being in the right place at the right time.

Dave Layton is the President and CEO of Layton Construction Company, a business started by his father in 1953 in which he took over in 2004. Layton ranks as #44 on ENR's Top 400 Contractor's List. Dave graduated from Brigham Young University and has attended the OPM Program at Harvard Business School. In our conversation today, we talk about building for the Winter Olympics, creating trust with clients, wake boarding on Lake Powell, and the uses of drone technology for construction.

Mike Neal is the President and CEO of KAST Construction Company. Mike became CEO of KAST in 2011 shortly after the recession rocked the economy in Florida. KAST Construction Company consistently ranks on ENR's Top 400 Contractors List.Mike is a graduate of the University of Florida and has spent his entire career in the construction industry. In our conversation today, we talk about how to keep cool in the Florida heat, the importance of company culture, road biking in the desert, reasons to come out of retirement, and the best rods and reels for fly fishing.

Jim Swanson is the President and CEO of Kitchell Corporation. Founded in 1950 as a commercial contracting business, Kitchell has since developed into a holdings entity for five companies. Kitchell consistently ranks in ENR's Top 400 Contractors List.With a degree in finance from the University of Michigan, Jim worked in consulting until 2008 when he transitioned to CEO at Kitchell. In our conversation today, we talk about influential teachers, first-year consultants, the strengths of employee ownership, and knowing what you don't know.

Jim Johnson is the President and CEO of GE Johnson, a general contracting company founded in 1967 by his father, Gil Johnson. GE Johnson consistently ranks on ENR's Top 400 Contractors List.A graduate of Kansas State University, Jim started out at GE Johnson as a laborer before eventually becoming vice president and later president and CEO. In our conversation today, we talk about growing up in a family business, running marathons, servant leadership, trends in the millennial workforce, and the best trail in Colorado.

Jeff Hoopes is the CEO of Swinerton Construction, a $5 billion construction firm. In 2018, Swinerton was ranked #19 on ENR's Top 400 Contractor's List.In our conversation today, we talk about what not to do when hunting Elk, the best way to waste an MBA, construction supply chain innovation, how to avoid boom and bust cycles as a general contractor, and the most important things to work on as young construction professionals.

Our guest today is Jim Donaghy, Executive Chairman of Structure Tone, a $4 billion construction services firm headquartered in New York City. In 2018, the company was ranked no.16 worldwide on Engineering News Record’s Top 400 Contractors List. Jim learned the business from the bottom up, holding various positions in operations, estimating, and management.Jim is a graduate of Hofstra University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration, and has completed the Columbia Business School Senior Executive Program. Jim lives in Old Tappan, NJ, with his wife and son.In our conversation we talk about building for the Olympics, strategic planning, and the best way to waste a million dollars. We hope you enjoy the conversation.Conversations Around the CornerWelcome to Conversations Around the Corner where we talk to construction executives about who they are and how they got there, inspiring the next generation of construction leaders.Conversations Around the Corner is Produced by Wallprotex, the designer and

Our guest today is Bob McCleskey. Bob was the CEO of Sellen Construction for 10 years and recently moved into the role of Executive Chairman. In our conversation today we discuss the 60 window failure that almost ended his career, the back of a napkin calculation that moved him into leadership, and the heart attack that helped a healthy man plan his next move. We hope you enjoy the conversation.Thanks for listening to Conversations Around the Corner produced by Wallprotex - the designer and manufacturer of wall protection products for healthcare, hospitality, or any commercial building (https://www.wallprotex.com. Be sure to subscribe in iTunes, Google Podcasts, or Stitcher and tune in next week when we will have another conversation, around the corner.

Cleve Whitener, CEO and Lauren Engineers & Constructors. Since 1984, Lauren Engineers & Constructors has been designing and constructing highly specialized facilities in the chemicals and polymers, power, oil and gas, and refining industries. Cleve has over 44 years of experience in ownership and management of engineering, procurement and construction companies. He took his B.A. at Southern Methodist in Mechanical Engineering and did graduate coursework in business administration at University of Texas at Arlington as well as Dallas Theological Seminary. In our conversation today we discuss building power plants, hunting dogs, and the problems with 5 year plans. We hope you enjoy the conversation.| Transcription |Interviewer: So how long have you been in Abilene? Cleve: Let's see, 24 years. Interviewer: And you grew up in Dallas, is that correct? Cleve: Yes. Interviewer: Tell us a little bit about your family like, what did your father do? Cleve: Well, my dad was an attorney and my mom was a

Dean Kashiwagi is a professor in the Arizona State University’s Del E Web School of Construction. He is a specialist and researcher in “best value procurement” and has conducted over 900 tests totaling $4.6 billion with a 98% success rate.He took his undergraduate degree from University of Hawaii in civil engineering and his Master’s and Ph.D in industrial Engineering at ASU. He served 14 years in the US Air Force and has written over 100 articles and 11 books including his most recent, “How to Know Everything Without Knowing Anything.”

Our guest today is Rob Burton, President and CEO of Hoar Construction. A native of Alabama, he attended Auburn and then worked his way through many positions at the company. Hoar Construction is consistently among the top of ENR’s top Contractors in the US. In our conversation today we talk about Rob’s dream hunting gun, developing a leadership training program, and the #1 thing to do to move into upper management. We hope you enjoy the conversation.

Our guest today is Brian Acton, CEO of BMWC Constructors. He went to Purdue University where he studied Construction Engineering and Management. Brian has worked at BMWC for 32 years and has been the CEO since 2010. BMWC is consistently an Engineering News Record’s top contractor. In our conversation today we talk about Indiana basketball, the importance of fraternities, and the best strategies for recruiting young project managers and superintendents . We hope you enjoy the conversation.

President and CEO of Granger Construction, specializing in higher educating, commercial, industrial, K-12, healthcare and public sector/corrections construction. In our conversation today, we talk about wakeboarding, Harvard MBAs, building for Zaha Hadid, and strategies for developing executives.

Keith Carlson is the Regional Sales Manager for the M. Holland Company, a distributor of plastics resins. Keith is a talented salesman, experienced manager, a Corvette enthusiast and all around plastics industry legend. In our conversation today, we talk about his upbringing, Tiger Woods' return to golf, Corvettes and the pitfalls of building a custom home.