Trades And Talent: A New Era Of Attraction I f you look at priorities among home building business leaders since recovery started to get traction in 2012 or so, you can see why a shortage of new talent entering the ranks is the issue it is. Except for a few [dozen] rare enterprises, the need for money--for acquisition, construction, and development financing--demanded more executive-level attention than any other urgent matter. Without capital a company can’t have any other problems or opportunities, because there’s no company to speak of. And, it hardly needs to be said, capital was hard to find for a long time. The challenge to add and sustain a sound and supple capital structure that enables most builders to put developed lots out in front of them, let’s face it, takes a lot of the best and smartest leaders more time and focus than most of them want to admit. Add to that the fact that the faster-recovering markets have been more concentrated geographically, with the result that more competitors chased the same capital, the same lots, the same construction infrastructure, and the same talent pool. This ups the ante on every front, making money, land, people, and home buying customers more expensive to secure. Read More Special Report: Trade Schools Look To Attract Young Workers F ive years ago, Jennifer Johnson, founder and CEO of the Construction Trade School in Dallas, started to talk to home building and remodeling organizations about a looming labor shortage in the residential construction trades. She called it a crisis, but industry leaders were focused elsewhere. Their No. 1 priority at the time was recovering from the recession, and many felt labor was a subcontractor problem, not theirs. “It’s kind of like those shows you watch where there’s a tidal wave, and the scientists know it’s coming, and nobody gets a boat ready,” Johnson says. Read More Financing some of the top builders in Fairfield County. People you trust, service you expect, and products to fit your financial needs. • Construction Financing • Commercial Mortgages • Term Loans • Revolving Lines of Credit 877.431.7431 • www.fairfieldcountybank.com NMLS ID #516624 EQUAL HOUSING L E ND E R MEMBER FDIC OCTOBER 2017 | HBRA of Fairfield County 27
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