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Construction Genius | Construction Leadership: Daily Summaries Delivered
by Eric Anderton
Construction Genius is a construction leadership podcast for owners and senior leaders of commercial general contractors and specialty contractors. Host Eric Anderton interviews construction owners and executives about how they run their companies. Solo episodes break down one leadership or management problem at a time. Topics include developing project managers and superintendents, construction business development and negotiated work, succession planning and ESOPs, construction accounting and bonding capacity, and AI in construction. Eric has worked only with construction companies for more than 20 years. His coaching clients run firms from $10M to over $3B in revenue, and he facilitates their strategic and succession planning.
Latest Episodes
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- 6 days ago52 min
How to Spot a Trojan Horse in Your Construction Business
Every construction business has chased an opportunity that looked great and turned into a money pit. Herb Sargent calls it the Trojan horse. Herb is board chair of Sargent Corporation, a heavy civil contractor in Maine that turned 100 this year. Scott Peper is CEO and founder of Mobilization Funding. They wrote Field Tested: Lessons in Leading, Losing, and Winning in Construction together, and they walked me through how to spot the horse before you wheel it in. Takeaways: Set the number where you'll walk away before you start. Sargent lost money in ready mix every year for ten years. Let your estimator tell you what the job costs before ego decides you have to have it. "I gotta keep money coming in" usually means overbillings went to start other jobs. Every growing owner becomes the bottleneck. Hand someone the keys for half a day, then debrief. One 15-minute conversation about legacy got Sargent's best operator mentoring a 23-year-old foreman. Connect with Herb Sargent: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/herb-sargent-esop/ Sargent Corporation: https://sargent.us/ Starbuck and Sargent podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/starbuck-sargent/id1856531285 Connect with Scott Peper: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/scott-peper-9387288/ Mobilization Funding: https://mobilizationfunding.com/ The Mobilization Mindset podcast: https://mobilizationfunding.com/videos/ Pre-order Field Tested on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Field-Tested-Lessons-Leading-Construction/dp/B0HM2TXYS3 The Shift Leadership Course: https://theshift.constructiongenius.com/
- 1 weeks ago15 min
The Meeting Structure That Gets Your Team to Agree in 30 Minutes
Capable people can spend an hour in a meeting and leave without a decision. In this solo episode, Eric Anderton, founder of Construction Genius, walks through the meeting structure he's used with contractor clients for more than 20 years. Teams use it to agree in about 30 minutes on problems they've argued about for years. Takeaways: Write a precise question with a 90-day time frame before anyone walks in Everyone writes ideas alone for two minutes, then shares one per turn. The owner goes last Each person votes for the best third of the ideas. Nobody stacks votes Close with a show of hands and ask holdouts what it would take to commit Turn the decision into a one-page plan with a rally cry, areas of fierce focus and critical numbers Free downloads: Effective Meetings Assessment: https://ericanderton.activehosted.com/f/256 Kick-Ass Meetings ebook: https://www.constructiongenius.com/kam-2 Listener offer: The first ten contractors who email eric@constructiongenius.com with "Kick-Ass Meetings" in the subject line get a 60-minute Zoom session with Eric and their team at no charge. Eric normally charges $3,500. Tell him your problem and where you heard the offer. Offer good through 12/31/26. Connect with Eric Anderton: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andertoneric/ Website: https://constructiongenius.com
- 2 weeks ago47 min
How to Hire Business Developers Who Can Sell Large Commercial Projects
Most contractors hire a business developer on one trait. Then they wait a year to find out it didn't work. Neal Glatt is a sales and leadership coach who helps companies hire and develop salespeople. He explains what to test before you make the offer, and how to know within six months whether a new BD hire will pan out. Takeaways: - Industry experience alone is a poor reason to hire a salesperson. Neal's assessment looks at more than 220 data points - If you can't write your sales process on one page as stages and steps, you have a process problem - Build your process from the best sale you ever made - Get involved six months to a year before the RFP goes out - Ask who besides the person in front of you is involved in the final decision - Run a five-minute phone screen and watch what the candidate does when you cut them off Connect with Neal Glatt: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nealglatt Website: https://nealglatt.com Cassidy Gutter on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cassidy-gutter-4a007822a The Shift Leadership Course: https://theshift.constructiongenius.com
- 3 weeks ago22 min
Year-End Close for Contractors: Check Your Numbers Before You Pay Bonuses
You pay the Christmas bonuses. Then January hits, more job costs come in, and the profit you paid them on starts to shrink. In part nine of the construction accounting series, Kathe Barrington, CPA, of KB CPA walks through a contractor's year-end close. She covers how to test your numbers before you spend, distribute or pay bonuses on them. Takeaways: Year-end prep starts in January. A hard close tells you which SOPs need work Check December's closed jobs against January's job costs. Costs still landing means you closed too early Take job losses as soon as you know them. Be conservative on pending change orders Internal financials that don't match your reviewed statement cost you credibility with your bank and surety Get Q3 right, pick the jobs you'll close by December 31, and get the numbers to your tax person in October Kathe also tells the story of a job that took 11 years to close out. The full Construction Accounting Series with Kathe Barrington: Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLNqgaQ0mEF1w Ep. 357 WIP Reports Made Simple: https://www.constructiongenius.com/wip-reports-made-simple-the-key-to-stopping-hidden-job-losses-ep.-357 Ep. 359 Use Your WIP to Protect Cash: https://www.constructiongenius.com/how-to-use-your-wip-to-protect-cash-and-grow-profitability-ep.-359 Ep. 364 Physical Progress vs. Financial Reporting: https://www.constructiongenius.com/physical-progress-vs.-financial-reporting-in-construction-projects-ep.-364 Ep. 368 Underbillings Bad. Overbillings Better: https://www.constructiongenius.com/underbillings-bad-overbillings-better-the-cash-flow-truth-construction-owners-cant-ignore-ep.-368 Ep. 377 Why Your Jobs Look More Profitable Than They Are: https://www.constructiongenius.com/why-your-jobs-look-more-profitable-than-they-are-indirect-allocations-and-overhead-in-construction-ep.-377 Ep. 388 Read Your Backlog Like a Banker: https://www.constructiongenius.com/how-to-read-your-backlog-like-a-banker Ep. 396 Grow Bonding Capacity: https://constructiongenius.com/grow-bonding-capacity-banking-tax-moves-contractors/ Ep. 400 Projections: https://www.constructiongenius.com/construction-projections-cash-flow-margin-kathe-barrington Connect with Kathe Barrington: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kathe-barrington-a6346337 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/p/Kathe-Barrington-CPA-100072271041746 KB CPA: https://kbcpa.biz
- Sep 29, 202612 min
Your Field Problems Start in Design: What the Suffolk and MIT AI Report Means for Contractors
Suffolk and MIT just released a white paper on AI in construction. It estimates 17 to 20% in potential cost savings and 22 to 25% on schedule. In this solo episode, Eric Anderton reads it for a contractor running a $25 to $500 million company and pulls out the applications worth testing now. He also explains where those numbers came from before you expect them on your next job. Takeaways: Many field production problems get locked in during design, months before the crew shows up Design changes hit quantities, purchasing and installation. AI could get those effects onto the schedule sooner A contractor is using AI to turn hundreds of schedule activities into a three-week look-ahead with a risk list Tie your procurement log and lead times to the schedule so a late delivery flags the work it puts at risk None of it works without accurate project data and someone who owns the decision Connect with Eric Anderton: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andertoneric Read the report: Construction in the Age of AI, from Suffolk and MIT https://suffolk.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/Suffolk_MIT_AI_Whitepaper_FINAL.pdf
- Sep 22, 202619 min
The $20 Million Job You Should Walk Away From
A $20 million project lands in your lap with three or four red flags attached. You want the revenue. You want the backlog. In this solo episode, Eric Anderton walks through the three-for-three test he uses with his coaching clients: right client, right project, right location. He also tackles a harder problem. What do you do with a technically excellent superintendent whose behavior no longer matches your company's values? Two decisions, and Eric shows you exactly how they can start reinforcing each other if you let them. Takeaways: - Why profit history matters more than revenue when deciding which projects to take again - The three-for-three test for qualifying clients, projects, and locations - How to define a seat by its outcomes and behaviors before judging the person in it - The three real options for a values mismatch: train, move, or fire - Why the size of the number never fixes the size of the risk Connect with Eric Anderton: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andertoneric If you want the full niche analysis spreadsheet Eric uses with his coaching clients, email eric@constructiongenius.com with "Niche Analysis" in the subject line.
- Sep 15, 202622 min
Construction Projections: Seeing Cash and Margin Trouble Before It Costs You
Your WIP shows today. Your backlog shows what's booked. Neither tells you where your cash and crews are headed. That's what projections do, and most contractors either do them badly or skip them. In Part 8 of the series, CPA Kathe Barrington shows construction owners how to build projections that actually predict trouble early. What you'll take away: Why projections belong to your CFO, and where owners still need to stay involved How far out to project (18 months internally, fiscal year-end for the bank) The job-cost bell curve, and how to plan cash, billings, and manpower around the peak Why cushion in your estimates can hurt your credibility with bank and bonding A 30-60-90 day plan to get your projections under control Kathe's line for owners who play games with their numbers: you lose the truth about your own margins, and every future estimate inherits the lie. The full Construction Accounting Series with Kathe Barrington: Ep. 357 WIP Reports Made Simple: https://www.constructiongenius.com/wip-reports-made-simple-the-key-to-stopping-hidden-job-losses-ep.-357 Ep. 359 Use Your WIP to Protect Cash: https://www.constructiongenius.com/how-to-use-your-wip-to-protect-cash-and-grow-profitability-ep.-359 Ep. 364 Physical Progress vs. Financial Reporting: https://www.constructiongenius.com/physical-progress-vs.-financial-reporting-in-construction-projects-ep.-364 Ep. 368 Underbillings Bad. Overbillings Better: https://www.constructiongenius.com/underbillings-bad-overbillings-better-the-cash-flow-truth-construction-owners-cant-ignore-ep.-368 Ep. 377 Why Your Jobs Look More Profitable: https://www.constructiongenius.com/why-your-jobs-look-more-profitable-than-they-are-indirect-allocations-and-overhead-in-construction-ep.-377 Ep. 388 Read Your Backlog Like a Banker: https://www.constructiongenius.com/how-to-read-your-backlog-like-a-banker Ep. 396 Grow Bonding Capacity: https://constructiongenius.com/grow-bonding-capacity-banking-tax-moves-contractors/ Full playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLNqgaQ0mEF1w Connect with Kathe Barrington: kbcpa.biz
- Sep 8, 202640 min
Fixing Performance Reviews for the Field with Ryan Englin
Ryan Englin, founder of Core Matters and creator of the FieldCon software platform, returns to talk about the two things most construction leaders dodge: accountability and performance reviews. Ryan and Eric get practical about why these conversations feel so hard and how to make them routine. The short version. Accountability starts with a commitment the employee actually agreed to. The longer you wait to address a problem, the more painful it gets. And the annual review is the worst way to give feedback. In this episode: - Why you can't hold someone accountable to something they never committed to - The foreman story that shows how delay turns a small issue into a confrontation - Why focusing on the agreed outcome beats focusing on the person - How to redesign reviews around the gap between self-rating and manager-rating - Running reviews monthly or quarterly so nothing is ever a surprise Connect with Ryan Englin: Core Matters: corematters.com FieldCon: fieldcon.io LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/ryanenglin Core Matters on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/corematters
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About Construction Genius | Construction Leadership
Construction Genius is a construction leadership podcast for owners and senior leaders of commercial general contractors and specialty contractors. Host Eric Anderton interviews construction owners and executives about how they run their companies. Solo episodes break down one leadership or management problem at a time. Topics include developing project managers and superintendents, construction business development and negotiated work, succession planning and ESOPs, construction accounting and bonding capacity, and AI in construction. Eric has worked only with construction companies for more than 20 years. His coaching clients run firms from $10M to over $3B in revenue, and he facilitates their strategic and succession planning.
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