A presentation from Mark Nesbitt at the SHCA 2023 Infrastructure Summit
By Martin Charlton Communications
Building relationships matters when employers are trying to develop their employees and advance their own career and business, Mark Nesbitt explained to those who gathered to hear him on the first morning of the 2023 SHCA Infrastructure Summit & Trade Show.
Nesbitt focused on what today’s leaders in the construction industry can do to create the next generation of leaders. He has worked in the aggregate, mining, trucking and construction industry for more than 30 years and directly supervised and managed people in the construction industry. Seeking out some leadership training to become a better manager is what got him on the path of becoming a public speaker to deliver lessons he learned from his years of experience.
While it is easy to text or email someone, Nesbitt says that written text is not a substitute for conversations and in-person interactions. Those moments matter when demonstrating to the other person you value them.
That is one of the benefits of attending an event like the Infrastructure Summit & Trade Show. Nesbitt encouraged those at the Summit to get out and meet with suppliers and other attendees because you never know how those relationships will help you make connections that bring you closer to achieving your goals.
Nesbitt encouraged those at the Summit to get out and meet with suppliers and other attendees because you never know how those relationships will help you make connections that bring you closer to achieving your goals.
He told a story about how getting a haircut helped him schedule an appointment to have his hearing loss investigated. He thought he would have to wait for a couple of years to get an appointment with a hearing specialist and mentioned this to the woman cutting his hair. She had a hearing specialist scheduled to get a haircut and offered to mention his situation. Not long after that, Nesbitt got a call about an appointment. One relationship led to another, and he had his hearing loss addressed sooner than he expected.
Those who don’t make the effort to form connections and build relationships with people who matter to them risk losing out to those who do. Nesbitt recommended some areas that employers could focus on with employees they want to develop.
He pointed to some other companies that are clear about what they do as well as their values as an organization. He says looking to other companies for inspiration can help employers clarify what matters to them so they can then communicate that to their employees. Those other companies can be in very different industries from construction, but still offer valuable lessons. For example, The Ritz-Carlton has 12 service values it reinforces with employees. Some of those could apply to those outside of the hospitality industry – such as being empowered as an employee to own and resolve issues.
The easiest way to change the world is through your words, Nesbitt says and while knowing what you want to say is important, saying it repeatedly is as important if it is to be memorable and create change. Nesbitt did not need to remind everyone of the constant messages delivered during the pandemic to use hand sanitizer and maintain social distancing. People were told this message so often they still remember it now.
Consistently dedicating yourself to a high level of attention and effort and doing what matters to other people is how you can maintain success that you have achieved.
It is not just words that signal your values. Nesbitt used Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers as an example of this. At every equipment sale, all of the equipment up for auction is precisely arranged in lines to allow buyers to view it.
“At every sale, they see beauty,” said Nesbitt. He says this is evidence that success leaves clues.
When you know where you want to go, keeping that in mind can help you find the resolve to carry on when facing difficulties. Nesbitt is a runner. He says that those who run know that when you are in a marathon, after a while, you start to get sore, blistered and chafed. But knowing the route you have to complete in order to cross the finish line keeps you going. You just take the next step to get that much closer.
Sharing that vision with others helps them see where you are going too. It is not enough to know your values. You must describe them to others, including your employees, so they can embrace them and act in ways that reflect them.
Consistently dedicating yourself to a high level of attention and effort and doing what matters to other people is how you can maintain success that you have achieved. He reminded the Summit’s attendees of how much time and attention people pay to their appearance, manners and behaviour when going out on a first date with someone compared to the effort they put in for that person when they’ve been married to them for several years. This can also happen with long-term employees. Managers get complacent about the relationship and neglect to check in and show the same interest in them that they did when they started out.
The same is true in business. In a conversation after his talk, Nesbitt recalled a gas station he enjoyed stopping at to purchase a particular kind of coffee. Over time, the service and offerings at the gas station started to slip. Then, one day, they quit selling the coffee he would stop in to buy. When he inquired about it, he was told they had fewer customers now, so they gave up selling that coffee. He had very little reason to continue buying from them.
Some businesses don’t change because they don’t have to adjust. They are making too much money to notice it is at risk. Nesbitt encourages people to change before they have to if they want to maintain their success. Sometimes, those who need help most are the ones who want it the least.
Negative developments such as the rising cost of living and growing environmental concerns can weigh heavy on younger generations as they try to build their lives. That creates a sense of fear and a lack of hope, which makes it easy for them to want to give up when facing overwhelming burdens and indifference from their employer.
Nesbitt says people want to work for a leader who is honest, forward-looking, inspiring and competent. He encourages employers to demonstrate a positive attitude about the future and to share that outlook with their young employees to encourage them to feel confident about the careers ahead of them.
He says employees also want to be recognized and appreciated for what they have to offer and that the employer and employee are in a relationship where that shared appreciation for one another matters. Employees want more than a paycheck. They need to know they matter as an individual to the people who employ them.
It is important to recognize that young people are influenced by their use of social media. As a generation who can live for likes, when they show up at a job, they expect to receive acknowledgement that what they are doing that is appreciated by others. Their need for appreciation can be ongoing and they may need to be appreciated frequently. What is rewarded is repeated, so offering employees compliments and encouragement can inspire the effort and accomplishments an employer requires from them.
The time between construction seasons is an important time of year for employers, who can reflect on their wins and losses during the earlier construction season and decide what needs improving during the next season. Doing this can help employers avoid making the same mistakes season after season.
Everyone wins when the leader gets better at what they bring to the business.