Growth spurt: Development programs target small, diverse contractors
Sustaining and growing a small construction company is an enormous feat in the best of times. Small business leaders must overcome barriers to entry, slow payments and other inherent challenges in the industry. Additional, longstanding challenges confront minority-, women- and veteran-owned firms, HUBZone companies and other disadvantaged enterprises.
Assorted business development initiatives – some created by industry groups or government agencies, some crafted by BC&E member firms – are working to help small companies overcome those hurdles. Through outreach efforts, mentorships, teaming arrangements, training sessions, supply chain assistance and other measures, organizers are helping small subcontractors grow. Sometimes, the results are striking.
A dedicated participant in small, minority business outreach efforts, Commercial Construction created a Minority Business Development manual outlining the steps small contractors and suppliers need to make to land work on Commercial Construction projects, said Gary Matthews, Director of Occupational Health and Safety and Community Outreach.
The company holds regular gatherings at its headquarters where small companies can meet project managers, estimators and others, and learn about upcoming contract opportunities. It provides training on how to better understand RFPs, read blueprints, complete financial reporting and get certified as minority, women and small business enterprises (MBE, WBE, SBE).
Once companies land a contract with Commercial Construction, it will also provide free OSHA training, hands-on trades training sessions and upfront assistance with acquiring materials for projects.
As a result, 39 percent of the company’s 520 subcontractors in Maryland are MBE, WBE or SBE firms. And those subcontractors are growing.
“One company that came to us two years ago was making, on average, $25,000 to $30,000 per contract,” Matthews said. “They went through the training, got qualified as a WBE. Last year, she made $4 million.”
For Matos Builders, 2023 was a milestone year. The general contractor achieved new company records for revenue, contracts awarded and number of employees, and then won the national 2023 HUBZone Business of the Year.
One tool that recently began aiding the company’s growth is a mentorship through the U.S. Small Business Administration. The three-year partnership enables the mentor – a large company named Emcor Government services – to team with Matos and pursue federal facilities maintenance contracts that are set aside for small businesses. In return, Matos receives coaching from Emcor on how to pursue and land contracts, and support in executing any business their joint venture wins.
“We have been in discussions with Emcor for years so it has been very exciting to see this partnership come to fruition,” said Richard Skayhan, Vice President with Matos Builders. “Emcor has a very, very comprehensive business development department which is impressive. They know what business is out there, what is coming up, who had the contract and how much the government spent on it.”
In addition to helping Matos identify promising contracts to pursue, Emcor has also helped Matos gain deeper understanding of facilities maintenance RFPs. In less than a year, the mentorship has helped Matos land new facilities maintenance work and stand up a new division, Matos Government Services.
The Whiting-Turner Contracting Company has long hosted bi-monthly gatherings with MBE, WBE and SBE companies to, among things, build relationships and share information about contracting opportunities. Project teams highlight upcoming and ongoing projects, while sharing key details to help diverse contractors better understand the characteristics of each project to determine which projects provide them with the best opportunities.
These gatherings do more than provide companies with avenues to win work on Whiting-Turner projects. These events are networking opportunities for relationship development. Sometimes, contractors make new connections with other guest contractors at the events, which lead to new work opportunities. For example, trucking and hauling companies have connected with sitework subcontractors at the events, and those connections have resulted in the trucking and hauling companies landing work.
The gathering of companies with like-minded interests leads to conversation; conversation leads to relationships; relationships can lead to partnerships. This chain reaction has led to Whiting-Turner entering partnerships with minority-owned firms in the pursuit of larger projects.
In these partnering arrangements, teams from Whiting-Turner and the MBE firm work together, responding to RFPs and preparing for interviews. If the companies win the project, a combined staff from both companies continue to work together on the project through completion. In many cases, the partnership serves as a mentor/mentee arrangement where the MBE firm’s employees gain exposure to how Whiting-Turner manages projects. Ultimately, both companies end up learning from each other, and both firms come away from the partnership stronger than when they entered it.
Similarly, Harkins Builders hosts bi-monthly ‘meet the team’ events to share information about contracting opportunities and connect with small contractors.
Harkins provides contractors with one-on-one assistance with key business tasks, such as how to meet Section 3 business certification requirements, how to complete certified payroll or how to improve their safety programs, said Carrie Lieberman, Director of Opportunity Programs and Compliance.
Harkins offers an early payment program to small and minority contractors so they can receive payment more quickly than they get with some other companies, she said.
“One of the great and important aspects of Harkins’ outreach to small, diverse, local businesses is there is huge support from the top of Harkins,” Lieberman said. “Ben Nichols, President and CEO of the company, in every meeting says, we need to make sure we are treating our trade partners well.”