4 Benefits of Promoting Construction Field Leaders from Within

Having reliable field leaders to oversee projects is one of the top priorities for any construction company. Roles like superintendent, general foreman and crew leader play a big part in ensuring job sites run smoothly and projects finish on time and within budget.  

However, finding qualified professionals to fill these positions is becoming increasingly difficult. The available supply of talent doesn’t match the growing demand — a skills gap that projects to widen as experienced veterans of the industry retire in larger numbers. Acquiring the level of talent needed can also be more challenging and expensive in a competitive hiring environment.  

One solution to this problem is to promote talented individuals from within the company’s current workforce. Rather than hiring leaders from outside, investing in the training and development of in-house employees can offer numerous advantages for construction companies. Here are four key benefits of promoting construction field leaders from within. 

1. Reduced Cost from Recruiting and Hiring

With a limited pool of experienced field leaders, recruiting and hiring those who are qualified can be a challenge. Finding the right candidates requires time, effort and financial investment on behalf of the employer.  

In addition to salary and benefits negotiations with new hires, there are other costs that are often overlooked in the recruitment and hiring process. These hidden costs — such as job board or search firm fees, background checks, onboarding and lost productivity from vacancies — can quickly add up. For leadership positions, total hiring costs for a single employee can be around $28,000 per hire. 

Promoting leaders from within can reduce or eliminate many of these extra hiring costs. For example, employees will already have their background checks on file and company onboarding completed from when they were originally hired. A search firm isn’t needed to evaluate internal talent, so that can be another area of savings for the company. Focusing on developing current employees can be more cost-effective than hiring externally. 

2. Mutual Familiarity

While a resume and an interview can give a snapshot of a potential employee’s experience, it’s hard to know for certain how successful a new hire will be until they are officially on the job. Will they be a good fit with company culture? Do the skills listed on their resume equate to real-world productivity?  

A current employee is a better-known commodity, as a company will be familiar with their experience, skillset and personality. An employee who has a strong, verifiable track record of quality work, good attendance and exemplary conduct can play an important role in project success.   

While a company’s familiarity with a trusted employee can help create peace of mind, a tenured employee’s familiarity with a company can also create a level of mutual contentment. Compared to outside hires, current employees will understand a company’s culture, standards, guidelines and best practices.  

3. Employee Loyalty, Retention and Culture

Employees who grow over time with a company tend to be more loyal to that company. This is especially true when the company shows an active interest in developing their career through training and advancement. In fact, 94% of employees say they would stay longer at a company that invested in their careers. Developing field leaders from within increases the likelihood they will stick with a company for a long time.  

These benefits to employee retention can also extend to staff who may be several years away from reaching leadership candidacy. Apprentices, new hires, and craft professionals with only a few years of experience will witness a legitimate career pathway within a company that rewards hard work with advancement opportunities.  

A lack of career progression is the third-leading cause of employee departures, so showing that development and promotion is a priority can help retain more talent and foster a healthy employee culture. 

4. Long-Term Leadership Pipeline

Perhaps the most important benefit of promoting construction field leaders from within is that it establishes a self-sustaining pipeline for high-quality leadership.  

With an aging construction workforce and a significant labor shortage that may take many years to correct, recruiting already-experienced superintendents and foreman will likely remain a challenge for some time.  

By investing now in leadership development, companies can build a strong foundation that can help future-proof a business and ensure the right people are in the right roles.  

Leadership Development Tools for Your Construction Company 

Promoting field leaders from within has numerous benefits. But for this strategy to be successful, companies need a thorough leadership training program in place to develop and prepare top talent for the unique responsibilities and challenges they will face. 

The Construction Leadership Series from the National Center for Construction Education and Research (NCCER) features online coursework, assessments and certifications to help companies implement an in-house leadership pathway. Within the series are two high-quality, expert-developed training programs: 

• Construction Foreman Certification – This 5-course program for new and existing frontline supervisors provides a solid foundation for a foreman’s first role in field leadership.
• Construction Superintendent Certification – This 16-course program enhances the practical knowledge superintendents gain in the field with additional skills in construction management, business acumen, leadership and communication.

Click the links above to learn more about construction leadership training and certification from NCCER.