August 2025 - Page 23 of 25 - Elevate Constructionist

How Much Does A Construction Foreman Make An Hour?

Posted on August 6, 2025August 6, 2025 by Danny Jiménez⁩

Read 9 min

How Much Does a Foreman Make Per Hour? (It’s More Than You Think!)

Welcome to this blog where we’ll discuss a topic that many people are curious about: How much does a foreman make per hour?

Now, I’m not going to focus on specific pay ranges in this blog. I’ve seen foremen make anywhere from $35 per hour all the way up to $95 per hour which sounds crazy, but it’s true. Of course, pay depends on factors like location, company type (trade partner or GC), industry sector (industrial or commercial), project size, and your level of experience.

If you’re in regions like the West Coast or East Coast of the U.S., you might expect to be in the $45-$55 per hour range or higher. I’ll share a few stories and address misconceptions that will help you understand the earning potential and career path of a foreman.

Common Misconceptions About Foreman Roles

Foremen Just Do What They’re Told:

This is completely wrong. Foremen are leaders, planners, and critical thinkers. They are known as “Last Planners” not because they’re last in importance but because they are the final decision-makers who directly affect project outcomes. The success or failure of a project often hinges on the foreman’s capability.

Foreman Wages Are Fixed by Company Policy:

Not true. High-performing foremen can negotiate better pay. I’ve seen foremen get flown across the country, fly business class, and get top-tier wages and benefits because they bring value. Your wage is often a reflection of your performance and the value you add.

All Foremen Are Paid the Same:

Absolutely false. Foremen are paid based on performance, leadership skills, and the complexity of projects they handle. Some foremen even earn more than salaried positions like project engineers or assistant superintendents.

How to Find Out Your Foreman Pay Range:

If you’re curious about pay ranges, here’s a quick tip:

Use ChatGPT to get accurate and specific information. Just type in a prompt like:
“I want to become a foreman for [company] in [location] with [X years] of experience. What is the typical hourly rate for this role?”

ChatGPT will give you the data instantly, tailored to your situation.

How to Negotiate a Better Foreman Salary (Without Switching Companies):

The key to earning more without job-hopping is simple:

Add value.
Learn new skills.
Become indispensable.

Develop skills like:

Advanced scheduling.
Lean construction methods.
People management and leadership.
Effective communication (both verbal and written).
Organization and planning.

If your company still doesn’t recognize your worth after all this, you may have to consider moving to another company. Unfortunately, in some cases, that’s the only way to get the pay you deserve.

Fast-Track to Superintendent Roles: Key Foreman Skills

If you want to move up quickly, focus on:

People skills.
Organization & task management.
Reading drawings fluently.
Professional conduct & appearance.
Influence and leadership presence.

The best foremen are well-rounded leaders, not just taskmasters. They know how to manage workflow, influence teams, and stay organized under pressure.

Should You Focus on Bigger Crews or Better Workflow?

The harsh reality is that bigger crews and larger projects often come with higher paychecks. But that doesn’t mean smaller crews with better flow aren’t valuable. However, the industry tends to pay more for scale. So, if you want to increase your earnings, moving to larger, more complex projects can help.

The Foreman Role is an Amazing Career Path:

I’m honestly jealous of foremen. They get to lead crews, solve problems on the ground, and make things happen. If you think you need to climb the “corporate ladder” into salaried positions to find success, think again. A foreman can have a fulfilling, high-paying career by continuously learning and improving.

Key Tips for Foreman Success:

Never stop learning.
Study Lean Construction, VDC, sustainability, field engineering, scheduling, and project management.
Sharpen your people skills with books like How to Win Friends and Influence People.
Stay curious and look for ways to improve processes and workflows.
Focus on working smarter, not harder, to protect your health and longevity in the field.

Final Thoughts:

If you’re asking whether being a foreman is worth it, my answer is: Absolutely, yes. You can make a ton of money, build an amazing career, and enjoy the process. Focus on adding value, improving your skills, and becoming irreplaceable. The money will follow.

If you want to learn more we have:

-Takt Virtual Training: (Click here)
-Check out our Youtube channel for more info: (Click here)
-Listen to the Elevate Construction podcast: (Click here)
-Check out our training programs and certifications: (Click here)
-The Takt Book: (Click here)

Discover Jason’s Expertise:

Meet Jason Schroeder, the driving force behind Elevate Construction IST. As the company’s owner and principal consultant, he’s dedicated to taking construction to new heights. With a wealth of industry experience, he’s crafted the Field Engineer Boot Camp and Superintendent Boot Camp – intensive training programs engineered to cultivate top-tier leaders capable of steering their teams towards success. Jason’s vision? To expand his training initiatives across the nation, empowering construction firms to soar to unprecedented levels of excellence.

On we go

How To Calculate Takt Time And Cycle Time

Posted on August 6, 2025August 7, 2025 by Danny Jiménez⁩

Read 8 min

How to Calculate Takt Time and Cycle Time in Construction – A Practical Guide

In this blog, I’m going to break down how to calculate Takt Time and Cycle Time in construction, not with diagrams, but through a clear, verbal explanation. This approach will give you a well-rounded understanding, hitting on aspects that often get overlooked. If you’ve been curious about how to align your schedules and resources with precision, this blog is for you.

Takt Time Explained

Takt Time is essentially the rhythm of your project. In manufacturing, it’s calculated as:

Takt Time = Available Time ÷ Customer Demand

In construction, it’s a bit different. We calculate Takt Time by considering:

Takt Wagons (how much work can be done in the smallest repeatable unit).
Takt Zones (how the project is divided into physical areas or phases).
Takt Time (drumbeat on the timeline).

The formula is:

(Number of Takt Wagons) x (Takt Zones – 1) x Takt Time = Duration

If the calculated duration exceeds your stipulated project end date, you’ll need to reduce your zone sizes to stay on schedule without overburdening your crews.

Cycle Time Simplified

Cycle Time is about how long it takes to complete a specific task, process, or work package within a zone.

To calculate it:

Know how much your crew can produce (unit measurements).
Align this with the available Takt Time, keeping a small buffer.
For example, if your Takt Time is 3 days, plan your crew’s work to finish in 2 days and 6 hours, leaving some margin.

Cycle Time includes not just the task execution but also preparation and cleanup. Planning this off-site work is key to making Cycle Time fit within Takt Time.

The Real Work: Observation & Adjustment

Calculating Takt Time and Cycle Time is only half the battle. Here’s where most teams go wrong, they calculate but don’t observe.

Here’s what you need to do:

Observe the “Takt Drumbeat”: Are you hitting your milestones as scheduled? Are you preparing the next zone ahead of time?
Measure your Cycle Time: After each zone, ask: was the time allocation too tight? Did we finish too early and waste a day?
PDCA (Plan-Do-Check-Adjust): Continuously adjust crew size, workflows, and resource allocation to stay aligned with the Takt Time rhythm.

Cycle Time becomes a real-time observation tool. It tells you if you’re on track or if adjustments are needed.

Common Misconceptions

Let’s bust a few myths:

Takt Time = Cycle Time → False. They are different and must stay different. Takt Time is your commitment (demand), Cycle Time is your execution (supply).
You can’t calculate Takt Time without knowing Cycle Time → False. Start with your project end date to determine Takt Time, then align Cycle Time through resource adjustments.
Faster is always better → False. Removing buffers and speeding up too much leads to overburdening and project failure. Flow efficiency is key.

Key Tips for Success

Define your Start Date and End Date.
Calculate the Takt Time for each project phase.
Design a crew composition that can comfortably complete the work within Cycle Time.
Monitor progress continuously, adjust crew size, production rates, or workflows as needed.
Ensure that Takt Time allows everyone (GCs, subcontractors, trades) to succeed consistently.

Aligning Takt Time & Cycle Time: The Secret Sauce

Takt Time sets the rhythm.
Cycle Time defines your capability.
Both must be in sync.

It’s not just a formula; it’s a dynamic process of observation, measurement, and adjustment. This is where true operational excellence happens.

Key Takeaway:

Takt Time sets the rhythm of production (demand side), and Cycle Time measures how efficiently work is executed (supply side). Success in construction scheduling comes from not just calculating these metrics, but continuously observing, adjusting crew composition, and aligning cycle time within the takt time drumbeat ensuring flow, eliminating overburden, and creating consistent, reliable project delivery.

If you want to learn more we have:

Discover Jason’s Expertise:

On we go

Mandatory Buffer Usage

Posted on August 6, 2025August 7, 2025 by Danny Jiménez⁩

Read 6 min

What If We Made Buffer Usage Mandatory?

Let’s talk about something construction professionals don’t talk about enough, buffers, specifically, mandatory buffer usage.

For years, I operated under the belief that restricting work hours both for myself and others would push productivity and innovation. I’ve since done a full 180. While time constraints may improve individual discipline, they don’t scale well to teams. In fact, when I tried to apply this philosophy across our organization, the results were disappointing, less innovation, more stress, and slower progress.

So, we pivoted.

Innovation Lives in the Buffer

Inspired by Paul Akers and Toyota’s approach to continuous improvement, we’ve embraced buffer time not as wasted time, but as a source of momentum. Buffers create the space to 5S, solve problems, and think, like Keith Cunningham suggests. Since making this change, we’ve seen better performance, better innovation, and higher quality across the board.
And here’s the shift, I still constrain my own hours but I no longer push that onto others.

The Industry Teaches the Opposite

The construction industry is notorious for treating buffers as dead weight. Many general contractors avoid sharing buffer time with trades, fearing it will be misused. But in my experience, trades rarely use buffers recklessly. In fact, most trades hesitate to use them even when they should.

That got me thinking what if we required buffer usage?

The Idea, Scheduled Mandatory Buffers:

Say your project has 20 total buffer days built into the schedule. Instead of waiting for problems to arise, what if you made it a requirement to use a set number of those buffers say 6 to 8 across all phases, no matter what?

Here’s what that might look like:

Break down total buffer days by number of phases.
Schedule 2 mandatory buffer days per phase.
Post these buffer deadlines visibly on site.
Use them proactively whether you feel like you “need” them or not.

This would change the culture. Right now, workers don’t want to “waste” a buffer. But if the rule is “use two no matter what,” the team is more likely to use them wisely, not wastefully.

Imagine the impact: after a brutal week or a supply delay, the team doesn’t push through it pauses, resets, and regains momentum with a scheduled buffer. Not only does this prevent burnout, it ensures long term stability.

It’s Just an Idea for Now

I’ll be honest, I haven’t implemented this yet. But I’m seriously considering it. Construction culture needs to shift from reactive to strategic. Mandatory buffer usage might just be the pressure release valve the industry never knew it needed.

Key Takeaway

Buffers aren’t wasted time they’re a strategic tool. When teams are required to use them, they stop seeing buffers as a luxury and start treating them as essential. Planned pauses create space to recover, solve problems, and innovate. By making buffers part of the plan not just a fallback we reduce pressure, prevent burnout, and keep projects moving smarter and faster.

If you want to learn more we have:

Discover Jason’s Expertise:

On we go

Sequence like the Railroad & Bridge in The Ghost and the Darkness

Posted on August 6, 2025August 7, 2025 by Danny Jiménez⁩

Read 7 min

How to Sequence Work like a Railroad Hitting a Bridge

Let’s talk about sequencing on construction projects and why it matters more than most people realize.

Picture this, you’re building a railroad. Out ahead, there’s a bridge under construction. By the time the rail line reaches that point, the bridge has to be ready. That’s how sequencing should work on a jobsite every phase should intersect seamlessly with the next, like a train rolling straight onto a finished bridge.

Use Maps like a General

General Patton once said a study of the map shows where the commander should be. In construction, maps, zone plans, and logistics visuals don’t exist to look good. They show where problems exist and where leadership should focus. Right now, our team is applying this principle in full force. We’re working on a massive, complex project and validating a macro level tech plan to sequence zones within large phases.

We’re creating detailed maps of every functional area, phase, and zone. For each zone, we’re using voice to text to describe all relevant constraints what’s above it, below it, adjacent to it, what dependencies exist and more.

We’ll then upload these descriptions, maps, drawings, and preferred sequencing into ChatGPT Pro to generate five optimized build scenarios. The goal? Save time not by working faster, but by thinking smarter.

Real World Example, Reordering for Results

On a previous $80M office project in Scottsdale, the schedule was tight, and the design was chopped up. We came in late and still found ways to accelerate though a two week elevator delay ate some of the gain.

Instead of sequencing the exterior in the typical northeast-southwest pattern, we used production areas and built a Gantt chart for each one. We loaded in all constraints and optimized the sequence to deliver the fastest overall schedule. The final sequence looked odd northeast to southeast to southwest to middle and so on but it worked.

Why? Because jumping zones gave the team room to stage materials and align critical activities. It allowed the exterior crew to hit key corners at the right time, accommodate long lead materials, and keep the project flowing.

The Ghost and the Darkness Principle

In the movie The Ghost and the Darkness, a railroad is being built through Africa while a bridge is constructed far ahead. The goal? Make sure the train hits the bridge at exactly the right time. That’s the image to keep in your mind. Every part of your project should be building toward that alignment.

Sequencing isn’t just a task list its strategic timing. Great builders know this. They lead with intent. They map it, plan it, and anticipate it.

Key Takeaway

Smart sequencing isn’t just about getting the order right, it’s about timing and alignment. Great builders don’t just stack tasks, they align them with intention. By mapping constraints and planning around them, they create flow instead of friction. This approach prevents delays before they happen and that’s how you gain time without ever needing to rush.

If you want to learn more we have:

Discover Jason’s Expertise:

On we go

Thoughtless Requests

Posted on August 6, 2025August 7, 2025 by Danny Jiménez⁩

Read 7 min

Thoughtless Requests: What They Are and Why We Need to Stop Making Them

There are a lot of things we do in construction that seem small in the moment but they add up to frustration, waste, and dysfunction on the jobsite. One of the most subtle but destructive behaviors I see over and over is what I call thoughtless requests.

Whether it’s a lazy ask, a selfish move, or just forgetting to say “please,” these moments reflect a deeper cultural issue in our industry. And if we don’t start fixing it, we’re going to keep grinding down the people we rely on most.

What Do I Mean by Thoughtless Requests?

They usually fall into two buckets:

Truly Thoughtless

These aren’t malicious they just lack consideration.

A supervisor says, “Put this in a different format and come back,” just because they don’t want to think through the problem.
A manager tells you, “Can you make Takt look like CPM for me?” even though it defeats the whole point.

These asks kill momentum and create busy work. People end up chasing tasks that add no value.

Selfish

These are driven by someone wanting to save time, money, or effort at the expense of everyone else.

“Can we just skip the precon?”
“Let’s not send out a complete package. We don’t have time.”
“We’re not budgeting for Takt planning right now.”

These aren’t small shortcuts. They push responsibility downstream and make it someone else’s mess. I’ve seen it too many times: the people with the most influence opt out, and the team suffers.

And It Gets Worse…

It’s not just the requests themselves it’s how we deliver them.

When I was a laborer on site, almost no one said “please” or “thank you.”
Now, when I consult for GCs, I get emails that feel like commands. I’ve been on calls with developers who just bark orders: “Do this. Change that.” No warmth, no pause just entitlement.

We need to reintroduce respect and gratitude into how we speak.

Every request no matter how small should be rooted in consent, not control.
A simple “Will you please…?” and “Thank you” goes a long way.

A Quick Detour on Big Families (and Human Decency)

Let me share something personal.

When people find out my wife and I have a large family, the responses aren’t always kind.
The jokes: “Do you know how that happens?”
The judgmental glances.
The sarcastic comments.

They’re not funny they’re alienating.

Here’s the only right response when someone says they’re having a child whether it’s their first or their fifth:
“Congratulations. That’s awesome.”

It’s not just about parenting it’s about decency.
The way we treat people in small moments reveals who we are.

Final Thought: Be Thoughtful. Always.

Before you send that email…
Before you make that ask…
Before you push a task downstream…

Pause.
Ask yourself:

Is this considerate?
Is it worth their time?
Is it respectful?

Because in construction, just like in life, we’re not just building structures we’re building people. And that starts with how we treat them every single day.

Key Takeaway:
Stop making lazy or selfish requests. Every ask should be thoughtful, respectful, and value-adding. And never underestimate the power of a genuine “please” and “thank you.”

If you want to learn more we have:

Discover Jason’s Expertise:

On we go

Framing & Concrete Crews Must Get in Rhythm

Posted on August 6, 2025August 7, 2025 by Danny Jiménez⁩

Read 6 min

Framers and Concrete Crews, It’s Time to Stop the Madness and Get in Flow

If you’ve worked on a construction site recently, there’s a good chance you’ve heard this from a framing or concrete crew:
“We need the whole floor.”
“We can’t break this up.”
“We have to take the entire zone.”

Let’s stop the madness:

This growing trend of trade partners especially framers and concrete contractors demanding full control over massive areas of the project is killing flow, crushing collaboration, and slowing everything down.

Here’s the truth, larger zones do not equal better productivity. Sure, it might seem more convenient for one trade, but it destroys efficiency at the project level. When one trade takes over massive areas, it stages in other trades’ work zones, blocks sequencing, and slows overall throughput.

We’ve seen it over and over again. A project starts picking up momentum teams are coordinated, logistics are tight, and flow is solid until the framing or concrete crew refuses to cooperate with the plan. And then the friction begins.

Case in point:

A hospital expansion we supported had a basement the size of three football fields. And the concrete super claimed there was no room to split the zone. Really? We’ve seen high-rises go up with tight alley access and downtown basements dug out in boxed-in urban spaces. Marine and space construction? They make it happen with no space. What’s stopping us? Mental laziness. Or worse, a refusal to adapt.

This isn’t an attack it’s a wake-up call. I love our trade partners. They carry these jobs across the finish line despite some ridiculous roadblocks from GCs. But this one’s on them, demanding full control of massive work areas is not a winning strategy.

Here’s what we need instead:

Break large zones into manageable flow units.
Let other trades start behind you with proper buffer.
Get creative with layout, shoring, batching, and material flow.
Stop seeing the whole site as your personal workspace.
Collaborate like steel contractors do with plans, prefab, sequencing, and respect for flow.

This is about optimizing the whole project, not maximizing one trade’s comfort zone. We’re not building monuments to your scope we’re building together.

The challenge is simple,

Framers and concrete crews, it’s time to think like builders, not bulldozers. Let’s get in rhythm, respect the plan, and move the industry forward.

Key Takeaway
Framers and concrete crews must stop demanding full control over large areas and start working in flow with the rest of the project team. Smaller zones, strategic sequencing, and collaboration across trades will lead to faster, more efficient, and more successful projects.

If you want to learn more we have:

Discover Jason’s Expertise:

On we go

Things That Won’t Change

Posted on August 6, 2025August 7, 2025 by Danny Jiménez⁩

Read 6 min

Culture Eats Strategy. Things That Won’t Change (And What to Do About It)

There are lessons in construction leadership that hit hard once you hear them but we rarely talk about them openly. One of the biggest? Some things just won’t change, no matter how good your strategy is. And if you don’t account for that, you’ll burn out fast.

Culture vs. Strategy: Why We Keep Banging Our Heads Against the Wall

Let me give you a real example. I once watched a preconstruction team completely refuse to do early material coordination. They had the time, they had the information, but they wouldn’t act. Tile, switchgear, lighting none of it got ordered. Why?

Because “that’s not our job.”

This wasn’t about logic or bandwidth. It was about culture. These folks were conditioned by habit, pride, and past experience. So instead of placing the order, they punted the work downstream… to a team that didn’t even exist yet.

This is where I always come back to the phrase:
“Culture eats strategy for breakfast.”

You can roll out the best strategy in the world TAKT, Lean, Last Planner but if you ignore the cultural wiring of your team, it’s not going to stick.

You Can’t Change Nature

This isn’t a knock on anyone. It’s just the reality of human behavior.

Try asking a team raised in secrecy to be radically transparent. Not going to happen overnight.
Ask a crew trained to avoid conflict to challenge each other in meetings? Good luck.
Expect Americans who were raised to value independence to self-police without external accountability? You better have strong systems in place.

These aren’t flaws they’re traits. And the sooner we stop fighting them, the more effective we become.

So What Do We Do?

Here’s the shift:
Don’t force culture to adapt to your strategy. Design your strategy around the culture.

Ask yourself: What will actually work with this team? Then build from there.

Some practical moves I’ve seen work:

Hire your project team earlier if precon won’t plan for materials.
Give them an intern to handle the “button-clicking” tasks they resist.
Outsource certain functions to sidestep cultural blocks.
Create systems with built-in external accountability especially in cultures that resist internal policing.
Layer your systems into the natural rhythms people already follow.

You don’t fight nature. You partner with it.

Final Thought: Move the Rock, Don’t Push It Uphill

Some parts of culture and personality just won’t budge not the way you hope, anyway. Great leaders aren’t the ones who push harder. They’re the ones who notice what won’t change… and still find a way to move forward.

We can’t bulldoze behavior. But we can build around it.

Key Takeaway:
Culture always wins. If you want your strategy to succeed, stop trying to change people. Instead, design your systems to fit the people. That’s where real leadership lives.

If you want to learn more we have:

Discover Jason’s Expertise:

On we go

Dealing with People IS YOUR JOB!

Posted on August 6, 2025August 7, 2025 by Danny Jiménez⁩

Read 6 min

Treating People Well Is Part of the Job And Why You Shouldn’t Chase the Big Project

I want to get real for a moment about two things we don’t talk about enough in construction: how we treat people is part of the job, and chasing big projects won’t always get you where you want to go.

Respect Is a Skill. Master It.

Let’s be honest being technically good at what you do isn’t enough. I don’t care if you’re a PM, superintendent, designer, or inspector. If you don’t know how to treat people with respect, you’re not leading you’re either managing or doing damage.

I’ve seen it all:

The PM who talks down to trade partners
The designer who treats field teams like they’re beneath them
The superintendent who throws a hard hat instead of having a conversation
Field leaders who ignore their teams or belittle their efforts

And it doesn’t just happen on the jobsite. I once went in for a heart specialist appointment, and the doctor completely dismissed me for also seeing a naturopath. The whole visit was toxic, judgmental, and ultimately unhelpful.

I went in for health and left demoralized.

Why does this matter in construction? Because we do the same thing to each other. When we bulldoze conversations, dismiss people’s perspectives, or lead through fear, we erode trust and destroy collaboration.

If you want to lead a crew, learn to say please and thank you. Be kind. Be clear. Be present. If you want to scale a team, learn to listen. Learn to include. Learn to connect.

How we treat people is part of the job.

Stop Chasing Big for the Sake of Big

I used to obsess over big projects. I wanted to work on the $250M hospitals, the billion-dollar campuses, the mega-programs with all the prestige. But every time I got close, something would block it. At the time, I was frustrated. Now? I’m grateful.

I’ve seen more great builders chewed up and spit out by mega-projects than anywhere else.

Big projects look glamorous, but behind the scenes, they’re often political, unstable, and driven more by ego than by team care. They lose the intimacy and clarity that smaller projects thrive on.

Here’s the truth:

The most noble thing you can do is run a $5M–$150M project with excellence, stability, and flow.

It’s not about size. It’s about quality.

Final Thoughts

The big doesn’t make you better. Being good to people does. Delivering stability does. Showing up with purpose does.

Key Takeaway:
Treating people with dignity isn’t optional it’s foundational. And chasing massive projects won’t automatically elevate your career. The real power of leadership shows up not in how big your job trailer is, but in how you show up for your people.

If you want to learn more we have:

Discover Jason’s Expertise:

On we go

Training for Foremen

Posted on August 6, 2025August 7, 2025 by Danny Jiménez⁩

Read 7 min

Leading When You’re New and Training Where It Matters

In today’s blog, I want to talk about two things that often get overlooked on construction projects leading when you’re the new person on a seasoned team, and training your field leaders to actually use the systems you’ve worked so hard to implement.

Leading as the New PM on a Mega Project

A listener recently reached out and asked, “What do I do when I’m stepping into a huge project, and everyone already knows more than I do?”

That’s real. I’ve been there.

Let’s say you’re the new project manager on a $300 million job, and even the field engineers have been there longer than you. It’s easy to feel like you’re behind or tempted to come in and assert control. But the truth is, that never works.

Here’s what I suggest lead with humility and clarity.

In your next team meeting, ask for 10 minutes and say something like this:

“Hey everyone, I’m new to the team. I know you all have way more experience with this job than I do. I’ve been asked to be the project manager, but I don’t want to disrupt what’s already working. I don’t want to step on toes. I just want to support you. Can you tell me what you think my role should be and what you’d count on me for?”

What that does is powerful. It opens the door to trust. It invites collaboration. It gives people ownership in your role. And when people help define your role, they’ll support you in it.

Is It a System Failure or a Training Gap?

Let me shift gears.

I was recently reflecting on a massive $300 million industrial project I supported an alumina refinery in the Amazon. We were using all the advanced systems: IPD, BIM, AWP, the Last Planner System. Weekly work planning was above 90% reliable. Sounds great, right?

But when we looked closer, full pull planning wasn’t working the way it should.

At first, it felt like the system was broken. But after a few Kaizen sessions and a lot of honest conversations, we realized something important:

It wasn’t the system that was failing it was the lack of training.

Our foremen and supervisors weren’t fully prepared in areas like:

Pre-task planning
Tool management
Drawing interpretation
Using 3D models effectively

So we made a shift. We started implementing structured foreman training based on principles from my book Elevating Construction Foremen. And let me tell you, that changed everything.

Companies like High Street and P1 Group have already proven this works. Their training programs give foremen practical tools in flow, sequencing, leveling, layout, coordination, and resource allocation things we assume they know, but often haven’t been taught.

And now at LeanTakt, we’re preparing a Lean Belt initiative where we’ll offer on-site foreman training every three months, with hands-on coaching and personalized feedback.

Because here’s the truth:

You can roll out the best systems in the world, but if you’re not training the people using them, you’ll never get full value.

Key Takeaway:
You don’t need all the answers on day one you just need the humility to listen and the courage to lead with intention. And if you’re implementing advanced systems, remember: it’s not about the tool, it’s about the team. Train your foremen to build flow, and everything else will follow.

If you want to learn more we have:

Discover Jason’s Expertise:

On we go

What Makes a Great Builder? – Jake & Jason

Posted on August 6, 2025August 7, 2025 by Danny Jiménez⁩

Read 6 min

Building with Heart: A Conversation with Jake Smalley

In one of the most meaningful conversations I’ve had on the blog, I got the chance to reconnect with my longtime friend and fellow builder, Jake Smalley. Jake isn’t just a great superintendent he’s a man with heart, wisdom, and lived experience that reminds us what truly matters in construction.

Jake works as a healthcare superintendent in Tucson, Arizona. He’s passionate about solving complex problems in active hospital environments. But what really brought it home for him and for all of us listening was the moment his own daughter needed emergency medical care in a facility he had helped build.

He walked into an MRI suite, carrying his sick daughter in his arms the same suite he had managed just months earlier. That’s when it hit him: this work is real. This work is personal. And it matters.

Jake’s daughter was diagnosed with Kawasaki disease, a rare condition that shook his family. But the team that supported him the same team he had worked alongside in that hospital stood by him in ways he’ll never forget. It was a full-circle moment. One that reminded us: what we build touches lives.

We laughed, we got emotional, and we went deep. Jake also opened up about his personal transformation how he lost over 180 pounds and is now training for a 200-mile bike ride. That physical journey reflects the same commitment he brings to his work: to be present, purposeful, and better every day.

He shared some beautiful, practical lessons:

Say “good morning” to everyone it changes the tone of the day
Serve your team even if it’s cleaning the jobsite bathroom or flipping burgers
Stay humble leadership isn’t about being the boss, it’s about showing up

What I love most about Jake is how he lives this stuff. He’s not preaching. He’s living it. He’s reminding us that construction isn’t just about steel and concrete it’s about people, relationships, and showing up with heart.

Key Takeaway:
Jake Smalley reminds us that great builders lead with humility, serve their people, and never forget the human impact of the spaces they create. Whether it’s greeting someone in the hallway or showing up when it matters most, leadership is about connection and that changes everything.

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