7/27/2019 080813 Strategic Planning
3/5
26 | Construction EXECUTIVE August 2013
A PLAN THATPAYS OFF
KBR first identifies employees at alllevels of the company who
could be futureleaders and designates them as highpotentials.
They usually are good communica-tors. They dont necessarily
yield positionalpower but demonstrate personal power.
They are the ones people go to for advice,Clark says.
Ten percent of the workforce is iden-tified as high potential
and is in devel-opment at all times. KBR gives theseemployees
stickers and patches to put ontheir gear as recognition, and
hopefully toinspire other employees to show leadershippotential as
well.
KBR determines high potentials throughobservation and
communications withleadership. It looks for employees who
are punctual, have a strong work ethic,communicate well, know
multiple craftsand exhibit a commitment to
workforcedevelopment.
High-potential journeymen go througha 16-hour course on crew
leadership andmust be NCCER certified. Then they
begin front-line leadership training thatcombines NCCERs project
supervisioncourse and KBRs curriculum.
KBR always has a queue of employeesin this stage of training who
are used astemporary supervisors. It holds work shut-downs and
turn-arounds (when a project isshut down and hundreds of outside
work-ers are brought in to meet an expressedschedule for an
accelerated project), during
which the temporary supervisors are put incharge and monitored
by KBR leadership.
Once employees become front-linesupervisors, they begin training
for higherlevels of responsibility, including proj-ect management,
planning and schedul-ing, cost control and negotiations.
Theemployees then begin KBR University,an in-house program that
teaches project
managers client-focused communicationand negotiation
techniques.
The entire process takes about 10 years,but varies by employee.
Though time con-suming, KBR found that adults learn bestby applying
what they learn, so it breaksdown the training into modules
followedby practicing the material in the field. Todetermine
whether an employee is readyto move onto the next step,
supervisorsevaluate the workers productivity rateusing tools
developed by KBR.
The KBR Leadership Academy trains high-potential employees to
take on additional responsibilitiesfrom becoming a front-line
supervisor to
scheduling projects and negotiating with clients.
7/27/2019 080813 Strategic Planning
5/5
28 | Construction EXECUTIVE August 2013
2014ABC
LEGISLATIVE
CONFERENCE
June 11, 2014
Washington, D.C.
legcon.abc.org
Nov. 57, 2013
Las Vegas, Nev.
institute.abc.org
Nov. 67, 2013
Las Vegas, Nev.
attorneys.abc.org
AttorneysConference2013
Upcoming ABC
Meetings & Events
2013 ABC INSTITUTEFor Leadership and Professional
Development
Feb. 1112, 2014Maui, Hawaii
bizcon.abc.org
2014
Feb. 11, 2014
Maui, Hawaii
abc.org/excellence
April 29May 2, 2014
Birmingham, Ala.
21wfdc.abc.org
24th Annual Excellence
in Construction Awards
Mark your calendar now and
make plans to attend these
outstanding ABC and construction
industry events!
Visit www.abc.org for the latest
information on all ABC meetings
and events.
employee might go to their manager andsay hey, theres a seminar
I would love totake, Snyder says. Its based on aptitudeand whether
the employees manager thinksthey can take on more
responsibility.
Ruppert Landscape also assigns men-tors to employees on an
as-needed basis.This tactic is being used to enhance theskills of
the next generation of Ruppertfamily members and help them develop
abroader perspective of the company.
The company has enough businesssavvy to not just assume those
people willbe the next top leaders, Snyder says. Thementoring
approach makes sure they area good fit for the company, just like
anyother employee, and makes sure they areprepared with the
necessary skills.
Additionally, Ruppert Landscape occa-sionally takes its top
management teamto tour different companies so they cansee how
processes such as research, devel-opment and hiring are done
elsewhere.Over the years, they have visited dozens ofcompanies such
as District Photo, UnderArmour and even a dairy farm.
We want people to keep their anten-nas up to see what other
companies doto set themselves apart, Snyder says. Itopens peoples
minds to other possibilities.When you see businesses that are
totallyunrelated to what you do, you get morevalue on a strategic
level versus a practicallevel.
Ruppert Landscape encourages em-ployees to be directly involved
with
charitable giving. Five percent of the com-panys profits are
allocated to charities,with 3 percent directed by corporate and2
percent going to organizations selectedby branch employees.
It feels good to know the profit yourcompany makes goes to a
cause you sup-port, Snyder says. In many ways, it makesemployees
proud of where they work andmore committed to the company.
Ruppert Landscape also works hard
to find new talent through its internshipprogram. It recruits up
to 15 interns per
year from colleges throughout the countrywho major in subjects
such as landscapemanagement, landscape construction, con-struction
management and business.
We look for someone who is willingto get out of their comfort
zone, workswell with others and has the ability toovercome
challenges and keep growing,Snyder says.
The company matches interns withemployees related to their
majors, as wellas employees who can provide an overallperspective
of the company so they geta well-rounded experience. For
interns
who prove to be a good fit, employment isoffered after
graduation. Approximately50 percent of interns accept
full-timepositions.
Jessica Porter is staff writer of Construction
Executive. For more information, email
[email protected], visit www.construction
exec.org or follow @ConstructionMag.
Ruppert
Landscape
encourages
employees to
participate in
community
service
activities.
