Since 2008 construction employment has dropped considerably and has remained below 2007 levels, with construction management positions still about 14% down (U.S. Department of Labor, 2015). Despite the boom currently occurring in the construction industry, general contractors (GCs) are finding it difficult to fill project management positions (AGC 2014), and construction firms expect these challenges to continue (Mutikani, 2014).
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With greater demand for managers, retaining quality people is a paramount concern. Everyone knows the adage that “money talks”, but what can a GC do to engender loyalty besides just paying more? To explore that question and attempt to better understand the factors that engender loyalty among a GCs employees, the team at Pinnacle Development Group worked with Texas A&M University and surveyed the field employees of GCs and obtained 440 responses that provide insight into the factors that are most effective in engendering loyalty for GC’s field management employees.
Loyalty Drivers
Of the respondents, 38% have been with their current company for over 20 years, and 70% have been in the industry for over 20 years. They constituted a variety of job titles and levels of education, and came from across the Unites States. The questions related to three general categories of: Company programs, Relationships, and Attitude and Engagement. Respondents were asked to rank various factors in each area with the lowest average rankings indicating the most effective factors.
Not surprisingly, pay scale and bonus structures was a top factor. However, participants felt that relationships with management were the single most effective factor in their loyalty as employees. Each of the three areas (relationships, company programs, and attitude and engagement) are represented in the top three factors, however relationships occupy four of the top six spaces. So the key to retaining employees may lie simply in a people focused organization.
Table 1 – Ranking of Factor Influential to Loyalty
| Factor | Area | Average Ranking |
| Relationships with management | Relationships | 4.7 |
| Pay scale and bonus structures | Company Programs | 5.1 |
| Belief and trust in the company and its direction | Attitude and Engagement | 5.27 |
| Relationships with supervisor(s) | Relationships | 5.42 |
| Relationships with co-workers/peers | Relationships | 5.67 |
| Relationships with customers | Relationships | 7.09 |
| Agreement with the company mission statement | Attitude and Engagement | 7.63 |
| Employee training and development opportunities | Company Programs | 7.71 |
| Willingness to promote and encourage involvement with the company | Attitude and Engagement | 7.9 |
| Flextime policies | Company Programs | 8.11 |
| Employee feedback mechanisms | Company Programs | 8.65 |
| Structured career programs | Company Programs | 8.74 |
| Willingness to sacrifice on behalf of the company | Attitude and Engagement | 8.76 |
Additional analysis was also performed to consider company programs, relationships, and Attitude and Engagement with and the participants: Length of time with their current company, Length of time in construction industry, and the highest level of education completed.
Company Programs
Company programs did not predict the amount of time spent with the respondent’s current company. While they could predict time in the construction industry most GCs are not concerned with keeping managers in the industry, but rather in their companies. However, the longer an individual had been in the industry the more important company programs became, so company programs should be geared to more experienced employees. Flextime policies were more important for employees with greater education, but those same flextime policies became less important over time in the industry while employee feedback mechanisms became more important over time in the industry. So in recruiting and retaining industry veterans, company programs are probably the best bet.
Relationships
Relationships did not predict time in the industry, or education level, however not surprisingly relationships did predict an employee’s time with their current company. Which makes this factor very important in GC efforts to retain their employees. While respondents indicated that relationships with management were most important, the numbers indicate that relationships with customers had a stronger relationship to time with their current company.
Employee attitude and engagement
Employee attitude and engagement did not have any statistically significant impact on time in the industry, time with current company, or education. So while employees perceive that belief and trust in the company and where it is going affects their loyalty, no statistical relationship could be found between them in the numbers.
Good relationships among employees with internal and external customers are the most important factor to loyalty. Relationships were perceived to be important to loyalty and the numbers showed a statistically significant link between employee’s relationships with managers, supervisor(s), and co-workers/peers and the amount of time they reported having spent with their current company. So the old rule that it’s all about the people, hasn’t changed and we can see that it is not just about the people, but also their relationships.
Authors:
Colby Humphrey PRC – Pinnacle CCID
Ben F. Bigelow PhD – Texas A&M University
