Hire Smarter™ with Tony Misura

In the latest episode of Hire Smarter™, follow along as Tony, Jim, and Michele discuss the explosive value that Hogan Assessments can bring to the LBM industry. Jim dives into how this personality assessment is used to help companies with strategic planning, succession planning, and coaching. While there are many types of personality tests out there, the Hogan Assessment allows for individuals to get the most detailed, holistic approach in regards to hiring, onboarding, and continued success in day-to-day interactions. It gets down to the nitty-gritty of understanding your strengths, weaknesses, and fit within a company culture. Misura Group is excited to expand the reach of solutions we can provide to our clients and candidates.

This episode of Hire Smarter dives into the questions to help listeners understand what the cutting edge supply chain tactics are and how first principles can challenge the status quo and help your organization move forward. The sharpest supply chain leaders start from a cultural perspective in creating a place where there is a more progressive think, challenging teams with best practices and innovation that impact the P&L. Our guest today is Matt Wolf, recently the director of Supply Chain with Agorus. He claims to have improved profits by 35%, strictly through a better supply chain approach. He and his team focused on changing the industry's view of offsite manufacturing through a variety of tactics. Here are the big topics Matt helps break down in this podcast: How focused is your supply chain team at impacting your customer's value proposition? How does your team implement best practices to deliver an industrialized process? How do you currently approach the expense vs inventory conundrum around purchasing? What are the opportunities moving from CAD to BOM? How do the table stakes change in hiring talent from outside the industry?

The greatest leaders take on the toughest challenges. Successfully driving cutting-edge innovation in the home building industry is an enormous challenge. Garrett Moore, the CEO of Agorus, has a mission of building homes from permits to keys in 30 days. How does a leader maintain the level of intensity and focus needed to tackle the boldest initiatives? Mantras help teams effectively maintain focus through the white noise and distractions life throws at them. Some of Garrett's favorite mantras: Team, Teammate, Self – In priority order. No one is too big to pick up a broom – Humility starts at the top. Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication – The simplest plan is the best plan. The only easy day was yesterday – Never rest on your laurels. Two is one, one is none – You need to have a backup.

In this episode, Tony speaks with Levi Smith, the CEO & President of Franklin Building Supply, a standout independent LBM dealer. A full line lumberyard in Idaho, they generate over $300m in sales, with 750 people, 17 locations, including door shops and truss plants. What is your best story to effectively attract bright young talent to your company? A great story has three components: A cast of characters that everyone cares about The desire to accomplish something for someone else A challenging obstacle to overcome Great leaders and excellent problem solvers create some of the most straightforward solutions. Levi's insight and teaching are excellent.

Are you interested in building a sustained business model that thrives whether you are there or not? Are you facing scaling or turnover challenges? Are you curious about what drives a building products business to sell for 6-8x EBITDA instead of 3x EBITDA? This episode's guest is one of the building industry's top operators, Kendall Hoyd, CEO of the Sharpen Group. His track record includes taking a $5m business that was red on the profit line to $25m with double-digit profits. He was a C-level leader with Trussway, a $250m company achieving high returns, then moved on to Residential Design Services/Interior Logic Group, a subcontractor installing cabinets, countertops, and flooring. There he inherited $110m and grew it to $375m, with ownership evolving from founders to private equity to a publicly-traded structure.

In this episode, Thea Dudley teaches us her approach to establishing and maintaining a culture of accountability through the Art of Candor. Thea is respected in the industry as the credit and collections expert. Her career as a VP at Guardian Building Products and SRS Distribution pivoted to her consulting service, Thea Dudley LLC, where she guides the building industry on credit and collections practices and team building. Listen to her engaging and hard-hitting approach as she educates us on the best way to reach our stretch goals around the following areas: How does a professional develop the Art of Candor? How can you grow the sales and profits of a business through the Credit Department? What are the best steps to be an emboldened industry leader?