The Construction Leading Edge Podcast

Designing a construction business with the right systems and processes from day one is how you build for lasting profit and freedom. New Hampshire home builder Tom Raisanen shares how he set up pre-construction, project handoffs, a CEO schedule, and his first hire so the company can eventually run without him. ⚡Schedule a Business Evaluation Call with The Construction Leading Edge Team: HERE 👉 Here's how to build a construction business that runs without you, starting with the systems most owners wait too long to put in place. After 15 years in his family's construction business, Tom Raisanen struck out on his own and launched Raisanen Home Builders in Southern New Hampshire. Most builders chase projects first and deal with the business side once chaos and burnout force the issue. Tom built the systems and processes to grow before he hired anyone or broke ground on his first new home. On this episode, Todd Dawalt and Tom get specific about what that looked like. They dig into charging for pre-construction as a profit center, and why a paid process filters out tire-kickers and funds real planning. They break down nailing the handoff from estimating to the field, with drawings and selections locked in up front so the schedule doesn't stall. Tom explains why he gets every selection made before the build starts, and how carrying allowances sets builders up for change-order fights later. From there, they get into how Tom runs his week like a CEO, planning each day ahead so he does owner-level work instead of grabbing a hammer because it's the easy thing. He shares why a virtual assistant was his first hire and how she keeps him accountable to protected CEO time. Narrowing his focus to the Big Five keeps him out of the hundred-item to-do trap. If you want more control and fewer costly mistakes while you build a company that can eventually run without you, this one's worth your time. Key Takeaways: 00:00 Building the Business Right From the Start 02:28 Free Resources: Builder CEO and Buyout Playbook 06:16 Introducing Tom Risanen of Risanen Home Builders 09:34 Business Evaluation Call 12:06 Why Tom Built Systems Before Projects 15:22 One Estimating Mistake Can Cost You Everything 17:00 How Tom Started Charging for Pre-Construction 21:10 No More Free Estimates 22:26 Nailing the Pre-Construction Handoff 28:06 How to Get Clients to Make Selections on Time 30:28 The CEO Schedule and Staying in Your Lane 33:00 Why a VA Was the First Hire 37:46 The CEO Alliance and the Power of a Peer Group 43:08 Construction Does Not Have to Be Chaotic 47:28 One Piece of Advice Before You Make the Jump Additional Resources: ⚡Download the How to Buyout a Construction Project Playbook - HERE ⚡Builder CEO Weekly Operating System - HERE ⚡Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn. ⚡Subscribe to our YouTube channel. ⚡Visit The Construction Leading Edge for more information: HERE The Construction Leading Edge Podcast helps construction business owners maximize their revenue, eliminate chaos, systematize their work, and win back their time. Follow us on your favorite podcasting platform so you never miss an episode!

The 1981 Kansas City Hyatt skywalk collapse came down to one unchecked decision, and it holds a hard lesson for every construction business owner. In this episode of the Construction Leading Edge podcast, Todd Dawalt shares a decision-making framework of five questions and four tips to train your team to make better calls in the field and in pre-construction. ⚡Schedule a Business Evaluation Call with The Construction Leading Edge Team: HERE 👉Your team makes dozens of decisions a day, and most were never trained on how. In this episode I break down the five questions and four tips that help construction leaders make sharper calls under pressure, before the pressure hits. Give it a listen, then share it with whoever on your team needs it most. On any given day, the people on your construction team make dozens of calls that touch your money, your schedule, and your safety. Most of them have never been trained on how to make a decision well. Todd Dawalt opens this episode with the 1981 Kansas City Hyatt skywalk collapse, a disaster that traces back to a single design change nobody stopped to question, and uses it to show what happens when decisions get made on gut feel instead of a framework. From there, Todd lays out a practical decision-making framework any construction leader can teach: five questions to run before acting, and four tips for moving faster without moving recklessly. You'll hear where Colin Powell's 40/70 rule fits, why thinking three steps ahead saved one company from serious liability, and how the cost of indecision stacks up while you wait. The through-line is pre-construction. The more decisions your team locks in before a job starts, the fewer expensive fires they fight once it's running. If your project managers and superintendents keep winging it in the field, this is the episode to share with them, and a preview of the exact skills Todd is training at the Construction Leadership Advance in Nashville this October. Key Takeaways: 00:00 The Collapse That Started With One Bad Decision 03:54 How Many Decisions Your Team Makes Daily 06:26 Construction Leadership Advance in Nashville 07:34 Five Questions for Better Decisions 08:42 Question 1: When Does the Risk Profile Change? 10:02 Question 2: Do You Even Need to Decide? 11:22 Question 3: Who Should Be Involved? 13:28 Question 4: What Is the Desired End Result? 14:44 Construction Leadership Advance: Second Mention 16:36 Question 5: What Is the Cost of Indecision? 19:44 Business Evaluation Call 23:22 Tip 1: The Colin Powell 40/70 Rule 24:50 Tip 2: The Lynyrd Skynyrd Three Step Rule 28:02 Tip 3: Set a Decision Deadline 30:18 Tip 4: Decisions Take Seconds 34:24 Construction Leadership Advance: Final Mention 35:04 Recap and Closing Additional Resources: ⚡Register for The Construction Leadership Advance - October 22-23, 2026 in Nashville - HERE ⚡Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn. ⚡Subscribe to our YouTube channel. ⚡Visit The Construction Leading Edge for more information: HERE The Construction Leading Edge Podcast helps construction business owners maximize their revenue, eliminate chaos, systematize their work, and win back their time. Follow us on your favorite podcasting platform so you never miss an episode!

If you stay busy all day but the work that actually grows your construction business keeps getting pushed to tomorrow, the problem probably isn't your willpower or your ADHD brain. In this episode, Todd Dawalt breaks down the deep work system builder CEOs use to cut interruptions, protect their time, and get the important work done. ⚡Schedule a Business Evaluation Call with The Construction Leading Edge Team: HERE 👉 You start the week knowing exactly what you need to work on, then somehow reach Friday having answered every email and put out every fire while the work that actually moves your business never got touched. Todd Dawalt calls the hidden culprit the Owner Interruption Count: the running total of calls, texts, job site notifications, and questions that land on you in a single day. Once that number climbs past 75 or 100, the issue isn't your personal discipline. Your business has been designed so every decision flows back to you. The answer Todd lays out is the deep work session: one or two protected blocks each week, each pointed at a single concrete outcome. He reframes what your time is actually worth, shows why scattered five-minute pockets never add up to real progress, and explains how attention residue drains your focus every time you switch tasks. From there he shares ten field-tested tips, from getting out of your usual office and putting your phone on airplane mode, to using a virtual assistant to protect the block, leaning on accountability, and treating AI as a thinking partner. The point of every session is to solve a recurring problem at the root so it stops returning, and to free up more hours for the high-value work only you can do. Key Takeaways: 00:00 Why Good Intentions Don't Get Things Done 00:56 Download the Builder CEO Weekly Operating System 06:16 The Owner Interruption Count and What It Reveals 08:28 Business Evaluation Call 11:28 Why Your Time Is Worth $1,000 an Hour 17:36 Scattered Time Does Not Create Meaningful Progress 19:12 Tip 1: Schedule Deep Work Like a Client Appointment 22:22 Tip 2: Define a Specific Outcome Before You Start 24:08 Tip 3: Put the Phone Down and Protect the Block 26:00 Tip 4: Change Your Location to Change How You Think 28:12 Tip 5: Create a Protected Focus Block With a Timer 30:02 Tip 6: Use Your Virtual Assistant to Make It Happen 32:08 Tip 7: Add External Accountability 35:12 Tip 8: Use AI as a Deep Work Thinking Partner 36:28 Tip 9: Solve Problems Systematically, Not Just Once 37:54 Tip 10: Consistency Matters More Than a Perfect Routine 41:18 Five Questions to Identify What to Work On Additional Resources: ⚡Builder CEO Weekly Operating System: HERE ⚡The Remote Assistant Playbook: HERE ⚡Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn. ⚡Subscribe to our YouTube channel. ⚡Visit The Construction Leading Edge for more information: HERE The Construction Leading Edge Podcast helps construction business owners maximize their revenue, eliminate chaos, systematize their work, and win back their time. Follow us on your favorite podcasting platform so you never miss an episode!

EPISODE 443: Jake spent three years running a construction business that felt like waist-deep mud. He blamed the labor market. He blamed the economy. He blamed himself. Then he found a signature at the bottom of a stack of invoices — and everything clicked. His chaos had a name. And it had been there the whole time. In this solo episode of The Construction Leading Edge Podcast, Todd Dawalt tells the story of Jake a fictional composite built from real conversations with hundreds of construction business owners to illustrate one of the most common reasons construction businesses stay stuck: the people, patterns, and gray areas that quietly block every attempt to grow. Jake's story isn't real. But the moment of recognition probably will be. 👉 If you've been telling yourself things will calm down soon, this episode is for you. Tune in. Jake had Charlie a 30-year veteran who kept things murky, kept Jake in firefighting mode, and had a quiet interest in keeping the business exactly where it was. He had Sarah, whose passive resistance and finger-pointing turned every attempted change into a confrontation. And he had a vision he couldn't seem to move toward, no matter how hard he pushed. The story is a vehicle for three questions Todd puts directly to the listener: What's the biggest gray area in your business right now? Is your business designed around the people you have, or the vision you want to achieve? And how long have you been telling yourself you'll fix it when you have time? These aren't rhetorical. They're diagnostic the same questions Todd has used working with over 400 construction companies to identify what's actually holding the business back. Jake's turning point wasn't a new hire or a better system. It was a decision. He stopped waiting to feel ready, stopped designing his business around the people he happened to have, and started building toward a destination he'd actually defined. Three months later, he was at his kid's soccer practice. He was the coach. Key Takeaways: 00:00 Jake's story begins — three years of running through mud 01:15 Introducing Charlie and Sarah — resistance from inside the business 05:20 The $50,000 window order mistake and where accountability broke down 07:00 The beach vacation call — what it cost Jake beyond the job 09:20 The invoice signature — chaos hiding in plain sight 10:25 Charlie's real role: keeping Jake stuck in the urgent 11:20 Jake fires Charlie 13:45 How Jake rebuilt — vision, business design, and the playbook 18:05 Three questions for the listener 22:15 The call to action — results page and next steps Additional Resources: ☎️ Schedule a Business Evaluation Call with The Construction Leading Edge Team: HERE ☎️ Schedule a free Business Evaluation Call with the CLE team → HERE ⚡ Download the How to Buyout a Construction Project Playbook: HERE ⚡Follow us on Facebook Instagram LinkedIn ⚡Subscribe to our YouTube channel ⚡Visit The Construction Leading Edge for more information: HERE The Construction Leading Edge Podcast helps construction business owners maximize their revenue, eliminate chaos, systematize their work, and win back their time. Follow us on your favorite podcasting platform so you never miss an episode!

EPISODE 441: Most builders assume cost plus is the safe play. No locked-in price. No exposure if materials spike or scope grows. But according to the author of Markup and Profits, cost plus contracts end up in lawsuits two to three times more often — and in arbitration nine times more often — than fixed-price contracts. That's not a pricing problem. It's a process problem. In this solo episode of The Construction Leading Edge Podcast, Todd Dawalt breaks down why cost plus contracts are far riskier than most builders realize — and what actually creates that risk. He walks through the hidden traps that turn cost plus jobs sideways: the "just enough to start" trap that lets you move forward without real clarity, the budget heart attack that hits clients at the 60-80% mark, the microscope effect that turns every invoice into a negotiation, and why cost plus limits your upside while doing almost nothing to protect your downside. 👉 If you've been using cost plus as a safety net, this episode will change how you think about it — and show you what actually keeps you protected. Tune in. Key Takeaways: 00:00 Intro 03:05 Why builders think cost plus limits their risk — and why it doesn't 08:45 Cost plus contracts end up in lawsuits 2-3x more often than fixed-price 12:55 The "just enough to start" trap and how cost plus enables it 17:15 Real legal case study: consumer fraud, treble damages, and what triggered it 24:25 The budget heart attack — what happens at the 60-80% mark 29:20 The microscope effect and the $40,000 Snickers bar 32:25 How billing disputes slow cash flow after your leverage is already gone 36:10 Cost plus limits your upside while barely protecting your downside 38:00 What real transparency looks like vs. open-book exposure 41:20 The three things to do right now if your pre-construction process needs work Additional Resources: ☎️ Schedule a Business Evaluation Call with The Construction Leading Edge Team HERE ⚡Follow us on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn ⚡Subscribe to our YouTube channel ⚡Visit The Construction Leading Edge for more information: HERE The Construction Leading Edge Podcast helps construction business owners maximize their revenue, eliminate chaos, systematize their work, and win back their time. Follow us on your favorite podcasting platform so you never miss an episode!

☎️ Schedule a Business Evaluation Call with The Construction Leading Edge Team HERE EPISODE 439: Daaron Yester has been framing custom homes in Southern California's Coachella Valley for nearly 30 years. He had loyal crews, a strong reputation, and clients who kept coming back. He was also borrowing money to keep the business alive, undercharging on jobs, and trying to run every part of the company himself. Something had to change. In this episode of The Construction Leading Edge Podcast, Todd sits down with Daaron Yester, owner of DYC Framing Inc., to trace the turning point that took him from financial stress and operational chaos to a business with clear roles, tighter numbers, and a schedule that actually leaves room for his life. Daaron shares how getting into his numbers revealed the markup problem he'd been avoiding for years, why clarifying roles for people already on his team was the move that freed him up most, and what it really looks like when your GCs are running your company instead of you. 👉 If you've been in business for decades and still feel like you're holding everything together yourself, this one's worth your time. Tune in. Key Takeaways: 00:00 Intro 00:02:20 Meet Daaron Yester – DYC Framing and 30 years in the Coachella Valley 00:03:05 The scale of high-end custom work in Southern California 00:04:05 Misconceptions about wealthy clients 00:05:15 How Daaron got started in construction 00:07:05 Company size, team tenure, and rebuilding after 2008 00:08:10 Lessons from multiple downturns 00:11:05 How Daaron has kept crew members for 15–20 years 00:13:50 What led Daaron to reach out to CLE 00:16:35 Joining Systematize Your Construction Business – the decision to commit 00:18:25 The moment the program clicked 00:21:00 Clarifying roles: putting the right people in the right seats 00:23:05 Who was actually running the business 00:25:35 Why systems make you more professional with clients, not less 00:28:45 The two most impactful changes Daaron made 00:33:05 How Daaron's daily schedule has changed 00:36:30 Advice for owners who feel like they have to be everywhere 00:39:35 Keys to implementing systems and getting your team on board 00:43:35 What the CEO Alliance has meant for Daaron 00:45:10 Highlights from the Cancun live meetup 00:48:30 What Daaron would tell someone considering SYCB 00:49:45 One unconventional thing Daaron believes about business 00:52:15 Why construction owners try to do it alone 00:53:35 Where to go if you're ever passing through the area Additional Resources: ⚡Schedule a Business Evaluation Call with The Construction Leading EdgeTeam: HERE ⚡Follow us on Facebook Instagram and LinkedIn ⚡Subscribe to our YouTube channel ⚡Visit The Construction Leading Edge for more information: HERE The Construction Leading Edge Podcast helps construction business owners maximize their revenue, eliminate chaos, systematize their work, and win back their time. Follow us on your favorite podcasting platform so you never miss an episode! #ConstructionLeadingEdge #PreConstruction #ConstructionBusiness

☎️ Schedule a Business Evaluation Call with The Construction Leading Edge Team HERE EPISODE 437: In 1937, the U.S. Army Air Corps sent out a design proposal with a set of detailed performance specifications for a new pursuit aircraft — one that didn't yet exist and that no plane at the time could match. That proposal eventually produced the Lockheed P-38 Lightning, a fighter that flew over 130,000 missions and, according to some historians, helped tip the balance of the war in the Pacific. In this episode of The Construction Leading Edge Podcast, Todd breaks down the business lessons hidden inside that story — and why the way the Army Air Corps built the P-38 is exactly how successful construction business owners should be thinking about strategy, vision, and delegation. Todd walks through three core lessons: how to establish performance specifications for your business instead of just reacting to whatever comes at you, why the visionary's job is to define the what and then hand the how to the people who know best, and why the time to develop your strategy is long before you actually need it. He also walks through two detailed business examples — including how to design a pre-construction handoff process and how to build an organization chart for a company targeting $13M in revenue. 👉 If you've been running on instinct instead of strategy, this episode gives you a framework to change that. Tune in. Key Takeaways: 00:00 Intro 03:30 The story of the P-38 Lightning and how it started with a spec sheet 08:50 Lesson 1 — You get to set the performance specifications for your business 12:20 Right-to-left thinking: start with what you want, then work backwards 16:35 Lesson 2 — Define the what, then delegate the how to your team 22:10 Real-world example: designing a pre-construction handoff process 27:15 Real-world example: building your org chart around a revenue target 30:00 Lesson 3 — Develop your strategy before you need it 34:05 The questions every construction owner should be asking about the future 38:20 Free resource: Strategic Planning Guide download Additional Resources: ⚡Schedule a Business Evaluation Call with The Construction Leading Edge Team HERE – ⚡Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn ⚡Subscribe to our YouTube channel HERE ⚡Visit The Construction Leading Edge for more information HERE The Construction Leading Edge Podcast helps construction business owners maximize their revenue, eliminate chaos, systematize their work, and win back their time. Follow us on your favorite podcasting platform so you never miss an episode!

☎️ Schedule a Business Evaluation Call with The Construction Leading Edge Team HERE EPISODE 435: There's a belief running in your construction business right now that sounds completely responsible. Maybe it's "now's not a good time." Maybe it's "when things calm down, I'll fix it." Maybe it's "we just need to hire more people." It sounds like you're being smart and protecting your business. And it's the exact thing that's keeping you stuck. That gap between what you tell yourself and what's actually holding you back — that's where the real problem lives. In this episode of The Construction Leading Edge Podcast, Todd introduces the concept of mental malware — belief patterns running silently in the background of your mental operating system, capping your growth without you knowing they're there. He walks through 11 of the most common mental malware files he's heard from hundreds of construction business owners, the one deeper program running underneath all of them, and 3 steps to start identifying and deleting the beliefs that are keeping your business dependent on you. 👉 If this episode stings a little, that's your signal. Tune in and find out what's really been capping your construction business. Key Takeaways: Intro (00:00) Todd's website gets hacked – the malware analogy begins (01:15) Mental malware: what's running silently in your business (02:45) "That's not scaling, that's just scaling stress" (03:50) "That's not high standards. That's identity protection." (06:10) Run a mental malware scan – 11 belief files (06:30) The vacuum cleaner story – seeing what you can't unsee (12:50) The root program underneath all the mental malware (15:40) Jim Rohn: the pain of discipline vs. the pain of regret (18:10) Imagine a business that runs without you (20:00) 3 steps to delete the mental malware (21:05) The cost of inaction (25:35) Next steps: business evaluation call + 5-minute action item (27:10) Additional Resources: ⚡Schedule a Business Evaluation Call with The Construction Leading Edge Team HERE – ⚡Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn ⚡Subscribe to our YouTube channel HERE ⚡Visit The Construction Leading Edge for more information HERE The Construction Leading Edge Podcast helps construction business owners maximize their revenue, eliminate chaos, systematize their work, and win back their time. Follow us on your favorite podcasting platform so you never miss an episode!