Honesty Leads the Way

By Maurice Levitch, AIA

In the construction industry there has always been an intense relationship between management and employees, from the three-person company where the owner sits down to coffee with the crew every morning before work to the strong hierarchical relationships in a union organization. In focusing on delivering a building to the client, management may overlook the fact that the tradespeople who create with their hands have a strong sense of self and accomplishment and need recognition; they sometimes see management as making the big bucks with their sweat and blood. In the trades, employees have opportunities to advance their skills, to move up in the ranks, or to work in a better environment than where they worked before. Employees are nurtured, working relationships are made and broken, yet successful companies continue to deliver quality projects without missing a beat. This is not a simple task.

To the tune of My Favorite Things:
- One manufacturer's representative belittles another manufacturer's product while promoting his own.
- My engineer refers me to another manufacturer's representative, who repays the favor by giving me the name of a different engineer … "if I haven't already committed" to the one who referred me to him.
- A longtime employee leaves and takes another employee with him to start their own firm.
- Other employees take on side work and you find out about it on your own.
- A new consultant says he can't continue on your job until insignificant adjustments to the drawings are made.
- A subcontractor loses one of his top people and now it is like starting over with a new company.

Honesty, ethics, loyalty and commitment are four of the virtues that matter most to me. As a business owner committed to delivering high quality projects to clients who put their trust in me, I am driven to succeed.

I know I cannot do it all on my own so I put my trust in others and trust they will deliver with the same zeal for excellence that I have. I've been lucky over the years and can say that on a consistent basis the clients compliment us on our crew.

Loyalty in the workplace, however, may be a thing of the past. The financial pressures on the labor force may almost require the employee to take on side work, with "under the table" cash calling their name. How, though, is the employee going to come to work refreshed and dedicated to his "job" on Monday? If it is an occasional thing, I see no problem with an employee helping out a friend or neighbor or, of course, working on his or her own home. However, if the side work becomes a rule rather than the exception, it cannot be healthy for either party.

What do you do when a long-term employee leaves or you find a good employee working on the side? My initial reaction is to feel betrayed. I speak with the employee and in many cases encourage them, or offer assistance if they are honest with me and I can tell that their loyalty to the company is still strong, or let them go if a pattern of deception begins to unfold. How do you differentiate between two unfamiliar manufacturers' products? I tend not to trust one manufacturer who denigrates another; instead, I'll do more research on my own. When do you switch subcontractors or consultants? I consider my loyalties and their ability to continue to deliver high quality work.

There may be no right or wrong answer, but as I think about these issues I look back at what I learned early on in my trail to the rank of Eagle in the Boy Scouts of America. "The Scout Law" is that a scout is Trustworthy, Loyal, Helpful, Friendly, Courteous, Kind, Obedient, Cheerful, Thrifty, Brave, Clean and Reverent. I strive to live by the Scout Law and believe that if others do the same there will be peace and understanding in the workplace.

April 2007 Builder Architect Edition Issue

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