Work record / Operating / Builder Scaled / Questions answered
Builder Scaled: questions answered
What people ask me about Builder Scaled, and my answers. The project itself has its own page.
Who is the client, how many architects and engineers have you sourced, and what has come of it?
Builder Scaled, a national architecture and pre-construction firm. So far I have sourced 14 licensed architects and engineers for them and introduced 26 general contractors that fit how they work. On the growth side, more than $120 million in projects has reached bid through their national construction estimating in the past two and a half months. I could do this because I have spent 12 years sourcing and employing architects and engineers for my own work, at Tellus Design + Build and now LÏEF Builders.
Were any of the 14 hired or placed?
Placement is not what they engaged us for. They want talent generation. Along the way two general contractors and one architect did land jobs in the Phoenix area.
What did you build for their recruiting, and what changed in the weekly pipeline?
We built them a custom learning CRM. It holds what I learned over 25 years and more than $1 billion in projects facilitated. That means what each role costs, how duties are split across an A&E team, how far an architectural budget stretches, and who in our network of firms is licensed in which state. It also hunts on its own through each state's licensed-architect database and through fractional and profile sites, and it verifies licensure and scope of practice by state before a candidate is sent over. Every weekly review now opens on a fresh, verified list. We see where licensed coverage is thin, who needs a next step, and which sources and messages get answers, and we steer toward those. It also learns Builder Scaled's tastes, so each shortlist fits better than the last.
Why start an architect relationship with work and not a role?
Most architects mainly want projects. We have a large network of construction projects, so I can often open by connecting an architect with work near them. They get a reason to deal with us well before any role exists.
Why check licensure state by state before putting anyone forward?
Engineering hiring turns on specifics. Certain roles require a licensed professional while others are production work, a person may practice only where licensed, and the need moves as projects enter new states. Checking first keeps us from sending a name that cannot do the job, and lets us build licensed coverage ahead of the client's project map.
Why did you look at the stamp chain before making any introductions?
Drafting is cheap to buy and the seal is where the risk lives. If a stamp fails, the blame travels back to the person who made the introduction. I owed my owners and contractors an answer on who seals, where and under which registration before I put them in front of Builder Scaled, and then I let the relationship earn each project in turn.