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November 13, 2007
Winning friends and influencing people
by By Brian Johnson F&C Construction Writer More construction and design firms now look to speaking coaches and Dale Carnegie-type training as they compete for projects. The folks at St. Paul-based Hunt Electric knew they had the know-how to win their share of big-time projects, but they wanted to do a better job of lighting up the conference rooms with their pitches and presentations.
So the company turned to a seemingly unlikely source of help for the construction industry: a speaking coach from the local Dale Carnegie office.
Before long, company officials gained confidence in presentations and interviews, and that added confidence translated to more work opportunities, according to Matt Norman, vice president of sales with the Dale Carnegie Training franchise in Edina.
Hunt staff was good at building credibility over the course of a project. But in interviews, where they had just a few minutes to explain why they were the best fit for a project, they were uncomfortable, Norman said.
After honing their speaking and presentation skills with Carnegie staff, Hunt officials quickly closed on two projects totaling $30 million in value, and the electrical company attributed the award, in part, to the Carnegie training, Norman said.
Hunt Electric isn't alone.
Norman said an increasing number of his clients are from the construction industry. Past and present Carnegie clients include design firm Leo A. Daly, Ryan Companies US Inc., Kraus-Anderson, Figg Engineering Group and McGough Construction.
Brad Wood, executive vice president for McGough, said the company's project managers and superintendents went through a seven-week Dale Carnegie course on improving interview and communication skills.
The training, which started about a year ago, has been "very successful," Wood said.
"It has been well embraced by our field, the superintendents, who don't get many opportunities to interview for a project," he said. "But those few times they do, they want to feel more confident."
McGough has been on a hot streak, winning 75 percent to 80 percent of the projects that it has interviewed for in the past year. The Carnegie training isn't the main reason for that success, but it is a contributing factor, Wood said.
One message that came through is that the fanciest presentation doesn't always win the job.
"Often, real flashy presentations will turn off certain groups," Wood said. It's more about "who do they feel comfortable with as they walk out of the room."
Vadnais Heights-based Gephart Electric walked away with a big project of its own after consulting with a speaking coach.
Gephart hired Spoken Impact, a Minneapolis consulting firm, to help craft a presentation to the Minnesota Twins ballpark panel. In late August, the panel awarded a $30 million contract to Gephart.
"Obviously, our longstanding track record of outstanding service was a major key to winning the business," Gephart Vice President Larry Heinsch said, in a press release. "But Spoken Impact really showed us how to present our strengths in a cohesive and creative way to the panel.
"I think working with Spoken Impact gave us the competitive edge we needed."
Spoken Impact says it developed "a creative concept that focused on baseball and teamwork" for Gephart Electric's final presentation to the panel. The presentation included "baseball-themed visuals" and "personal baseball stories and analogies."
"We were able to personalize the pitch so the strengths of the company were highlighted, as well as the experience and integrity of Gephart's individual key players," noted Spoken Impact founder Joan Moser, in a press release.
"The creative concepts added some humor and fun to the process, which I think the panel really enjoyed."
Figg Engineering Group's use of Dale Carnegie training wasn't lost on a Minnesota Department of Transportation committee that reviewed proposals for the 35W bridge replacement project.
Florida-based Figg is part of construction team that won the coveted 35W bridge contract. The award was based, in part, on a high "technical" score that considered factors like public outreach and enhancements.
Carnegie training costs typically range from $500 to $2,000 a person, Norman said. Specific training is geared toward things like creating a "sales culture" in organizations, fostering leadership and communication skills, and improving presentations and public speaking skills.
But not everyone is a big fan of the speaking coach trend.
John Hafner, president of Cities Edge Architects in Willmar, said the use of expensive marketing agencies and speaking coaches tends to put smaller firms at a competitive disadvantage.
"The larger the firm, the more they can spend," he noted, in an e-mail to Finance and Commerce. "I don't see anything wrong with this in the private sector, but I do see this creeping into the public sector -- and that is where the problem lies, in my opinion."
Norman said it's not just about competitive bidding. Communication training is also useful for making presentations to city councils and planning commissions, and for internal company challenges, such as making the transition from "project manager to people manager."
A lot of people who are good at managing projects find themselves in uncharted water after accepting a promotion to division manager or senior project manager, he noted. Suddenly, they need to be coaches and motivators.
Most people in the industry have strong technical skills and are good at managing projects, Norman noted, but they may need improvement when it comes to things like communicating, dealing with conflict, and negotiating.
"We do a lot of work in that area," Norman said.
Norman has four basic tips for better presentations: practice, dress appropriately, keep it simple and consider every angle, including possible criticism. Messages should be concise and understandable, with no more than three or four main points, he said.
Bottom line, it's about more than just content.
"We often tend to focus on the content versus how we communicate it," Norman said. "A small percentage of communication is what we say. It's about how we say it and how we look." Copyright 2008 Finance and Commerce All Rights Reserved
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