Most construction companies don’t break because the work is hard.
They break because leadership pressure compounds faster than the business is prepared to handle it.

In this episode of Builders, Makers, Doers, Andy and Elliot sit down with Tony Fucinaro, Managing Principal at MCL Construction, for a grounded conversation about what actually sustains a construction company as it grows.

Tony didn’t come up through a traditional construction path.
He started in the restaurant industry. High pressure. Tight margins. Real people problems.

That background shaped how he thinks about leadership, relationships, and decision-making under stress and why MCL chose a different path as it scaled from a small firm to nearly 300 employees.

This is not a project management episode.
It’s a leadership and ownership episode.

For construction, manufacturing, and specialty trades owners, this conversation goes deeper than job sites and schedules.

It’s about:

• Why relationship-first leadership outlasts low-bid thinking
• How critical thinking prevents small problems from becoming existential ones
• Why scaling gets harder when people become the real constraint
• The difference between authority and responsibility in leadership
• What owners must change as the business grows beyond them

Tony shares real lessons from decades inside MCL, including moments when the old way of doing construction simply stopped working and what had to change to protect the team, the culture, and the future of the business.

This episode explores:

1. Why most construction problems are thinking problems, not technical ones
2. How slowing down early creates speed later
3. Why leadership failures often show up as labor burnout
4. How owners quietly become the bottleneck without realizing it
5. What it really means to build a company that lasts beyond one generation

This episode isn’t about buildings.
It’s about building a business that can survive pressure, complexity, and time.

If you own or plan to own a trades business, this conversation will hit close to home.

🎧 Watch the full episode and subscribe to Builders, Makers, Doers.

Stay Connected & Follow the Movement

• Subscribe on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts
• Follow Builders, Makers, Doers on LinkedIn
https://www.linkedin.com/company/ellerbrock-norris/

• Grab a copy of Andy Bassett’s book
https://www.ellerbrock-norris.com/book

Connect with the Hosts

Andy Bassett
CEO, Ellerbrock-Norris
https://www.linkedin.com/in/andy-bassett-cpcu-cic-7711853/

Elliot Bassett
President and Partner, Ellerbrock-Norris
https://www.linkedin.com/in/elliot-bassett-aip-cpcu-84499515/

🌐 https://www.ellerbrock-norris.com/

Most businesses don’t struggle because the work isn’t good.
They struggle because ownership quietly becomes heavier than anyone expects.

In this episode of Builders, Makers, Doers, Andy and Elliot sit down with Chuck Wiethop, founder of Design Eight Studios, for a grounded, no-BS conversation about what it really takes to build and sustain a trades business over decades.

This is not a signage episode.
It’s an ownership episode.

Chuck shares what 30 years in the trades teaches you about leadership, labor, profit protection, and the long-term consequences of the decisions owners make when pressure is high.

From starting with zero industry experience to building one of the most diverse sign and graphics operations in the Midwest, Chuck walks through the moments that shaped how he leads today.

Not the wins.
The weight.

This conversation explores what ownership actually demands when you’re responsible for people, margins, timelines, and reputation all at once.

You’ll hear how Chuck:

• Started a company without industry experience and learned by making mistakes
• Discovered the reality behind “being your own boss”
• Navigated labor shortages and the responsibility of keeping people working
• Learned how saying yes too often quietly destroys profit
• Lost money on purpose to build long-term capability
• Built resilience through systems, not hustle
• Earned trust by standing behind work when it would have been easier to walk away
• Balanced growth, capacity, and reputation over three decades

This episode is about responsibility, discipline, and long-term thinking.

Because resilience isn’t motivation.
It’s structure.
And it’s built long before the pressure shows up.

If you own — or plan to own — a trades, manufacturing, or operations-driven business, this conversation will hit close to home.

🎧 Watch the full episode and subscribe to Builders, Makers, Doers.

Stay Connected & Follow the Movement

• Subscribe on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts
• Follow Builders, Makers, Doers on LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/company/ellerbrock-norris/

• Grab a copy of Andy Bassett’s book → https://www.ellerbrock-norris.com/book

Connect with the Hosts

Andy Bassett, CEO, Ellerbrock-Norris
https://www.linkedin.com/in/andy-bassett-cpcu-cic-7711853/

Elliot Bassett, President and Partner, Ellerbrock-Norris
https://www.linkedin.com/in/elliot-bassett-aip-cpcu-84499515/

🌐 https://www.ellerbrock-norris.com/

Most businesses don’t break because the product is bad.
They break because ownership decisions collide with people, partners, and pressure.

In this episode of Builders, Makers, Doers, Andy and Elliot sit down on site with Zac Triemert, founder of Brickway Brewery and Distillery, for a raw conversation about what happens when everything you build gets taken away — and you decide to build again anyway.

This is not a craft beer episode.
It’s a resilience episode.

Zach shares the full story of growing Nebraska’s largest brewery, giving away equity too early, and being escorted out of his own company — overnight. What followed wasn’t a comeback tour. It was a hard reset.

Cash flow pressure.
Starting over from scratch.
Making decisions differently the second time.

This conversation explores what ownership really demands when the market shifts, competition explodes, and the rules change mid-game.

You’ll hear how Zach:

• Lost control of the business he founded
• Rebuilt with tighter ownership and clearer guardrails
• Navigated an industry that went from 800 to 10,000 competitors
• Adapted as customers started drinking less, not more
• Managed years of cash tied up in inventory he couldn’t sell yet
• Shifted focus to survive saturation and market contraction
• Built a team that stayed through uncertainty and pressure

This episode is about patience, discipline, and long-term thinking.

Because resilience isn’t grit.
It’s structure.
And it’s built before things fall apart.

If you own — or plan to own — a trades, manufacturing, or operations-driven business, this conversation will hit close to home.

🎧 Watch the full episode and subscribe to Builders, Makers, Doers.

Stay Connected & Follow the Movement

• Subscribe on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts
• Follow Builders, Makers, Doers on LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/company/ellerbrock-norris/

• Grab a copy of Andy Bassett’s book → https://www.ellerbrock-norris.com/book

Connect with the Hosts

Andy Bassett, CEO, Ellerbrock-Norris
https://www.linkedin.com/in/andy-bassett-cpcu-cic-7711853/

Elliot Bassett, President and Partner, Ellerbrock-Norris
https://www.linkedin.com/in/elliot-bassett-aip-cpcu-84499515/

🌐 https://www.ellerbrock-norris.com/