In this episode of Finance at the Jobsite, Rishi sits down with Mark Smith, Ph.D., organizational psychologist, author of A Better Choice: The Manager’s Guide to Skills-First Hiring, and founder of A Better Choice Hire, to talk about what construction companies keep getting wrong when hiring and promoting leaders.

Mark has spent more than 20 years helping construction and engineering companies improve leadership teams, and he has assessed nearly 1,000 candidates across all levels. In this conversation, he explains why impressive resumes, degrees, job titles, and years of experience often fail to predict real-world leadership success.

They discuss:

• why skills-first hiring matters in construction

• why soft skills like communication, adaptability, and influence are often more important than technical credentials

• how structured interviews outperform gut-feel hiring

• how role-play assessments reveal hard-to-fake leadership signals

• common leadership gaps in project managers, superintendents, and internal promotion candidates

• how small and mid-sized contractors can improve hiring without building a massive HR function

• where AI may change hiring and leadership development over the next 3–5 years

If you hire, coach, or promote leaders in construction, this episode is packed with practical insight.

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#FinanceAtTheJobsite #BeiingHuman #ConstructionLeadership #ConstructionHiring #SkillsFirstHiring #ProjectManagement #Superintendents #LeadershipDevelopment #ConstructionFinance #OrganizationalPsychology

What if the person with the best resume is actually the wrong leadership hire?

In this episode of Finance at the Jobsite, Rishi talks with Mark Smith, Ph.D. — organizational psychologist, author, and founder of A Better Choice Hire — about why construction companies should rely less on degrees, titles, and gut feel, and more on skills-first hiring and realistic leadership assessments.

Mark shares lessons from assessing nearly 1,000 candidates and explains what actually predicts leadership success in construction: communication, adaptability, influence, and the ability to lead in real-world situations.

They cover hiring project managers and superintendents, internal promotions, leadership development, structured interviews, assessment design, and the future of AI in hiring.

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#Construction #ConstructionManagement #Hiring #Leadership #ConstructionOps #TalentAssessment #SkillsBasedHiring #FinanceAtTheJobsite #BeiingHuman

In this episode of Finance at the Jobsite, Rishi sits down with Krystal Madonia, CFO of Haley Construction, to talk about her non-traditional path into accounting leadership, what she learned from construction audit work, and how finance leaders can better connect with field teams.

Krystal shares lessons from moving between public accounting and industry, stepping into the CFO seat at Haley Construction, and helping lead a growing contractor through process, systems, and operational change. The conversation also dives into ERP reality in construction: legacy systems, Procore integration, change orders, WIP discipline, and why ERP migrations are often more about people than software.

They also explore SOPs, institutional knowledge transfer, field-accounting communication, and the implementation mistakes that happen when office teams roll out tools without involving operations.

If you’re a construction CFO, controller, project executive, or operations leader thinking about systems, growth, and how to make finance more useful to the field, this episode is for you.

Topics covered:
#ConstructionAccounting #ConstructionCFO #ERP #ERPMigration #Procore #WIP #JobCosting #ConstructionFinance #CFMA #ConstructionOperations #SOPs #WorkInProgress #ProjectManagement #AccountingLeadership #FinanceAtTheJobsite

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What does “real CFO leadership” look like inside a 3rd-generation commercial GC doing 475 active jobs at once?

In this episode of Finance at the Jobsite, Rishi Srivastava sits down with Kim Beeler-Peterson, CFO + Owner at Beeler Construction (Wisconsin), to unpack how her role evolved from hands-on bookkeeping (back when everything was paper ledgers) into forward-looking financial leadership—built on WIP discipline, Power BI dashboards, KPI triggers, and PM financial training.

We cover:

• How Kim transitioned from “controller + everything else” to a true CFO mindset (and what she had to let go of)

• The real cause of “ping-pong” between accounting and PMs—and how to fix it with clearer ownership and better systems

• Why Beeler is layering Autodesk Construction Cloud (ACC) on top of Sage 100 Contractor to give PMs one dashboard instead of five ERP screens

• The most common PM financial mistakes: budgets missing, change orders lagging, and committed costs that don’t math

• Building a “PM finance boot camp” using Trainual + tests

• Running high-volume, small-dollar work and still forecasting cleanly using Power BI + mid-month PM reports

• Occupied healthcare + emergency work: what “good financial leadership” looks like during a crisis (including insurance-tracked costs and split scopes)

• Practical AI use cases in construction finance: contract comparisons, sales/use tax questions, state licensing research, Copilot searching your inbox, and even shareholder agreement summaries

If you’re a construction CFO/controller trying to modernize without breaking the business—this one is packed with specific systems, habits, and lessons learned.

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Hashtags

#FinanceAtTheJobsite #ConstructionFinance #ConstructionAccounting #CFMA #CFO #Controller #JobCosting #WIP #ProjectControls #Sage100Contractor #AutodeskConstructionCloud #PowerBI #ConstructionTechnology #ProjectManagement #AIinConstruction

What really happens between engineered drawings and real-world construction?

In this episode of Finance at the Jobsite, Rishi Srivastava sits down with Julian Finelli, a third-party construction inspector whose unconventional path — from political science and land conservation work to concrete labor and materials testing — offers a rare ground-level perspective on risk, accountability, and decision-making in construction.

Julian shares what shocked him most stepping onto a job site at age 29, how field experience reshapes assumptions about expertise, and why small on-site decisions can quietly cost (or save) hundreds of thousands of dollars.

From redesigning bridges to failed concrete pours and inspection pressure in the field, this conversation explores the hidden financial and operational realities that owners, CFOs, and finance leaders rarely see — but ultimately pay for.

Topics include:

• Jobsite reality vs engineered plans

• Why lack of planning creates safety and financial risk

• Field knowledge vs academic expertise

• Third-party inspections and accountability

• How small mistakes become six-figure problems

• Why “slow equals smooth, smooth equals fast” applies to construction finance

• The real cost of rushing inspections and material testing

Julian currently works as a Field Technician performing materials testing and compliance inspections across Western North Carolina, ensuring projects meet safety and engineering standards.

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#FinanceAtTheJobsite #ConstructionFinance #ConstructionIndustry #JobsiteReality #ConstructionRisk #FieldToOffice #APAutomation #ConstructionLeadership #ProjectControls #ConstructionSafety #Concrete #Inspection #BuiltEnvironment

🔨 Hashtags

What really breaks down between the job site and the office?

In this episode of Finance at the Jobsite, I sit down with Teimon Phillips — CAPM-certified Project Manager and former Systems Manager — to unpack the real-world friction points in production home building.

From his first renovation project at the Black History Museum in Richmond to leading systems transitions at Fabling Built and now managing production builds, Teimon shares what actually matters in the field — and what the office often misses.

We cover:

• Why 5-minute decisions should never be postponed
• The hidden information gap between design specs and trade execution
• How small PO errors can trigger major accounting chaos
• The real reason budgets drift (hint: it’s usually dirt)
• Why most companies fail at construction tech implementation
• The minimum viable daily log that protects you without wasting 2 hours
• Why voice-to-text might be the future of field productivity

Teimon also shares the three workflows every production PM tool must nail to actually work in the field.

If you're a construction CFO, PM, estimator, or systems leader trying to align field execution with financial control — this one is packed with practical insight.

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#ConstructionManagement #ProductionBuilding #ConstructionCFO #ProjectManagement #ConstructionTech #DailyLogs #POManagement #FinanceAtTheJobsite

In this episode of Finance at the Jobsite, I sit down with Aditya Pandit, Project Manager at BECO, to explore what it really means to lead in construction — from the field to finance, from pre-construction assumptions to long-term operations.

Aditya shares his journey from India to the U.S., and how the immigrant mindset shaped his approach to leadership:

Credibility isn’t given — it’s earned through preparation, honesty, and results.

We dive into some of the most important realities in modern development and construction:

• Why schedules fail before the job even starts

• The three most underestimated drivers of delays: design coordination, long-lead items, and inspections

• What younger PMs must learn early: field ownership, budgeting, and trade alignment

• How the owner-developer-GC model changes cost, quality, and risk

• Why pre-construction is the most misunderstood (and most critical) phase

• HUD financing as “a whole different animal” — and what the one-year process feels like internally

• Coastal construction realities: condensation, drainage failures, mold, and why “water always wins”

• The feedback loop between asset management and building better prototypes

• Where technology helps (Excel, ClickUp, Yardi, AI estimating) — and where it becomes digital paperwork

Aditya also leaves listeners with a powerful reminder:

The cheapest decision during construction is often the most expensive one during operations.

This is a must-listen for construction CFOs, project managers, developers, and anyone thinking long-term about how buildings perform after turnover.

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#Construction #ProjectManagement #ConstructionFinance #RealEstateDevelopment #HUDFinancing #OwnerBuilder #Preconstruction #ConstructionTechnology #Leadership #FinanceAtTheJobsite

What does it actually look like to sell a construction business — from the first conversation to cash in the bank?

In this episode of Finance at the Jobsite, host Rishi Srivastava sits down with:

• Tyler McCrary (VRA Partners, Investment Banking)

• Helana Robbins Huddleston (CohnReznick Advisory, Quality of Earnings)

Together, they break down the real mechanics behind construction M&A, including:

✅ How contractors should prepare 12–24 months before a sale
✅ Why construction deals are uniquely complex (WIP, % completion, backlog)
✅ What “Quality of Earnings” actually means in plain English
✅ The biggest valuation drivers: recurring revenue, customer concentration, team depth
✅ Working capital pegs explained with the best “gas in the car” analogy you’ll hear
✅ Common mistakes founders make that quietly destroy value
✅ The human side of selling a family-owned construction business

Whether you’re a contractor, CFO, controller, or owner thinking about growth, acquisition, or exit planning — this episode is packed with practical insight from professionals who do these deals every day.

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#FinanceAtTheJobsite #ConstructionFinance #ConstructionAccounting #MergersAndAcquisitions #QualityOfEarnings #ContractorCFO #ConstructionBusiness #PrivateEquity #JobCosting #WIP #ConstructionLeadership #DealMaking

What actually determines whether a contractor can win bigger public projects?

In this episode of Finance at the Jobsite, I sit down with Zach Comfort, Vice President & Senior Underwriting Officer at Zurich North America Contract Surety, to break down how surety really works — and why bonding is far more than a compliance requirement.

Zach explains surety in plain English:

✔️ Why bonds protect taxpayers on public jobs
✔️ The “3 Cs” of underwriting: Capital, Capacity, and Character
✔️ Early financial warning signs sureties watch for (profit fades, underbillings, fragile liquidity)
✔️ How contractors can treat surety like a credit partner, not a commodity
✔️ What project managers can do day-to-day to strengthen bonding confidence
✔️ How technology, dashboards, and AI can reduce surprises and build trust

If you’re a construction CFO, controller, or contractor looking to scale responsibly, this conversation is packed with insights that directly impact your bonding capacity — and your growth.

🎙 Guest: Zach Comfort (Zurich North America – Contract Surety)
Connect with Zach on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/zachary-c-a525b285

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#ConstructionFinance #SuretyBonds #ContractorGrowth #ConstructionCFO #BondingCapacity #WorkingCapital #ConstructionAccounting #FinanceAtTheJobsite #Zurich #ConstructionTechnology #AIinConstruction