Q&A WITH RYAN POETTKER ON FIRMS TREMENDOUS 2022 GROWTH
Modern Contractor Solutions | February 2023 Feature
Poettker Construction, an award-winning family owned construction company, closed out the 2022 calendar year with tremendous employee, financial, industry, philanthropic and market sector growth across the company.
“Over the past 18 months, our company has faced many challenges; from the unexpected death of Poettker’s founder, my father Chuck, to the current supply chain and workforce challenges, Poettker has remained resilient,” says Ryan Poettker, president of Poettker Construction. “I could not be prouder of our team’s commitment to developing long-lasting relationships with our clients to bring the highest quality projects to the communities we live and serve.”
Ryan Poettker shares more about that past year and what awaits the company in 2023.
MCS: Some construction companies are not able to overcome adversity. How would you describe your approach to 2022’s challenges? Is this a reflection of your leadership style?
POETTKER: There will always be adversity, but facing a problem or issue head on with a positive attitude, making a decision and moving forward is a priority for us. Once you get stuck on one issue is when you fall down.
We are human and will make mistakes, but as long as you are trying your best and use sound judgement, we support the decision made.
MCS: What attributes led to 32% employee growth across every department and level?
POETTKER: We are family owned and operated and every employee is treated like family. Some businesses say that, but we live it. Our employees are the ones selling our organization to potential employees by describing our culture and how we treat everyone. We also offer continuous training for our employees to help them to grow and continue advancing in their careers.
MCS: How did your company achieve 422,000 manhours with zero lost-time or recordable incidents in 2022?
POETTKER: We invest in educating and training our workforce so they understand the possible scenarios they may face in the trenches and can adapt to any changing conditions. We ask a lot from our safety team to ensure our co-workers have the necessary resources. They continue to lead our effort to safely complete our projects.
MCS: How would you describe the company’s safety policy? How is safety communicated and implemented?
POETTKER: Safety is our number one value and engrained throughout our company culture and we have zero tolerance for unsafe practices. We keep our employees and partners safe by educating them on safe practices, providing them with the proper equipment, and adding additional safety oversight controls to ensure safe practices are being followed.
