BY IEC STAFF
IEC electrical contractors know that the world is changing at a rapid pace, and succeeding in construction requires more than a cadre of skilled tradesmen…so much more.
“Historically, between the mechanical, electrical, and plumbing trades, your MEP trades, there has been a lot of working in silos,” says Caleb Akers, Tennessee vice president, Weifield Group Contracting, Nashville, TN. “Everybody handled their tasks and it was somewhat an ‘us versus them’ type of mentality.”
Caleb has seen tremendous change — for the better — in that arena since he first entered the industry some 17 years ago. Healthy competition can be good but he felt sometimes the trades competed against each other rather than cooperating with each other — which wasn’t good.
“This type of competition leads to a lack of coordination, lack of efficiency, and a lot of rework,” Caleb says. “What we are seeing now is a lot more collaboration when working with larger general contractors. One example is pull planning to create the schedule together instead of having a schedule that’s created by somebody who just knows the end date. We get all the stakeholders together for the critical path items, and MEP is always critical for the success of a building. Somebody that is still in the old school mindset is on their way out the door because that mindset doesn’t work any longer.”
Caleb points to increasing complexity of the work required from electricians as one reason this needed to happen.
“It used to be just a pipe and wire business,” he says. “You could look at a set of very simple drawings and know how much conduit your crews could put up and how much wiring was needed. But technological advances have come along and, for example, we’re looking at lighting control systems now. For somebody to be really effective and avoid hangups to getting systems working, they have to have a troubleshooting mindset — seeing how those systems actually work and have an understanding of software integration.”
Creating Leaders
Of course, having top-notch electrical skills is of utmost importance. But Caleb points to mastering the proper amount of ‘soft skills’ as a key differentiator that often is the difference between success and failure. Professionalism and social skills are at the top of the list for him.
“Being a skilled tradesman — an electrician, specifically — is becoming more of a respected trade than it was when I got in,” he says. “When I started out, you were kind of looked at as ‘the construction trash.’ Now, the mentality has changed around that.”
Caleb indicates this elevation of the trade is making it a bit easier to attract people to begin to fill the shortage of electrical workers and he celebrates that. However, when filling a spot at his company or through his work with IEC Middle Tennessee, he looks for more.
“I look for the future leaders,” Caleb acknowledges. “How do they speak to people? Do they treat everyone with dignity and respect? I guess the biggest quality I look at for potential foremen and superintendents is how are they are going to engage with others. It’s the golden rule type of thing. A good book that I read a long time ago, How to Win Friends and Influence People, still applies. The way people need to operate and engage with each other is still the same.”
That rapidly changing world, though? Today’s younger worker often needs to be taught about how to have an effective conversation, Caleb notes.
“While they are very connected on phones and other devices, building relationships can be difficult for them,” he says. “This can be a holdup to creating field leaders. To be successful in this industry, to become a leader in this industry, we have to work on helping others learn those soft skills. This is a big requirement to being successful and effectively leading a team whether it is 10 or 150 electricians on a project.”
Another area of growth for leaders is handling those situations where everything ‘is not happy’ with the people with whom you work.
“If you get your mindset right and know that everything you do is a learning opportunity you can learn more in those situations than you can if everything is going your way,” Caleb says. “What I’ve learned in my life is that when things are not going right, I can analyze all those things and figure out what not to do, right? My responsibility is to my employees and to not put them in those situations. From the top of a company and all the way down, it’s important to listen to your people.”
Giving Back
Caleb is grateful to be able to support the industry where he has learned from those people in front of him and where he was allowed to thrive.
“I think in circuits; that was my training,” he says. “I’ve not done any formal soft skills type of training and I didn’t go to college. I went to trade school and technical school and then U.S. Navy technical school. But I understand the why behind working with other trades and I’ve seen the gains made from working as a team with other trades.”
He first trained in a state technical high school in Connecticut; he then moved across country to Idaho, working mostly on new construction of hospitals — where he gained valuable experience during his apprenticeship.
“Next, I joined the United States Navy nuclear program in energy production and received some really good training,” he recalls. “When I got out of the Navy, I went back into the electrical trade and rose to superintendent. I went to Turner Construction as an MEP superintendent, again working on healthcare projects.”
Next at a Franklin, TN, electrical contracting firm, CGI Electric, he became a project manager, learned how to estimate, sell, and manage work, moving into more of an operations role. The company was acquired by Weifield Group Contracting in 2021 when the Colorado powerhouse expanded operations to Tennessee and Texas, and Caleb had the opportunity to run its Tennessee operation.
Weifield’s core values statement (its ‘PACT’ with employees) focuses on four areas — People, Advance Process, Community, and Trusting Relationships. These values resonate with Caleb and fit his own personal style of leadership.
Along with this career step, Caleb became active with the IEC Middle Tennessee chapter where Weifield apprentices are involved in the IEC Apprenticeship Program. Caleb currently serves on the IEC Middle Tennessee Board of Directors as treasurer.
“I believe we’re made to work and we’re made to work with a purpose,” he says. “We have a great team both at Weifield and in the chapter. It’s the same mentality of what makes you a successful superintendent or leader. It’s not about how good you are and how hard you can work; it’s about surrounding yourself with a team that has complementing skill sets and being able to lean on your team. Everything I’ve ever done has always been to support the team that I have — just being a servant leader and supporting your team. You’ll find that you’ll be much more successful than if directing your team as a dictator. It’s funny how the soft skills work!”