Over the past few decades, many employers have shifted from offering separate vacation, sick time, and holiday benefits to providing a single pool called Paid Time Off (PTO). On the surface, this change is framed as a modern improvement. Employers highlight administrative simplicity, cost...

Before I begin, let me say that I did not always believe that expanded benefits would pay off, or were even possible for most companies. When companies talk about employee benefits, the conversation often turns to cost. Paid vacation, sick leave, parental leave—these all sound like...

The building components industry has always relied on people—skilled truss designers, estimators, plant managers, contractors, and subcontractors who understand the pace and complexity of modern construction. Finding those people, however, has often been a challenge. Generic job boards are...

When it comes to building a strong component design team, there’s always a debate: is it better to hire someone inexperienced but with some formal training such as college or technical school, or someone with years of hands-on experience? The truth is, both matter—but not always in...

Over the past several weeks, recruiting activity in the truss and wall panel design space has picked up in a way that’s hard to ignore. More design professionals are registering on The JobLine and exploring opportunities. The increase is not overwhelming—skilled candidates are still...

It’s August. The heat is relentless, the humidity unforgiving, and your design team is running as hot as a NASCAR pit crew in Alabama. Project timelines are tight, customer expectations are high, and every minute counts. So when someone suggests bringing in a new designer, it can feel like...

Last month’s article by Thom, “The Cost of Convenience: How Offshore and Remote Design are Undermining the Future of the Truss Industry,” generated a fair amount of feedback, and that feedback was generally fair. But, let’s unpack some additional dynamics. The central...

Let’s face it—finding the right people in the offsite construction industry isn’t getting easier. Whether you’re searching for a seasoned truss designer, a sharp estimator, or a dependable production manager, the usual massive job boards don’t cut it. That’s...

When you’re job hunting or looking to hire, you’ve got choices. Lots of them. You can go with the big-name job boards that everyone knows about, or you can try something different—something more personal. The experience you get depends entirely on which path you choose, and the...

Over the past two decades, the truss industry has quietly engineered a crisis of its own making. In the pursuit of flexibility and cost efficiency, companies have embraced remote designers and offshore design firms. Although these shifts solve immediate staffing needs, they’re slowly...