"It's compounding and becoming more of a crisis."

That's how Susan Brattberg described the digital skills gap facing our industry right now.

And honestly? She's not wrong.

In today's episode of Bricks & Bytes, we sat down with Susan Brattberg, co-founder and Chief Customer Officer at Global eTraining, and what started as a conversation about an epic rooftop party at Autodesk University (300 people, live band, line dancing - yeah, these guys know how to do marketing) turned into a deep dive on something way more important.

We talked about why training isn't just a nice-to-have anymore... and many more!

Tune in to find out about:

✅ Why the digital skills gap is now the #1 priority for CIOs across ALL industries globally

✅ How technology is changing faster than ever - and why the old "train every couple years" approach is dead

✅ The real ROI companies are seeing when their teams actually know how to use their tools (hint: projects run way smoother)

✅ How AI is flipping the edu-tech space upside down - and why most companies have already dropped out of this niche

Susan's been doing this for 17 years (her company's campus history goes back even longer), and she's seen the evolution firsthand. From physical campuses to on-demand training to AI-powered rapid content development.

If you're wondering why your projects feel chaotic or why new software rollouts never stick... this episode might have some answers.

Watch the full episode out on Spotify and Youtube.

Our Sponsors:

Aphex is the multiplayer planning platform where construction teams plan together, stay aligned, and deliver projects faster – check out aphex.co

Archdesk - “The #1 Construction Management Software for Growing Companies - Manage your projects from Tender to Handover” check archdesk.com

BuildVision - streamlining the construction supply chain with a unified platform - www.buildvision.io

Chapters

00:00 Intro

03:55 Introduction to the Journey

06:57 The Impact of Digital Skills Gap

09:50 Transitioning to Online Training

13:01 The Evolution of Training Methods

15:49 The Shift from Physical to Digital

18:50 Understanding Training Needs

21:44 Overcoming Initial Challenges

24:46 Current Trends in Training

27:45 The Role of AI in Training

30:45 Growth and Future Directions

35:00 Shifts in Business Post-COVID

37:45 Managing Growth and Team Dynamics

41:52 Sales Strategies and Customer Engagement

44:45 The Power of Branding and Events

52:32 Balancing Family and Business

54:22 The Competitive Landscape of E-Learning

56:31 Future Trends in E-Learning and AI

"Integration with Procore? Everyone warned us they'd copy our product. We did it anyway - and it became our best go-to-market decision."

In today's episode of Bricks and Bytes, we had Or Lakritz, founder of StructShare (now Trimble Materials), and we got to learn about how a 21-person startup navigated acquisition conversations with multiple players, the critical importance of transparency during M&A, why integrating with Procore in 2021 was one of their best decisions... and many more!

Tune in to find out about:

✅ Why Trimble chose to buy instead of build - and how StructShare filled a strategic procurement gap

✅ The real differences between being acquired by a platform giant vs. private equity (spoiler: it's all about narrative)

✅ How Or managed team culture and morale through the acquisition process with full transparency

✅ Why distribution matters more than product in construction tech - and what AI might change about that

This one's packed with honest insights from someone who actually lived through it. Worth the listen.

Our Sponsor:

Aphex is the multiplayer planning platform where construction teams plan together, stay aligned, and deliver projects faster – check out aphex.co

Archdesk - “The #1 Construction Management Software for Growing Companies - Manage your projects from Tender to Handover” check archdesk.com

BuildVision - streamlining the construction supply chain with a unified platform - www.buildvision.io

Chapters

0:00 Intro

4:00 Introduction to the Podcast and Guests

4:59 The Acquisition Story of Structure

9:17 Navigating the Acquisition Process

16:18 Cultural Integration Post-Acquisition

18:15 Lessons Learned from Building Structure

31:46 The Evolution of the Procurement Space

33:04 The Evolution of Construction Tech

35:58 AI's Impact on Procurement Processes

39:20 Building the Future of Procurement

42:24 Navigating Go-to-Market Strategies

44:36 Acquisition Insights and Market Dynamics

57:35 Integrating with Industry Giants

1:01:02 Personal Growth and Impact in Business

The UFC arrives in AEC. And we’re live from the AEC Octagon.

In the very first episode of our brand-new Bricks & Bytes Debates series, we are trading PR statements for sparring gloves. We’re putting two industry heavyweights head-to-head to battle out one of the hottest topics in construction: Has AI actually solved estimating?

In this no-holds-barred contester series, our contenders took the gloves off to represent the extreme Bull and Bear cases for Artificial Intelligence:

• In the Red Corner: Mike "Mighty" Powers (Co-Founder, BuildVision), arguing that LLMs have solved the extraction problem and the industry needs to embrace the "Waymo" era of automation.

• In the Blue Corner: Luigi "The Stinger" La Corte (Co-Founder, Provision), arguing that estimating is more than just counting symbols - and that without 100% accuracy, AI is still just a student driver.

Moderated by the referee of reason, Patric "Praying For Exits" Hellermann, this debate moves through three grueling rounds:

- Round 1: The Tech. Can LLMs actually count and measure complex drawings, or are they just guessing?

- Round 2: The Accuracy Gap. Is 80% accuracy "good enough" to change the industry, or is "trust but verify" just a nice way of saying "do it yourself"?

- Round 3: The Liability. In a world of design-bid-build, who takes the fall when the AI misses a scope gap?

Tune in to uncover:

• The "Waymo" Strategy: Why waiting for perfect AI is a mistake, and how to leverage the "self-driving" mindset to reduce takeoff times by 90% today.

• The Hidden Liability Loophole: Why architects and engineers could solve the estimating crisis instantly by sharing models—and the legal reason they never will.

• Symbols vs. Language: Learn the fundamental technical limitation preventing LLMs from reading 2D drawings like a human, and when we can expect "Visual Language Models" to catch up.

• The Subcontractor’s Dilemma: Why "Design Intent" matters more than counting linear feet, and why subs might actually be wasting time on granular takeoffs.

• A "Bribe" for Better Data: One listener’s hilarious (but practical) suggestion for how to finally get the Revit model from the design team.

Who will deliver the knockout punch? Tune in to decide for yourself.

Chapters

00:00 Intro

01:48 Introduction to Bricks and Bytes Debates

04:07 Opening Statements and Context Setting

06:51 Technical Feasibility of AI in Estimating

09:57 Practical Applications and Limitations of AI

12:59 Customer Expectations and Accuracy in AI Solutions

15:57 The Role of Human Oversight in AI Estimation

18:43 Future of AI in Construction Estimation

38:23 Navigating the Self-Driving Debate

41:19 The Evolution of AI in Estimating

43:32 Trust and Liability in Construction

46:13 The Role of Liability in AI Adoption

49:22 The Future of Estimators in AI

53:34 Rebuttals and Admissions: A Critical Discussion

59:39 The Current State of AI in Estimating