In this episode of People-First Builders, host Fletcher Wimbush sits down with Bo Jones, President of True Built Construction and CEO of CareerPathway.com, to explore a groundbreaking approach to workforce development in the skilled trades. With over 25 years of experience, Bo shares how his deep frustration with traditional hiring methods—and the dwindling talent pipeline in Nebraska—led him to launch an innovative platform that connects students to careers before graduation.

Bo explains how CareerPathway.com is helping students discover meaningful work in industries like construction, healthcare, and technology through real-time multimedia content created by employers themselves. He walks us through the platform’s features, the impact it's already making in 34 states, and how it's revolutionizing how employers reach and inspire the next generation of workers.

Whether you're a business leader, educator, or parent, this conversation will leave you thinking differently about how we prepare young people for life after high school—and how industry must step up to solve the skilled labor shortage.

What You’ll Learn:

• Why traditional outreach efforts to young workers often fall short

• How True Built Construction mentored students by building homes—and what challenges remained

• The origin story and mission of CareerPathway.com

• How the platform bridges the gap between students, educators, and employers

• The game-changing potential of reaching students before they graduate

Bo breaks down how the platform works, including:

• How students explore careers through bite-sized videos, photo posts, and real-world content from employers.

• How teachers and counselors use the platform to guide career conversations with personalized insights.

• How businesses can build employer brand visibility while connecting directly with interested, pre-qualified young talent.

• Why the education system alone cannot (and shouldn’t be expected to) deliver individualized career exploration at scale—and how CareerPathway.com fills the gap.

Whether you’re an employer frustrated with the broken hiring pipeline, an educator looking for real-world career exploration tools, or a parent trying to help your child find their path, this episode delivers inspiration, clarity, and a vision for what’s possible when industry steps up.

In this insightful episode of the People-First Builders Podcast, host Fletcher Wimbush speaks with Ryan Schmidt, CEO and Visionary at Petticoat-Schmitt Civil Contractors, Inc. His 300-person firm is redefining success in heavy civil construction by building a culture centered on growth, ownership, and values-driven leadership.

Ryan shares the full story of how his firm nearly failed after a series of disastrous projects and financial hardship. Instead of cutting losses, he doubled down on his people. He opened the company books, shared real-time financials with everyone from laborers to executives, and began a journey toward full employee ownership through an ESOP.

In this conversation, you’ll learn:

• How Ryan guided Petticoat-Schmitt Civil Contractors, through its lowest point and emerged with a stronger team and culture

• Why every new hire, including laborers and field workers, goes through a structured two-day onboarding program led by Ryan himself

• How radical transparency and profit sharing created deep loyalty when the company was losing money

• What inspired the creation of “The Forge,” an internal training facility staffed by top performers turned full-time coaches

• How Ryan stepped back from day-to-day operations by naming a company president, allowing him to focus entirely on vision, people, and culture

• How the company conducts weekly all-staff financial huddles to help every employee think and act like an owner

• Why company values such as accountability, character, and team are reinforced through regular events, team breakfasts, and internal rituals

• How the team reacted when they received their first ESOP stock statements and saw the long-term rewards of ownership

• Why Ryan believes he is more fulfilled as a partner to his employee-owners than he ever was as a solo founder

Ryan’s story is not just about surviving adversity. It is about creating a business that invests in people at every level. From new hire training to internal leadership development and long-term wealth building, Petticoat-Schmitt Civil Contractors' culture is built to last.

Whether you're a contractor, business owner, or simply passionate about values-based leadership, this episode offers a real-world blueprint for building a company that thrives through its people.

In this episode of People-First Builders, host Fletcher Wimbush welcomes Brian Keller, CEO of Quest Building Corporation, a Wisconsin-based commercial contracting firm that’s redefining what it means to grow a people-first construction business. Starting with four partners framing homes in 1998, Brian has spent the past 25 years scaling Quest into a 300-plus-person company that provides labor and materials for framing, trim, flooring, and countertops across Southern Wisconsin.

Brian shares the behind-the-scenes story of how he transitioned from being a hands-on carpenter to a visionary CEO focused on servant leadership, talent development, and culture-driven growth. He discusses how hitting a wall in the company's expansion led to a complete rethinking of his leadership style, eventually leading to the development of in-house coaching and leadership training programs that now shape the next generation of leaders at Quest.

In this wide-ranging conversation, Brian dives into:

• How Quest integrates recruiting, training, and coaching into every level of the business

• What it means to practice servant leadership in a trade-dominated industry

• The power of writing an employee persona to define company culture and hire the right people

• His "Build Program," an educational initiative designed to help trade business owners grow scalable, sustainable companies

• Tactical changes in recruiting strategy, including high school outreach, referral-driven hiring, and even in-house headhunting

• How the team developed a simple framework for defining roles through the "one-question" model

• Why he believes there’s someone out there who loves every task—your job is to find them

Whether you’re a contractor, tradesperson, or business owner struggling to scale or attract top talent, this episode offers a roadmap for transforming your organization by investing in your people. Brian’s story is a masterclass in letting go, leading with purpose, and building a business that lasts through values, not just volume.