Every contractor has made this hire. The crew is short, the job starts Monday, and a guy shows up who seems fine. You check that he has a pulse and a pair of boots, and you put him to work. Three weeks later you’re covering his mistakes, listening to the foreman complain, and wondering how to let him go without losing another week.
That hire cost you more than his wages. Bad hires drag down the crew, eat your time, and send good people looking elsewhere. In construction, where skilled workers are scarce and hard to keep, getting the hiring call right the first time is a real edge over the company down the road.
Here’s the thing: most managers in this industry never got taught how to hire. They post a job, pick the candidate least likely to cause trouble, and hope. ICBA Training’s new course, Recruiting Fundamentals: Hire Right the First Time, is built to change that.
Presenter Rebecca Wood runs Romeo Whiskey Consulting and has spent 25 years helping companies in construction, engineering, logistics, and a dozen other sectors build and lead teams. She also comes from acting and improv theatre, so expect a lively three hours, not a lecture.
The course starts before the job posting. Rebecca walks through how to get clear on what you really need in the role, so the right people apply in the first place. Then she gets into the interview. Her point is simple: the interview is the one time a candidate is trying their hardest to impress you. If something feels off there, it will not get better on site. The course teaches you what to look for and what to listen for, with structured questions that go well past “tell me about yourself” and show how someone will perform.
You’ll also learn how to size up the things that matter most on a crew: whether a person fits the culture, shows up, and can take coaching.
Participants leave with a hiring process they can run every time a spot opens, interview questions and scoring tools ready to use the next day, and the confidence to decide on evidence, not gut feel alone.
If you want to bring this to your whole management team, Rebecca can deliver it privately to your company.
Course details: