BIP partners with Building Talent Foundation
Building Industry Partners (BIP) and Building Talent Foundation (BTF) announced they are collaborating to positively impact industry workers, their families, and the industry at large.
Through the collaboration, BIP and BTF said are looking to attract, develop, and retain talent to and within the U.S. residential building industry and enable employers in the industry to become “Employers of Choice.”
BTF is a national non-profit organization dedicated to advancing the education, training, and career progression of young people and people from underrepresented groups in residential construction. The foundation helps people develop into skilled technical workers and business owners.
Both organizations said they plan co-sponsor initiatives that drive workforce development at the local level, leading their networks to focus on solutions for industry workforce challenges, engaging in research, and rallying the industry to increase the workforce value proposition on a larger scale.
The industry faces a 500,000-worker labor shortage and significant attrition as large segments of the workforce retire or are near retirement.
The sector needs to add approximately 740,000 workers per year during this decade to sustain itself, according to projections from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and analysis by the National Association of Home Builders.
“We are thrilled to join forces with BTF and have this chance to make an impact in both the short and long term,” said Matt Ogden, founder and managing partner at BIP. “As BTF has demonstrated, creating job opportunities and carving career pathways for those who may be considered ‘unemployable’ in the industry can make an immediate, life-changing difference for individuals and their families. Having a secure job and source of income has a measurable impact on financial wellness which has been proven to be linked to both physical and emotional health.”
BIP said it has evolved its purpose to include elevating the industry’s employee value proposition, in addition to building exceptional businesses and generating world-class investment returns. The firm is now championing broad-based employee ownership at its growing list of portfolio companies, which currently includes West Coast Lumber Supply, Southeast Building Supply Interests, North American Specialty Laminations and, Endeavor Fire Protection.
Ogden said, "Investing in employees – creating a strong employee value proposition for them – can lead to enhanced business outcomes. It is a true win-win for businesses and their workforces."
BIP is also in the process of working to enhance the overall employee value proposition at its portfolio companies through a variety of advanced human capital management practices, such as introducing employee financial literacy education, providing clarity around career paths, and offering job training.
Earlier this month Southeast Building Supply Interests launched a new program designed to support the financial well-being of its workforce.
“BTF’s mission is wholly aligned with BIP’s newly evolved purpose and ‘people first’ management philosophy, making this relationship such an easy, organic fit,” said Stu Kliman, partner at BIP. “We are committed to doing our part to support BTF’s mission so that our industry’s workforce – which represents approximately 10% of the GDP of the U.S. – can not only sustain itself but also flourish well into the future. We are eager to collaborate with BTF to galvanize widespread support so that we can collectively raise the bar for our industry, and most importantly, for the people in it.”
Based in Boston, BIP is a private equity investment firm focused on the U.S. building industry. Over the past 15 years, the company has co-founded or served as first equity sponsor of a number of the fastest growing and most dynamic businesses in the U.S. building industry’s middle market, including U.S. LBM Holdings, Kodiak Building Partners, Homewood Holdings, and U.S. Fence Solutions/Binford Supply.
“BIP’s pioneering spirit, its coast-to-coast presence, its leadership across multiple verticals within the industry, and, most importantly, its true appreciation for – and commitment to – the people of the building industry, make it an ideal partner for BTF,” said Branka Minic, CEO of BTF. “Having BIP’s support – and particularly Matt and Stu’s thought leadership, deep macro-level industry knowledge and extensive networks to help propel BTF’s mission – is invaluable, especially during such a critical time for the industry.”
As part of the relationship, Ogden and Kliman will serve on BTF’s Advisory Council and Minic will join BIP’s Advisory Council.
