The power of building the dream team

By Jessica Bravo.  

Hiring the right people for your team can make a major difference in company growth and retention.  

The key to long-term success in any company lies in finding the right people for the job. In an episode of Roofing Road Trips®,  Reid Ribble, past NRCA CEO and US congressman and Luke McCormack of McCormack Partners joined host Heidi J. Ellsworth to discuss the importance of recruiting with purpose. They emphasized how strategic recruitment can help roofing companies retain team members and create a positive work environment, which is crucial in overcoming the ongoing labor shortage.

Luke shared, “My message to a lot of roofing business owners is to take the recruitment problems seriously and focus on your image, your brand, your onboarding, your training and your upskilling. By doing that, you will be able to overcome the shortage and possibly even rewind time and put yourself in a position where there are four or five people competing to work for you.”  

Reid added to this point, stressing the need for roofing businesses to invest in their workforce. He explained, “We cannot expect people to respect what we do until we ourselves respect what we do and that means we must invest. So, to spend $20,000 or $25,000 up front to get that worker to be highly skilled is a huge investment. It plays into this whole role of retention.” He continued, “You must respect your workers and be thankful for what they do. That has to be expressed [as] these are human values.”  

The companies that take the time to invest in their hires—through training, onboarding and upskilling—are the ones that tend to retain their employees and grow faster than others.

Reid also highlighted a common pitfall in hiring. He shared, "A lot of times, when I hired somebody for what they knew, six months later, I fired them for who they were.” This underscores the importance of not only hiring for skills but also for cultural fit and shared values. While technical expertise is important, it’s attitudes, work ethic and alignment with the company’s mission that truly determine long-term success.

By focusing on both training and developing the right character traits, roofing companies can build a workforce that doesn’t just fill positions but enhances the culture and drives success.

Read the transcript, Listen to the podcast or Watch the episode to learn more about the importance of hiring the right person for the job.