Podcast Guests

Mike and Brian are joined by Bill Klein, Partner at CFOs2Go. With a family background in construction, Bill was drawn to the numbers and helping contractors understand the “Blackbox” that can be the finances of the operation. After listening to how they’ve helped contractors keep their cash – not just in terms of taxes, but also with not-so-honest employees, you’ll quickly see how their services are essentially paying for themselves. Huge thanks to Bill for sharing his insight on the show!

Mike and Brian are joined by Anthony Amunategui, Founder of CDO Group, Inc. Starting in college painting houses, Banana Republics, and Discovery Zones – he was discovered, at a Discovery Zone of all places, by a Project Manager for his extreme efficiency and craftsmanship as a painter. That led to a paid trip for an interview to Chicago for a Junior Coordinator position. He got the job, was given a company credit card, and was paid to travel to places like Puerta Rico, California, and Hawaii and he was hooked! In addition, their team dramatically lessened the time to build these Discovery Zone playgrounds to just under 7 days! He was able to take what he learned to Boston Chicken (known now as Boston Market), Einstein Bagels, Au Bon Pain, and Panera Bread – and in all these cases, he did so well that he literally built himself out of a job. And that’s how the idea of an outsourced construction management group was conceived and CDO Group was formed. With clients like Hampton Inn & Suites, McDonalds, TGI Friday’s, Kate Spade, Gap, Mac Cosmetics, Ann Taylor, and Dunkin’ Brands, you can easily see how Anthony was able to make CDO Group a highly sought after company. His genuine enthusiasm and love for construction, new concepts, empowering people, and daily seek after self improvement has fascinated us and we think it will do the same for you. If you’re looking to shatter that glass ceiling that’s holding you back, this is your episode! 

Mike and Brian are joined by Terry Morrill, General Manager and Founder of Pacific Outdoor Living. With a degree in Structural Engineering at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, Terry started with apartment renovations until the market crashed in 1990. He bounced around to different jobs and industries for the next several years and hated it. He went down to Cabo San Lucas and started a construction company there and operated there before being forced out of business at which point he came back to California and started a hardscape landscaping contracting company specializing in paving stones. Eventually, that turned into Pacific Outdoor Living. With a knack for systems and qualifying, Terry’s developed a very financially successful landscaping firm in the Los Angeles area.

Mike and Brian are joined by Ethan Hare, President and CEO of Hare Construction. With a knack for building things and businesses when he was a kid, his introduction to construction came in high school when a friend’s dad offered $10 an hour in cash to demo a job site and he was hooked! Eventually moving into a project management role for a different company, Ethan added a number of different types of industries to his construction experience including residential, school campuses, public works, hotels, restaurants, country clubs, and medical. He was able to blend his experience and apply it to his new business – orignally called Weekend Warriors and eventually became known as Hare Construction. With 20% growth year over year and utilizing software to help assess the best hires, you can see why Hare Construction has been so successful since their inception in 2006.

Mike and Brian are joined by Navneet Aron, Founder of Aron Builders. Originally from India and an electrical engineer by training, Navneet moved to California to attend Stanford University to get his masters in Electrical Engineering. Involved in a few technology start-ups after Stanford, he eventually got involved in real estate development. In 2016, he started his own construction company out of his own pain working with other General Contractors. Utilizing their own proprietary software, they’re able to very accurately create job estimates based on historical data in the San Francisco area, and give their current clients full transparency into the build process to specifically keep from change ordering their clients to death and have projects finish on time. As a result, in the span of just a few years, Navneet has built a sustainable model and a thriving contracting company that’s challenging the old and unnecessarily expensive ways of doing business. 

Mike and Brian are joined by Steve Hutchison, Executive Vice President of CG Signage. Starting as a designer, Steve made a point to learn all aspects of the signage business – getting a foot in project management, fabrication, and contracts. In fact, he makes a point to continue to learn, to continue to improve and grow – both on a personal level, but also have the company continue to grow and make strides to improve. With around 30 employees now, 2 locations, CG Signage has plans to slowly grow into some of the East Coast markets as well while continuing their push for excellence in their craft. 

Mike and Brian are joined by Robin Duveen, President and COO of Gafcon, Inc. Originally from Cape Town, South Africa, Robin was drawn to being a lawyer, but his parents suggested he get into the trades. So, he started in the trades in South Africa and literally got his hands dirty! Eventually, he opted to move to the US and went to work directly for Gafcon, Inc. – a company that specializes in comprehensive services in construction, program and project management, as well as construction consulting support. Check out Robin’s episode and learn of the journey it took to get him here and how, through a strong work ethic, was able to move up the ladder and help with revenue and overall company growth.

Mike and Brian are joined by Joe Reardon, Vice President of Sales at Diamatic / Blastrac. Not our typical guest, Joe works with Diamatic / Blastrac – a manufacturer that supports the contracting industry – specifically on jobsites and technical support in addition to providing equipment. In addition, Joe has a background as a contractor, starting as a young man in Florida prepping and installing concrete floors and epoxies. Check out Joe’s episode to learn, not only the products they service and manufacture, but also to learn about trends that are happening in the construction industry.

Mike and Brian are joined by Aaron Provencal, CEO at Five Star Restoration. Starting as employee number 1, he really only cleaned carpets. As the years progressed, they added other services – namely restoration and reconstruction and eventually had the opportunity, after the company sold to an investor, to purchase it back. At that point, the company’s annual revenue was around $4 million in 2007 and now they’re at $16 million! They’ve made very intentional moves centered on growing the business since 2007 and have been reaping the benefits of those plans.

Mike and Brian are joined by Jessica Madrigal, Vice President of Bjork Construction. Her parents started the company in 1988 and she was very much part of the fabric of the company spending her weekends as a kid going to job sites with her dad and then later doing billings in the office. After college, she went to work for a construction company as a project manager, but was recruited by her mom heavily to come back to Bjork. Armed with the knowledge and practices she had learned working for other companies, they increased revenues from $1.5 million to $30 million today! With a continued approach to learning from mistakes and putting best practices and procedures in place, as well as an emphasis on their culture and employees, Bjork Construction has plans to push to the $40 million marker and beyond!