I've made some spectacular hiring mistakes. One time I ran a job where we cycled through 8 admins before finding 2 all stars. It was painful and embarrassing.

But I've also made some solid hires who built great careers.

The difference? Learning what not to do. Here's your guaranteed path to hiring disasters in construction management:

1. Hire by Committee

Want to ensure you get nobody's first choice? Form a hiring committee.

Committees don't hire people. They hire compromises. They choose the candidate nobody hates instead of the one somebody loves. They turn hiring into a democracy when it should be a dictatorship.

The hiring manager should own the process. Others can have veto power, but one person decides. Committees are where great candidates go to die.

2. Fall for Central Casting

If you had two pilots to choose from - one who looked like Ken from Barbie and another who looked like Rocky's best friend Paulie Pennino - take Rocky’s friend. Every time.

Ken got where he is partly because doors opened easier. Paulie had to work twice as hard for every opportunity. He earned it.

Construction is full of Ken dolls who interview well and look the part. Dig deeper. Find the grinders.

3. Get Starstruck by Big Names

"He worked at Kiewit" doesn't make someone a badass.

Find out what they actually did. Were they running the show or just along for the ride? Did they drive results or ride coattails? Big company experience can be valuable, but it's not automatically impressive.

Some of the best superintendents I know never worked for a big contractor. Some of the worst came from the biggest names in the industry.

4. Skip the Reference Checks

Especially the backdoor ones.

Candidates give you references who will say nice things. You want the references they didn't give you. The former coworkers. The subcontractors who worked under them. The owners who dealt with them daily.

These conversations tell you everything. The candidate's handpicked references tell you nothing.

5. Wing the Interview Process

"I can tell within five minutes if someone's right for the job."

Your gut is wrong more often than you think. We are programmed to hire people who look and act like we personally do.

Use personality and intelligence testing for every candidate. I like Wonderlic for cognitive ability and DISC for work style. Set minimum thresholds and stick to them - intelligence and personality don't change much.

Use a structured process. Ask the same core questions. Take notes. Compare apples to apples. I recommend Geoffrey Smart's WHO method - it’s time tested and works.

Flying by the seat of your pants feels entrepreneurial. It's actually just lazy.

6. Hire Order-Takers

When you ask "If you were the CEO of your current company, what would you do differently?" and they don’t have an answer, then you have yours. They haven't thought about it. They're not strategic. They're waiting for instructions.

Construction needs people with agency. People who see problems and fix them. People who make decisions. Order-takers are expensive.

7. Ignore Organization Red Flags

Ask: "How do you plan your week?"

If they say "Every week is different, I just go with the flow," that's a hard pass for any management role. Construction is chaos, but good managers create order within that chaos.

On a scale of 1-10, how organized are you? Anyone below a 7 shouldn't be managing people or projects. Organization isn't optional in this business.

8. Poach Directly from Your Competition

Want to guarantee your competitor will return the favor? Steal their best people.

Here's what usually happens: You hire their star superintendent. Six months later, they hire two of yours. Now you're behind and they've upgraded.

It’s different when they come to you. I don’t consider that poaching.

Plus, people who jump for money usually jump again. If they'll leave their current company for a few extra dollars, what makes you think they won't leave you the same way?

Look for talent in adjacent industries or markets instead. Some of the best construction leaders come from manufacturing, military, or other operations-heavy backgrounds. They bring fresh perspectives and aren't caught up in "how we've always done it."

Sidebar: The best Steve Jobs email….ever?

9. Trust Credentials Over Character and Culture

Degrees and certifications don't run jobsites. People do.

I've seen MBAs who could complicate a ham sandwich and high school graduates who could run a $50 million project. I've watched certified project managers fail spectacularly while former welders and musicians became incredible superintendents.

Construction people understand hard work, problem-solving under pressure, and getting results with imperfect information. These values matter more than any piece of paper.

Ask about difficult situations. How did they handle a lying employee? What about a difficult owner? Their answers tell you who they really are. Values and culture fit beat skills and certifications every time.

10. Rush the Process

Hire slow, fire fast. I know you need someone yesterday. I know the project starts Monday. Rushing leads to regret.

A bad hire costs 3-5 times their annual salary when you factor in training, severance, project delays, and replacement costs. Take the time upfront.

11. Let Recruiters Make the Decision

Good recruiters are valuable. They find candidates you'd never reach. But they can't evaluate culture fit or technical competence the way you can.

Use them to source, not to choose. And find the sole practitioners who have skin in the game, not the big firms where your account is just another number.

What Actually Works

Drive through a jobsite with them. See what they notice. Ask what resources - people, books, podcasts - have influenced who they are. Find out how they learn and grow.

Look for people who have failed and learned from it. Who have been tested. Who earned their way up.

The stakes are too high to wing this. Every hire either builds your company or breaks it. Most contractors spend more time picking equipment than picking people.

Don't be most contractors.

Want the complete hiring process and interview questions that have helped me avoid disasters and find game-changers? Reply to this email with "HIRING" and I'll send you a full guide.

Thanks for reading this week!

In Case You Missed It:

The Innovator’s Dilemma

Why Costco Is Stealing Your Next Superintendent

The Big Job Playbook

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About the Author

Tristan Wilson is the CEO and Founder of Edgevanta. We make software that helps contractors win more work at the right price. He is a 4th Generation Contractor, construction enthusiast, ultra runner, and bidding nerd. He worked his way up the ladder at Allan Myers in the Mid-Atlantic and his family’s former business Barriere Construction before starting Edgevanta in Nashville, where the company is based. Reach out to him at [email protected]