Grow With Weitz: Investing in Our Employees at Every Stage
By: Kevin McClain
Our founder, Charles H. Weitz knew from the very beginning that prioritizing his workforce was central to our company’s long-term success, and over the last 168 years, retaining employees and helping them grow has remained core to The Weitz Company. As we hear time and time again, many industries are facing a shortage of qualified workers, and the construction industry is no exception. In fact, for the first time in our industry’s recorded history, job openings in construction are continually outpacing new hires.
As the industry responds to this unprecedented labor shortage, The Weitz Company has been able to overcome these challenges and flourish by holding fast to one of our founding values: our people are the company’s most valuable asset. We’ve responded to the ongoing workforce shortage by offering competitive wages and setting ambitious hiring goals because we know when we invest in our employees, they invest right back in our team.
One of our five core values is nurturing personal growth. We live this value out by providing our employees with opportunities to learn and lead whenever possible. I, myself, am a great example of this practice at work. I started my career with Weitz back in 1999 as a project engineer in Colorado, and since then I have worked in nearly every operations role this company has to offer – even including a short stint in our IT department. There’s no question that I have been given opportunities at Weitz that I would not have had at another company. These opportunities pushed me to grow my skillsets, deepen my knowledge of the industry, and work harder for my colleagues and our clients. Truly, I wouldn’t be in the position I am in today without leaders and mentors who saw my potential and took a chance on me. That’s why I’m committed to the idea of growing from within and investing in our employees at every stage.
One way we encourage internal development is by moving employees into “stretch roles.” Stretch roles are positions for which a particular employee’s resume might not neatly fit, but the individual has demonstrated in their current role the interest, willingness, and ability to take on more. This successful track record and proven work ethic gives us confidence that, given the right training and support, the employee can develop the needed skills and take command of the new role. Ultimately, it comes down to knowing and trusting our people.
I am excited for you to get to know some of our employees this year through our Grow with Weitz profiles. These spotlights will give you the opportunity to hear firsthand from talented employees about how they have stepped into stretch roles and grown professionally in ways they wouldn’t have imagined throughout their careers at The Weitz Company.
I, and the remainder of the leadership team, firmly believe our commitment to investing in employees makes Weitz the perfect place to grow your career. I am living proof of this and so are many other tenured Weitz team members. Whether you’re years into the profession and looking for a company that will give you opportunities to grow and expand your skills, or early on in your career and hoping to stretch into a new and exciting role as you explore the possibilities of our industry, Weitz promises to invest in you at every stage. I encourage you to browse our current openings and apply to grow with Weitz today.
The Grow with Weitz campaign spotlights talented employees that have grown professionally in ways they wouldn’t have imagined while at The Weitz Company. These profiles illustrate our team’s commitment to growing from within and investing in our people at every stage. Interested in Growing with Weitz? Learn more at: https://www.weitz.com/careers/.
