By: Peggy Newquist, Learning & Development Manager

In today’s competitive construction labor market, a well-developed learning and development program and a strong corporate culture are both essential for recruiting top talent. . Professional development has been proven to increase a construction professional’s confidence and overall capabilities. It also sets up a desire to progress and focus on professionalism.

As highlighted in our previous post, “Training is an Event, Learning is a Culture,” Clune’s robust training initiatives not only invest in the continued development of our employees, but they also further emphasize The Clune Way, which is defined by our values, behaviors, customer focus and dedicated support of each member of Team Clune

Each Learning & Development offering aligns with our values that are the foundation of who Clune is as a company.

Peer Learning – Value Excellence

The formal employee learning and development plan capitalizes on Clune’s already established peer-learning culture. This culture of knowledge sharing has successfully developed employees and promoted Clune’s best practices in years past. This was achieved, in part by utilizing internal subject matter experts and super-users to develop and deliver the majority of our content. This covers everything from Clune’s software systems, to our construction processes and procedures that consistently deliver best in class general contracting services to our clients.

Clune’s Mentoring Program – Value Leadership

Rolled out in 2021, the Clune Mentoring Program is open to all employees. The benefits of a Mentoring Program are well documented, it promotes growth and development at all levels, in all departments. Taking participant preference into account, pairings are made both locally and across regional offices to improve cross-office collaboration. The program launch also came when many people were working remotely, providing a valuable opportunity to make a personal connection. As is the norm at Clune, feedback from participants requesting more structure is being taken into account for the 2022 class. Quarterly facilitated discussions on leadership and career development are being added as a result.

In addition, Clune’s Internal Leadership Development Program empowers the next generation of senior leadership. Facilitated by an external coach, the program develops core leadership competencies and confidence, enabling participants to deliver on company goals.

Everything DiSC Workplace –Value Teamwork

Learning and Development is also rolling out a new initiative entitled ‘Everything DiSC Workplace.’ DiSC is a work style assessment tool Clune is using to improve engagement and collaboration, and foster more productive working relationships amongst teams.  All leadership and officers have completed a DiSC assessment and workshop, and it will be rolled-out company-wide into 2022. With three in-house certified DiSC facilitators, the goal is to achieve a common language to show the value of all work styles and to provide tools to better work with employees who have different styles.

Charitable Giving – Value Service

Clune has long had a rich tradition of giving back to the communities where we live and work. As such, Clune encourages employees to participate in charitable endeavors, and accommodates them during work hours. As an added bonus Charitable Work qualifies as an elective towards each employee’s annual learning and development goal.

A Robust Summer Intern Program

Clune’s Learning & Development plan is not just for its full-time employees. A robust summer Intern educational program was piloted in Chicago and New York in 2021. In addition to their traditional intern assignments, over an eight-week period, interns worked together on an action learning project which included weekly training sessions. This allowed them to experience the full life-cycle of a construction project while also utilizing various software systems to support their tasks. The group bonded and worked together in teams, making interoffice connections which had not previously been available to interns. At the conclusion of the program, the interns presented to local office heads giving them valuable face time with Clune senior leadership. Their summer of learning culminated with a resume and LinkedIn profile writing workshop to help them represent their experience working at Clune.

Clune has always valued training and professional development, and is always striving to improve and build upon its successful Learning & Development program. It has become a key component in Clune’s corporate culture. We are excited to continue to invest in the learning and development of our most important assets – our Employee Owners.