60. Professional Development For Builders With Devin Perry

Professional development is a huge aspect of what we do at NAH Beach. Affordability is the greatest challenge of facing the housing market this year. You know, we're predicting that on the single family side there are going to be less than a million single family housing starts. We are pushing that rock uphill to ensure that residential construction has that labor pool for the future. There's not a stone unturned in home building that we don't cover. You need to tap into your professional development opportunity so you're working on your business so it can grow.

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Hello and welcome to the Professional Builder Secrets Podcast, a podcast by the association of Professional Builders for building company owners, general managers, VPs and emerging leaders. Here we discuss all things running a professional building company from sales processes, financials, operations and marketing. We have another exciting episode from the Professional Builder Secrets podcast. I'm joined today by Devin Perry, Executive Director of Business Improvement Programs for the national association of Home Builders. Devin, thanks for being here today.

Bosco, thanks for having me excited about this opportunity.

Well, let's start off with a little bit about yourself and your role at nab. Do we call it nab?

I guess we go with the full kind of acronym. Nash. I'm sorry, just nahb. There you go.

Okay. Okay. Nahb. All right. That's good for our listeners out there. But yeah, tell us a little bit about yourself and what do you do at nahba.

Yeah, so I'll focus on the NAHB side first. I'm the Executive Director of Business Improvement Programs and that title covers a number of areas, but my. I kind of began with the Association December of 2015 as the Director Membership Program. So the Building Systems Councils. The Building Systems Councils is a special interest group for members that either build, manufacture or supply the modular panelized concrete or log and timber frame home industries. Moved on to be the Director of that group in 2017, and then my responsibilities expanded to the Executive Director of Business Improvement Program. So in addition to the Building Systems Councils and overseeing that group, I have oversight of NAHB's 20 Club program. I know, we'll talk about that a little bit later. A few additional committees, including Single Family Building, Custom Building, and our Business Management and Information Technology committees as well, and a Mentoring program called Leadership Connect at nahv. So like I said, it's pretty broad in terms of responsibilities and at the.

Heart of things, you're there to help the builders, I guess is the best way of putting it as well. And empower them.

Absolutely, yeah. Through all of those different resources. And at NHP we have a ton of resources for home builders. And I've got kind of my corner of the association where I'm delivering those services to our members. So. That's exactly right.

And how far is the reach for the members as well? How far do you go?

We have 140,000 members actually worldwide. We are coast to coast here in North America with our local home builders associations that feed into national. We also have state associations as well. And then we have a global membership group as well. So we actually span the globe in terms of the home building industry.

How did you get into the industry? Was this something you had planned for when you went to high school and you were like, hey, this is where I'm gonna go, you know, like, how did you stumble across this? Or was it an accidental career?

Yeah, I'm laughing because it was probably the latter kind of accidental career. So I went to Marshall in Huntington, West Virginia and got a degree in sports Management Marketing. I did use that degree for about 10 years. Worked for a couple different professional sports organizations. The Phoenix Coyotes, the Washington Nationals and D.C. united around the end of my tenure in professional sports. And I was on the ticket sales and service side. But towards the end of my career there, you know, family dynamic change, married, first kid. So looking for something that was a little bit more nine to five. And so we're in Washington D.C. and D.C. is the home of associations. If you think of an industry, it's got an Association, Washington D.C. so I applied around, ended up at NAH B and that's where I really started my career in the residential construction industry. But just have a little anecdote. I came into this industry pretty ignorant. No, I thought log and timber frame homes, you cut down the trees at the build site and you went from there. Turns out these are highly engineered building systems. So it's been quite the education over the past almost seven years now. And it's been a real joy of my time at nahb.

So for our listeners out there, you've given a little bit about an overview of what you do. But for the potential new members or someone who's considering being a member, what are some of the benefits of joining the nahb?

Yeah, so NAHB works under a three for one Membership model. So you join national through your local home builders association and there you have a number of benefits in your location. Working with your local hba, it was kind of shorthand for Home Builders association where they can connect you with consumers, they provide education and it's great networking locally within your own community. So in addition to that you get your state home builders association, they're doing a lot of those same things. They're working with the governance of individual states and their state houses, advocates advocating for the home builders in that locality. And then you have national, which is part of the membership mix as well, where we're providing numerous education opportunities and resources for our members. Working on the governance side as well on Capitol Hill and working with code officials in terms of the International Code Council to ensure no housing affordability not only for consumers, but it's also affordable to build homes for our members. Okay, so yeah, it's at home. Next.

So the theme of this conversation really is around professional development as well. So how can professional development help transform and change the professional building industry? I guess in some ways.

Oh, it's so huge. Bosco mudden by areas of oversight. And we talked about this briefly. What was NEHV's Builder 20 program? And let me describe that a little bit. So we have over 500 members of the builder 20 program and they are subdivided into individual clubs than 20 members in non competing markets, hence the 20 club moniker. In addition to being from non competing markets, they are also kind of similar business background. So we have groups for production home builders, custom home builders and remodelers. So in the 20 club program, these groups of 20 members will get together twice a year, once in the spring, once in the fall. And they really open up their businesses to each other. It's kind of peer to peer business accountability. Now one of those meetings is focused on finance. We'll bring in a third party that will analyze everybody's books from a common form. So everybody's kind of starting on the same page. You can help understand the numbers. They go around the room and really dive into each other's books. And then that second meeting of the year, you know, they'll bring in guest speakers, they'll tackle a specific topic in the home building industry. But it's just having that brain power of 20 leading builders or remodelers around table and helping each other's business. It's, it's a sight to behold the professional development that has there and watching people's businesses grow because of their interaction in that group. And that's just one example of something that we offer at the national association of Home Builders.

Okay, so what are some of the key events that you end up having throughout the year? You talked a little bit about these two events, but what do you produce for the builders out there on an annual basis that are sort of your marquee or signature events?

Yeah, Bosco, a lot of people don't realize that the International Builder show, which is the largest light construction trade show in North America, is a production of the national association of Home Builders earlier this year in January, either January or February, my apologies for not having the exact dates, but we were in Orlando, Florida at the Orange County Convention Center. We had over 70,000 people walk through the trade show floor visiting over a million square feet of exhibit space. So that's one huge aspect of the International Builder Show. In addition to that, we put on more than 100 education sessions at IBS as well, covering a large variety of topics in the home building industry. And then another layer on top of that is we have special interest areas at the International Builder show, one on the Building Systems Council side where we focus on nothing but off site construction. And over the three day trade show we offered upwards of 20 education sessions and networking events. But that's a huge tentpole event for NEHB again bringing over 70,000 people together annually. And this upcoming year in 2023 will be back in Las Vegas. So looking forward to that and the dates. I think we start at the end of January and end, you know, very early in February, but registration is going to open for that in September. So looking forward to getting Everybody together in 2023.

So what are some of the professional development opportunities for builders through the NAHB as well? You know, what can they look forward to as part of their own development and learning side of things as well?

So we talked about the 20 Club program. Specifically I'm going to focus on some broader programs that we offer. One again, the International Builder show with education there. But throughout the year we offer numerous webinars and education sessions through the National Associ association of Home Builders covering all topics in residential construction, whether it be green building, off site construction, business management, it's really never ending. Those all occur on a weekly basis. We also produce resources for our builder members as well. We have residential construction guidelines we have on the Building Systems Council side, we recently developed a home builder's guide to off site construction. And there are millions of other examples of resources like that that NAHB offers its members. Many of those are free for the cost of being a member or we offer them at a reduced rate. So professional development is a huge aspect of what we do at nahb. It's not just governance, it's not just codes. Professional development is again, a huge part of what we do.

You've given me an overview of what the IBS show is and you've given me an overview of the builds 20 groups as well in the lens of the builder. And let's change the question a little bit from the lens of someone who's either getting into the industry or has never been to the IBS or been part of the builder 20 group. What should they expect on both sides? What can they expect from these two entities and how do they maximize that.

Opportunity as well on the IBS side? I think over those three days there's so much to see that you really have to kind of segment yourself and make a plan before you arrive on site. Whether that be in Orlando like we were this year, we're going to be in Vegas next year. But first and foremost, just walking the trade show floor and seeing all of the new products and services debuting for that year. I mean, it's amazing what our suppliers and service providers come up with and the products that they are developing to really change our industry. So that's one aspect of International Builder show too is the education side of things where over those three days you have an opportunity to attend. In terms of ibs education, there's 100 sessions there and then there are the learning opportunities as well that are probably too many to count off the top of my head going through before you land on site and starring all those sessions you want to visit so you can get that education that you're looking for because you really segment yourself. If you're interested in business management, there's a whole track for that. If you're interested in construction codes and standards, there's a whole track that. And I could go on and on in three there. There's a networking and social aspect of it as well. We have events each night that are segmented by different builder populations and demographics. But there is something for everybody at all moments of IBS where again you're getting education, networking and seeing the latest building products and services. That's how you enjoy that event. But again, it does take some pre planning before you get boots on the ground.

Yeah, well, look. And you've given me an idea of how you help builders as well with the shows past and present. Obviously looking at last year, moving forward this year, where do you see some of the Market trends and you know, what's the big topic of conversation amongst the builders as well?

Yeah, I'd say housing affordability overall and that touches so many different aspects of the industry. One, obviously inflation is a huge issue right now and we're tackling that from a government affairs perspective that's impacting building materials. Lumber in particular has been on a roller coaster up and down throughout the pandemic, although we're starting to see that settle a bit. Then you have housing affordability on the consumer side as well being able to purchase a home. So really I think not. I think but our main focus right now NAHB is housing affordability from really all aspects of the residential construction industry and trying to get our arms around that and get housing affordability under control.

Right, and does that include potentially a correction in the market long term? Do you foresee or is that sort of to be determined just yet?

Yeah, to be determined. And so you know, like I was saying, affordability is the greatest challenge of facing the housing market. Production bottlenecks, rising home building costs and high inflation are causing many builders to halt construction because of cost of land, you know, in construct and financing exceeds the market value of many homes. At the same time buyers are bulking due to deteriorating affordability conditions and just growing sticker shock. And here's a stat we like to reference. Only 14% of new home sales this June were priced below $300,000. A year ago that number was 27%. So with significant segments of the home buying population priced out of the market, policymakers and NHP is part of this influencing policymaker to address supply side issues to help builders produce more affordable housing.

So how do you think the future of the construction industry is currently? What is it evolving to? I guess is a better question to ask moving forward and where this is more an opinion side of things, where do you feel builders should be paying attention to? What are some of those things that they should be paying attention to?

Given my background in the residential construction industry and at nahba, I've for a number of years laser focused on the off site construction industry. And I think you're anecdotally seen a movement towards prefabricated building components. When I say that you're talking everything from trusses to full modular wood, steel, concrete and everything in between. Right now in terms of housing starts using what the U.S. census Bureau classified as modular or pre cut construction. On the single family side, it's about 4% of all starts per year. For the housing downturn in 2007, 2008 that was upwards of 8%. So I think you're seeing that side of the industry creep back up, gain some momentum because there are many issues that are plaguing the residential construction industry in terms of supply chain availability of labor that can be solved with off site construction techniques. So that's something that I personally am keeping a close watch on.

And where do you think builders, what. What should builders prepare for moving forward? And outside of some of the innovation that's coming their way as well and the changes to that, where else do you feel like they should be paying attention to things that they should be prepared for?

Yeah, no, I'll go back to housing affordability this year. You know, we're predicting that on the single family side there are going to be less than a million single family housing starts in 2022. And again, just that affordability. So again at NEHB we are focused on developing the next generation of home builders and that labor force so we can work around, not work around, but work through some of these labor ability issues. We are working on Capitol Hill to address some of these affordability problems. We have a seat at the table with the International Code Council and making sure that common sense code that had the appropriate long term impact on building materials and prices are kept front and center. We were having those discussions and what would dictate building codes around the country? So I'm a home builder and this is just my humble opinion. Our members know so much more than I do, but about the industry. But it's at a housing affordability that I'd be focused on.

Okay. And I'm assuming some of these trends that you're predicting are also not just in the North America side of things or the US but probably are round as well, because we have global listeners as well. But I'm assuming we're hearing similar trends in different ponds of the water, I guess as well.

Yeah. Bosco, I know you're in Australia, I know there is a housing recession and crisis now. We're in a housing recession here in North America. But yes, this is not a American issue, this is a global issue. And you kind of look across the pond to Europe talking about off site construction. Some of those countries are prepared for industrialization of construction and that's somewhere we're trying to kind of fill that gap in North America and play catch up. There are some factors that make our market here domestically a little bit different than they are in Europe. But in terms of manufacturing technology and things of that nature, we're a little bit Behind.

Okay. And what advice do you have for builders at a time of uncertainty and unpredictability? If anything, the last few years have told us that you really can't plan per se, but you also have to have a plan in some cases. So what advice do you have for the builders that come to you and go, we don't know what tomorrow's going to look like.

Professional development. Professional development and professional development would be my answer to that question. And again, I think NAHB provides those opportunities. One again with just local home builders associations being hyper focused on those local markets and be able to talk to your peers in the industry and make those preparations, but also have an eye on trends and know what's happening and be able to take advantage of that local professional development. And then again nationally, we offer a number of those resources as well. I can't Advocate for the builder 20 program enough. If you are a home builder that is struggling and are looking for a leg up, or if you're doing fine and want to enhance your business, it's an excellent opportunity to talk with peers in non competing markets. That's a rare opportunity. Again, you can talk locally, but in terms of those very open conversations, it certainly behooves to have them kind of away from a competitor. That's something that the Builder 20 program can offer.

When we talk about personal development, we're talking about everything from running a business, sales, marketing, leadership. I'm assuming it's operational innovation technology. It covers all different facets, right?

Oh, it sure does. And at nahb, I know I've talked a bit about the Building Systems Council as being a special interest group. We have others, we have National Sales and Marketing Council, we have professional women in building. We have a group for our Remodelers Council, another one for 55 plus home building. So whatever your niches or whatever information you're looking for about residential construction, we, we have it at nahb there's not a stone unturned in home building that we don't cover, you know, green building being a part of that as well. And those groups and those members get together and produce just tremendous content focused on those special interest areas that you can tap into as a member.

Now obviously the last few years we've had, we've seen so many different challenges, blind spots, not just in this industry but in so many other industries as well. But if we had to highlight or put a spotlight on the builders and some of the challenges they face, how is the NAH be looking to address some of those challenges long term? You know, you have things like trying to get staffing or talent, you know, in an industry that potentially is got decrease in numbers in different, in different parts of the world, you hear the same thing. We're looking to bring more people. What are some of the areas that you're looking to address with these challenges long term?

Yeah, a lot of people don't know that. NEHB has a partner organization called the Home Building Institute, hbi, who's very focused on workforce development and they have training centers around the country focused on people transitioning out of the military, people transitioning out of incarceration, and some technical schools as well. But you know, putting that message forward that a four year college institution isn't for everybody and there's no shame in that. There are opportunities to go into a skilled trade, provide for your family for long term at a good wage and not incur some of that debt that you would with a two or four year institution. In addition to that, in nehb we have our student chapters that are more focused on those four year colleges and high schools that introduce people at universities and high schools to the home building industry. They actually get together at the International Builder show for an annual competition. But we are working not only nationally at nhb, but our state associations and local associations are working in their areas on workforce development as well. And I could go into a number of specific programs. For example, North Carolina has a mobile training big rig that goes around introducing people to the skilled construction trades. And there are numerous examples of other initiatives around the country. But we are pushing that rock uphill to ensure that residential construction has that labor pool for the future.

I can talk to you about the industry for ages, but I'm conscious of the fact that I have you in here for a very short time. My final question for you is around personal development and most builders will give you the most common, I want to say excuse, which is I don't have time for learning or how do I make time for personal development? I'm running a business, I'm in the business, on business. I'm working more hours Monday to Sunday or Saturday. How do builders make time for personal development?

Bosco, what I've seen mainly through the builder 20 program is you have two sets of home building professionals. You have people that are working in their business and people that are working on their business. And I don't mean to shed any negative light or be disparaging the people that are working, working in their business, but to really maximize what you're doing, you need to tap into your professional development opportunities so you're working on your business so it can grow in advance. If you are in your business and focusing on every small detail and can't take that kind of step back and look at the 10,000 square foot view, you're not going to be able to grow. And I've seen people make that transition in the Builder 20 program from Kind of having their their hands in the dirt, swinging a hammer to being able to manage and grow their business that way and actually have a personal life as well and spend time with their family. So when you see kind of that light bulb click for somebody, it's amazing because you're I don't say this lightly. You're changing someone's life because it's not only business, but it's personal as well.

Well, thank you so much for your insights, telling us a little bit about the NHB and taking us the inside curtain to sort of reveal a little what you do and what the resources are there for the builders out there. Any final words of wisdom for our builder listeners out there that are listening to this right now? What advice do you have to them.

Before we part ways? Yeah, Boskin, I'll make a shameless plug for the national association of Home Builders. If you're not a member, please go ahead. Contact your local home builders association so you can get plugged in there first. And again, it's three from one membership. When you join locally, you get your membership there at the state, state and nationally as well. If you're not familiar with your local home builders association, go to nahb.org There's a join button in the right hand corner. You can enter in your zip code and we'll provide you a link to your local so we take the guesswork out of it. But again, NAHB is here for you to help you improve your business.

Thanks so much for your time today, Devin.

Hey Bosco, I appreciate it. Thank you.

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