Build Communities and ROI

By Joanna Slominski

nobody likes outsiders — they are strangers, and it requires effort to get to know and trust them. This is a barrier businesses face when they enter a new market, community or neighborhood. Mortenson often faces this problem. Even though the company has built projects throughout North Dakota for the past 40 years, it’s often still seen as “new in town.” In fact, every time Mortenson starts a new construction project, it enters a new community — whether a greenfield site just outside of town or a bustling city block. In the 60-plus years Mortenson has been in business, it has established a community outreach approach that works in each new situation, and has reaped great returns in long-term relationships, repeat business and community goodwill.

Among the driving forces that have helped Mortenson build stronger communities are these tenets:

Start Before the Beginning

The commitment to build community starts long before day one on a construction site. Before Mortenson enters a community, it researches and determines where its company values match that community — perhaps it’s in education, healthful living, sustainable energy or other areas. We ask our customers how we can help build their communities in these areas.

For example, in Hebron, North Dakota, before construction started on the 104-megawatt Sunflower Wind Project, the team discovered that investing in education was a top priority for the community. The project team visited Hebron Public School to share the benefits of wind energy and provide background on how wind turbines are built, and raised more than $25,000 to donate to the school system for four priority projects: LED signs to inform the community of school activities, Microsoft Surface laptops, improved wireless access and additional library books.

Look for the Personal Connection

Some of the most enthusiastic community efforts are those that originate right within our own ranks. For example, with the Sanford Medical Center Fargo, the team found inspiration from a worker on-site who benefited from the March of Dimes during a difficult time in her life. After sharing her story and challenging the entire project team — work crews, vendors, subcontractors and Sanford Health — the team quadrupled its goal and raised $24,000.

Joanna Slominksi CONSTRUCTION EXECUTIVE MORTENSON

Listen to the Neighborhood

Sometimes, building community becomes as simple as sharing. This happened on the Dickinson Middle School project in Dickinson, North Dakota. The project team used virtual reality technology to give the customer a sneak peek of the new building before it was constructed. Our team invited students and teachers to the construction office so they could get an insider’s view of where they will be studying next fall when the building opens. The virtual tours were received with enthusiasm by students and teachers alike, as they could see everything from their lockers to science labs, gym floors and lunchrooms. (See for yourself at www.mortenson.com/company/news/ video-library/project-videos/Dickinson-Virtual-Tour.)

Find Your Niche to Make a Difference

Another way to build community is to assess how your company’s assets match your customer’s needs, and then humanize it. At the West Fargo Public Schools Hockey Arena construction site in West Fargo, North Dakota, Mortenson focused on building the best possible hockey facility. In addition, a partnership with West Fargo Public Schools created a construction internship for a high school science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) student. It’s still too early to tell, but the end result might be a great career start and a loyal new employee.

What is the ROI?

The secret to businesses building communities is to focus on core values, engage employees, listen to the community, and find special niches. Whether it’s making meals at Ronald McDonald House, participating in United Way activities, or a successful March of Dimes fundraiser, Mortenson has found that there are many options to build communities on every project.

While many of these stories warm the heart, they have also proven to make smart business sense. Across the company, more than 80 percent of our business is with repeat customers. We credit much of this customer loyalty to our commitment to start each project with a strong local partnership that further builds the community in which we are working — and in the end, that helps everyone, whether they’re wearing construction boots or business suits. PB