Resolve to Improve the Industry

A new year presents new opportunities for growth, improvement, and goal setting. Recent studies suggest that that nearly 40% of adults in the United States and 55% of Canadians set yearly New Year’s resolutions. The most common resolutions are health-related, including exercising more, eating healthier, and weight loss. Other common resolutions involve improving one’s financial health and personal relationships.

Resolutions do not have to be limited to personal goals. Sheet metal labor and management partners can—and should— establish goals to improve the industry. In our first issue of Partners in Progress for 2023, the team has assembled labormanagement success stories and advice to inspire the setting and accomplishment of industry-wide goals.

With impending labor shortages in many areas and industries, local partners may consider a resolution to establish more aggressive and effective recruiting programs. In “High School to High Paid in the Trades” on page 4, industry partners explain how face-to-face recruiting, relationship building with Career and Technical Education teachers, pre-apprentice and material handling programs, and the Heavy Metal Summer Experience camps contribute to successful recruiting efforts.

Another solid resolution is to enhance workplace culture to ensure that diverse candidates know that there is “A Place for Everyone in the Sheet Metal Industry”. On page 7, SMART and SMACNA representatives to the BE4ALL Task Force explain how “belonging” in the industry goes deeper than diversity and inclusion. They share task force objectives and action plans to attract and retain the best and most qualified sheet metal workers by ensuring that all individuals feel welcome and are given training and support to perform at the highest standards.

On page 10, we highlight SMACNA BE4ALL Committee member Tammy Adams who, along with her husband, owns RedLand Sheet Metal. With the help of skilled tradespeople from Local 124, RedLand fabricated the National Native Veterans Memorial, which was important to the team on many levels.

And if you’re ready to take the first steps in implementing BE4ALL principles into your organization, start by learning the “Seven A’s of Courageous Conversation” on page 12.Difficult conversations don’t fall under the “fun”category on anyone’s resolutions list, but they are necessary, constructive opportunities for growth, and you have to start somewhere.

Since COVID-19, schools and businesses have demonstrated ineffective methods of preventing the spread of airborne illnesses. In many instances, owners and building operators do not know the most effective ways to get the solutions they need. “Clean Air for a Healthy Future” (page 14) describes how educating owners and end users on ventilation verification and indoor air quality solutions will result in enhanced work opportunities for SMACNA contractors and SMART locals that resolve to collaborate on this initiative. Fortunately, the National Energy Management Institute (NEMI) has developed a blueprint and forms that can be customized to allow contractors and union partners to educate at the local level.

There is an individual resolution we can all make that will benefit us both professionally and personally—honing our communication skills to listen with the intent to understand, rather than reply. Turn to page 17 to learn “Three Ways to Improve your Listening Skills”. Being present and empathetic when it is time for us to listen can vastly improve our personal and work relationships.

This edition’s My Journey article (page 19) details the career progression of Ginger Slaick, a deserving past recipient of SMACNA’s Chapter Executive of the Year honor. Ginger shares her views on industry opportunities and maintains that Georgia SMACNA maintaining a good relationship with SMART Local 85 is key to moving the industry forward.

A 2021 study found that approximately two-thirds of all of those who make personal New Year’s Resolutions abandon the resolution within a month. Those who share their resolutions with other people are more likely to follow the course longer because they feel more accountable. We encourage all of our readers to work with your contractor, labor, and training partners to jointly resolve to collaborate on a common goal to make a positive difference in your industry in 2023. ▪