Cultivate an Environment of Learning and Watch People Grow

What did you learn at work today?

This is a question that each of us should be asking ourselves everyday. Often, we get so wrapped up in the tasks of the job that we forget to pause and reflect on the bigger picture - the obligation we have to personal growth and improvement.

At DPR, we strive to raise the level of curiosity among individuals and encourage people to be active members of our learning organization by asking questions and creating new opportunities for increased responsibility. Rather than accepting status quo, we want people to openly challenge traditional practices and take the initiative to continuously explore new methods, sources and procedures to help DPR become a better company and provide even better service to our customers.

For example, we talk a lot about the right people on the bus in the right seats. But how does someone know if he or she is the right person? For several years, DPR’s internal customers expressed the need for more feedback. The process we were using for annual reviews did not offer enough information or guidance. What does it take to be a better builder? What needs to be accomplished to reach the next level? What are the opportunities for future growth?

To help paint a detailed picture and establish a more formal mechanism for increased feedback, we - as a company - identified the characteristics, practices, knowledge and experience that a person must possess to be a “truly great builder” and created the DPR Wagon Wheel. The wheel, which applies to everyone in the company at different stages in their careers, groups all of the elements into categories (spokes on the wheel) and clearly outlines a path for continued growth and advancement.

Individuals are asked to grade themselves, and we overlay their wagon wheels with ones that plot where they should be in this particular stage of their career. Then, we discuss any differences - identifying strengths and offering suggestions for the areas of improvement.

DPR recently shared the Wagon Wheel concept, removing all references to DPR, at the Associated Schools of Construction Reno Competition 2002 (See sidebar on page 3) to help illustrate the evolution of a project engineer to a project manager, as well as outline the skills required for future contractors and provide an example of how we, as an industry, can cultivate a learning environment.

As the facilities we build, and the customers we built for, grow more technically complex and sophisticated, contractors must continue to emphasize training and education to build an experienced workforce. We need to work together as an industry to support the educational process and provide the tools people need to further advance their skills.

What did you learn at work today?

We learned that DPR is committed to building better builders.