The direction and development of the building materials industry with Jeff Booth
Companies do not change industries. People drive change. A company is only a collection of the people who work in it. Therefore: You cannot change an industry unless you build a culture that supports that change into your workplace! Any fan of BuildDirect knows that we have BIG dreams! Our people work tirelessly to transform the building industry - to provide more value and give incredible service. But it is equally important to us to be able to give back as we do so. I think … [Read more...]
I wanted to share a short note that I received from a friend who used to work with us at BuildDirect. The note left me feeling amazing, but I am sharing it because it also highlights a secret to finding success. I hope you've been doing well, keeping busy. I'm in the Education Program at UBC in the middle of the short practicum, just delivered my first lesson to a class of grade 8 kids. It was awesome, man. I walked away from that class feeling like a rock star. I took a bit of a weird … [Read more...]
A friend and fellow YPO member came into my offices yesterday and met independently with some of my team. When we talked afterward, he commented on what amazing team and culture we have here at BuildDirect. It is absolutely true. I know because I hear it often, and you can feel it the minute the elevators doors open. Something is different. Thinking about that comment last night, and questioning what it is about the company that attracts incredibly talented people, and keeps them, … [Read more...]
We recently launched our Quarter 3 plan to the BuildDirect team. It is the 9th quarter that we have been running the same process where we lay out the top 5 priorities for the quarter and the steps needed to achieve them. I found out a long time ago that if you keep improving a little every day, eventually those little changes add up to make big changes. It is why having a passion for getting better every day is one of our core values. … [Read more...]
For the past few months, we've been talking with respected designer and entrepreneur Debbie Travis about how we can add value to each other's efforts. And today, we're very proud to announce that Debbie and BuildDirect have banded together to make buying building materials easy, fun, and convenient for our customers. Debbie is recognized internationally as an interior design industry leader, featured on Oprah Winfrey, Regis & Kelly, and is the author of eight best selling books about interior … [Read more...]
Our company has problems. Every company does. In fact, it is the very ability to find problems and overcome them quickly that separates the very best from the rest. Look at it this way. A company is a never ending journey of improvement, and you can only improve where problems exist. Stop finding problems = stop improving = close your doors. The question is then , how do you create an environment where you can find problems quickly and then solve them? It is difficult to do because … [Read more...]
In this second video on the Toyota value stream process, Guy Parsons takes us through the BuildDirect current state and future state to show how we can increase our value to customers by reducing the waste in the system. We work on our value proposition constantly to ensure we deliver exceptional results to our customers, so I have to admit that it is a little hard to post this video. The reason....Even though we do many things well, the current state of this video shows some real problem … [Read more...]
I recently spoke at a technology event hosted by www.BCTIA.com where I talked about www.BuildDirect.com, the challenges we have overcome while building the company, and where I thought we were heading. I am extremely proud of our people, our journey and the company we have built, but I told the audience that I believed it was only the beginning. I went on to tell them that as far as I was concerned, we were going to build a world class company that will transform the building industry, … [Read more...]
I recently read a book that is I think will go down as one of the business classics. It's a must read for any business leader dedicated to superior performance. The tiltle of the book is WHO: The A Method for Hiring. The premise is that most companies focus on the "what" rather than the "who" and that hiring A-players is the most important part of any leaders job. A-players are the right superstar for the job, meaning that they not only have the skills to be successful but they also fit … [Read more...]
I am at a growth conference in Atlanta this week and I just got out of a session with Tom Peters, who I link to on this blog. One of his slides that I particularly liked had a quote from Tom that said that an "Enterprise as its best is an emotional, vital, innovative, joyful, creative,entrepreneurial, endeavor that elicits maximum concerted human potential in the wholehearted service of others. " Great quote that speaks to the journey and really says what it is all about...... Service to others … [Read more...]
While at the helm of BuildDirect, Jeff is also an active member of the international Young Presidents’ Organization, and is a frequent speaker to industry groups throughout North America. Jeff also makes time to lecture in business courses at the University of British Columbia and Simon Fraser University in Vancouver, Canada. [Read More…]
Follow Jeff