Event recap: Construction Leaders Forum at the Royal York

Some of Canada’s top construction leaders gathered in Toronto for the first ever Construction Leaders Forum. 

The event called on past and current Top 40 Under 40 in Canadian Construction winners to meet at the iconic Fairmont Royal York Hotel for a day of high-level discussions, networking and project tours.

Beneath the Royal York

The day before the event, attendees descended into the depths of its 95-year-old venue, the Fairmont Royal York, led by Herman Gonzales, senior director of engineering and building projects. The Construction Leaders Forum was offered a rare look at the hotel’s $65-million decarbonization project. The work was completed after close to five years of detailed planning and execution. It will reduce over 7,000 tonnes of carbon annually or 80% of the hotel’s annual carbon emissions, the equivalent of taking 1,558 cars off the road.

Gonzales explained that the hotel worked with its contractor, PCL, to carry out a detailed study and analysis of building energy load, seeking to effect meaningful efficiencies. They converted heating and domestic hot water from steam to electric heat pumps, and converted cooling from electrical/chillers to deep lake water cooling. 

Catching up with past winners

The Construction Leaders Forum began with a discussion featuring Amit Patel, Agnes Wiertzynski, and John Higgens, all 40 Under 40 alumni. Patel (2020 winner) is the General Manager and Vice President at Turner Construction in Vancouver; Wiertzynski (2022 winner) is the President and CEO of QM Environmental and serves on the Ontario Environment Industry Association’s Board of Directors; Higgens (2023 winner) is the Vice President of Canadian Operations at Stack Modular.

AI was a major topic of discussion, with the panel highlighting it as a way to improve productivity during a time of limited labour resources and a way to gain meaningful conclusions from company data. 

“We are trying to find ways to use AI to harvest our data and do remedial work which allows our people to focus more on strategic work,” said Patel, who noted that one of the biggest use cases for AI in construction at turn is in their estimating department as well is in BIM to do quick renders. 

“Construction is like entering a boxing ring, and you are against the ropes and you have to make a choice if you are going to get up or not. You have to have perseverance,”

Agnes Wiertzynski

The group also discussed the importance of structuring projects in a way that ensures everyone can win. 

“We all are going to get a piece of the pie, we just have to come up with a way to better execute projects,” said Higgins. 

Wiertzynski noted that while leading QM’s large team spread out across many different markets, her thinking on how connection and collaboration is executed has evolved. She also explained that construction leaders have to be able to keep going, even when the challenges seem overwhelming. 

“Construction is like entering a boxing ring, and you are against the ropes and you have to make a choice if you are going to get up or not. You have to have perseverance,” she said.      

Build what matters

The event’s keynote address was delivered by Énska Advisors President and CEO, Tim Coldwell, who spoke about how construction can be used as a force for good while also solving some of its most pressing issues. This is what prompted him to leave his position as president of Chandos construction after working his way to the top from nothing. 

“If you look at the clock and wonder if it’s time to have a coffee or go home, you have to rethink things. If you are counting the minutes, you have to make a change.”

He challenged the construction industry to “slay” the industry’s three biggest dragons: stigma, productivity and mindset. Coldwell spoke about opportunities with robotics, procurement, alternative delivery models and more. But noted that ultimately, the industry must share innovations rather than hiding the secret sauce, because there is no cavalry coming to save it.  

“Let’s stop behaving like victims. We are the ones we have been waiting for,” said Coldwell.  

Presidential advice

It couldn’t be an event about leadership without hearing from some high-level leaders. Attendees heard from Cooper Equipment Rentals President Darryl Cooper, RSG International President Lisa Laronde and construction executive Terry Olynyk.

The group spoke about what good leadership looks like, how they develop their teams, how diversity is good for business and the importance of culture when growing. 

“Being a good leader is standing in the background and having others accomplish everything they set out to,” said Laronde.

She added that expanding RSG’s diversity, equity and inclusion efforts has been life changing for her and strongly encouraged other companies to consider making changes so that everyone feels accepted and supported on the jobsite. 

When asked what separated a small to medium sized company from a larger one, Cooper stated it was all about creating a proper culture. 

“You can’t grow and scale without a thread of culture going through the organization,” he said. 

Infrastructure and risk

Kiewit’s Vice President of Infrastructure Markets & Strategy Mike Tracey, Infrastructure Ontario Director of Risk Amy Sorrenti, and Creative Energy Senior Vice President of Development Diego Mandelbaum.  

Sorrenti explained that for Infrastructure Ontario, costs, unpredictability, changing regulations, keeping up with advanced technology all post major challenges to their multi-year projects. 

Mandelbaum noted that the industry has gone through multiple “black swan” events in the past few years, putting immense pressure on the sector. 

The group stated that contracts are a great mechanism to manage that risk in a fair way amongst parties. 

“That contract misalignment has been the biggest thing we focus on as an organization,” said Mandelbaum. 

Tech and Talent

Technology was a major theme through the Construction Leaders Forum, but it was the focus of the Tech and Talent panel. This panel featured SiteTalent Managing Partner Kyle Davis, Procore’s Industry Culture Strategist Yasmeen Tonnos and Aecon’s Vice President of Integrated Digital Delivery & Geomatics Ben Feltham. 

“If you don’t know what your culture is, ask yourself what the worst behaviour is that you are willing to accept,”

Yasmeen Tonnos

AI continued to be top of mind for industry leaders. 

“Rather than replacing jobs, AI is going to replace a lot of the administrative tasks and give people more time to connect on a human level,” said Davis.  

Tonnos noted that recent years have seen the industry become more open to new technology and innovation. She also spoke about how a company can go about defining and creating its company culture. 

“If you don’t know what your culture is, ask yourself what the worst behaviour is that you are willing to accept,” she said. 

Feltham stated that he has seen a huge drive to leverage technology when it comes to decision making. 

Topping off

The event wound down with an evening of drinks, food and networking. Attendees were also treated to BeauSoleil oysters shipped in fresh from New Brunswick and prepared by master shucker Jean-Francois.

Russell Hixson, editor of SiteNews, noted that the opportunity for 40 Under 40 winners to gather in one place and share ideas has been long overdue and was a resounding success.

“40 Under 40 is no longer just an awards program. It is now an active community that is meeting in the real world and discussing real problems,” said Hixson. “Our goal is to continue cultivating this community and harness 40 Under 40 as a force for good in Canada’s construction sector.”

Photos from the Construction Leaders Forum: