Outgoing Sugarman Associate Practitioners Sebastien de Ghellinck and Vivian Burgnon, cofounders of the industry-leading construction safety and compliance platform SkillSignal, successfully brought together construction leaders and professionals in the "Beyond the Blueprint" event in late June to further the work they had undertaken in their Construction Wellbeing Initiative (CWI). Launched in summer 2022 through the Jay Sugarman Practitioner in Residence Program at Princeton’s Kahneman-Treisman Center for Behavioral Science & Public Policy, the CWI tackles the U.S. construction industry's deepening mental health crisis.

The recent event, which leaned into the factors affecting the wellbeing of construction workers and future trends in the industry, included the launch of the world's first Worker Wellbeing database (Wellbeing.Construction), a monumental resource that required over 300 hours of meticulous identification, analysis, and curation. This unprecedented compilation of proven solutions, now accessible for free, is designed to facilitate industry-wide improvements in construction worker wellbeing.Beyond the Blueprint was attended by 80 construction leaders who engaged in vigorous, constructive discussions. Burgeon and de Ghellinck  expressed their gratitude to the participants."The exchange of insights and ideas has been remarkable, and we're proud to foster these conversations that move the industry forward," said de Ghellinck. 

Several speakers contributed their expertise to the discourse. Steve Jones from Dodge Construction Network provided insights on the future of the U.S. construction sector, focusing on the implications of a diminishing workforce. Laura Kidd and Thomas Hamilton Adams II of HAYS underscored the necessity of evolving recruitment strategies to attract a younger generation into construction and spoke on trends and changes in construction talent recruitment and development.

Additionally, Garo Hovnanian from McKinsey & Company presented data-driven research on the skilled labor shortage, stressing the pressing need for operational reinvention in construction. The discussion was enriched by personal stories from the construction sector, shared by Chris Martin and Jon O'Brien from the “Building PA” podcast.

With the Construction Wellbeing Initiative, SkillSignal is actively pursuing innovative solutions that could increase the physical and mental wellbeing of construction workers, ensuring that job sites are safer, healthier, and more productive. The team at SkillSignal extends an invitation to all construction industry professionals interested in joining the Construction Wellbeing Initiative.