Elevate Construction

Most project teams struggle not because they lack skill or effort, but because they lack one core principle that drives every great construction project: real respect for people. In this episode, Jason breaks down why so many job sites feel chaotic, unfocused or disconnected and how one simple shift can transform the entire environment almost overnight.

In this episode you'll learn:

• Why respect equals high expectations, not lower ones?
• The deal Jason made with 310 workers that instantly changed safety, cleanliness and morale.
• How bathrooms, lunchrooms and worker huddles become leadership tools?
• Why zero tolerance for safety and perfect cleanliness is actually the most respectful thing you can do?
• How disrespect hides in the small things like toilet paper, graffiti, temp cooling and chaotic scheduling?
• Why workers are equal partners and how treating them that way elevates everything?
• How the principle of respect for people answers every leadership question on a job site?

If you want a project where workers feel valued, where morale rises, safety violations disappear and excellence becomes the norm, this episode will change the way you lead.

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw

Most PMs think their job is to protect the team from change. That mindset is quietly killing projects.

In this episode, Jason flips the script, breaking down the critical difference between toxic variation owners, RFIs, chaos, overburden and the good kind of change your team must feel, training, reading, growth, new systems, real lean implementation.

You will hear:

• What PMs should absolutely shield their teams from.
• The kind of change you should never protect them from.
• Why humans resist change by default and how to lead them through it.
• How Japan, Toyota and world class builders focus on people, process and quality, not just money and goals.

If you are a project manager who wants to stop sympathy voting your team into mediocrity and start leading them into excellence, this episode is your wake up call.

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw

What separates noisy, reactive job sites from clean, flowing, elite ones, A single shift, plan the next day, not the same day, In this fast, high energy episode, Jason breaks down the POND meeting, the proven system top builders use to align trades, remove roadblocks early, and deliver predictable results.

In this episode, you'll get to know:

• The fatal flaw of same day "POD" huddles and why they stall production.
• The POND cadence that gives foremen time to plan and crews time to prepare.
• How one site transformed in 24 hours with maps, visuals, and clear handoffs.
• The full recipe, zoning maps, weekly plan on screen, worker huddle, team Kanban.
• Why elite projects never let variation creep into the morning.

If you want to run construction the way the best in the world do it, start here, This is the meeting rhythm that changes everything.

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw

What if the secret to a remarkable company wasn't systems or strategy - but soul?

In this episode, Jason opens the doors to Elevate Construction and LeanTakt, sharing the 27 principles that shape how his teams think, lead, and live every single day.

You'll learn:

• Why the breath of every great company is positive encouragement, not pressure.
• The three things every true leader does: clarity, training, and shoulder-to-shoulder support.
• Why Elevate builds people first, not projects.
• The power of "stop, call, wait" and "one-piece flow" in fixing chaos before it spreads.
• How to create a culture that never punishes, never hides problems, and never stops improving.

These aren't buzzwords - they're the living rules behind one of the fastest-growing Lean construction movements in the world.

Listen now and steal the playbook for building a company that breathes life, not burnout.

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw

What if your project failed before the first delivery arrived, In this hard hitting conversation, Jason and Adam Beanie Bean unpack cause number two in the series, not having the right project manager, They show why picking a spreadsheet wizard over a field focused leader wrecks flow, burns people out, and bloats cost, Then they give a clear path to fix it.

You will learn:

• The real job of a PM, align everyone to one destination and protect flow.
• How to spot a miscast PM in week one, before the damage spreads.
• The daily ORCA debrief, objective, results, causes, actions, that turns chaos into continuous improvement.
• Why communication, data tracking, and understanding flow beat technical brilliance alone.
• Exactly how leaders can be hard on the process, and easy on the people.

If you have ever felt your job is busy but not moving, this episode gives you the playbook to reset the role, build alignment, and win the week before you lose the month.

Listen now, and learn how the right PM turns planning into performance, and teams into one crew rowing in the same direction.

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw

What if your project was doomed before the first shovel hit the ground?

In this hard-hitting episode, Jason and Adam "Beanie" Bean team up across continents - Arizona to Australia - to expose one of construction's most dangerous habits: starting before we're ready.

You'll learn:

• The shocking stats behind global project failure (hint: only 0.5% finish on time and on budget).
• Why trades "fail despite their best efforts" - and how leaders set them up for it.
• The myth of "we can't plan without design," and what elite builders do instead.
• How to spot a project that's not ready to start - and the courage to stop it.
• The Japan-inspired principle that fixes everything: be hard on the process, easy on the people.

If you've ever watched a project unravel and thought, "We could have seen this coming," this episode will show you exactly how to stop it from happening again.

Listen now and learn how world-class builders plan, flow, and win - before they ever break ground.

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw

What if everything you've been waiting for, peace, freedom, focus, joy - was already yours, just buried under noise and obligation?

In this episode, Jason challenges you to take it back.

• Your mind from distraction.
• Your time from endless meetings and email.
• Your peace from chaos.
• Your freedom from toxic bosses and relationships.
• Your joy from the approval of others.

Drawing on lessons from Paul Akers and real-life stories from his own journey, Jason shows how reclaiming your attention, energy, and purpose isn't selfish, it's leadership.

If you've been feeling stretched thin, reactive, or off-mission, this is your reminder: You don't need permission. You just need to take it back.

Listen in and start owning the life and the work you were built for.

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw

What if the real "king" of every project isn't the one in the trailer, but the one holding the tools?

In this episode, Jason breaks down a timeless Toyota lesson - the worker is the king. The foremen and craftspeople are the ones who create value; everyone else exists to support them. Through this lens, he challenges leaders to stop hiding behind software, desks, and meetings, and start serving the field.

You'll learn why leaders are a cost until they remove waste for others, how true Lean companies stay close to the Gemba, and why projects collapse the moment we forget who actually builds.

If you want job sites with trust, flow, and respect where workers feel like heroes, not afterthoughts, this episode is the wake-up call you need.

Listen in and remember: the king is the one who builds.

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw

What if real leadership isn't about telling people to "figure it out," but about standing beside them until they can?

In this episode, Jason shares a powerful lesson from Japan, the art of working shoulder to shoulder. At Toyota, leaders don't throw people into the fire; they train through presence, patience, and partnership.

From field mistakes to family moments, Jason reveals how true Lean teaching means Explain, Demonstrate, Guide, Enable not abandon.

If you've ever wanted faster learning, fewer errors, and teams that trust each other, this episode will change how you lead, train, and build.

Listen in and discover why "shoulder to shoulder" may be the most human Lean principle of all.

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw

What if lean wasn't just about reducing waste on paper but about learning to feel waste in your gut?

In Japan, there's a word for that: Mottainai - "What a waste." It's more than regret. It's respect, for people, nature, and resources.

In this episode, Jason dives into how this simple mindset can reshape construction culture. From right-sizing and pre-cutting materials to eliminate 32% of jobsite waste, to the story of his father building a full barn from discarded lumber, and Paul Akers cleaning a plane bathroom out of gratitude not obligation, this is lean at its most human.

You'll see how the smallest acts of respect can transform waste into value, chaos into care, and jobsites into communities that build with purpose.

If you've ever looked at a half-full dumpster and thought, there has to be a better way, this episode is for you.

Listen in and rediscover why nothing good should ever be wasted.

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw