6 Tips to Turn Construction Culture Into Daily Practice 

By

Katie Boyer

and Taylor Riso

Last Updated Feb 6, 2026

By

Katie Boyer

and Taylor Riso

Every construction company has a culture. Whether it’s intentional or not. The difference lies in how that culture shows up on the job. 

In the first article of this series on cultural transformation, we examined how Ryan Gootee General Contractors (RGGC), a New Orleans–based firm, recognized a key risk: a strong but informal company culture driven primarily by individual leaders. That realization marked a turning point in how the company approached growth. In the second article, we discussed how RGGC turned those values into workflows and successfully operationalized their culture.

RGGC discovered that strong values alone weren’t enough to sustain growth. By defining those values, documenting what they looked like in practice, and embedding them into everyday systems, the company turned culture into a measurable advantage. 

The lessons learned from RGGC’s journey offer practical takeaways for builders looking to strengthen communication, improve consistency, and create teams that perform with purpose.

1. Make time for culture work.

Culture doesn’t evolve between deadlines: It takes time, space, and intent. For construction teams, that often means slowing down long enough to look ahead. 

If you want to invest in culture, don’t wait for the perfect time. Look three or six months ahead and carve out the time now — because your calendar will fill up either way.

Katie Boyer

Director of Operational Excellence

RGGC

At RGGC, setting aside time for culture work became as routine as tracking production. Those hours turned into structured conversations about goals, values, and team development, creating proof that reflection can drive results as much as execution. 

How to apply it:

• Incorporate culture-related topics into quarterly or monthly meetings. 

• Use part of project closeouts to reflect on lessons learned and team growth. 

• Protect time for training and development before schedules fill with project deadlines.

• Treat culture like preventive maintenance.

2. Standardize the everyday.

Small inconsistencies add up. RGGC found that different teams used different acronyms, formats, and procedures, which was creating confusion and slowing progress.

By aligning terminology and documentation, the company made clarity the norm, not the exception. 

How to apply it: 

• Establish one shared language for key processes such as change orders, RFIs, and submittals. 

• Use standardized templates for recurring documents to streamline reviews and approvals.

• Hold brief, recurring check-ins to reinforce consistency and address gaps before they grow. 

3. Lead with humility.

When experienced leaders join a new company, there’s always a learning curve. At RGGC, even senior hires start by learning the company’s systems from the ground up. The goal isn’t to test their expertise, it’s to build shared understanding. 

When experienced leaders join the team, we’re upfront with them — learning our systems takes time, and  it often means asking questions or learning from someone younger or who is at a different level. That kind of openness sets the tone for collaboration across the firm.

Michael DeGruy

President

RGGC

This approach turns leadership into a shared responsibility. By modeling openness and participation, managers earn credibility and make collaboration the default setting. 

4. Make feedback a routine.

Feedback can be uncomfortable, but silence is worse. RGGC learned that steady, honest feedback (both positive and constructive) creates trust and strengthens communication across teams. As David Barbier, RGGC's Executive Vice President, puts it: "Clear feedback builds clarity and confidence. People want to know where they stand, and that starts with consistent conversations, not just performance reviews."

How to apply it: 

• Integrate short feedback moments into weekly meetings or project huddles.

• Call out specific examples when someone demonstrates company values.

• Encourage feedback to move in every direction: peer to peer, field to office, and leader to team. 

5. Create space for roles that build the business from within.

Strong cultures don’t maintain themselves. They need people dedicated to shaping, teaching and protecting them. For RGGC, that meant creating a new position focused entirely on operational excellence. 

That need for structure became clear as training new and mid-level team members grew harder. They weren’t underperforming; they were capable, but without consistent systems, they were spinning their wheels.

Creating the Director of Operational Excellence role gave RGGC someone to define that structure, align processes, and turn shared values into repeatable practices. 

The role wasn’t about adding another layer of management — it was about connecting people, process, and culture. By giving someone ownership of how values translate into everyday work, RGGC turned good intentions into measurable results. 

How to apply it: 

• Identify where your company’s culture work lives — if it’s 'everbody's job,' it might be nobody's job.

• Designate or hire a leader to bridge operations, training, and culture.

• Measure that role by clarity and consistency, not just output.

6. Reinforce culture through small actions.

Culture lasts when it’s visible in everyday work. At RGGC, care for people shows up in the simple day-to-day routines, shared lunches on jobsites, check-ins between field and office, and genuine appreciation for effort. 

Over time, those small gestures reshaped how teams interacted. Conversations became more open, collaboration felt easier, and relationships across roles grew stronger. The result was greater awareness of how respect and empathy improve performance. 

CEO Ryan Gootee said it himself: "Caring about your people doesn’t require grand gestures. Even small actions — like asking how  someone’s really doing — go a long way in making construction feel more human in an industry that often overlooks that."

How to apply it: 

• Find small, repeatable ways to connect teams, such as shared meals, regular check-ins, or visible on-site recognition.

• Reinforce values through consistent actions, not occasional announcements. 

• Keep adjusting as the company grows to make sure new habits stay authentic.

Culture as Daily Practice

Culture isn’t built once; it’s built every day.

RGGC’s experience shows that when values are supported by systems, humility, and feedback, they become part of how work gets done. Slowing down to invest in people and process builds stronger teams and, in turn, stronger projects.

Written by

Katie Boyer

Director of Operational Excellence | RGGC

Katie Boyer is the Director of Operational Excellence with a distinguished background in project management and a proven track record of delivering successful construction projects. In her current role, Katie drives organizational performance by coaching team members to reach their highest potential, implementing best practices, and ensuring the company’s core values are embodied in every aspect of operations. Her comprehensive approach to excellence bridges internal processes and external deliverables, creating a culture of continuous improvement that translates directly to superior client outcomes and sustainable growth. Katie’s unique blend of technical expertise and leadership skills enables her to transform operational challenges into opportunities for innovation and team development. A New Orleans native and LSU graduate, Katie carries her love of learning into everything she does. Outside the office, she embraces new challenges through new recipes and various DIY project. If she hit the lottery, you’d find Katie on the ski slopes every day listening to good music and chasing fresh powder with her husband.

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Taylor Riso

Contributing Writer

94 articles

Taylor Riso is a marketing professional with more than 10 years of experience in the construction industry. Skilled in content development and marketing strategies, she leverages her diverse experience to help professionals in the built environment. She currently resides in Portland, Oregon.

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