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How to Win Construction Contracts with Holder Construction | Prequalification & Bidding · The Commercial Builders’ Network (TCBN)

• speaker-0: For small and growing contractors, landing an opportunity with a major general contractor can change the trajectory of a business. But one of the biggest challenges is simply understanding how to get in the door. Where are the opportunities? How do you become a trade partner? What does pre-qualification look like? What is holder actually looking for? And once you get the first opportunity, how do you turn that into a long-term relationship? Today, We're answering those questions with Erica Purdle of Holder Construction. This speaker-1: This is speaker-0: is the Commercial Builders Network, where trust is restored, power is restored, and legacy is built. Let's get to work. Hello, beautiful people, and welcome to another episode of the Commercial Builders Network. My name is Sanisha Reed and I'm your host, and today we have the beautiful Erica Purdle. She is a senior manager over at Holder Construction. How are you doing today, Erica? speaker-1: I am doing well. How are you, Tanisha? How you all? speaker-0: Awesome. So glad to have you. speaker-1: Thank you for having me. Glad to be here. speaker-0: Awesome, awesome. So we're gonna dive right in. Please tell me if a small business wants to do business with holder construction, where do they start? speaker-1: They will ultimately start with the prequalification process. So that is the entry gate for everyone to get involved with us, basically saying that you're interested in working with us. it's not a disqualification process, it is a pre qualification process. And then I always say relationships, relationships, that people need to begin nurturing relationships with the folks that's doing the doing every day so that people keep them top of mind. And then that complements their prequalification. So Ultimately you go to our website and complete the Greek wall. speaker-0: So what type of subcontractors, trade partners, and suppliers are you guys looking to partner with? speaker-1: Because we're a general contractor, we're looking for all trades for the most part, but it depends on the project. But ultimately all your MEP trades, concrete trades, finishing trades. So for the most part, we're looking for all trades. We're always looking for new and emerging businesses to get involved on our projects. And so we're always looking for various scopes of work. speaker-0: And what does it look like to build a relationship with Holder? Is it like a slow babe? Do you guys have any programs that people can look into? Or is it kind of like meet at the meet the prime events? How does that look? speaker-1: It's basically all of the above. So we do have outreach events to increase awareness when we're having project opportunities. that's one platform that you could come to and attend and meet the players on the team. We also have a program called Holder Builds, where it's our capacity building program. And that's an opportunity to meet the precon folks, to meet the people in operations, also to connect with me. You can go to our local orgs that we participate in and go to their events because we're always typically supporting those local organizations like NAMAC, Georgia Hispanic Contractors Association and various organizations across the country. So you can attend their events. likely we'll be there as well. and then just your good old fashioned pick up the phone, email, call folks and just get to know people in that way. So what would encourage people to do is to go on our website, understand who is like procuring the opportunities that we're doing, who's in various roles like your supplier engagement positions, your precom positions. and then sometimes people come to the project sites depending on what what services they're offering. Leaving a car with our administration team, that's another opportunity to to learn people and to begin to build that relationship with various people on the project. So I will encourage you to do all all the above for the most part. speaker-0: Awesome. can we dive a bit more into your capac the program that you use to help to build the capacity of the small businesses? speaker-1: Yeah, so Holder Builds is well we have two programs or two components of the program. One part of one aspect of holder builds is that we just various topics. It will depend on what we're seeing a need is based on pre-qualifications, based on when people submit bids, we will then identify gaps in the process or gaps in the the the knowledge base of various subcontractors. And we'll create programs based around that. So some of our programs may include how to complete the pre-qualification. that may be a workshop. It could be how to pre prepare and submit a successful bid. It may be how to prepare for our scope meetings or our interviews. So some people use that terminology. It could be once you receive the bid, what do I do now that I've won the award? Now what? What are your processes once I'm on the project? And then another component of holder bills is, and it's a pilot program that we're initiating in Texas right now, and that is a program based on data centers. It's a program where it's more of your cohort style, where we have eight to ten subcontractors that is engaged for an eight-week program and it's teaching them the various aspects of tapping into the mission critical space and what that looks like when you're working with us. And then we have some of our subcontractors actually facilitating some of those classes so that you're not only getting the general contractor's perspective, you're also getting the perspective from the people are who are more like you. So if you're a general contractor, we can talk shop all the time, but when you're a subcontractor, there are some other things you have to navigate that we don't necessarily have to do. And so getting their perspective definitely will help. a smaller local business understand from that point of view as well. So we try to encompass a holistic approach of how you get involved in our projects and what to look for. And once you're on the project, what that looks like. So that is our our way of trying to bridge the gap with the firms who are wanting to work with us but are not quite ready to do so. speaker-0: I do obs absolutely love the fact that you guys are bridging the gap between small businesses that are already doing business with you guys as well as those that are looking for the opportunity, because it could also lead to opportunities outside of holders. So that is beautiful. I love that. Now, when we are looking at these prequalifications, what exactly is there some standards that pretty much the general across the board standard of of books keeping? Is there some Leniency that you guys with building relationships you're more likely to take a chance with them. How does that look for a person? Is it like square crossboard everybody has the same or is it more about the relationship that they're building with you guys? speaker-1: Well, everyone has the same entry point, which is the pre qualification process. However, we know everyone doesn't have the same capabilities or the same access. And so it will be a one on one conversation and relationship to understand exactly what it is that you need, what qualifications you might not necessarily meet, and how we can meet you where you are. So they can look different for each firm, which is why it's important for firms to be transparent. Let us know what you can do, what you cannot do, what you do have, what you don't have as it relates to the requirements to work on our projects. Because if you're transparent, that allows us to understand how we can assist, if we can assist. There's not every in every instance we may not be able to accommodate, but in some situations we may be able to do something to help bring you onto the project to kind of eliminate that barrier that you may have. So it just it's just it just depends on the project. It depends on the needs. It depends on the requirement. It depends on what they don't have. Some things we can be a little bit more lenient on and some things we just absolutely can't because it may be safety. It could be, you know, you're working in an environment that could could be harmful if we kind of skirt the line a little bit. So it just depends. And we'll we'll be transparent in what we can or cannot do. But I think it's important for subcontractors and small businesses to not just want to get engaged and take advantage of the opportunity and like, yeah, we can do it all. It's just like, no, be be transparent. Let us know what you can and cannot do and what you need in order to be successful on our projects because that's the ultimate goal is that you're successful. speaker-0: I love that you keep using the word transparent. and and on both sides, whether it's from the contractor looking for the opportunity and from you all side of being transparent back with them. because one of the big pillars of the podcast is tr building trust with the community. So for me, before I dive into how do we rebuild trust, Can you please explain to me what are some things that are keeping people from the opportunities? What are they not doing with these prequalifications? And what is keeping them from I'm not gonna say a no, but they're not yet. speaker-1: a lot of things that may be that some opportunities I will say. Some opportunities that small businesses can take advantage of is one completing the pre-qualification in its entirety. some people get distracted or discouraged because we may have a field that asks for bonding capacity, for example. But if you don't if you don't have a bond. then naturally you'll close it out and say, hey, I'm not gonna complete it when it's just say NA and then we have that conversation on, okay, w what limits can you do? We may have to, you know, cut the scope to where it's under our thresholds. Don't know, but just simply completing the pre-qualification in its entirety is one. If you're not sure, don't hesitate to pick up the phone and make a phone call to say what does this mean? Because we have people dedicated in our pre-time teams that will walk you through the pre-qualification process, answer any questions that you may have. So that's another thing. another thing that people that small businesses can be transparent on or other things that keep them from getting engaged is to continue to follow up. A lot of times, if you don't get the bid the first time, that doesn't mean stop building the relationship, stop nurturing the relationship. continue to stay in communication, continue to ask for brief debriefs to understand what could I have done differently, what what are other people doing. just kind of understand just the dynamics in which we're we're looking for your you to to engage and what what gaps you may have had. Just ask the question. A lot of people don't want to ask the question. They feel like they're being a bother or they feel like well the cards are stacked against them, which they're not. It's just a simple fact of We need to understand what you need and the only way we can do that is if you're communicating with us and letting us know what that looks like and and how we can can assist. So completing the prequalification in its entirety and follow up. Follow through and follow up. A lot of times we can request some documentation and they miss it. Sometimes it's following up timely. Sometimes you may take too long and it's like We have schedules that we have to meet. There are things that we have requirements from the client and we can't always wait. So it's a matter of simply saying, Hey, I can't get it to you. Can I submit it later? And we get those those questions sometimes like the prequall is due on this date, but you may have something going on because we understand small businesses are wearing multiple hats. The owner is the owner. He's also doing pre-con, estimating all the things. So You have to let us know that you need more time because if you don't, then it's simply you missed the the deadline and so when speaker-0: Meeting these new contractors when they are looking to build a relationship at any of these events, what would make them stand out from another person that you know, we're all going through the same process, we all want the opportunity, but what would make you say, Okay, let me see they seem to be taking this seriously. speaker-1: It is a subcontractor who knows what they do, they know all their numbers, they can answer all the questions, and they don't have to go and ask someone else. Like I'll be back and get you that answer. It's when you come to these outreach events and you're meeting the individuals that's trying to engage local and small businesses. It's like know your numbers, know what your bond capacity is, know what scopes of work you do and can communicate that. Give us some examples of projects you've worked on. And so when you know your experiences, when you know your numbers, that is what attracts us to say, hey, how can we let me take the next step and engage them? Give let me give them a phone call or let me share them with the rest of the team because I was impressed at the outreach event with their responses. But sometimes people come in and they don't know their numbers and they have to go ask somebody else. And it's like send the right person to the meeting. Who knows those answers because that's what will make you stand out from others. speaker-0: Can you please take me through like the process of introduction to receiving your first bid opportunity? What does that look like with Holder? speaker-1: With us, it looks like you've completed the prequalification and we have a two step process. So first step is the short form and then based on your answers from the short form, we'll send you the long longer form. and as long as you complete that in its entirety, and then again, continue to maintain those relationships, continue to have constant touch points with the various people on the project team, myself included, you set us up in your CRM, make quarterly check-in points with us. so you can continue building that relationship. And when you continue to build that relationship, not saying call us every day, there is keep create some space in between and where you're not a nuisance, but enough touch points throughout the year so that when we see your name, we know you attend the outreach events because when you say, Hey, I completed the prequal, I've been we see your name come across the email. We know who you are, and when we know who you are and you continue to stay engaged, and we're like, okay, what about so and so? This is a great opportunity for them. But we would have had all the conversations, we would know exactly what scopes of work you perform, we would know exactly what type of projects you can you can handle, what your capacity is, and when the opportunity presents, you're top of mind because you stay in communication. So it's like, hey, contact Reggie from, you know, such and such. to get them involved because we know who you are because we've been having these conversations with you. We see you at all the things and those are typically the ones who will get the opportunity. If you're just not a large firm who, you know, you can put your information in the prequalification system and then walk away. A lot of people don't have that ability. So in order to have an opportunity as a smaller firm, you have to com communicate and keep those touch points because we need to keep you top of mind. Otherwise we'll we'll go to who we know a lot of times because things are moving fast, you know, quickly, especially with mission critical projects. So the more you stay in touch and the more you know we know who you are and we know what your capabilities are, the the better opportunity you have with staying top of mind and getting engaged. speaker-0: Awesome. Are the opportunities only housed on your on your site or are they on like Building Connect or something like that? speaker-1: No, we use a program called SmartBid, but we do not advertise publicly. So the the entryway to our projects is the pre-qual. That is the first step and that t that then puts you into our Smartbid system. And when we have project opportunities, we're going into the system and we're looking for these scopes of work. We're looking for this this size revenue project. so everything is based on if we have a ten million dollar project. for concrete. We're going in the system. We're looking for concrete firms. We're looking for concrete firms that can perform ten million dollars. And then that's how we go into the system and find our subs. Of course, if you're top of mind and there are opportunities for us to engage smaller firms, we may take a $10 million scope of work and make it to $5 million because we know that there's a firm that can perform five million and not necessarily 10 and we want to give them give them an opportunity. So if there's an opportunity to break down packages to meet firms where they are, because we've now built built a relationship. We're now wanting to provide the opportunity to them, then we get creative and how we can break down packages to to help accommodate. speaker-0: I love how you guys are willing to break down the scope to give small businesses the opportunity. Matching that with how you were telling me about the program allows for small businesses to help they have relationships with you already to train these newer businesses coming in. What are your thoughts about JVing to come in on a project? speaker-1: I absolutely encourage joint ventures. I absolutely encourage partnerships between small businesses. That will be one of the things in our outreach events that I always mention because a lot of times you're wanting to work with us and you're not quite big enough necessarily. Joint venturing amongst each other, finding someone that has and perform the same type of scopes of work that you do, coming together as a collective to then go after larger projects, I encourage that wholeheartedly because you may have to leverage the relationship with someone else in order to get involved. But then also we may know both of you, but your scope, your bonding capacity is only five million. But if you have two fives and can make it a ten, then why wouldn't you come together? But a lot of times people are not interested in collaborating because they want the opportunity themselves. But there is so much power in collaboration, so much power in partnerships that to me that is the way to go if you're not ready to do it by yourself. And so there is so much work in the industry right now. There's there's too much work for the large firms to do. We're definitely needing the small and local mid sized businesses to get involved more so now than ever. And so when you can create space to to collaborate and work together in order to take advantage of an opportunity, I wholeheartedly encourage it. I encourage that. And then I also encourage small businesses to work alongside or up under as a sub tier to subcontractors. That's another entry point into working on larger projects. You may have to start as a sub tier and that's okay. It's it's nothing wrong with working under a larger firm in order to get your foot in the door. Because once you get your foot in the door, performance outweighs anything, always. And so when you're on a project and we're able to meet you and see what you do, that will get you invited back to the table every time because we're definitely we reward performance and a lot of our joint venture partners today started out as a subcontractor to us. And so starting out as a sub, even if you're a G C, if you self-perform work, absolutely go after as a subcontractor instead of a general contractor, because again, that's another foot in the door. So sometimes small businesses have to get creative in how they approach a project and and to get involved. speaker-0: yeah, they they was just a saying a hundred percent of zero is still zero. So J V or something if it gets you in the door. It's awesome. speaker-1: Sorry, put your pride aside. speaker-0: Absolutely. I had to learn it myself, boy. Well Well, can you tell me maybe a story without giving any confidential information of maybe a trade partner that was smaller, may not have been ready for the opportunity but kept being persistent and eventually got in and doing business with you all? speaker-1: Absolutely. I won't give any names, but we have several success stories. One that's coming to mind right away is a company that bid they were engaging on door frames and hardware scope. we had met them for the first time. I do my due diligence typically to make sure that a company is who they say they are. And I go and do site visits to their their businesses. So when I'm introducing a company to our team, I wanna make sure that I've vetted them vetted them out completely. And so I've toured this person's facility to understand like what scopes of work do you do? If you say you're a warehouse, are you truly warehousing your materials? And so we did That due diligence brought the team in, the team toured their facility to make sure, okay, hey, you do this scope of work, you do have this material in your warehouse, and so you're not far from the project. And so that's another advantage. You're close to the project, you have the materials, you do the install. And so that was a company in which we brand new engaged them just simply because they wanted the opportunity. We did our due diligence in betting them out. They welcomed us into their home for the most part, into their business to do our due diligence. We engaged them on the small scope. They performed on the small scope. We gave them a larger scope. They had some complications with the larger scope, just navigating payments and how to complete the pay payout process. And our team dug in and showed them how to do how they can strategize and create cash flow so that they can stay afloat. And so it was a collaborative effort with our team. And I hats off to the team because not you you don't have to do these things, but when you know a business is trying, they they jump foot straight, you know, right in to help that business. And that business has now like four different scopes of work on various projects for us. And so that's one opportunity. Another one we engaged a general contractor that self performed a scope on one of our projects for the first time and that they performed We asked them to do something else. They did it. They were available. And that's another thing. Sometimes when you get on the project and if you're willing and able to do something and the team is a, hey, can you do this? We know we didn't bid this out to you. We know this isn't part of your scope. You're not gonna do it for free, but you you're available and you're willing to put on this extra change order scope onto your scope of work. And they did those, took advantage of those opportunities, and now that's suck. is the joint venture partner with us on one of our projects. And so it's just a matter of and several of our joint venture projects started off as a sub, did what we asked, was willing to do what we asked, we helped them along the way. And then they just became better and and got more opportunity because of it. So again, I will say communication, transparency, because like a going back to the door frame and hardware company, he didn't have to tell us that, you know, he was having difficulty understanding the pay application process or understanding how or cash flow and how that was impacting his business. Because payment terms is paid when paid. And so sometimes that doesn't work for everybody. And a lot of times you just want to take advantage of the opportunity, but you're not forward thinking on, hey, I'm I might not get paid for 60 days. I might not get paid for 90 days because that's the terms in which you signed up for, but being transparent, And letting us know, hey, this is a a barrier for me that allows us to then step in and show you what we would do had we been in your shoes. And a lot of times people don't ask the question to get the mentorship and the coaching from the project team. They just say, hey, I'll I'll do it, and they'll suffer in silence because they're not being transparent and communicating. But take advantage of the relationships that you're building on projects. And utilize the team for coaching and mentorship because that's why you're there. When we engage small businesses, we're also understanding we may have to be a coach, we may have to be a mentor, and we're okay with that. Schedule a meeting. and sometimes we schedule a meeting for something that's not even our project. How would you navigate this? How would you how would you do this if you you were in these shoes? Our team is more than willing to give you this is what I would do. It's not necessarily take this information and run with it, but it is giving you some additional information to then go make decisions that you may have to go make for your business based on just some information that you gather from various people along the way. So take advantage of the relationship. Don't just come in and do your work and walk away. See what you can can get out of the relationship because it's a two way street. We don't just want you doing the work. We want to also pour into you as well. And so what could that look like? speaker-0: That's beautiful. Look, look, if the suffering and silence part, if that ain't a word, okay? Because how many people are I just wanna I wanna make everything look like it's all together so that I can get the opportunity when really the transparency is thinking long term building the relationship and say, I trust you with my vulnerability. How do we fix this so that I can actually be ready instead of just faking it till you make it? speaker-1: That's right. Because if you don't perform, then that limits your opportunity or your ability to come back again. Because again, we're a performance based company and we need people to do the work and do it well. And so being transparent and communicating just allows us to set you up for success because we're a team now. So we're not gonna let you fail. How do we help you get to the finish line? And so you have to you have to be transparent and again, you have to put your pride to the side always. It's a That's a team effort and if you don't know, you don't know. And that's okay. speaker-0: I also love the heart behind the service that you guys provide, that you're not just looking to get them through your project to help build them up as small businesses to be great. So that speaks volumes to you, the organization and your team. So we thank you for speaker-1: Yes, absolutely. That is something that we always say is that we want you to leave better than you can, but you have to help us understand what you need so that we can do that. We offer various trainings while you're there on site, just to make sure that we are pouring into you. But then if there's something specific that's not part of our programming, then definitely bring that to us. And because it may not only be you who need this additional information, it could be something that we turn into a lunch and learn, a a five one course you know, at five one after the project ends, we have some trainings on some projects or dependent, it may be four or five o'clock. but if you let us know where you need help or assistance or where there are gaps, and again, We're learning from you as well. We're learning how to work with small businesses. We're learning what gaps or what barriers there are maybe in the system, maybe in the process. You're bringing value to us as well. And so it's a two way street. And so when we know what you need, again, you're probably not the only one who needs this additional information. And so bringing it to the forefront just helps your your company, but then it also helps others. speaker-0: Awesome. What types of projects or scopes are you guys focused on currently at home? speaker-1: So right now we have a lot of mission critical projects, state to center projects. We have several airport projects. And so right now we're procuring those types of projects. and that's across the country. We have eight regional offices. So we're working not only in Atlanta, we're in DC, we're in Phoenix, Denver, Ohio, we're in I think I said Phoenix already, San Jose, we're in Charlotte. And so we have various regional offices across the country, but in each one is different. So we're in higher education markets, we're aviation, we're mission critical, and that's where we're currently procuring a lot of our projects right now in those industries or market sectors, I should say. speaker-0: All right, so is there any events or initiatives that are coming up, projects or anything that that you're looking for in the near future? Or how do people find out about it? speaker-1: So I would encourage people to send me an email so I can add them to our database. If you're not already part of our if you're already not prequali qualified in our database, you can send me an email, I'll add you to our database. And basically that's where we start marketing information on upcoming projects, when we're having outreach events, when we're having a hold of builds cohort. it typically will come from our database, but then we also share that information with all of our local organizations. So the NAMACs of the world, the Hispanic Contractors Association, and that's in every region. We're partner with the Regional Black Association in Texas, the Georgia Hispanic Contractors Association in Georgia, NAMAC across the country. We're sharing that information with the local organizations. The Chamber of Commerce, they typically send out our marketing material as well. And so the first step I would just say to be on the safe side, send me an email at eleger at holder dot com, which is E L I G E at holder dot com. You can send me an email, I'll add you to our database and then you will begin getting information about upcoming events and projects that way. But then again If you're interested in working with us, also complete the pre-qualification process. And then I will get your information from that platform as well. So you choose. speaker-0: Awesome. One of the main pillars I spoke about earlier with this platform is building trust. How do contractors build trust with a general contractor and or from the aspect of building trust f from the general contractor and two indices that, you know, we're invited to these events, but do we really have a fighting chance to get an opportunity or is it just a A checkbox. speaker-1: It's not a checkbox. I encourage people all the time. They're like, Eric, I'm tired of coming to these events. Continue to come to the events. All of them, if you have not had an opportunity with the general contractor or the subcontractor that you're wanting to engage with. A lot of times we do a meet prime, so that creates the platform for you to meet the subs that's working on the project. Again, I encourage sub tier participation because that's your foot in the door. Go to all the outreach events, continue to stay top of mind and meet the people. Again, because when we continue to know who you are, we continue to see you at all the things, we understand that you're serious about working with us and we don't take that for granted. We're like, hey, I see him at all the events. I see her at all the events. I talk to her every time. I want to find an opportunity to get this company involved. And that's not only coming from me, that's also coming from our project team. When they meet you personally and they understand your story and they understand How hard you're wanting to work with us and engage, keep us updated. When you had a new project and maybe the first time you came to an outreach event, you hadn't had that opportunity. But since you worked on another data center or you worked on an airport project, bring that information to us and be like, hey Erica, you know, last time we met, I hadn't did X, Y, and Z. I have now have this exposure. I'm now working on such and such. When you stay in contact and keep us a part of your journey, that definitely goes a long way. So don't get discouraged about coming to the outreach events. It is an opportunity. It just Rome wasn't built in the day. It might not happen tomorrow. It may happen a year from now. However, continue to engage, continue to stay top of mind because when the opportunity presents, we will think about you because we continue to see you. When you disappear, we forgot. And we moved on. And then you go into the database and you have to meet the qualifications and all the things. You're a filter, a search engine at that point. So build that relationship, build that trust, keep us a part of the journey by letting us know the new projects that you're working on, who you're working with now, the different opportunities you've gotten, my bond bonding capacity increased. Like keep us in the note. of all of those things. And then also keep your prequalification updated. Because again, at the end of the day, we're going we're starting there first. And then the relationship piece comes in second. We're going to start with the database. And so then it's like, who are we missing? And it can be like we're missing Tony from such and such company. He was at the outreach event. He's not on this list. Go give Tony a call because we know Tony's phone number or his email because we've talked to Tony a million times. And so don't take that for granted and don't get discouraged about coming to the outreach events. So it's not checking a box, it's increasing awareness and it's understanding the market. speaker-0: Awesome. Right now construction workforce is a huge issue. As a huge company as big as Holder is, how are you guys impacted and where are you seeing the lack? speaker-1: there's definitely a workforce shortage, especially in the MEP trades, especially with the data center market. There are so many opportunities to get engaged from a trades perspective. And so a lot of companies, including ourselves, are getting creative in how they create programs for entry-level access into our projects. And so if you're not interested in going the college route, even if you are interested in going the college route, there is still our opportunities in the construction industry for college students because there's a workforce shortage there as well because people are just not pursuing this as a career because sometimes there's a stigma that comes with construction and that everything is hammer and nails. Well that's not necessarily the case. There is finance, there's accounting, there's scheduling, there's precon, there's operations, there are so many opportunities to engage in the industry. And so like I said, people are getting creative and how you create opportunity for entry-level folks to get engaged in construction. And so we have our holderise program, which is for rising seniors, where we have a summer internship to get them excited about construction as c a career. that's one platform. A lot of our clients have similar programs and where they're getting people at entry level positions, training them for four to five, eight weeks to have construction experience and exposure and then they put them on projects. But even the with those programs, there's still a significant gap in the in the market. And we need to find strategies to create a pipeline where we can backfill these positions, especially with the boomers now retiring and we're not able to bridge the gap. and share that information with people coming into the industry before they leave. And so there's numerous opportunities from a workforce perspective to to get people excited about construction. We're going to schools and now we're going as low as elementary. Like we want you to start thinking about it early on. So we're not just tackling and targeting the high school market and middle school. We're going down to elementary, doing various projects with them to start using their hands to even understand that construction is an option for a career. In a lucrative one too, if you stay with it. speaker-0: Awesome. Get down to the baby. Start playing those seeds nice and early. speaker-1: That's right. That's right. That's right. speaker-0: Does Holder have an ask anything they're looking to partner with, any opportunities they're looking to go towards that they aren't ready already doing? What is their ask? speaker-1: Ask is always to continue to let us know who you are. Again, we don't know everybody. We don't know everyone out in the market. We're trying. We're trying to understand who the players are, but continue to engage us, to continue to come to all the things, continue to share your information with us, continue to utilize us as a resource, not just as a if you're not working on our project, that doesn't mean that we can't be resourceful or a resource to you. So let us know how we can support you. We're not only looking for people to work for us and with us, we're looking for companies. Again, there's so much work in construction, just across the country, that we just don't have enough people to do it. And so if you know people who are interested in pursuing construction, send them our way. If you're a new business, an emerging business that is wanting to engage on our projects. Definitely come and go through the process and let us know who you are. And then if there's an opportunity for us to come and speak to the youth or to organizations to share our expertise and experience and just what we're we're looking for, then definitely let us know those opportunities as well. speaker-0: Awesome. How do one more time I know you gave it throughout the the video, but your contact information or your team or where to find the opportunities or the prequalification form? speaker-1: So the pre-qualification form can be found on our website, which is www.holderconstruction.com. There is a tab on the work on the website called Trade Partners. and then when you click on that tab, then there's a another button for you to complete the pre-qualification process. Again, it's a two-step process. So that first step is just a short form letting us know that hey, I'm interested. But then when we receive that short form, then somebody from the team will reach out for you to complete the rest of the form. So that is step one. Go to our website, complete the pre-qualification process. If you have a hard time navigating the website, feel free to reach out to me directly. My email is el I-g-e at holder.com. I can assist you through the pre-qualification process. You can send me your CAP statements if you're interested in working with us. I will then add you to our database. send you information on upcoming projects. But then also if we have holder build opportunities with programming behind it. So you can just get to know us, us get to know you, and we share like how to work with us. I'll add you to that distribution list as well. And so between the two things, our website and reaching out to me directly, I'll definitely make sure you get to who it is you need to talk to directly or where it is you're trying to go. I can I can assist you. speaker-0: Awesome. Thank you so much, Erica, for your time. It's been a pleasure. speaker-1: Thank you for having me, Tanisha. It's been a it's been a it's been a joy. So thank you for for doing what you do. We definitely need this information out there. So just thank you for for what you're doing with your platform. And so appreciate you. speaker-0: Thank you.