Incentives, integrity underscore Nabholz commitment to people

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Posted online June 16, 2021 | 12:00 am

“I feel like a lot of companies state their values but not all of them live by them. At Nabholz, we do a phenomenal job of living those stated values,” said Gregg Scholtens, executive vice president of operations with Nabholz Construction. “The common denominator to our corporate values is integrity,” said Scholtens. “Bob Nabholz said that the minute we stopped working with integrity, he wanted his name taken off the door.”

Started as a small family-owned construction company founded by Bob Nabholz in 1949, Nabholz has grown into a sizeable, multi-discipline, employee-owned firm with locations across seven states. Nabholz employees are guided by a simple purpose — grow our people; serve our clients; build our communities. The firm has also expanded its definition of “integrity” to include four guiding principles: service, quality, safety, and innovation. To Scholtens, integrity means not only doing the right thing but going that extra mile for clients, providing quality work, prioritizing employee safety over all else, and encouraging employees to constantly innovate and improve.

“We see it lived day in and day out at Nabholz,” said Scholtens, citing the large volume of repeat clientele the firm retains. “Integrity motivates our purpose and guiding principles and is the foundation for every project we touch.”

Integral to integrity is valuing people. Nabholz is a leader in construction job site safety and continually offers advancement opportunities for its employees through its internal Nabholz University program. “Whether for field staff or management, we provide continuing education, always helping people to advance in their career,” said Scholtens. “We have story after story of someone starting with us as a laborer who is now a project manager or a superintendent or a vice president.”

Nabholz also offers an employee wellness program at no cost to employees and their spouses. The program has been recognized as a model wellness program by the CDC. Yearly health screenings are provided and there are results based incentives with 99% of participants receiving a monetary reward based on improvements in their results. The company’s First Step program provides annual reimbursement for things like field employees’ work boots, athletic shoes for employees to use for working out, employee gym memberships, tobacco cessation programs and more. Nabholz also has a doctor that employees and spouses can see for free and with reduced wait times than a typical clinic. “We want our folks to be here long term and we want them healthy and safe,” said Scholtens. “We want them to know we care by investing in them.”

“We value every single person we work with and for,” said Scholtens. “Whether it’s clients or subcontractors, design partners or employees, there is a mutual respect.” He said that honest communication is key but that everything always comes back to that core value of integrity.