Like many companies in the construction world, Concord Projects knows the familiar pinch: plenty of projects with not enough people to build them.

That was one of the challenges waiting for Morgan Johnson, Vice President, People and Culture, when she joined the fully diversified construction management, general contracting, and design‑build firm back in 2020.

Her strategy? Stop fishing in the same pond and start building a new one.

“If we’ve never considered how we can reach different audiences, and have only relied on traditional hiring methods, then you only get traditional applicants,” Johnson explained. “We have to engage with new groups of people in order to inspire their interest in construction.”

And that’s exactly what she’s done. But recruiting is only the first step. Once employees are in the door, you want to keep them there. That’s something Concord excels at too.

For Walter Fernandez, an accountant originally from Columbia who joined Concord Projects in April 2025, the company’s downtown office has been a welcoming environment. That’s not because of anything they do specifically for newcomers, but because they make sure the workplace is enjoyable for everyone.

“Once a month, our office staff spend lunch together in our lunchroom doing an activity, like an ugly sweater competition leading up to the holidays,” stated Fernandez. “In summer, we did a downtown tour too so we could get to know the history of the area. Those events help you feel like you’re not just coming to work, but coming to have fun with the team and your co-workers.”

Planned activities are great for helping people feel at home in a workplace. But often the best strategy for creating a welcoming environment is having people who do that naturally on a day-to-day basis.

“I have some managers who speak a little bit of Spanish,” noted Fernandez, who speaks the language fluently. “We’ve had some fun as they’ve tried to say things to me in Spanish and I’ve helped them out. It’s been a way to help me fit in.”

Mustafa Memetov, a Quality Assurance Coordinator with Concord Projects who joined the company as a carpenter in September 2024, has found the same welcoming atmosphere on Concord’s jobsites.

“I feel appreciated at Concord Projects and that I’m truly part of the Concord family,” said Memetov, originally from Ukraine. “This motivates me to set new goals, continue growing professionally, and contribute to the company’s success.”

On top of the wonderful people he works with, he credits Concord’s training programs with helping him have a smooth transition into the organization.

“The company supports professional development by offering various training courses, including language courses for newcomers. This support allows employees to grow and progress step by step within the company.”

The effort to get newcomers up to speed on their English, or decoding cultural habits, is well worth it though.

“We hired an administrative assistant from another country who was used to addressing people in a more formal manner than we’re accustomed to,” noted Johnson. “Some people might say, ‘They’re too different’. But we worked with her on her communication. All it takes is an honest conversation about expectations to help guide them.”

Difference, she believes, isn’t a challenge but an advantage. Johnson has found having people fluent in different languages to be a strength for Concord as they continue to hire more newcomers.

“I recently did a reference check with a business owner who only spoke Russian and Ukrainian, neither of which I speak,” remarked Johnson. “I asked one of my colleagues who could speak those languages to help me out.”

To Johnson, the biggest advantage of hiring Canadian newcomers is that they think about things differently and bring new ideas to the table.

“The best thing that newcomers bring is perspective that we don’t necessarily have in Winnipeg,” remarked Johnson. “That’s particularly true in a traditional industry where things have been done the same way for many years. We’re going to fall behind if we don’t keep up with what the market is doing.”

New ideas, new viewpoints, new ways of tackling old problems. For Concord Projects, engaging newcomers doesn’t just fill roles, it future‑proofs the company.