Photo courtesy of Gilbane Building Company

Gilbane's Rising Contractor Program is designed to support diverse-owned businesses in the construction industry.

Gilbane Building Company, a global, family-owned construction management firm, announced the expansion of its Rising Contractor program, a 12-week program designed to build capacity in minority-owned, women-owned, disadvantaged, LGBTQ and veteran-owned construction companies.

The program includes virtual and in-person training as well as one-on-one mentor relationships.

"Gilbane recognizes the need to support an equitable, inclusive, and robust construction industry," said Yvette Stevens, vice president and director of economic inclusion at Gilbane Building Company. "Our Rising Contractor program is designed to support small, promising subcontractors in the industry to increase their knowledge and help open up more opportunities. We want to support contractors to build capacity and business acumen to pursue and win more work with Gilbane or any company in the industry."

More than 245 companies nationwide have graduated from the program since 2020. Over 75 companies are participating in the 2024 cohort. Gilbane is committed to generating $100 million in awards through 2026 for program graduates. This commitment is part of the company's overall pledge to award $4 billion in contracts to diverse-owned businesses through 2026.

"Being in the room with other business owners who have similar challenges in growing their business was very beneficial," said Rhoni Thompson, president and CEO of RL Cole Enterprise and a Rising Contractors graduate. "I've learned to communicate more and more confidently about business issues like insurance needs for a certain project, and that allows me to go after different projects or maybe be accepted in some more projects than I was prior to the program."

The Rising Contractor 2024 Program Agenda includes topics such as:

• Developing Financial Strength
• Getting Prequalified
• Safety
• Change Management
• Leveraging Technology
• Competing with Sustainability & Innovation
• Business Development & Marketing

"Our program is designed to provide top notch training and create relationships with Gilbane staff," said John Rodriguez, Gilbane Rising Contractor program director. "We believe deeply in the future of our Rising Contractor program graduates and are excited to support the growth of their businesses."

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