Get the kNACk : A National Academy of Construction Podcast

National Academy of Construction

Having “the knack” is to be proficient in your industry’s ever-changing realities. Moderated by our hosts Jerry, Bill, Kevin, and Sue, Get the kNACk shares the knowledge, insights, and wisdom of NAC members to give you the skills and expertise to master your career. The Get the kNACk podcast is published by the National Academy of Construction. NAC honors outstanding construction industry leaders and shares their collective experiences and expertise to help the Nation by improving their industry.  Visit our website at: https://www.naocon.org/get-the-knack/. 

  1. 6d ago

    Challenging the Status Quo: Innovation at the Charles Pankow Foundation with Stuart Harrison

    In this episode of the Get the kNACk podcast, host Sue Steele welcomes Stuart Harrison, NAC member and Executive Director of the Charles Pankow Foundation, to discuss some of the Foundation's latest initiatives and its ongoing efforts to drive innovation across the architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) industry. The Charles Pankow Foundation has long been a leader in AEC industry research and development, supporting projects that challenge conventional practices and accelerate the adoption of new technologies, materials, and processes. Stuart shares updates on the Foundation's latest work, including efforts to accelerate construction through modularization, reduce embodied carbon in the built environment, and improve the energy performance of building envelopes. Stuart describes how these projects engage industry leaders, researchers, and practitioners from academia and the private sector, bringing together expertise from around the world to transform the industry and build a better nation. https://www.pankowfoundation.org/

    28 min

  2. Jun 4

    Productivity in the Construction Industry with Dr. Bill O'Brien

    In this episode of Get the kNACk, host Jerry Eyink welcomes Dr. Bill O’Brien, Associate Director for Technology at the Construction Industry Institute and Professor in the Department of Civil, Architectural, and Environmental Engineering at The University of Texas at Austin. Known for his research in construction productivity, advanced work packaging, and supply chain management, Dr. O’Brien discusses why productivity growth in construction has lagged behind many other industries and explores the challenges contributing to the issue. As construction serves as a critical economic enabler for countless other industries, he emphasizes the importance of addressing these productivity challenges to support broader economic growth and development. He highlights the need for stronger incentive structures and greater industry awareness, as well as strategies such as a focus on early Front-End Planning, Advanced Work Packaging (AWP) and supply chain integration that can help drive better project outcomes. Additionally, the conversation underscores that achieving lasting progress depends on strong owner leadership and industry-wide collaboration. Together, these factors can help Transform the Industry to Build a Better Nation.

    34 min
  3. Work, Life, and Family Harmony in the Construction Industry with Maggi Walker and Catherine Caputo

    May 6

    Work, Life, and Family Harmony in the Construction Industry with Maggi Walker and Catherine Caputo

    In this episode of the Get the kNACk podcast, host Jerry Eyink welcomes Maggi Walker, recipient of the 2025 NAC Richard L. Tucker Outstanding Service Award, alongside NAC 2025 scholarship recipient Catherine Caputo, a graduate student in Construction Engineering and Management at Virginia Tech. Maggi reflects on her remarkable 36 year career at Dow, where she held numerous leadership roles, including Vice President of Engineering Solutions. She shares insights from her journey as an accomplished industry leader while also prioritizing her personal life as a mother of two sons, a proud grandmother, and a partner in a 50 year marriage. Representing the next generation of construction professionals, Catherine asks Maggi how she navigated a highly successful career while maintaining a strong commitment to work-life-family harmony. The conversation highlights that work-life-family harmony should be viewed as a people issue, not solely a gender issue, creating a more inclusive space for broader solutions. Maggi emphasizes that her success stems from hard work, making values based decisions, setting clear priorities, and taking ownership of the choices that reflect them.

    36 min

  4. Apr 30

    Construction Safety Week 2026 with Adam Jelen and Steve Halverson

    Construction Safety Week 2026, taking place May 4–8, brings the industry together to spotlight the importance of health and safety. In this episode of Get the kNACk, host Sue Steele welcomes Adam Jelen, President and CEO of Gilbane Building and Chair of Safety Week 2026, alongside NAC member and Non-Executive Chairman of Gilbane, Steve Halverson. Steve offers his perspective on leadership’s role, emphasizing that safety starts with culture. It is never an area to cut corners and is built on caring for and respecting one another. Adam shares the vision for Construction Safety Week, including a five-year plan that embeds health and safety into every part of a project including total worker health to advance over all worker well-being and the jobsite of the future.  He explains how this year’s theme builds on last year’s work to continue efforts to reduce serious injuries and save lives, including creating a common framework for recognition, response and respect for high energy hazards across all projects, phases and stakeholders. This reflects a shared belief that when everyone is engaged, there is a real opportunity to transform the industry, creating healthier and safer jobsites to build a better nation. constructionsafetyweek.com https://www.constructionsafetyweek.com/technical-bulletins/

    33 min

  5. Apr 2

    How to Avoid the Trainwreck: The Value of Legal Contracts in the Construction Industry with Wendy Veniot and Shelly Ewald

    In this episode of Get the kNACk, host Jerry Eyink is joined by leading construction attorneys Wendy Veniot, Boston Office Managing Partner at Cozen O’Connor, and Shelly Ewald, Partner at Watt, Tieder, Hoffar & Fitzgerald, LLP. Drawing on extensive experience with complex disputes across the U.S. and internationally, they share practical insights on avoiding unnecessary conflict. They describe contracts as the foundation of any project that establishes expectations, allocates risk, and serves as a roadmap from start to finish. Wendy and Shelly outline strategies to ensure a successful project, emphasizing the importance of fully understanding contract terms, training teams on key conditions, and proactively addressing issues through open communication and collaboration. At its core, the conversation highlights that strong collaboration among all parties is essential to preventing the trainwreck and delivering successful project outcomes.

    39 min

  6. Mar 12

    Insights from the Construction Industry Institute's Latest Safety Research

    In this episode of Get the kNACk, host Bill O’Brien welcomes Jamie Gerbrecht to share insights on the Construction Industry Institute’s latest research on safety. Jamie, who recently retired as Executive Director of the Construction Industry Institute, has been a dedicated advocate for safety throughout his career. In this episode, he shares how CII recognized the need to update its best practices to proactively strengthen the industry, continuously improve safety performance, and drive meaningful advancement across the sector. Jamie discusses the outcomes of the research, which identified 16 safety excellence techniques divided into five categories, creating a comprehensive approach that engages all project components and practices. He explains how this integrated framework elevates safety excellence and drives a new level of performance across the industry. Additionally, Jamie touches on CII’s research examining current and emerging AI technologies in construction safety management. Together, these efforts demonstrate the importance of bringing industry and academia together to share experiences, foster innovation, and transform safety performance across the industry.  Find CII’s publications discussed on their website here:  https://www.construction-institute.org/

    30 min

  7. Feb 26

    Building Smarter: ConTech and the Future of Data Center Construction with Sandy Hamby and Brett Adamczyk

    Host Sue Steele welcomes back Sandy Hamby, President and CEO of MOCA Systems Inc., and introduces Brett Adamczyk, President of MOCA’s Software Division, which provides Touchplan®. Together, they continue the conversation on the growing demands of the data center industry and the role of construction technology in meeting them. In the last episode, the discussion focused on the many factors driving the data center boom. In this episode, the conversation explores how technology can be utilized to build smarter, more efficient data centers, and how to thoughtfully approach and implement that technology. The guests discuss how new technologies are reshaping the industry and emphasize the importance of taking a data-focused approach to enable predictive decision making for stronger risk management and improved project execution. Additionally, the guests highlight how technology empowers people to take control of their projects leading to safer, more reliable, and consistent outcomes that strengthen the industry and help build a better nation.

    33 min

  8. Feb 12

    National Academy of Construction’s 2025 Safety Symposia Recap and Highlights with Edd Gibson and Tony Leketa

    The National Academy of Construction’s 2025 Symposia Series, Introducing and Embedding Safety Culture Concepts in Undergraduate Education, brought together faculty, students, and industry professionals to introduce undergraduate students to the concept of safety culture. The goal was to promote safety as a core professional value, equip future professionals to uphold ethical standards, and reinforce the importance of safety across the construction industry. In this episode of the Get the kNACk podcast, host Sue Steele is joined by NAC President and CEO Dr. Edd Gibson and Chair of the NAC Safety Committee Tony Leketa. Together, they discuss how the symposia was developed, key lessons learned, and the lasting impact of the program.  The conversation discusses the importance of collaboration between academia and industry to advance safety culture, address critical industry challenges, and drive meaningful improvement. The symposia focused on practical elements that can be integrated into existing curricula, helping students develop a strong awareness of safety culture as part of their academic and professional training. The guests highlight how the symposia achieved measurable success, including the creation of new safety culture focused majors at top universities, equipping the next generation of construction leaders. Proceedings of the 2025 NAC Symposia Series: Introducing and Embedding Safety Culture Concepts in Undergraduate Education

    39 min
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About

Having “the knack” is to be proficient in your industry’s ever-changing realities. Moderated by our hosts Jerry, Bill, Kevin, and Sue, Get the kNACk shares the knowledge, insights, and wisdom of NAC members to give you the skills and expertise to master your career. The Get the kNACk podcast is published by the National Academy of Construction. NAC honors outstanding construction industry leaders and shares their collective experiences and expertise to help the Nation by improving their industry.  Visit our website at: https://www.naocon.org/get-the-knack/. 

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