Change Management Episodes

Construction leaders spend a lot of time talking about budgets, schedules, productivity, and technology. But what if those aren't the real challenge? In this episode of Activating Curiosity™, Ryan Ware sits down with Casey Bell, CEO of Aecore and Co-Founder of Buildzen, to explore a different perspective: What if the biggest challenge in construction is the construction experience itself? Drawing from his experience building both a commercial general contracting company and a constructi...

Construction doesn’t have a building problem—it has an information problem. In this episode, Ryan Ware talks with Patrick Murphy, founder of Togal.AI and Chief Innovation Officer at Coastal Construction, about the enormous data and process complexity facing modern construction. They explore how AI-powered tools and better information management could revolutionize estimating, preconstruction, permitting, and project delivery to reduce costs, speed up timelines, and help solve the housing affordability crisis. Along the way, they highlight the critical role of humans in adopting technology and how reducing repetitive tasks creates more time for value-added work in the industry.

Industrialized construction goes beyond prefabrication to reshape how buildings are designed and delivered. In this episode of Activating Curiosity™, Ryan Ware talks with Melanie Taylor, Vice President of BILDT, about how leadership, early collaboration, and Design for Manufacturing and Assembly (DfMA) are key to overcoming labor shortages and improving project outcomes. They explore how redefining construction standards can create lasting value for projects, people, and communities alike.

Construction has spent decades improving physical safety. Hard hats. Harnesses. Glasses. Training. Procedures. PPE. But what about the things we can't see? In this episode of Activating Curiosity™, Ryan Ware sits down with Dina Fodero, speaker, certified Enneagram Practitioner, and creator of I-PPE™ (Invisible Personal Protective Essentials), to explore the human side of safety in construction. Together, they unpack why protecting people may require us to think beyond physical safety to psych...

For over 20 years, the construction industry has discussed prefabrication, modular construction, and industrialized construction as solutions to labor shortages, productivity challenges, and project inefficiencies. Yet, adoption has been slower than many expected. Why? In this episode of Activating Curiosity™, Ryan Ware sits down with Josh Mensinger, President of Integrity Built Texas and Prefab, to reveal a hard truth often overlooked: The biggest barriers to prefabrication aren't technical—...

Construction leadership culture shapes how teams work, perform, and respond to change. Yet across the construction industry, burnout has quietly become an accepted measure of commitment, leadership, and success. But what if burnout isn't evidence of high performance? What if it's evidence that we've accepted the wrong standard? In this episode of Activating Curiosity™, Ryan Ware sits down with executive leadership coach Julie Riga to explore construction leadership development, workplace cult...

Construction delays are often blamed on labor, cost, or materials—but what if the real problem starts much earlier, during design? In this episode of Activating Curiosity™, Ryan Ware sits down with Robb Andrade of Overcast Innovations to explore how siloed design decisions create downstream friction, rework, and unnecessary change. Instead of focusing on what happens in the field, this conversation shifts upstream—where critical decisions are often made without full visibility into how they im...

In this episode of Activating Curiosity™, we explore a hard truth about construction: we’re not just facing a labor shortage—we’re facing a productivity problem. If the construction industry is “busy” every day, why are projects getting slower, more expensive, and harder to deliver? This conversation challenges the idea that we’re solving problems and reveals how often we’re just firefighting symptoms like rework, delays, and inefficiency. Ryan Ware sits down with Wayne Larsen, CEO of PT Blink...

What happens when architects and construction leaders stop accepting the limits of traditional building materials—and start asking better questions? In this episode of Activating Curiosity™, Ryan Ware sits down with Allison Dring, CEO and Co-Founder of Made of Air, to explore how discomfort drives curiosity, innovation, and change in the built environment. Explore how biochar is becoming a key tool for sustainable building practices and climate action in the construction industry. With the con...

What if the AEC industry’s biggest challenge isn’t a staffing shortage—but a work model problem? In this episode of Activating Curiosity™, Ryan Ware sits down with Erin Fantozz, Founder of EFDesigns, to explore how architecture and construction firms are navigating a deeper shift in leadership, change management, and the future of work. As workforce pressure continues across the AEC industry, many firms focus on hiring more people without rethinking how work is structured. This conversation c...