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Cole Porter | President & CEO at Porter Steel, Inc.

January 21, 2024 by Rose

North Georgia Business Radio

Cole Porter | President & CEO at Porter Steel, Inc.

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Changing Lives and Leading by Example

During this episode of North GA Business Radio, Cole Porter, President and CEO at Porter Steel, joins host Phil Bonelli for a conversation about building lasting partnerships while navigating the challenges of succession planning and generational leadership in the family business.

Cole is the driving force behind Porter Steel Inc., a family-owned business specializing in architectural and miscellaneous metals.

With a strong focus on “Changing Lives and Leading by Example,” Cole’s leadership has propelled the company’s growth beyond Atlanta into the southeast region.

He actively participates in legislative committees, advocating for the construction industry and representing the community’s interests.

Cole’s vision and commitment to excellence have elevated the company and fostered a culture of empowerment and impact within the team.

His passion for inspiring greatness and creating long-term partnerships has solidified Porter Steel Inc.’s reputation as a trusted and influential player in the construction sector.

Key Moments in this episode:

00:00:07 – Introducing Porter Steel Company
Phil Bonelli introduces Cole Porter, owner of Porter Steel Inc., and sets the stage for a discussion about the company and its operations.

00:03:22 – The Work of Porter Steel
Cole Porter explains the types of projects Porter Steel works on, from construction to architectural metals, and discusses the process of fabricating and installing steel structures.

00:05:54 – Passion for Leading People
Cole shares his passion for leading and developing people, and how he aims to change lives and lead by example through the work of Porter Steel Inc.

00:08:24 – Mission and Values
Cole talks about the mission of Porter Steel Inc., which is to change lives and lead by example, and how they aim to achieve this through their work and community involvement.

00:13:25 – Impact of Company Culture
Phil and Cole discuss the positive impact of capitalism and a strong company culture on employees and their families, emphasizing the importance of investing in people and showing them the significance of their work.

00:15:26 – Importance of Industry Engagement
Cole and Phil discuss the importance of being engaged in the overall industry to help set the right standards and laws in place. They emphasize the need for experts to be at the table to advise legislators and business leaders.

00:16:20 – Legislative Engagement
Cole highlights the importance of being involved in legislative decision-making to represent Porter Steel and the families they serve. He stresses the significance of being at the table to advocate for industry and business decisions.

00:17:02 – Community Involvement
Cole shares his involvement in various boards and nonprofit organizations, emphasizing the importance of leaving job sites and communities better than they found them. He discusses the positive impact this has on employees’ sense of purpose.

00:21:44 – Second Generation Leadership
Cole reflects on taking over Porter Steel from his father, emphasizing the importance of recognizing individual strengths and differences in leadership styles. He discusses the need for a vision and process-driven balance in a multi-generational business.

00:28:28 – Core Values
Cole discusses the significance of core values such as integrity, partnership, and the value of failing forward. He emphasizes the focus on reputation and relational approaches in business.

00:29:08 – The Importance of Vision and Mission
Phil and Cole discuss the importance of having a vision and mission in business. They emphasize the need for a clear direction and purpose to drive the company forward.

00:30:12 – Building a Culture of Accountability
Cole talks about the core values of integrity, partnership, fail forward, and owning mistakes. He highlights the importance of transparency and accountability in the workplace, encouraging employees to learn from failures.

00:31:27 – Fostering Relational Partnerships
Cole explains the significance of building relationships with employees, vendors, customers, and the community. He emphasizes the focus on teamwork and finding partners who share the same philosophy of mutual success.

00:34:05 – Transitioning into Leadership
Cole shares the unique challenges of leading a company with employees older than him. He emphasizes the importance of earning respect through experience and understanding different aspects of the business.

00:38:46 – Strategic Growth and Expansion
Cole expresses excitement about the company’s strategic growth and expansion, particularly with the addition of new shop space. He looks forward to the opportunities for the Porter Steel team in the coming year.

Joe Menello and Jon Silverman, Wicker Smith

September 20, 2023 by John Ray

Business Beat

Joe Menello and Jon Silverman, Wicker Smith

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Frazier & Deeter’s Business Beat: Joe Menello and Jon Silverman, Wicker Smith

Wicker Smith Managing Partner Joe Menello and Partner Jon Silverman joined Frazier & Deeter’s Roger Lusby and Courtney Mishoe to discuss the growth of their new Atlanta office. Joe and Jon talked about attracting legal talent to their office, their path to the legal profession, how the courts have changed in recent years, the liability defense work they do, and much more.

Business Beat is presented by Alpharetta CPA firm Frazier & Deeter and is produced by the North Fulton studio of Business RadioX®

Wicker Smith

Idus Q. Wicker and James A. Smith formed a partnership in Miami, Florida in 1952 with the goal of providing legal services of exceptional quality and creativity to their clients.

Throughout the years the firm has changed in size and scope, but the goal of providing exceptional legal representation has remained the same.

Today, Wicker Smith is a full-service trial firm deeply experienced in handling significant and complex litigation for a broad variety of clients, ranging from multinational corporations to individuals. With over 260 attorneys, Wicker Smith services its clients through a network of 16 locations in Atlanta, Brunswick, Fort Lauderdale, Jacksonville, Key Largo, Melbourne, Miami, Naples, Nashville, Orlando, Palmetto Bay, Pensacola, Phoenix, Sarasota, Tampa and West Palm Beach.

Wicker Smith offers legal services in over 30 different practice areas and has a wealth of experience handling complex litigation for a broad variety of clients, ranging from multinational corporations to individuals.

The true strength of Wicker Smith resides in their ability to recruit and tenure a talented group of attorneys and staff professionals. Recognition from their peers serves as the benchmark for their success.

Company website | LinkedIn

Joseph (Joe) P. Menello, Managing Partner, Wicker Smith

Joseph P. Menello is a partner in Wicker Smith’s Atlanta office. Mr. Menello’s civil trial practice has focused primarily on the defense of professional and corporate institutions, as well as individuals. He has defended cases involving medical malpractice, premises liability, automobile liability, general civil litigation and professional negligence, covering a wide range of complex legal and medical issues. Mr. Menello is an active member of both the Georgia and Florida Bar Associations.

Mr. Menello earned his Bachelor of Arts degree with honors in 1994 from Florida State University and continued on to receive his Juris Doctor with honors in 1998. He was admitted to practice in the State of Georgia in 2021 and the State of Florida in 1998. He is also admitted in the U.S. District Court, Middle District of Florida, Northern District of Florida and Northern District of Georgia. Mr. Menello has earned a Martindale Hubbell’s highest AV Preeminent rating from his peers. He is also an active member of the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA), Georgia Defense Lawyers Association and Claims and Litigation Management (CLM).

Jonathan Silverman, Partner, Wicker Smith

Jonathan Silverman is a Partner in Wicker Smith’s Atlanta office, where he focuses his practice on civil litigation related to general negligence, premises liability, negligent security, medical malpractice, automobile negligence, and wrongful death defense.

Before returning to Wicker Smith in 2021, Mr. Silverman was a partner at a national defense firm in Atlanta, where he focused his practice on civil litigation and insurance defense. Prior to that, he worked in Wicker Smith’s Naples, Florida office and focused his practice on civil litigation and insurance defense. He began his legal career as an Assistant Public Defender at the Office of the Public Defender, 20^th Judicial Circuit, in Fort Myers, Florida, where he handled a high volume of cases ranging from simple misdemeanors to punishable by life felonies, gaining invaluable jury trial experience along the way.

Mr. Silverman earned his Juris Doctor from Nova Southeastern University in Fort Lauderdale, Florida in 2011. Prior to that, he attended the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Florida where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in History and Political Science in 2006 and a Master of Arts in Liberal Studies in 2007. While in law school, he was a member of the Moot Court Society and Nova Trial Association, and he also completed two internships for the Miami-Dade Public Defender’s Office.

Mr. Silverman is admitted to practice in Georgia and Florida.

Frazier & Deeter

The Alpharetta office of Frazier & Deeter is home to a thriving CPA tax practice, a growing advisory practice and an Employee Benefit Plan Services group. CPAs and advisors in the Frazier & Deeter Alpharetta office serve clients across North Georgia and around the country with services such as personal tax planning, estate planning, business tax planning, business tax compliance, state and local tax planning, financial statement reviews, financial statement audits, employee benefit plan audits, internal audit outsourcing, cyber security, data privacy, SOX and other regulatory compliance, mergers, and acquisitions and more. Alpharetta CPAs serve clients ranging from business owners and executives to large corporations.

Roger Lusby, host of Frazier & Deeter’s Business Beat, is an Alpharetta CPA and Alpharetta Office Managing Partner for Frazier & Deeter. He is also a member of the Tax Department in charge of coordinating tax and accounting services for our clientele. His responsibilities include a review of a variety of tax returns with an emphasis in the individual, estate, and corporate areas. Client assistance is also provided in the areas of financial planning, executive compensation and stock option planning, estate and succession planning, international planning (FBAR, SFOP), health care, real estate, manufacturing, technology, and service companies.

You can find Frazier & Deeter on social media:

LinkedIn | Facebook | Instagram

An episode archive of Frazier & Deeter’s Business Beat can be found here.

Keys to Retaining Talent, with Eric Cooley, Strack, Inc.

August 4, 2023 by John Ray

North Fulton Studio

Keys to Retaining Talent, with Eric Cooley, Strack, Inc.

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Keys to Retaining Talent, with Eric Cooley, Strack, Inc.

Eric Cooley: I think a lot of construction has high turnover and we’re not that different as it comes to that and that’s one thing we’re really focused on.

We’ve had to, as we’ve tried to grow, we’ve also had to replace. But I think, the key things we look at is, we start training from day one. So a lot of folks from an orientation perspective, they may come in, have you just sign some papers. We’re running a four day orientation program right now. Come in, you learn the standard operating procedures for the company, get safety training, you have an opportunity to go through we’ve got equipment simulators to get familiarization with the equipment. And really making that investment starting in day one.

I think living out our core values, that’s something that’s key to trying to retain them. If we’ve sold them on something, it’s important that we live that out. They’re able to see that demonstrated to hold on to them.

I think Jonathan touched a little bit on the training. So we’ve got this frontline leadership training program we built. We’re also building an operator training program where we’ve promoted four guys from inside the business and they’re going to go out and help on the job sites to help train and really bring up the level of experience and understanding to some of the newer employees.

Because part of this, attracting new talent means we might be looking at folks from other industries.

Listen to Eric’s full ProfitSense with Bill McDermott interview here.

The “One Minute Interview” series is produced by John Ray and the North Fulton studio of Business RadioX® in Alpharetta. You can find the full archive of shows by following this link.

Renasant Bank has humble roots, starting in 1904 as a $100,000 bank in a Lee County, Mississippi, bakery. Since then, Renasant has grown to become one of the Southeast’s strongest financial institutions with over $13 billion in assets and more than 190 banking, lending, wealth management and financial services offices in Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, Georgia and Florida. All of Renasant’s success stems from each of their banker’s commitment to investing in their communities as a way of better understanding the people they serve. At Renasant Bank, they understand you because they work and live alongside you every day.

John Murray with JAMMIN’ DJs and Jeff Ordner with Ordner Construction

August 3, 2023 by Mike

Gwinnett Business Radio

John Murray with JAMMIN' DJs and Jeff Ordner with Ordner Construction

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Harper Lebel, John Murray, Jeff Ordner, Mike Sammond

John Murray/JAMMIN’ DJs

JAMMIN’ DJs is an award winning DJ company that specializes in exceptional and trusted event entertainment, decor/uplighting and photo booth services. They know how important entertainment is for your special event, and they take every measure to make sure your event is a success. JAMMIN’ DJs is the perfect choice for any event. They provide DJ entertainment, decor/up-lighting, photo booth services, production lighting services, silent disco, and atmospheric effects including cold sparks.

Jeff Ordner/Ordner Construction

Ordner Construction Company is a privately held general construction firm specializing in industrial, retail, office, medical, institutional, and interior construction projects. Since its inception in 1987, they have earned a sound reputation with clients for providing a high level of technical construction services in a safe work environment.

Ordner Construction will hold its 12th Annual Run 4A Reason 5K Race on Saturday, November 11, 2023 in Duluth, GA.

Gwinnett Business Radio is presented by

Using Social Media in the Construction Industry, with Jonathan Strack, Strack, Inc.

July 20, 2023 by John Ray

North Fulton Studio

Using Social Media in the Construction Industry, with Jonathan Strack, Strack, Inc.

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Using Social Media in the Construction Industry, with Jonathan Strack, Strack, Inc.

Jonathan Strack: In our industry, my view was stay off social media because you don’t want to attract any needless attention to what you’re doing. It’s already risky business. But anything that’s on a social media platform, that’s your best attraction and retention tool. And that really legitimizes what you’re doing now.

We’ve gotten business based off our social media presence, especially when we started grading, we’d been primarily a pipe contractor, most of my life. And as we started doing earthwork, that was a definite change in perception for the industry. And. as we were trying to win some work, I’d have conversations with really large clients and said, Hey, we see what you’re doing on social media, you look like, you know what you’re doing, we trust you, you’ve been in business 70 something years.

And we’ve worked with you before in other places. Hey, come on we’re willing to give you a shot. And that really perked me up and surprised me. So I’ve become. A lot more open to exposing ourselves to what we do. And I think, the other piece is, you got to be willing to accept some failure and learn from it.

Sure. That we’ve definitely had some of that along the way.

Listen to Jonathan’s full ProfitSense with Bill McDermott interview here.

The “One Minute Interview” series is produced by John Ray and the North Fulton studio of Business RadioX® in Alpharetta. You can find the full archive of shows by following this link.

Amanda Pearch chats with Asif Jessani of CCS Atlanta Marketing Technology and Cameron Marmolejo of Imagination Construction & Outdoor

June 27, 2023 by Amanda Pearch

Forsyth Business Radio

Amanda Pearch chats with Asif Jessani of CCS Atlanta Marketing Technology and Cameron Marmolejo of Imagination Construction & Outdoor

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Asif Jessani of CCS Atlanta Marketing & Technology and

Cameron Marmolejo of Imagination Construction & Imagination Outdoor

Asif Jessani Partner at CCS Atlanta Marketing & Technology

With a passion for marketing, technology, and operational effectiveness, CCS is committed to positively impacting their clients and communities. Striving to provide clients with the best and most flexible consulting services and most competitive hardware, software, and cloud-based tools. Their goal is to enhance your organization’s internal and external processes while keeping the organization’s culture in mind. CCS utilizes a multi-level approach to review a company’s communication and technology processes which includes discovery, execution, and evaluation.

Cameron Marmolejo Owner & President of Imagination Construction &

Imagination Outdoor

The team at Imagination Construction LLC aim to make your design ideas a reality! Imagination really is the first step. With nearly two decades of commercial and residential construction experience, the team will implement your precise vision or collaborate with you to create something new. Imagination uses cutting edge technology to draft, design, construct.

Imagination Outdoor (a division of Imagination Construction) is a professional tree service and landscaping company located in Cumming, Georgia, serving the northeast Atlanta area. Their mission is to create beautiful outdoor spaces that exceed our clients’ expectations. We accomplish this by using high-quality machinery and materials, and by relying on the expertise of our experienced and certified professionals. Imagination is Veteran owned and operated, fully licensed and insured.

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Podcasts by Amanda Pearch

Stephen Williams & Jordan Sapp of ATL Construction

June 19, 2023 by Amanda Pearch

Forsyth Business Radio

Stephen Williams & Jordan Sapp of ATL Construction

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Stephen Williams & Jordan Sapp- Owners of ATL Construction

ATL Construction is headquartered in Jasper, Georgia. They pride themselves on being reliable, local company that offers a range of construction services to meet your needs.

“Customer service and relationship development are paramount to our success” ~Co-Owner Stephen Williams

” With decades of combined experience, we are able to assist with a verity of projects” ~ Co-Owner Jordan Sapp

Interested in connecting with a team member? Email Stephen.atlpw@gmail.com or call their office at (404) 932-9230

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This episode is presented by our #CommunityPartners at:

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Podcasts by Amanda Pearch

HBS Legal Trends: Mark McGivern, Construction Consulting Associates, and Joseph F. Herbert III, Hall Booth Smith, P.C.

September 7, 2022 by John Ray

Hall Booth Smith Podcast Network

HBS Legal Trends: Mark McGivern, Construction Consulting Associates, and Joseph F. Herbert III, Hall Booth Smith, P.C.

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HBS Legal Trends: Mark McGivern, Construction Consulting Associates, and Joseph F. Herbert III, Hall Booth Smith, P.C.

When handling construction-related litigation, Joseph Herbert, Partner and Co-Chair of the Construction Practice Group at Hall Booth Smith, will often call in an independent third-party expert such as Mark McGivern, CEO of Construction Consulting Associates (CCA). On this edition of HBS Legal Trends, Joe and Mark discussed their own backgrounds and experience, how attorney and third-party experts work together on a case, why an investment in the services of an independent expert firm such as CCA lowers the overall cost of litigation, and much more.

HBS Legal Trends is sponsored by Hall, Booth, Smith, PC and is produced by the North Fulton studio of Business RadioX®.

Construction Consulting Associates, LLC (CCA)

Resolving complex problems for the built environment for legal, insurance, building owner/management, and construction industries.

At CCA, they have one goal: To become a trusted partner helping solve your architectural, engineering, construction, and health, safety, and environmental problems. Since its founding in 1990, CCA has worked tirelessly to bring comprehensive services to its clients. They identify problems and work diligently to solve them for clients, from developers, owners, and property managers who often need help when dealing with building, site, construction, and health, safety, and environmental issues; to lawyers and insurance companies who need experts to help resolve related disputes.

As a single-source provider, they bring to your problem decades of experience in every construction-related discipline including architecture, engineering, mechanical systems, construction management, project management, industrial hygiene, environmental health and safety, hazardous and materials. Their skilled experts are trustworthy and collaborative and will work with you to deliver elegant, high-quality solutions.

CCA has a 360-degree solution for the architectural, engineering, and construction industry. No matter how simple or complex the challenge, they are committed to you to get the best possible result for your problem.

Company Website |LinkedIn

Mark McGivern, CEO, Construction Consulting Associates, LLC (CCA)

As a founding partner of CCA, Mark McGivern works tirelessly to give clients what they need: successful projects, expert opinion, and comprehensive investigations. He has the extraordinary ability to grasp an abundance of details while providing clients with simple solutions to some of the world’s most complex design and construction situations.

With more than 30 years of experience managing construction and design professionals, Mark is principally responsible for the planning and management of CCA’s technical investigations, particularly cases involving complex litigation. He is also CCA’s senior construction specifier for design projects and plays an active role in CCA’s architectural design process.

Mark has extensive practice and knowledge in the fields of design, construction, estimation, and analysis of building systems, and construction methods and practices. His project planning and management experience ranges from small- and large-scale residential, industrial, and commercial construction projects, to complex, in-depth investigations into the causes and origins of building failures—as well as cost estimation and analysis of appropriate methods of remediating such failures.

Mark has qualified as an expert in countless construction and design failure cases in courts and arbitration matters throughout the country – judges and arbitration panels have consistently held that his qualifications and testimony met all Daubert-type standards. In trials, mediations, and arbitrations, he has given expert testimony regarding building codes, construction methods, standard of care, industry standards and practices, cost estimation, and apportionment of responsibility.

Mark has given numerous lectures and presentations, with particular emphasis on comparative construction and performance analyses of various methods and products utilized in the field.

He holds affiliations with the Construction Specifications Institute (CSI), The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), The Community Associations Institute (CAI), American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), and ASCE Construction Council.

Hall Booth Smith, P.C.

Established in 1989, Hall Booth Smith, P.C. (HBS) is a full-service law firm with six regional offices strategically located throughout Georgia, as well as offices in Birmingham, AL; Little Rock and Rogers, AR; Denver, CO; Jacksonville, Miami, St. Petersburg, Tallahassee, Tampa, and West Palm Beach, FL; Missoula, MT; Asheville and Charlotte, NC; Saddle Brook, NJ; New York, NY; Oklahoma City, OK; Charleston, SC; and Memphis and Nashville, TN.

Experienced across a wide range of legal disciplines, HBS prides itself on providing knowledgeable, proactive, client-specific counsel to individuals, domestic and international corporations, state and federal agencies, and nonprofit organizations.

At HBS they possess the legal knowledge, skill, and experience to meet our clients’ needs wherever they do business. HBS maintains the highest commitment to serve clients ethically and professionally by providing the highest quality legal representation.

Company Website | LinkedIn | Facebook

Joseph F. Herbert III, Partner, Hall Booth Smith, P.C.

Joseph F. Herbert III is a Partner in our Red Bank, New Jersey office and the Co-Chair of the Construction Practice Group. As a practicing litigator since the mid-90s, Joe has participated in and supervised all facets of a civil litigation caseload, as both defendant’s and plaintiff’s counsel, in both state and federal court.

He has extensive experience in high value, high profile cases, including multi-million dollar construction defect cases, wrongful death/murder, sexual molestation defense, premises security, fire, Dram Shop, catastrophic and high-value personal injury, property damage, contract, lease review and negotiation, and some medical malpractice cases through all phases of litigation including case evaluation, discovery, mediation, settlement, trials, and appeal.

He joins HBS after spending the last 8 years as a managing partner in a New Jersey law office where he prepared and implemented firm procedures and budgets and hired and oversaw attorneys and staff. Joe was included in the 2023 edition of The Best Lawyers in America® for construction litigation.

Joe earned his J.D. from New York Law and graduated with a B.S. in Communications Arts and Sciences with a Minor in Business Administration from St. John’s University. During law school Joe served as an intern/clerk for the Honorable Harold Baer in the United States District Court, Southern District of New York.

Outside of practicing law, Joe’s interests include golf, sports, travel, and photography.

Garrett Erath & Brad Scarberry of Exodus 36 Creations join Host Randy Brunson on “Stewarding family Wealth” ep1

August 16, 2022 by Amanda Pearch

Forsyth Studio

Garrett Erath & Brad Scarberry of Exodus 36 Creations join Host Randy Brunson on "Stewarding family Wealth" ep1

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“Stewarding Family Wealth” featuring Garrett Erath & Brad Scarberry of

Exodus 36 Creations join Host Randy Brunson

The founders of Exodus 36 Creations, Garrett Erath and Brad Scarberry, met in college and discovered a shared love for business and the construction industry. Both moved to the Gwinnett area with their families and e36 was born where all great companies start… in a garage.

What started as a weekend side hustle making furniture, grew into some custom carpentry in customers’ homes. As the reputation of the organization grew, so did the demand for minor interior renovations. From there, the projects and demand continued to grow. Today e36 is quickly becoming one of Georgia’s premier design build firms specializing in kitchens, bathrooms, and full home renovation.

HOST Randy Brunson is the President of Centurion Advisory Group. He studied engineering and marketing at UT Chattanooga. Randy currently holds the Accredited Investment Fiduciary (AIF®) and CKA designation and makes it a priority to stay on top of his knowledge in the financial industry through continuing professional educational opportunities and reading. Randy has completed studies in qualified plan design, estate planning and business transition planning and he enjoys speaking and writing on these topics.