Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in construction, restoration, and small-scale manufacturing face unique cultural challenges and opportunities. These industries in British Columbia (particularly on Vancouver Island) are often hands-on and traditional, yet they must adapt to modern expectations for high performance, inclusivity, and flexibility. Building a strong organizational culture is not just a “nice to have” – it drives tangible business results like productivity, innovation, employee retention, and even financial performance (The ROI of Positive Workplace Culture: How to Measure It?) (Diversity & Inclusion Professionals Champion Web Accessibility | News | Recite Me). This report examines three key cultural development areas for SMEs (with ~$1.5M–$20M annual revenue) in these sectors: (1) Building high-performance cultures; (2) Advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI); and (3) Adapting to remote and hybrid work. Each section provides recent insights (from the past 3 years), real-world examples, ROI metrics, and best-practice roadmaps relevant to BC and Vancouver Island businesses.
High-performance culture is defined as an environment where employees are highly effective in supporting business goals, feel aligned with shared values, and are motivated to exceed their goals (High-Performance Culture: What It Is and How to Create It | Article | Lattice). In practice, this means cultivating shared values, employee empowerment and autonomy, and clear accountability throughout the organization – all of which drive superior performance.
SMEs that establish shared core values and a strong sense of purpose see higher employee engagement and loyalty, which translates to better performance. Employees who say their company’s mission and values align with their own are far more likely to see their work as meaningful (72% vs. 29%) and to recommend their employer as a great place to work (Employees who feel aligned with company values are more likely to stay - Qualtrics). They are also less likely to consider leaving (33% vs. 44% turnover intent) (Employees who feel aligned with company values are more likely to stay - Qualtrics). In short, when people believe in the values of the company, they invest more effort and commitment. A survey by Qualtrics in 2022 found nearly half of employees would consider leaving a company that doesn’t live up to its espoused values, and over 50% wouldn’t even consider an employer with conflicting values (Employees who feel aligned with company values are more likely to stay - Qualtrics). For construction and manufacturing SMEs, this underlines the importance of values like safety, quality, integrity, and teamwork – often literally life-or-death in these fields – being more than posters on a wall. Companies that “walk the talk” on values create a culture of trust that boosts morale and productivity.
Real-world examples in BC illustrate this. Ventana Construction, a Lower Mainland/Vancouver Island contractor, attributes its growth to what it calls the “Ventana Way” – a relationship-focused approach grounded in trust and fairness. This culture of putting “the human component” first has been carefully nurtured even as the company grew, emphasizing relationships in every hire, review, and project discussion (Ventana Construction: Relationships to Build On - BC Business) (Ventana Construction: Relationships to Build On - BC Business). The result is a positive team culture recognized in external awards: Ventana was named one of BC’s Top Employers and Canada’s Top SMEs in 2023, thanks to how its teams foster camaraderie, support community initiatives, and collaborate on shared goals (Ventana Construction: Relationships to Build On - BC Business). Leaders explicitly focus on not sacrificing these cultural values as the company expands (Ventana Construction: Relationships to Build On - BC Business). Such alignment of values at all levels yields tangible business benefits – Ventana enjoys high client repeat business (“we only consider a project successful when a client asks us to build their next” is their ethos) and pride among staff who say “We built that,” indicating strong engagement and ownership (Ventana Construction: Relationships to Build On - BC Business) (Ventana Construction: Relationships to Build On - BC Business).
In high-performance cultures, employees feel empowered and autonomous, which fuels engagement and innovation. Research shows that when employees are highly engaged, they go the extra mile, overcome obstacles, and stay committed, leading to better performance (High-Performance Culture: What It Is and How to Create It | Article | Lattice). One study found that giving employees more autonomy in how they do their work increases motivation – high-performing cultures nurture this by letting people make decisions and take ownership of outcomes (High-Performance Culture: What It Is and How to Create It | Article | Lattice). In SMEs, an advantage is often a flatter structure that enables quicker decision-making and less bureaucracy; leveraging that to grant workers more trust and autonomy can pay off in productivity.
At the same time, a culture of accountability is key to performance – everyone must own their responsibilities and commitments. In the construction industry, which is prone to missed deadlines and budget overruns, establishing clear accountability can improve project outcomes and customer satisfaction (Creating a Culture of Accountability in Your Construction Business) (Creating a Culture of Accountability in Your Construction Business). Accountability is not about blame, but about creating a proactive environment where people feel responsible for the team’s success (Creating a Culture of Accountability in Your Construction Business). For example, a 2024 industry briefing noted that construction firms investing in accountability (through goal setting, transparent metrics, and leadership modeling) see improved employee morale and project performance (Creating a Culture of Accountability in Your Construction Business). Leadership must model this behavior – admitting mistakes, following through on promises – to set the tone (Creating a Culture of Accountability in Your Construction Business). Tools and practices that provide visibility (e.g. project management dashboards) help reinforce accountability by making progress or lapses clear to all (Creating a Culture of Accountability in Your Construction Business).
An empowered workforce that is also accountable tends to be high-performing because employees take initiative but also align with organizational goals. A CEO interviewed by Lattice in 2023 summed it up: high-performance culture is a combination of inspired leadership, smart goal alignment, and **“systems of accountability, cooperation and support”**that enable people to do their best work (High-Performance Culture: What It Is and How to Create It | Article | Lattice). SMEs in restoration and manufacturing benefit from this as well – for instance, small fabrication shops that give teams autonomy to improve their processes often see efficiency gains, as workers on the front line find creative solutions when they feel trusted and responsible.
Building a high-performance culture in construction, restoration, and manufacturing SMEs comes with some unique challenges. Frontline vs. office divide is one issue in construction: field crews may feel disconnected from company culture compared to office staff. An industry survey found 81% of office employees had a close friend at work, but only 50% of field employees did (Why culture in construction matters (and how to make it better)). Likewise, only half of field staff felt they had work-life balance, versus 75% in office roles (Why culture in construction matters (and how to make it better)). This gap can hurt overall culture and performance if not addressed. SMEs can tackle this by deliberately bridging the divide – e.g. involving site crews in company communications, team-building events that include field workers, and ensuring site supervisors champion the same values of respect and teamwork on-site as in the office. BC’s construction sector has recognized this: initiatives like the Builders Code (discussed more in Section 2) encourage consistent standards of conduct and respect on worksites to make everyone feel included and safe, not just the office staff (BCCA’s Builders Code helps build positive worksite cultures) (BCCA’s Builders Code helps build positive worksite cultures).
Another challenge is the tight labor market and “old-school” industry habits. Amid a skilled trades shortage, SMEs may feel pressure to simply “get bodies on site,” but culture is actually a key lever for attracting and keeping talent (Why culture in construction matters (and how to make it better)) (BCCA’s Builders Code helps build positive worksite cultures). Younger workers (Gen Z) have different expectations – they value autonomy, purpose, and a healthy culture over the grueling work conditions their predecessors accepted (Why culture in construction matters (and how to make it better)). High-performance SMEs are responding by emphasizing work-life balance and respect. For example, some BC construction firms have introduced flexible scheduling or improved conditions for crews to show they value employees as more than just labor. Kinetic Construction, an employee-owned Vancouver Island contractor, credits its success to adhering to core values and empowering its team. Kinetic openly states that its culture “empowers employees, values clients, and respects trade partners” – a philosophy set by leadership and reinforced daily (About | Kinetic Construction). The CEO, Tom Plumb, promotes “positive relationships” and “continuous improvement” as universal truths for the company (About | Kinetic Construction). This focus has helped Kinetic grow to 200 employees over 35+ years while maintaining a reputation for integrity and innovation in how they build (About | Kinetic Construction) (About | Kinetic Construction). The ROI of these cultural efforts is evident: companies with strong, positive cultures have 12% higher productivity on average (The ROI of Positive Workplace Culture: How to Measure It?), and significantly lower absenteeism (up to 81% less) due to higher job satisfaction (The ROI of Positive Workplace Culture: How to Measure It?) (The ROI of Positive Workplace Culture: How to Measure It?). For a $5M revenue fabrication shop, for instance, a 12% productivity bump could translate to hundreds of thousands in additional output – a compelling return on investing in culture.
Best-Practice Roadmap (High-Performance Culture): Building a high-performance culture in a small/medium construction or manufacturing firm can follow a roadmap: