The NEXT Leadership Academy

The NEXT Leadership Academy Contact information, map and directions, contact form, opening hours, services, ratings, photos, videos and announcements from The NEXT Leadership Academy, Education, 5 Hot Metal Street, Pittsburgh, PA.

A year-long industry focused program, created for highly-motivated like-minded professionals, built to instill confidence and prepare leaders
for what’s happening now and what comes next in the union construction industry.

What's NEXT for You? Leadership isn't a title you earn once and keep forever. It's a skill you have to keep sharpening —...
09/03/2026

What's NEXT for You? Leadership isn't a title you earn once and keep forever. It's a skill you have to keep sharpening — especially in an industry that moves as fast as construction.

That's the thinking behind The NEXT Academy: a leadership development program built specifically for construction professionals, with a learning pathway for wherever you are in your career.

Whether you're:
🔹 An Executive steering company strategy
🔹 A Project Manager balancing budgets, schedules, and people (NEXTPM, powered by Milwaukee Tool)
🔹 Early on Your Career or making the move from the field to the office as an APM (NEXTFTO)
🔹 A Field Leader running crews and driving results on-site (NEXTFIELD)
🔹 Leading a team of 20+ through the X3 Group or a fully Custom company program
..there's a track built around your role — not a generic leadership course retrofitted to fit it.

Every pathway is practitioner-led, grounded in real construction challenges, and flexible enough to fit a 6- or 12-month journey. Plus, you walk away with a national network of peers who actually understand what you're dealing with.

The leaders who go furthest aren't the ones who stop learning once they hit a title. They're the ones who keep investing in the next version of themselves.

Curious which pathway fits you? Learn more: www.nextleadershipacademy.org

Last week in powered by Milwaukee Tool we finished up our August focus on Operational & Financial Acumen. In Class 16 ...
08/27/2026

Last week in powered by Milwaukee Tool we finished up our August focus on Operational & Financial Acumen. In Class 16 "Resource Optimization: Achieving More with Less" students learned how to turn limited resources into meaningful results. And let’s be honest...construction rarely gives you ideal conditions. You don’t get unlimited manpower, unlimited money, unlimited laydown space, unlimited time, or unlimited patience. You get constraints. You get pressure. You get changing drawings, stacked trades, late answers, tight ceilings, and a field team looking at you saying, ‘What’s the plan?’

But here’s the beautiful thing about leadership: great leaders don’t wait for perfect conditions to create progress. They learn how to make the best use of what they have. That is what resource optimization is all about.

𝗠𝗢𝗗𝗨𝗟𝗘 𝗧𝗢𝗣𝗜𝗖𝗦:
👷 Resource allocation strategies.
👷 Leveraging technology for efficiency.
👷 Managing human and material resources effectively.

𝗟𝗘𝗔𝗥𝗡𝗘𝗥 𝗢𝗕𝗝𝗘𝗖𝗧𝗜𝗩𝗘𝗦:
📚 Optimize resource use to improve efficiency and reduce waste.
📚 Balance resource constraints with project demands.
📚 Integrate technology to enhance resource planning.

To Learn More about NEXTPM powered by Milwaukee Tool or to Sign Up for upcoming modules, visit our website at www.nextleadershipacademy.org/pm

We have an exciting week ahead for participants as we wrap up our month on . In Class 32 "Leading in The 4th Industri...
08/26/2026

We have an exciting week ahead for participants as we wrap up our month on . In Class 32 "Leading in The 4th Industrial Revolution" we're going to take a closer look at the Drivers behind it and the Impacts of it...we're gonna analyze the societal impacts and access potential strategies for each of you and your firms

MODULE TOPICS:
👷 The Drivers of 4th Industrial Revolution
👷 The Impacts of 4th Industrial Revolution

LEARNER OBJECTIVES:
📚 Analyze the societal impacts of the 4th Industrial Revolution.
📚 Assess and implement potential strategies to keep us aware of the 4th Industrial Revolution as it continues to unfold.

Join Us Today - Wednesday, 8/26/26 at 7:00PM Est. for this exciting learning opportunity at NEXT!

Let us know if you want to hop in to see what NEXT is like in real time!

Most recently in we finished up our month on Technology & Digital Tools with Class 16 "PMIS, Mobile QC & Power BI Basi...
08/25/2026

Most recently in we finished up our month on Technology & Digital Tools with Class 16 "PMIS, Mobile QC & Power BI Basics." The truth is most projects don't fail because the team lacked information. Most of the time, the information existed somewhere. It was in an email, a text message, a photo, a notebook, a meeting conversation, a daily report, or in somebody’s brain.

The problem is not always that we don't have the answer. The problem is that we couldn't find it, prove it, connect it, or act on it... when it mattered.

That is why this class matters.

PMIS, mobile QC, and dashboards are not just technology tools. They are leadership tools when used correctly. They help us capture decisions, organize evidence, track ownership, see trends, and lead with facts instead of opinions.

𝗠𝗢𝗗𝗨𝗟𝗘 𝗧𝗢𝗣𝗜𝗖𝗦:
👷 PMIS workflows (RFIs, submittals, issues)
👷 Photo/issue standards by location
👷 Introductory dashboards and visuals

𝗟𝗘𝗔𝗥𝗡𝗘𝗥 𝗢𝗕𝗝𝗘𝗖𝗧𝗜𝗩𝗘𝗦:
📚 Configure logs for traceability and claims
📚 Set mobile QC/photo protocols
📚 Build a basic cost/progress dashboard

To Learn More about NEXTFTO or to Sign Up for upcoming modules, visit our website at www.nextleadershipacademy.org/fto

In this weeks episode of 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐞𝐫'𝐬 𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐬𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐟, we break down Made to Stick and translate Chip and Dan Heath’s communi...
08/24/2026

In this weeks episode of 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐞𝐫'𝐬 𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐬𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐟, we break down Made to Stick and translate Chip and Dan Heath’s communication framework into the construction world, where unclear messages can lead to missed details, rework, safety issues, and frustration. You’ll learn how to make your ideas simple, concrete, credible, emotional, and memorable so your team does not just hear the message...they carry it into the work.

We know you’re busy, and carving out time to read isn’t always realistic. That’s why we created 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐞𝐫'𝐬 𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐬𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐟 - to dive into the greatest books ever written and distill their wisdom through the lens of .

Listen on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-next-academy/id1350265214?i=1000785542985

Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/7LeFq3dcuWniTFDzY1Ihya?si=G0nemI0_RSu-QfZUgsnqiA&utm_source=copy-link

Enjoy Episode 34 of 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐞𝐫'𝐬 𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐬𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐟 and

In our most recent class "Deliveries, Laydown & Loss: Controlling Materials in the Real World" our students learned ho...
08/24/2026

In our most recent class "Deliveries, Laydown & Loss: Controlling Materials in the Real World" our students learned how to control deliveries, laydown, and material loss so their crews can work safely, productively, and confidently without wasting time searching, waiting, or rehandling materials.

Ultimately, material control is not only about counting boxes, organizing laydown, or reducing waste—it is about protecting the crew’s ability to do great work. When deliveries are received correctly, materials are staged by sequence, valuable items are protected, shortages are tracked, and backorders are closed out with discipline, the field gains something powerful: flow.

The best Foremen don't just chase material. They create reliable material flow!

𝗠𝗢𝗗𝗨𝗟𝗘 𝗧𝗢𝗣𝗜𝗖𝗦:
👷Receiving process: count, inspect, tag, document
👷Laydown/staging strategy by area and install sequence
👷Protecting materials from damage/weather/theft
👷Waste prevention and scrap reduction habits
👷Handling returns, shortages, and backorders

To Learn More about NEXTField or to Sign Up for upcoming modules, visit our website at www.nextleadershipacademy.org/field

Back by popular demand... our discussion from 2021 with Dr. Kevin Elko. One of our most listened to episodes EVER.Are yo...
08/17/2026

Back by popular demand... our discussion from 2021 with Dr. Kevin Elko. One of our most listened to episodes EVER.

Are you thinking to your full potential? How do you think? Do your thoughts lift you up, give you hope, and look toward a bright future? Or do they constantly focus on the negative and leave you self-defeated? Your thoughts have the power to change your reality and lead you to your best possible life.

In Believing is Seeing, Dr. Kevin Elko and Rev. Duane Thompson share what they have learned through decades of helping others reframe their mindsets and change their lives. They have seen just how powerful the right attitude can be, if you choose to unleash it. Believing is Seeing offers ten steps to transform your thinking so you live with a new purpose and boldness. Your best life is waiting for you!

Today, Dr. Elko joins NEXT Academy Co-Creators Chad Jones and Cody Phillips as they discuss “Believing is Seeing” and pull out leadership lessons that they feel can help contractors create a competitive advantage by utilizing these 10 transformative steps! This book is 🔥🔥

🎧 LISTEN HERE 🎧
Apple: ⁠https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-next-academy/id1350265214?i=1000509743322

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/3knVk1a5T5XqvYBOusxzss?si=3gGHSoPETPSkE3EyOpAwRg&utm_source=copy-link

In today's class "No More... 'We Don't Have It' - The Foreman's Material Forecasting System" we’re talking about one o...
08/11/2026

In today's class "No More... 'We Don't Have It' - The Foreman's Material Forecasting System" we’re talking about one of the most common, most frustrating, and most expensive phrases in construction: “We don’t have it.”

Every Foreman, General Foreman, and Superintendent knows what that sentence can do to a day. It can stop a crew, wreck momentum, create last-minute scrambling, and turn good craft workers into professional search parties.

And here’s the truth: most material problems are not really material problems, right? What are they? They are planning, communication, confirmation, and flow problems.

So today we are going to build a simple field leadership system that helps us look ahead, identify risk early, kit and stage work properly, coordinate with procurement and the shop, and protect our most valuable resource: craft time.

Because the best Foremen don't just chase material. They create reliable material flow!

𝗠𝗢𝗗𝗨𝗟𝗘 𝗧𝗢𝗣𝗜𝗖𝗦:
👷2-week material lookahead linked to the plan
👷Identifying long-lead and “gotcha” items early
👷Kitting and staging: making install faster
👷Coordination with procurement/warehouse/shop
👷Preventing last-minute runs and wasted hours

To Learn More about NEXTField or to Sign Up for upcoming modules, visit our website at www.nextleadershipacademy.org/field

This week in powered by Milwaukee Tool we begin our August focus on Operational & Financial Acumen. In Class 15 "KPI's...
08/07/2026

This week in powered by Milwaukee Tool we begin our August focus on Operational & Financial Acumen. In Class 15 "KPI's That Matter" we’re talking about a handful of signals that tell you, in real time, whether your project is headed toward profit, pain, or somewhere in between. FMI and McKinsey’s research on construction performance both point to the same truth: contractors who manage with data instead of gut feel are consistently more profitable and more resilient. For MEP subcontractors, where margins are tight and labor is everything, the way you read and respond to your numbers often matters more than any single change order you’ll ever write.

𝗠𝗢𝗗𝗨𝗟𝗘 𝗧𝗢𝗣𝗜𝗖𝗦:
👷 Fundamentals of project budgeting.
👷 Tracking and managing project costs.
👷 Common financial pitfalls and how to avoid them.

𝗟𝗘𝗔𝗥𝗡𝗘𝗥 𝗢𝗕𝗝𝗘𝗖𝗧𝗜𝗩𝗘𝗦:
📚 Build and manage realistic project budgets.
📚 Monitor project costs to stay within financial constraints.
📚 Identify and address financial risks early.

To Learn More about NEXTPM powered by Milwaukee Tool or to Sign Up for upcoming modules, visit our website at www.nextleadershipacademy.org/pm

This week in we kick off our month on Technology & Digital Tools with Class 15 "BIM/VDC for PM's and Estimators." When...
08/06/2026

This week in we kick off our month on Technology & Digital Tools with Class 15 "BIM/VDC for PM's and Estimators." When some people hear the term “BIM,” they immediately think, “That belongs to the VDC department.” Or they think of a coordinator sitting in front of a powerful computer spinning a model around, finding clashes, and producing reports. And yes, that is part of the work.

But for a PM, estimator, project engineer, or field leader transitioning into the office, BIM is much more than a model.

It is a way to see problems earlier.

It helps us see where systems compete for space, where quantities may be different than expected, where the field may struggle, where prefab may help, where access may be limited, and where scope risk may be hiding.

So in today's class, we are going to talk about BIM as a practical project leadership system.

𝗠𝗢𝗗𝗨𝗟𝗘 𝗧𝗢𝗣𝗜𝗖𝗦:
👷 Practical model uses (coordination/quantities)
👷 Clash reports to field actions
👷 Model- vs. plan-based takeoff comparison

𝗟𝗘𝗔𝗥𝗡𝗘𝗥 𝗢𝗕𝗝𝗘𝗖𝗧𝗜𝗩𝗘𝗦:
📚 Define BIM uses that matter to your scope
📚 Convert clashes into actionable tasks
📚 Compare model vs. plan quantities for risk

To Learn More about NEXTFTO or to Sign Up for upcoming modules, visit our website at www.nextleadershipacademy.org/fto

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+14124321155

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