Build Wise

The Enstoa team gathered at Spark in January 2019

Enstoa Unveils New Strategic Focus at Spark 2019

In the first days of 2019, the modernist Standard Highline Hotel in the trendy Meatpacking District of New York was taken over by Enstoans from every corner of the world, all gathered for an event they hotly anticipate —Enstoa Spark. At this 3-day event, Enstoa CEO Jordan Cram revealed some key details about the company’s strategic plans for the New Year and beyond. Perched above the mile-and-a-half-long “park in the sky,” it was the perfect location to learn about Enstoa’s vision of the future.

Delivering Industry 4.0 to the Built Environment 

The first day of Enstoa Spark kicked off in a big way, with CEO Jordan Cram unveiling Enstoa’s ambitious new vision to deliver Industry 4.0 for capital project management. From ensuring builders can take full advantage of artificial intelligence to helping them realize the benefits of more data-centric (versus document-centric) operations, it was clear that Enstoa’s track record and recent strategic acquisitions makes it the perfect company to introduce leading-edge strategies and practices to organizations seeking a real competitive advantage.

 

A group of Enstoans discuss during a group exercise at Enstoa Spark 2019

 

After opening remarks, attendees broke into groups to discuss the state of Enstoa’s teams as well as their goals and how they plan to get there. These groups had the opportunity to review one another in order to figure out where areas of strong alignment and where knowledge sharing can take place. 

One area of focus was hiring. Discussions hinged around how the company makes hiring choices and how the process might be made even more strategic. The importance of keeping values aligned across the organization was a special area of emphasis, particularly as the company grows. 

The day was punctuated with short, punchy TED-style talks by Enstoans including Joe Verlaque, Myles Lock, Mike Goggin, and Mike Matosin. It wrapped up in a piano karaoke bar where highlights included an inspired rendition of Prince’s “Purple Rain” by Director Michael Goggin and a bouncy shot of Britpop from Manager of Technical Development Darrell Dumas, who delivered Spice Girls’ “Wannabe” with decided panache. 

 

Darrell Dumas presents at Spark 2019

 

It’s Not About the Tools

On day two, the team-driven TED-style talks continued with presentations on how Enstoa is contributing to emerging technology as well the specific benefits of Industry 4.0 for Enstoa’s partners, clients, and other stakeholders. Presenters included Mark Thorley, Ian Thornton, Alyona Rossolova, Karla Watts, Jeff Ettenhofer, and Angie Pilkington.

The entire Enstoa team was then treated to a high-level strategy session with Columbia Business School Professor Paul Ingram who led a dynamic discussion about why strategy and vision always need to come before implementation. One key takeaway was that when companies are looking for digital transformation, it’s often primarily about a need for change management, not specific tools. This aligns well with Enstoa’s platform-agnostic approach, which focuses first on the organization’s overarching goals versus prescribed platforms and processes.

 

Professor Paul Ingram presents at Spark 2019

 

Day two also included a deep dive on Enstoa’s new evidence-based team design offering, a leading edge approach to change management that helps companies get more value from their most valuable asset: the workforce. Developed in conjunction with leading academics, this approach is aimed at increasing efficiency and reducing risk by flattening hierarchies, introducing adaptive structures, and creating statistically stronger teams. 

Other day two highlights included the Enstoa Values Awards--a celebration of Enstoa staff members who embody the company’s values. The evening’s entertainment took place in a Prohibition-era style speakeasy with singers and poets creating mementos for individual Enstoa team members.

 

CEO Jordan Cram at Spark 2019

 

Unlocking Technology’s Potential to Transform

As the event wrapped up on day three, Enstoa’s leaders provided valuable high-level overviews of the company’s most mission-critical areas. Jordan Cram gave a recap of just how revolutionary Industry 4.0 will be not just for construction, but the entire world. Arnaud Giret provided some highlights of the company’s financial position and performance. Kerry Foley delivered a rundown on the company’s robust sales pipeline.

Overall, Enstoa team members not only had a great time at Spark 2019 and got energized for the New Year, they also got a strong sense of just how well Enstoa is positioned to help construction and infrastructure industry move from a long period of stagnating productivity to one of streamlined efficiency— from time-consuming manual approaches to those that take full advantage of artificial intelligence, structured data, and evidence-based team design.

The event ended with Enstoans from far and wide understanding just how key it will be for that change to happen at scale and diffused throughout the entire business ecosystem.

To get insights on how Industry 4.0 can help your organization gain a competitive edge, get in touch with us.