As 2023 quickly approaches, Az Business magazine sat down with some of Arizona’s most innovative and forward-thinking business leaders to discuss industry trends and potential new business development executives should be paying attention to in 2023. Today, we meet Blake Wells, vice president of pre-construction at LGE Design Build.
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Blake Wells
Vice president of pre-construction
Wells has employed his knowledge base at LGE to drive incredible innovation in cost intelligence, sales analytics and both company and project strategy. Wells is straight-forward, consistent and an outstanding guide for LGE’s clients through the complexities of design and construction.
START IN THE INDUSTRY: “I accidentally got in. I was working on an accounting degree and worked at an accounting firm and in sales. I kind of hit that transition point in my life and didn’t know what to do. I had just bought a house with my wife and jumped into construction because I had a friend in the industry. Once I got into it, I just determined it was a pathway I was going to stick with.”
HOW ACCOUNTING BACKGROUND HELPED: ” I’ve always been kind of a numbers guy. I ended up finishing my degree in finance and economics. I’ve used that as kind of a sales catapult and for estimating. Most of my background is estimating and forecasting, so all the accounting and finance definitely has helped with that.”
BEST PART OF INDUSTRY: “I love a lot of parts about it, but being in general contracting, being able to be the one that looks at a piece of dirt, being the one that looks at a site plan and several years later see the end goal. It’s really fun to conceptualize in my head what it’s all going to look like and really get to see the end product and show my kids once it’s finally built.”
STRENGTHS AS A CONSTRUCTION LEADER: “The biggest thing right now is forecasting and looking ahead. Things are changing daily, weekly. We’re constantly working with our subcontractors and looking at trends, historical trends. What’s the future going to hold? How do we best help our clients not have their projects delayed or go too far over budget? Everything is moving right now, but we’re really trying to use analytics and just modern technology to stay ahead of things.”
