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March 6, 2023

CEO Letter: Choose Your Own Adventure!

IECRM Members, Partners and Community,

March Madness is here! This month we highlight IECRM’s Road to the Final Four! 

Excellence in the Industry. 

Submit a nomination for the Annual Summit Awards recognizing excellence in the electrical industry. NEW categories this year for individual and project awards are designed to recognize and represent ALL aspects of the industry. No company or project is too small or too large. 

Think about the Veterans, Project Managers, Support Staff, Teams, and IECRM Alumni that deserve to be recognized! In addition to categories for Residential/Specialty, Commercial and Industrial, this year we are looking for Excellence in Solar * EV * Low Voltage * Innovation * Collaboration * Service! Deadline is Monday, March 13, 2023. 

Join us @ Empower Field as we Celebrate Excellence in the Electrical Industry on Thursday, April 20, 2023. Special guests. Special awards. Special surprises. And a special behind-the-scenes safety tour of the stadium! 

The graphic on the left was designed by Jason Jones, who worked with Jonnie Vallar, IEC Fort Worth ED, as part of an IEC National Emerging Leaders program to inspire women to pursue careers in the electrical industry. Jason is the Principal/Owner of Legacy Electrical Partners and an IECRM Industry Partner.

Women in Construction. This year’s recognition and awareness of women in the construction industry is themed Many Paths, One Mission. 

A few statistics for 2021 data: 

  • 4.4% of all electricians are women, while 95.6% are men.
  • The average age of an employed electrician is 42 years old.
  • The most common ethnicity of electricians is White (68.3%), followed by Hispanic or Latino (18.7%), Black or African American (8.3%) and Asian (2.2%).
  • In 2021, women earned 95% of what men earned.
  • 9.5 percent of electrical contracting businesses are owned by women.

Here are a few ways to think about the messages for this month’s focus on women in the trades: 

Five Ways to Celebrate Women in Construction: https://www.rakenapp.com/blog/5-ways-to-celebrate-women-in-construction-week

National Association of Women in Construction: https://www.nawic.org

Electrical Business Magazine Online Event – International Women’s Day: https://www.ebmag.com/events/women-in-construction-2023-save-the-date/

IEC National recently produced a video – recorded at IECRM – to support workforce development outreach efforts on opportunities for women and men in the industry. IEC is working with other national partner organizations like the Home Builders Institute, SkillsUSA and the National School Counselors Association to promote becoming the next-generation electrician and careers across the industry. 

GC Forum. 

IECRM welcomed representatives from Colorado’s leading general contractor companies to share their expertise on working together with electrical contractors and their perspectives on the construction industry in 2023. Joining us for the forum were:

  • Luke Fenske, Director of Preconstruction, Shaw Construction
  • Alicia Ready, Elder Construction
  • Steve Rademacher, FCI Constructors
  • Chris Kawulok, Senior Estimator, Hensel Phelps
  • Shane Fobes, Milender White

Below is a summary of the great dialogue among the panelists with action items our members can do to build relationships. The panel was facilitated by David Scott, Encore Electric, President of the IECRM Board of Directors. 

  • Invite GCs to a job walk to show the quality & consistency of your electrical work 
  • Overcommunicate 
  • With new energy codes, innovations and technology, GC’s need your expertise in electrical to guide them 
  • Be bold to get the job right. If a GC needs to know, tell them. 
  • Many GCs are bringing electrical expertise in during bidding and project planning. If you aren’t being brought in early – ask to be!
  • Relationship outreach; introduce yourself at times that are not up against a project deadline. 
  • Schedule a technical lunch & learn with a GC  – offer something to help them and their teams make their job better. 

Our thanks and gratitude to these GC Forum Organizers and Sponsors:

  • David Jones, QED
  • Allan Matsuo, Matsuo Engineering
  • Justin Martin, Bret’s Electric
  • Drew Dvorchak, Milwaukee Tools

Board of Directors Annual Strategic Planning Session.

The IECRM Board of Directors met on Friday, February 24, 2023, at Flannel Jax’s Axe Throwing in Arvada to carve out the strategic direction for the Independent Electrical Contractors Rocky Mountain Association over the next five years as innovation, technology, electrification, workforce challenges, and advocacy for the industry continues to drive the demand for training the next generation electrician.

IECRM is the largest registered apprenticeship program in Colorado and the largest independent electrical contractor apprenticeship program in the country. Using the theme “Choose Your Own Adventure” from the popular youth book series, the Board and leadership team explored ways that apprentices can craft their own stories and navigate successful pathways in a career in the electrical industry. Being an electrician provides lifelong learning, a sustainable living wage, and a professional occupation for men and women with multiple opportunities for advancement from Journeyworker to Master, Estimator, Project Manager, and Business Owner. The electrical industry is at a dynamic inflection point in its history and IECRM is ready for the evolution of this chapter. 

I am out on my own adventure this week on a clipper ship! While I might be on a Pirates of the Caribbean journey, the IECRM Team will be here holding down the fort. Let us hear from you,

Marilyn

Marilyn Akers Stansbury
CEO, IECRM 

Enjoy this Spotify playlist of sailing, ocean, island, sunset, and nautical adventure tunes:

MAS Sailing Adventure Songs 

IECRM Self-Pay Tuition Policy

 

Self-pay students who are employed with a member company must register and pay through the member company using the IECRM Flashpoint Enrollment Portal/Process in order to qualify for member rates.

Self-pay students that are employed with a member company but that do not register and pay through the member will be charged the non-member rate for tuition, books and applicable fees.


Self-pay students who are employed with a member company and require a payment plan will not qualify for the member rate and will be charged the non-member rate for tuition, books and applicable fees.


Self-pay students who do not work for a member company will continue to be charged the non-member rate for tuition, books and applicable fees.


To maximize association/membership benefits, ALL member companies are encouraged to register and pay for all enrolled apprentices utilizing internal payment arrangements and processes between employer and employee.


We value our IECRM members and apprentice community. We encourage all apprentices to be enrolled in the four-year apprenticeship program, earning, and learning their way toward Journeyworker licensure. We encourage all members to utilize the member discount for tuition, books and applicable fees to ensure the long-term support and success of the next-generation electrician.


(Payment Plans are available, please reference the Self Pay Payment Plan Policy.)


Self-Pay Payment Plan Policy


We offer the following arrangements for students that are unable to pay in full at the time of registration.


● Self-pay students will be charged the non-member rate.
● A 50% down payment of total semester tuition, books and applicable fees are due at registration.
● Remaining balance can be divided up to 3 additional monthly payments ($10.00 processing fee applies on each installment)
● All payments that are declined will incur a $20.00 NSF fee.

 

We encourage all students who are employed with a member company to work with their employer to register and pay through the IECRM Flashpoint Enrollment Portal/Process. This will ensure the student is paying the lowest possible rate for tuition, books and applicable fees.