If you’re running a construction company and feel overwhelmed with the daily grind, you’re not alone. Many trades business owners reach a point where growth starts to stall. The work piles up. You’re estimating jobs at night, putting out fires during the day, and dreaming of someone, anyone, who can take some of the weight off your shoulders. Enter the idea of hiring a COO.
But according to Cameron Herold, Founder of the COO Alliance and author of Second in Command, most owners are making a critical mistake. You think you need a Chief Operating Officer when what you really need is help.
In this episode of Titans of the Trades, host Ryan Englin and Cameron pull back the curtain on what hiring operational leadership actually looks like in blue collar industries. If your company isn’t at least doing $10 million in revenue, you probably don’t need a COO. You need to start delegating better.
So What’s the Alternative?
Start with an executive assistant. Delegate those $15/hour tasks you shouldn’t be touching. Then consider an operations manager or director. You don’t bring in a “second-in-command” until you’ve already got multiple managers in place who can be led.
Cameron breaks it down clearly: If you’re making $250 an hour in profit, stop doing $20/hour work. If you wouldn’t pay someone else that much to do the task, why are you doing it?
And this isn’t about ego; it’s about efficiency. Cameron calls the COO role a “business marriage.” It requires alignment, trust, and clarity. Not a few interviews and a great resume.
He even dives into the difference between good and bad hires. Hint: A stack of logos and an MBA don’t mean they can scale your ops. You want someone who thrives on what drains you. Someone who’s been in the trenches, not just studied them.
Are You Ready to Hire a Second-in-Command?
So how do you know if you’re ready to hire a second-in-command COO?
You’re ready when:
- You’ve already delegated most of your admin and ops tasks.
- You’ve got multiple leaders who need someone managing them.
- You’re doing high-level strategy work and need a partner to execute.
This episode is packed with powerful analogies, from being the shock absorber of the company to avoiding “seagull management.” But perhaps the biggest takeaway is this:
If you don’t know the #1 problem in your business this week, you’re the problem.
Listen to the full episode to hear how Cameron helps CEOs get out of their own way and build businesses that scale, without burning out.
Connect With Cameron:
Website: https://cooalliance.com/
Website: https://cameronherold.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cameronherold/
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