It’s a good time to break into the development business. That’s according to Vincent Tatum, president and owner of Grand Canyon Development Partners.
“There is a shortage of skilled professionals within our industry, and many companies are willing to invest in the development, education and training of people who may be new to the industry,” Tatum said. “When you really look at what it takes to design and build any project, there are literally hundreds of professions that range from legal, financial, design, engineering, construction, fabrication and installation. Every subindustry needed to complete a project is experiencing labor challenges.”
Vincent Tatum
Tatum doesn’t think the technical labor shortage will get better anytime soon, and says companies will need to be more willing to invest in training and human resource efforts to build back the labor force needed for an industry as complex as development.
The following interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Give us your bird’s-eye view of the current state of real estate development in Southern Nevada.
Las Vegas continues to show tremendous growth and interest from outside investment groups and developers. We are witnessing the continued increase in investment activity for projects that focus on logistics, entertainment, hospitality, mixed-use residential, health care and manufacturing. There is also excitement that comes with the energy and culture that professional sports teams bring when moving to Las Vegas.
How have supply-chain issues affected your industry the past few years?
Projects simply are not designed and constructed the way that they used to be based on the reality that supply chain considerations must be more heavily considered before the project even starts design.
We are finding that we have to spend more time considering supply chain opportunities by evaluating what is currently available and incorporating that as the basis of design, and also releasing purchase of materials much earlier in the development process to hit the completion dates. This all plays a significant part in the overall design process, vendor and supplier contracting, cash flow forecasting, scheduling, sequencing, and quality of the materials and finishes that go into the final project.
What is the best business advice you’ve received?
“Find the things that others don’t want to do and become a master at it.” I honestly don’t remember who told me or where it came from, but it has taught me the true meaning of value proposition.
Early in my career, I had the opportunity to take over an area of the business functions that nobody seemed to want to do because it was tedious, required a high degree of attention to detail, and generally was not appealing to other employees who wanted to focus more on the high-profile parts of the business. That experience taught me the inner workings of the business to a degree that it made all of the other business functions make more sense. It gave me an incredible insight and access to the information that really “moved the needle” in the business and provided me with direct mentorship and guidance from senior executives who taught me even more.
If you were king of Southern Nevada for a day, what’s one thing you’d do to improve the community?
I would find a way to provide more affordable housing. One of the limiting factors to sustainable growth within Southern Nevada will be access to affordable housing for all of the workers who that growth will depend on. It’s a problem that has numerous complexities in the solution, and one that will not be easily resolved.
If you had one thing to do over again in your career, what would it be?
I wouldn’t change anything. My career has been based off of learning from experiences that came from every position, assignment and outcome—bad and good—that I was a part of.
Whom do you admire and why?
There are so many, but if I had to name who I admire the most, it would be my parents. It is astonishing and almost unbelievable to see just how far they came from growing up poor in the ’40s to raising three children who have all become successful business professionals. The sacrifices and commitments they made for us to do that are remarkable. I can only hope that I continue to make them proud and to do my part to help others as they have helped me.
What is your biggest pet peeve?
That more people don’t really take the time to hear one another and to recognize that it’s OK to change your mind if you learn something new that invalidated your previous belief or opinion. The world is filled with so much noise that I think it has made it harder for people to be willing to open their minds and to accept that it is an attribute of strength to admit that you were wrong and that you have changed your mind.
What is something that people might not know about you?
I’m a big video game fan. Even with my hectic schedule, I still find time to play them. It helps me balance out the stress that comes with the job.
Click HERE to subscribe for free to Vegas Inc’s BizClick newsletter. Stay up to date with the latest business news in Las Vegas sent directly to your inbox each Monday.