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March 20, 2025 โ€ข 48 mins

What does it ๐˜ณ๐˜ฆ๐˜ข๐˜ญ๐˜ญ๐˜บ take to keep a family business thriving for generations?

In this episode of The Construction MFโ€™ers, Scott Peper sits down with Ruger Kerstiens, President of Kerstiens Companies, to break down the real challenges and wins of leading a third-generation construction and real estate business. From running concrete crews at 14 to learning hard lessons in real estate investments, Ruger's path has been anything but automatic. Now, heโ€™s strategically growing the business, vertically integrating operations, and making bold moves to control costs and quality in a volatile market.

Hereโ€™s what youโ€™ll learn:

๐Ÿ”น ๐—ช๐—ต๐—ฎ๐˜ ๐—›๐—ฒ ๐—Ÿ๐—ฒ๐—ฎ๐—ฟ๐—ป๐—ฒ๐—ฑ ๐—ถ๐—ป ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฒ ๐—™๐—ถ๐—ฒ๐—น๐—ฑ โ€“ How years on job sites built the credibility and respect he needed to lead.

๐Ÿ”น ๐—›๐—ผ๐˜„ ๐—™๐—ฎ๐—บ๐—ถ๐—น๐˜† ๐—•๐˜‚๐˜€๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ฒ๐˜€๐˜€๐—ฒ๐˜€ ๐—ฆ๐˜‚๐—ฟ๐˜ƒ๐—ถ๐˜ƒ๐—ฒ ๐—š๐—ฒ๐—ป๐—ฒ๐—ฟ๐—ฎ๐˜๐—ถ๐—ผ๐—ป๐˜€ โ€“ The mindset shift that keeps the third generation from sinking the ship.

๐Ÿ”น ๐—ง๐—ต๐—ฒ ๐—ฉ๐—ฒ๐—ฟ๐˜๐—ถ๐—ฐ๐—ฎ๐—น ๐—œ๐—ป๐˜๐—ฒ๐—ด๐—ฟ๐—ฎ๐˜๐—ถ๐—ผ๐—ป ๐—ฆ๐˜๐—ฟ๐—ฎ๐˜๐—ฒ๐—ด๐˜† โ€“ Why acquiring an MEP business was a game-changer for controlling costs and schedules.

๐Ÿ”น ๐—›๐—ฎ๐—ฟ๐—ฑ ๐—Ÿ๐—ฒ๐˜€๐˜€๐—ผ๐—ป๐˜€ ๐—ถ๐—ป ๐—ฅ๐—ฒ๐—ฎ๐—น ๐—˜๐˜€๐˜๐—ฎ๐˜๐—ฒ โ€“ How one bad deal taught him that reading the fine print can make or break an investment.

๐Ÿ”น ๐—ช๐—ต๐˜† ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฒ ๐—ง๐—ฟ๐—ฎ๐—ฑ๐—ฒ๐˜€ ๐—”๐—ฟ๐—ฒ ๐— ๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ฒ ๐—Ÿ๐˜‚๐—ฐ๐—ฟ๐—ฎ๐˜๐—ถ๐˜ƒ๐—ฒ ๐—ง๐—ต๐—ฎ๐—ป ๐—ฃ๐—ฒ๐—ผ๐—ฝ๐—น๐—ฒ ๐—ง๐—ต๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ธ โ€“ The real earning potential in construction vs. white-collar careers.

๐Ÿ”น ๐—”๐—ฑ๐—ฎ๐—ฝ๐˜๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ด ๐˜๐—ผ ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฒ ๐— ๐—ฎ๐—ฟ๐—ธ๐—ฒ๐˜ โ€“ Why land costs, infrastructure challenges, and rising debt are reshaping development strategiesโ€”and how his company is staying ahead.

If youโ€™re building a business, thinking about taking over a family operation, or just want to know what it really takes to grow in construction, this episode is packed with real-world insights.

๐Ÿ”— Follow Ruger on LinkedIn:
ย https://www.linkedin.com/in/ruger-kerstiens-cpm-870803131/

๐Ÿ”— Follow Scott Peper on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/scott-peper-9387288/

๐Ÿ”— Subscribe to Mobilization Funding YouTube Channel:ย  https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbmKi-OEJVbmQH_tIXdGwdw

Follow Us:
Mobilization Funding LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/mobilization-funding/
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Visit Our Website:ย 
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ย #familybusiness #construction #businesssuccess

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