In this episode, Justin, Rob, and Brian are joined by a guest; carpenter Anthony Vitale, owner of ProBuilt Woodworking, is participating via Skype. The four guys have a wide-ranging discussion that centers on the passion for the craft that drives quality.

Anthony talks about his family background and his father’s business as a stair builder. Anthony has tried to replicate that family devotion and passion for craftsmanship in his own shop.

He also talked about his struggle to get workers with the right attitude. One way he’s pushing in that direction is through an apprenticeship program he launched at his local high school — the same school from which he graduated. Another way Anthony moved forward was with the advice and support of Shawn VanDyke — another friend of the magazine and a business columnist here at FineHomebuilding.com.

The guys asked about what makes a great employee, and how to train workers to not only have skills, but to have energy and enthusiasm about the work. Anthony has some really key ideas about that. And instead of knocking the Millennials, he asks if the problem is the older guys. “What have we done as an industry,” he asks, “What have we done to make these guys come into the industry?”

Brian adds to that, “Is there really a shortage of skilled labor, or is there a shortage of good bosses who are willing to train and value workers?”

The guys also get Anthony to dig into his management structure and incentive programs, such as paid time off and a profit-sharing system. Anthony wraps up by saying that its not enough to just be upbeat on social media … as an industry we have to be acting together as well as talking with each other. Check out the links below for more.

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And as Justin mentioned, you can enter the Festool prize give-away sweepstakes at FineHomebuilding.com/Festool.

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The Fine Homebuilding Podcast embodies Fine Homebuilding magazine’s commitment to the preservation of craftsmanship and the advancement of home performance in residential construction. The show is an informal but vigorous conversation about the techniques and principles that allow listeners to master their design and building challenges.

Links related to this episode:

• ProBuilt Woodworking is Anthony Vitale’s business website. The site has a link to his blog.
• The company is also on Instagram @ProBuiltWoodworking.
• Our business columnist, Martin Holsinger, interviewed Anthony on his Protractor Podcast.
• Here are our articles by Martin Holsinger.
• And here are our articles by Shawn Van Dyke, our other business columnist, mentioned in the episode.
• All FHB podcast show notes: FineHomebuilding.com/podcast.
• #KeepCraftAlive tee-shirts support scholarships for building trades students. So go order some shirts at KeepCraftAlive.org.
• The direct link to the online store is here.