There are plenty of ways to sink a growing company: poor financial planning, sloppy operations, stagnant marketing. But the one threat that might be the most underestimated? A bad hire.

In this episode of Builders, Budgets & Beers, Reece Barnes sits down with Paul Sanneman, veteran business coach, recruiter, and founder of Contractor Staffing Source, to unpack how one wrong person can quietly unravel a company’s culture, profitability, and potential.

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It’s not always explosive. Sometimes it’s subtle, the quiet rot of someone who doesn’t align, who undermines the tone you’ve worked hard to set. And in Paul’s words, “You can fix what they know. You can’t fix who they are.”

Culture Is Fragile… Especially at Small Scale

Paul’s been in the business for over 50 years, coaching thousands of contractors and helping to recruit over 4,000 employees. He’s seen the pattern play out again and again: A small team brings on someone who seems capable on paper. But something’s off. And when leadership doesn’t act quickly, the team pays the price.

“One person in a company of 15,” Paul says, “can destroy the entire culture.”

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This episode is a wake-up call, especially for small to midsize construction firms, that hiring isn’t just about filling a seat. It’s about protecting the fabric of your company.

Always Be Marketing. Always Be Recruiting.

That’s Paul’s mantra. And he doesn’t mean it as a hustle platitude. He means it literally: marketing and recruiting are your company’s lifeblood. Your clients and your team are your business.

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And yet? Most builders treat recruiting like a necessary evil, something they’ll deal with when they’re desperate, short-staffed, or already behind schedule.

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Paul calls this out as one of the biggest missteps. He compares it to marketing: “You wouldn’t wait until your pipeline dries up to start generating leads. Why wait until you're short-staffed to build your bench?”

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This is especially relevant in today’s market, where private equity is flooding the trades and competition is scaling fast. Builders who want to survive (let alone grow) need to be intentional, proactive, and consistent about hiring… or risk getting left behind by those who are.

The True Cost of a Bad Fit

What really stood out in this conversation was how often leaders know someone is the wrong fit… and still hang on. Whether it’s loyalty, fear of disruption, or codependence dressed up as kindness, the effect is the same: They wait too long.

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Reece puts it well, “You wouldn’t rehire them. But you let them stay. Why?”

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The episode makes a compelling case that this hesitation is not just a leadership flaw. It’s a culture killer. The longer you let misaligned hires linger, the more you signal to your team that mediocrity, dishonesty, or bad behavior is tolerated.

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And the consequences ripple outward:

• Trust breaks down.
• Standards erode.
• Your best people start to look elsewhere.

So, What Should Builders Do?

This episode isn’t all tough love. It’s full of tangible guidance for builders who want to step up their recruiting game:

• Outsource recruiting if you’re not equipped to do it in-house. Paul’s firm, Contractor Staffing Source, is built around helping builders of all sizes find and vet talent the right way — including behavioral assessments, skill tests, and structured onboarding plans.
• Have a real onboarding process. Day one matters. A new hire should feel like they made the best decision of their career — not like they’ve been thrown into chaos.
• Stop tolerating toxic culture fits. If someone brings drama, lies, or poor behavior into your business, that’s the fire, not the smoke. Move fast.
• Work harder on yourself than your business. That’s Paul’s final, most resonant takeaway. Builders who focus on becoming better humans attract better teams. Period.

The Real Secret: Team Building Is the Superpower

Elon Musk didn’t change the world because he’s smart. Plenty of people are smart.

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He changed the world because he’s great at building teams.

That’s the thesis of this episode: if you want to win in business in construction or anywhere else, your number one job is to build and keep great teams.

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That means:

• Hiring with purpose
• Investing in people
• Letting go of the wrong ones (sooner than feels comfortable)
• And always keeping your eye on the culture you’re building, one person at a time

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