Neeljym Search Group

09/02/2026

09/01/2026

Some general contractors are asking their superintendents to speak up if they're unhappy with the amount of travel they're doing. They're doing this before their supers get another offer or decide they're ready to leave.

Travel has always been part of commercial construction. Superintendents know that. But what worked earlier in someone's career may not work as well ten or fifteen years later.

Some of the superintendents we talk to like the company they work for. They're not looking for a different company as much as they're looking for less travel. Put an opportunity in front of them that keeps them closer to home, and they're willing to listen.

Some general contractors seem to recognize that. They're asking about travel earlier and, when they can, giving their supers other project or assignment options before they start looking for those options somewhere else.

Those companies are getting ahead of a retention problem instead of trying to solve it after a superintendent has already decided to leave. Experienced supers aren't easy to replace, and there are a lot more options while they're still your employees.

09/01/2026

General Contractors Are Asking About Travel Before Superintendents Decide to Leave

Several experienced superintendents have recently described companies asking them to speak up if they're unhappy with the amount of travel they're doing. The conversation is happening before they have another offer or have decided they're done traveling altogether.

Travel has always been part of commercial construction. Superintendents know certain projects require it, and general contractors still have work that needs experienced people hundreds of miles from home. But for some superintendents, the amount of travel that worked earlier in their careers doesn't work as well anymore.

A superintendent doesn't have to be unhappy with the company to listen when another opportunity comes along. They may like the projects, the people they work with, and what they're being paid. They may simply be tired of spending so much time away from home.

That matters because experienced superintendents aren't easy to replace. *AGC's 2025 Building Construction workforce survey found that among contractors having difficulty filling salaried positions, 82% reported difficulty filling superintendent positions.

**Engine's 2024 Powering Travel Trends Report found that 44% of construction respondents would consider changing employers for the same job and income if the new employer gave them more flexibility over work travel.

Sometimes an opportunity that keeps a superintendent closer to home is enough to get their attention, even if they weren't planning to leave.

Employers can't always fix the travel issue. The next project may still be three states away, and someone has to run it. But there may be a regional assignment that works better or flexibility the superintendent didn't know was available.

There are more options before someone has decided to leave than after.

*AGC 2025 Workforce Survey:
https://www.agc.org/sites/default/files/users/user21902/2025_Workforce_Survey_Highway_V2.pdf

**Engine, Powering Travel Trends Report:
https://constructionexec.com/article/road-warriors-making-work-travel-work-better/

08/28/2026

Everyone keeps asking whether the MGA boom is slowing down.

That's the wrong question.

The better question is whether firms can continue finding the people needed to support their growth.

In commercial insurance recruiting, searches are getting much more specific.

Having MGA experience isn't always enough. Companies want to know what someone has actually built.

The search gets much narrower when a company needs someone who has already done some version of what they're trying to do next. Maybe that's building a profitable book, launching a program, or building an underwriting team.

That's when a fairly common job title can turn into a very small candidate market.

Most of the people MGAs want aren't looking for work.

They may already have underwriting authority, strong relationships, and a successful book. They're not deciding whether they want a job. They're deciding whether they want to leave a good one to build something somewhere else.

There may still be plenty of room for MGA growth.

The question is how many people are willing and able to build what comes next.

08/27/2026

Can the MGA Talent Market Keep Up With MGA Growth?

Everyone keeps asking whether the MGA boom is slowing down.

The better question may be whether firms can continue finding the talent needed to support their growth.

The hiring conversation in commercial insurance has changed. It used to be about adding headcount. Now companies want underwriters who can build profitable books, leaders who know a niche inside and out, and producers who bring long-term relationships, not just premium.

Having the right insurance experience isn't always enough. Companies want to know what someone has actually built.

It's one thing to have worked for an MGA. It's another to have built a profitable book, launched a program, recruited an underwriting team, or developed the carrier relationships behind it.

That makes the candidate market smaller quickly.

The class of business matters. So do underwriting authority, carrier and distribution relationships, and whether someone has built rather than inherited a book. The job title may be common. The combination behind it usually isn't.

And most of the people MGAs want already have jobs.

They're not deciding whether they want a job. They're deciding whether they want to leave a good one to build something somewhere else.

Meanwhile, searches are getting more specific. One MGA may want the same underwriting background as another MGA, a carrier, or a firm building a competing program.

The candidate doesn't necessarily see a shortage. They see choices.

MGA growth hasn't disappeared. AM Best reported that 2025 was the fifth consecutive year of direct premium growth for MGAs and other delegated underwriting authority enterprises, reaching $108.7 billion, up from $92.3 billion in 2024.

As more firms build specialized programs, they're not necessarily creating new pools of experienced people to go with them. They're reaching into many of the same ones.

There may still be plenty of room for MGA growth.

The question is how many people are willing and able to build what comes next.

08/25/2026

A company finishes an interview and says, “They didn't seem that interested.” The candidate leaves the same interview thinking almost the exact same thing.

That's the expectation standoff we're seeing in construction hiring.

Experienced candidates got used to companies pursuing them. They expect answers about travel, flexibility, advancement, and where the position leads before they get too far into the process.

Some companies see it differently. They have a good opportunity, and they expect the candidate to show them why they want it.

The company is waiting for the candidate to show more interest. The candidate already has a good job and is waiting for the company to give them more reason to leave it.

Sometimes we hear both versions after the same interview. Neither side is operating in 2009 or 2021 anymore, yet their expectations haven't caught up.

08/25/2026

The Expectation Standoff in Construction Hiring

Candidates expect hiring to work like it's 2021. Some construction companies still expect candidates to behave like it's 2009. That's created an odd standoff, with both sides waiting for the other to move first.

Experienced project managers, estimators, superintendents, and construction leaders got used to companies pursuing them, moving quickly, and making exceptions to get someone hired.

Some construction companies still expect the opposite. If someone wants a better job, they should find the opening, apply, and convince the company they're worth hiring.

But experienced candidates aren't necessarily applying. They're using LinkedIn, recruiters, social media, and professional networks to explore opportunities without actively looking for another job. Some of our best conversations start with people who haven't applied for anything.

That creates a disconnect. The company wonders why experienced candidates aren't applying. The candidate wonders why a company that wants someone with their experience is waiting for an application.

The same thing happens during interviews. The company expects the candidate to demonstrate interest. The candidate thinks, "You called me. I already have a good job. Why should I leave it for this one?"

It becomes even more complicated when experienced construction professionals want to leave general contracting. After fifteen years running major projects, they expect that experience to open doors. The company may instead see someone who hasn't actually done the position they're hiring for.

Meanwhile, companies looking for directly comparable experience can find the perfect candidate only to discover that their opportunity looks remarkably similar to the job that person already has.

The company sees a strong company, good projects, and a solid position. The candidate sees everything they would have to give up to take it.

Neither side is operating in 2009 or 2021 anymore, yet their expectations haven't caught up.

08/21/2026

For Twenty Years, Companies Tried to Get More Applicants.

They succeeded.

And for a long time, it worked.

Job boards expanded the hiring market. LinkedIn made it easier to connect. One-click applications removed friction from almost every step of applying for a job.

Today, many companies aren't struggling to get applicants.

They're struggling to figure out which applicants are actually candidates.

AI-generated resumes, deepfake profile photos, and mass application software have made that distinction much harder.

Hiring teams are spending more time deciding who belongs in the hiring process than trying to convince people to enter it.

Companies spent twenty years trying to get more applicants.

They may have solved that problem.

Now they have to figure out which applicants deserve to become candidates.

For the record, this post was written by a real person.

I can't make the same promise about every resume showing up in your hiring inbox.

08/20/2026

The Next Growth Market for Hydraulic Companies May Be Thermal Management

For years, hydraulic companies looked for growth inside hydraulics: a larger territory, a new OEM relationship, a broader product offering, or a better hydraulic solution.

Thermal management was usually something hydraulic companies supported. More companies are beginning to build around it.

More fluid power companies are investing in thermal management and thermodynamics as core capabilities rather than supporting technologies. Customer requirements are pushing thermal management closer to the center of product development.

That is changing what hydraulic companies invest in.

For many, thermal management represents more than another product line. It opens the door to applications and customers that have traditionally looked outside fluid power for that expertise. Companies that once focused almost exclusively on hydraulic components are beginning to develop complete thermal solutions alongside them.

Some are building those capabilities internally. Others are expanding through acquisitions, partnerships, or new engineering initiatives. For some, thermal management is becoming part of the growth strategy.

That growth also raises another question: Where do the engineers come from?

Engineers experienced in thermodynamics and thermal management may have never worked for a hydraulic manufacturer. Their expertise has always been managing heat. Hydraulics simply wasn't part of the products they supported.

We're seeing hydraulic companies consider engineering backgrounds that wouldn't have been on the list a few years ago.

For years, recruiting often meant calling competitors inside the fluid power industry. As companies expand into thermal management, they're also expanding where they recruit.

Thermal management has supported hydraulic systems for decades. More hydraulic companies are now treating it as something to grow, not simply something to support.

One thing worth watching isn't just who expands into thermal management. It's where they start looking for engineers once they do.