Connectedness builds opportunity: Reflections from Chicago’s IHCC Conference

By Dr. Willis H. Thomas

JA Contributing Writer

Part II

In Part I, I discussed some of the data supporting my opinion that the future of workforce development requires connecting people to skills, businesses to contracts, students to careers and communities to one another.

Hispanic- and Black-owned businesses represent different histories and communities, but they often face similar barriers: limited access to capital, smaller professional networks, difficulty entering major supply chains and too few opportunities to grow from a small enterprise into a large employer. Our greater strength is found in expanding the table together.

The construction industry makes that shared challenge especially visible. Hispanic workers are essential to the industry. Bureau of Labor Statistics research found Hispanic workers represented 30 percent of construction employment in 2020, well above their share of total employment. Yet Black workers held only 5.1 percent of construction jobs, compared with 11.8 percent of employment overall. More recent labor data show 22 percent of employed Hispanic men worked in construction in 2023, compared with 7 percent of employed Black men. Those figures should prompt two questions: Who is performing the work, and who is being prepared to supervise projects, own firms, win prime contracts and build generational wealth from that work?

At the IHCC Conference in Chicago, my brief introduction to José Pareja, president and founder of JP Architects and a 2026 Who’s Who in Hispanic Business Construction honoree, brought this issue into focus. Architecture, engineering and construction demand more than technical ability. Growing firms also need project management, quality systems, estimating, scheduling, regulatory knowledge, technology skills and leadership development.

I have seen the value of this combination in designing project-management training for architects and engineers. A skilled craft workforce is indispensable, but so are the systems and leadership capabilities that allow minority-owned contractors to compete, scale and deliver consistently.

My perspective is also shaped by my work with the American Society for Quality. As a reviewer supporting the development of ASQ’s Certified Construction Quality Manager (CCQM) certification and through my service on the global board of ASQ’s Design and Construction Division, I have seen how quality can connect contractors, owners, designers, educators and workforce-development partners. The division’s Quality Alliances initiative reflects this same principle: lasting improvement occurs when organizations share knowledge, align expectations and build capacity across the entire construction ecosystem. For minority-owned firms, access to quality-management knowledge can strengthen credibility, reduce costly rework and create a more competitive path to larger and more complex contracts.

I also spoke with Oscar Bedolla about practical artificial-intelligence and project-management training for Hispanic business owners. Technology training should not be treated as a luxury reserved for large corporations. Small firms can use AI to strengthen proposals, analyze schedules, develop training, document processes and communicate more efficiently. But technology must be paired with sound judgment, cybersecurity awareness and disciplined project execution. Otherwise, the digital divide simply becomes another version of the opportunity divide. Employers can sponsor learning cohorts. Colleges can provide accessible, industry-aligned education. Chambers can convene businesses and identify real needs. Experienced professionals can mentor emerging leaders. Financial institutions can help firms move from surviving to scaling. Each partner holds a piece of the solution, but no partner holds all of it.

For Black and Hispanic communities, connectedness can become an economic strategy. A Hispanic-owned architecture (design) firm may partner with a Black-owned construction company. A Black contractor may join a Hispanic-led team pursuing a major infrastructure project. Community colleges can recruit from both communities into construction management, safety, quality, technology and skilled-trade programs. Large companies and public agencies can measure whether their supplier-diversity commitments lead to meaningful scopes of work, repeat business and business growth – not merely a name on a participation report.

As I left the conference, I was reminded conferences are valuable only when conversations become commitments. The next step is not another panel describing the workforce gap; it is building the bridge – from classrooms to careers, from subcontracting to ownership, from introductions to partnerships, and from diversity statements to measurable opportunity.

Although this reflection highlights the experiences of Black and Hispanic businesses, workforce development should never separate communities into competing categories. A strong economy is built when people of every background can contribute their talents, develop their capabilities, build sustainable businesses and share in the opportunities they help create. Ultimately, connectedness means transforming our shared strengths into partnerships that expand opportunity, strengthen communities and create lasting economic progress for everyone.