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Developing manufacturing leaders to support business growth.

How one of the nation’s largest electrical contractors built a leadership pipeline that became a strategic growth advantage

The Challenge

Business was booming.

Demand for large-scale infrastructure, transmission, and renewable energy projects continued to increase, creating opportunities for expansion. But despite strong market demand and exceptional technical talent, M.J. Electric faced a challenge that threatened its ability to grow.

The company didn’t have enough leaders prepared to manage increasingly complex projects.

Many supervisors had built successful careers through technical expertise and years of field experience. As projects became larger and more sophisticated, technical excellence alone was no longer enough. The organization needed leaders who could develop people, communicate across teams, and lead through others.

At the same time, succession planning became increasingly important as experienced leaders approached retirement. Leadership capacity—not market demand—was becoming the limiting factor to growth.

“We were ready to invest in high potentials, but our internal resources didn’t allow us to develop a program on our own.”
— Steve Feira, Vice President of Human Resources

For growing organizations, leadership capacity is often the hidden constraint to expansion. Investing in leadership development helps future-proof the business by ensuring leaders are ready to guide teams, navigate change, and capitalize on new opportunities as the organization grows.

M.J. Electric wanted to invest in its high-potential employees but lacked the internal resources to design a leadership development program that would have lasting business impact.

The Business Objective

Build a sustainable pipeline of future leaders
Prepare technical experts for leadership responsibilities
Strengthen succession planning
Develop leaders capable of managing larger, more complex project
Create measurable business value—not simply deliver leadership training
The goal was to make leadership development a strategic business capability that could support continued organizational growth.

 

The Solution

After evaluating potential partners, M.J. Electric selected IMPACT Group because of its collaborative approach.

Rather than delivering a standardized leadership program, IMPACT worked closely with the executive team to design a program that reflected M.J. Electric’s culture, business priorities, and leadership expectations.

“IMPACT Group really listened to our issues and conceptualized the program to meet our needs.”
— Steve Feira, Vice President of Human Resources

The program launched as a pilot with three participants in 2016 before expanding into annual cohorts of 12–14 emerging leaders.

The leadership experience combined:

  • Executive and leadership coaching
  • Leadership assessments
  • Structured development planning
  • Individual coaching
  • Business-focused capstone projects

Participants applied what they learned through business-focused capstone projects that addressed real organizational challenges. Projects included reducing subcontractor dependence, automating forecasting, evaluating lease-versus-buy decisions, and improving operational processes.

The Impact

Leadership development evolved from an HR initiative into a core element of M.J. Electric’s long-term growth strategy.

new business lines originated from participant capstone projects

%

participants promoted into leadership roles

high-potential leaders completed the program

One capstone project developed the business case for bringing previously subcontracted work in-house, creating a profitable new business.

The program also strengthened succession planning, increased leadership bench strength, and expanded opportunities for women leaders.

“We wouldn’t be near where we are today without this program…We couldn’t have built this program on our own without the strong collaboration with IMPACT Group.”
— Steve Feira, Vice President of Human Resources

Why It Matters

Many manufacturing organizations don’t lack opportunity—they lack enough capable leaders to support growth.

As organizations expand, leadership becomes the multiplier that determines whether growth can be sustained. Technical expertise remains essential, but developing leaders who can coach others, build high-performing teams, and navigate increasing complexity is what enables organizations to scale successfully.

Leadership development strengthens succession planning, improves operational performance, increases organizational capacity, and creates measurable business value. It also helps future-proof the organization by ensuring it has the leadership bench needed to adapt as markets, customer demands, and business priorities evolve.

Organizations can’t predict every opportunity they’ll encounter, but they can prepare the leaders who will turn those opportunities into growth.

Ready to discuss your organization’s needs?

If leadership capacity is limiting your organization’s growth, let’s discuss how IMPACT Group can help you build a stronger leadership pipeline that develops people while delivering measurable business results.

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