Meet Scott, a Delaware-based principal strategic product consultant for owners who is passionate about helping others and exploring the world.
In this monthly blog series, we shine a light on Procorians across the globe who are living our values of ownership, openness and optimism as we work to improve the lives of everyone in construction. They are Groundbreakers in every sense of the word, and these are their stories.
Can you tell us a bit about yourself?
I’ve lived an incredibly fortunate, blessed life—I’m married to my very best friend, have six children (two birth-children and four step-children) and three grandkids. I’ve had the chance to do just about everything I ever wanted to do on this planet. I feel like an explorer, even in this modern era, who gets to adventure out, learn and constantly develop myself. As I go along, the more I think I know about the world and people, the more I realize I don’t. There’s a quote by physicist John Archibald Wheeler that sums it up well: “We live on an island surrounded by a sea of ignorance. As our island of knowledge grows, so does the shore of our ignorance.”
Scott and his wife in Lisbon, Portugal
What is your role at Procore?
I’m a principal strategic product consultant for owners; entities like developers, manufacturers, refineries, municipalities, public utilities, airports and hospitals, etc. Before I came to Procore, I spent 29 years in the construction industry and eight and a half years in the Army. My role at Procore is an amalgamation of all my experience—both in life and at work. I get to interact with owners in such a way to share that experience, build trust and apply it to what they’re trying to do to make their jobs easier.
What was the path to your current role?
In 1982, I graduated high school and went to college on a wrestling scholarship. After my freshman year, I realized I really didn’t like college but loved wrestling—if there had been a Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) back then, I would have pursued that. But there wasn’t, so I joined the Army because I wanted structure and discipline in my life. The camaraderie and esprit de corps were great, and my chain of command saw something in me and worked to develop and make me a better person. They helped me understand the value of people, not as a commodity or a resource, but as other folks. Throughout my service, I met people from varied perspectives in life, which helped shape the way I wanted to be and how I wanted to conduct myself in this world.
In 1992, I got out of the Army but wasn’t quite sure what I wanted to do, and sort of fell into construction by accident. I found that the meritocracy that existed in construction was very similar to how it was in the military—you get out of it what you put into it, and if you’re willing to go in and endure, you can flourish. For 29 years, I flourished in construction and did every role, from laborer to chief operating officer. Half the time, I was on the owner's side, and the other half was on the general contractor’s side. I used a variety of brands of project management software over the years, but in 2015, I started using Procore and loved it.
In November 2021, I was ready to retire. When I broke the news to my good friend, who had also been in construction, he said, “Scott, please don’t retire. You talk all the time about giving back and helping other people. Here’s your opportunity to do that. Find some way to stay in construction and give back. If you’re tired of building buildings, find another way.” It was good advice, so I reached out to two folks I knew at Procore and sent them my resume. When the recruiter reached out to ask what role I wanted to apply for, I asked her what the most difficult job they were trying to fill was. When she said strategic product consultant for financials for owners, I told her that was the role I wanted to interview for.
How do you give time, care, or service to others, whether family or community?
I have always felt that our role as human beings is to help other people. We are supposed to see others around us, meet them where they are in their journey, walk with them for a “minute” and let them know that we love them.
In 2012, I started a nonprofit called Banded Brigade Outdoors with professional soccer player Brad Davis. We take wounded veterans and active-duty military personnel out hunting and fishing to get them back into nature and let them explore. The concept is to show care to an individual and lighten their load, in that moment, without distractions.
The whole reason I came to Procore is in support of that concept—I want to help people, find a way to give back and do something more. The fairer question is: how doesn’t Procore support those values? I can’t quantify enough how much Procore has. A while back, I had a conversation with an employee about Project Engage—a year-long leadership development program that Procore and AGC of California team up on—and my heart for getting involved, so they invited me to be a part of this as an instructor. On another occasion, I told my manager about how I wanted to do more, so she let me know about an opportunity to speak at a Construction Users Roundtable, so I did that. Coming out of that event, the organizers invited me to Las Vegas to moderate a session at the national convention, and I accepted. Anywhere along the way, Procore could have told me that was too much or that I needed to focus on my job and the task at hand. Without fail, the response has always been encouragement and support.
Pro-Staff and Board members of Banded Brigade Outdoors at Halls Bayou Ranch in Santa Fe, TX
How does Procore support your values and the change you'd like to see in the world?
My family, home and health are what I value most in my life. Procore supports that all the time, even if it’s not directly applicable to me in a given instant. Coming from the outside world into Procore, there’s this trepidation that the other shoe will drop, and things can’t be like this forever. I’m ten months in, and it’s still this way.
There may be days when your confidence flags or your energy dissipates, but it’s so refreshing when everybody around you is of a similar bent and mindset that we are trying to improve lives. The flame only burns as long as my flame is burning, but when everybody around me is burning with that same flame, it exponentially makes the light that much brighter.
What is your reaction to being called a Groundbreaker?
My initial reaction was disbelief and gratitude. I’m of the mindset that every day is a new life, and when I go to bed at the end of each day, I want to be able to evaluate if it was a life well-lived. Being recognized as a Groundbreaker confirms that I’m doing things right and that there’s something unique and different about my story. It gives me the opportunity to inspire others to live their life well with joy and passion.
What’s your favorite way to spend a day off work?
I want to be surrounded by the people I love doing something outdoors. I don’t care what the activity is—whether it’s rappelling off a mountainside, riding ATVs or sitting in front of a beach bonfire in the middle of the night—it’s much more important to have people around me that I love and who love me. I think it’s imperative to be present right there at that moment and to do more things that make you put your phone away.
Fay Canyon Arch in Sedona, AZ, San Cristobal in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico and Ocean City, MD
What advice do you have for your past self?
There are a few key things I would tell younger me:
1) Listen more, talk less.
2) Make sure the people you care about know you care about them.
3) Don’t take yourself so seriously.
4) Just laugh.
That said, I wouldn’t change my life. Every choice and decision that got made somewhere along the way have shaped me into who I am today. I would probably just drop those little nuggets of wisdom and tell younger me to make all the decisions you’re going to make, but just pay attention to those things while you’re doing it.
What didn’t we ask that you’d like others to know?
Starting in the spring of 1991, I began to journal each night about how I helped someone that day. In this super divisive, acerbic world we live in, there are opportunities all around us to help lighten someone’s load. The gesture could be grand or small, the request vocalized or not, but go out and help someone and don’t do it to get recognized.
One of the coolest things about working at Procore is that I get to justify, somehow inside my head, that I’m helping people every single day. It aligns with my core values, whether it’s a new strategic product consultant I’m mentoring, someone within Procore that needs something I’m uniquely qualified to help with, or a person outside of Procore who I’m doing something for. If that guiding force drives us and we pay attention, those opportunities abound. I happen to be in a place where they abound without limit, and I could not be more grateful.
Any tips for aspiring Procorians?
Please join us—there is a place for you here at Procore. The culture is soul-lifting and utterly different from anywhere else. If you’re hesitant or think you might want to do this, explore. If you think you really want to do this, apply. If you apply, do everything you can to get through the interview and get hired. Procore is a completely different company than anyone, like me, from the construction industry has ever experienced.
Conclusion
A big thank you to Scott for walking us through his story!
We’re always looking for Groundbreakers like Scott to help us continue to improve the lives of everyone in construction. Explore a career with Procore today, or join our Talent Community to stay connected.
Kiersten Albert
Talent Brand Communications Specialist
- Diversity & Inclusion
- Groundbreakers
- Strategic Product Consultant
- Veteran
