A Peek Inside Weather Shield’s Professional Development Program 

What is Weather Shield’s Professional Development Program?

Internally, this started as what we called our “Core Leaders” team. In plain language, it’s a professional development group built for the leaders who actually make roofing projects succeed day-to-day.  

That includes:  

Foremen  

Superintendents  

Project managers  

Estimators  

Office Staff  

And other key field-adjacent leaders   

These aren’t abstract, “let’s all hold hands and talk about our feelings” meetings. This is leadership training designed for people who manage crews, solve problems on real job sites, and make decisions that affect safety, schedule, quality, and your building.  

Over time, “Core Leaders” grew into something broader: professional development that supports both personal and professional growth because in the real world, those two things aren’t separate.  

How long has the program been going on?

Altogether, this program has been running for about 4-5 years, and some team members have been involved across multiple seasons of it.  

Although this class hasn’t been held every single week for those entire years, we still come back to these important lessons. Roofing is seasonal, projects surge, storms happen, and sometimes the field needs everyone’s attention. But we’ve had long streaks of consistent sessions, and the program has become a real cultural benefit—one that we keep coming back to because it works.  

What topics do we cover in professional development?

If you’re expecting a single curriculum that never changes, you’ll be disappointed.  

We’re not training robots. We’re developing leaders. That means we use a mix of topics, formats, and tools depending on what our teams need most.  

Here’s what we’ve covered.  

Leadership books  

We’ve worked through multiple leadership books together, including several John Maxwell titles. The format is simple and effective: we read a chapter at a time, discuss the ideas, and then apply them to what’s actually happening on our projects and with our people.  

It’s not about collecting quotes for a social media post. Rather, it’s about raising the level of leadership across the team, so leadership isn’t something we “hope” shows up on your job-site. It’s something we train for.  

Multipliers and other team-performance learning 

We recently finished Multipliers, a book focused on how leaders can get more intelligence, capability, and initiative from their teams (without burning them out).  

If you’ve ever seen a job where one supervisor makes everyone better—and another supervisor drains the life out of the room—you already understand why this matters.  

In commercial roofing services, the difference shows up as:  

Better coordination  

Fewer mistakes  

Safer work  

Less rework  

Better communication with building stakeholders  

Video-based curriculum and group training 

Additionally, not everything in our program is book-based. Some training uses videos, guided curriculum, and facilitated discussion, especially when we want consistent teaching across roles.  

This helps when we’re addressing:

Communication and expectations  

Planning and scheduling discipline  

Safety leadership  

Accountability without drama  

Handling change orders professionally  

Customer communication (especially when surprises happen)  

Roofing projects are full of moving parts. Training leaders to manage those parts with clarity is one of the best forms of “roof maintenance” you’ll never see on an invoice, but you’ll feel it in how the project runs.  

EOS training and operational alignment 

We’ve also done sessions around EOS (Entrepreneurial Operating System) and what it means for how we operate as a company.  

Why would that matter to you?  

Because alignment creates consistency.  

When a company has shared language for priorities, accountability, and problem-solving, you get:  

• Clearer updates  

• More predictable execution  

• Faster issue resolution  

• Less confusion between departments  

In other words, fewer headaches for property managers and building owners.  

What are the benefits of the program? 

This is the part that matters most. Obviously you don’t hire Weather Shield because we read books. You hire us because you need a roof that performs and a team that does what they say they’ll do.  

Professional development supports that in several practical ways.  

Better leadership means better job-site outcomes 

Foremen and superintendents aren’t just “the guy in charge.” They’re the ones who:  

• Catch details that prevent leaks  

• Maintain quality control under pressure  

• Keep safety standards high  

• Coordinate with building operations  

• Solve problems without making them your problem  

When we raise leadership skill, your project runs smoother. Period.  

Fewer communication gaps 

A lot of roofing problems aren’t “roof problems.” They’re communication problems.  

Training project leaders improves how we…

Set expectations upfront  

Communicate schedule changes

Explain findings (especially during roof inspections)  

Handle surprises transparently  

Whether you’re managing emergency roof repair, preventive roof maintenance, or a major replacement, the ability to communicate clearly is a major part of protecting your investment.  

Stronger culture, lower turnover, more consistency 

Commercial roofing is skilled work; however it’s also incredibly demanding work. When companies don’t develop leaders, the best people burn out, and turnover rises. That leads to inconsistency—new crews, new supervisors, new learning curves.  

A steady, trained leadership bench helps us retain talent and keep projects consistent. And consistency is a quiet kind of value that shows up in fewer callbacks and better long-term roof performance.  

Personal and professional development go together 

Although this might sound “soft,” it’s actually practical.  

When leaders grow personally—confidence, discipline, communication, accountability—it shows up professionally in: how they treat customers, manage conflict, train others, and lead under stress.  

And roofing can be stressful. Weather, logistics, occupied buildings, tight schedules. Leadership is what keeps the work steady when conditions aren’t.  

How has the new Nexus Center improved the program?

One of the biggest improvements has been simple: technology.  

With our newer facilities in our Nexus Center, we can broadcast sessions and make training more accessible to:  

• Foremen in the field  

• Superintendents on active jobsites  

• Team members who can’t always be physically present  

That matters because the people who most need leadership development are often the people who are hardest to pull off a job-site. The ability to include them remotely keeps the program practical instead of idealistic.  

What does this have to do with your roof maintenance or roof lifespan?

Everything.  

When you invest in roof maintenance programs like Max Life Roof Care, you’re not just paying for inspections and repairs. You’re relying on the people conducting those inspections to:  

• Spot issues early  

• Document accurately  

• Communicate clearly  

• Recommend the right fix (not the most expensive one)  

Leadership training supports that level of professionalism. It helps ensure that when we tell you a roof has 3–5 years left, or recommend a repair instead of a replacement, that guidance comes from disciplined thinking, not guesswork.  

Wrap-up: Why We Keep Doing This

Weather Shield Roofing Systems™ has been serving commercial buildings for more than 45 years. Over that time, we’ve learned a simple lesson:  

The best roofs aren’t built by brochures. They’re built by trained people doing hard work, the right way, with steady leadership. This professional development program is one of the ways we invest in that reality, so the team on your roof isn’t just skilled, but led well.  

If you’re planning a project, dealing with leaks, or trying to extend roof lifespan through roof maintenance, we’ll talk you through your options clearly and without pressure.  

When you’re ready, reach out here!