Gathering Wisdom

After six years on the NAHB board of directors, Catalde became quite familiar with the multiple issues the organization tackled. He quickly realized that the association's goals and objectives lacked continuity from one year to the next.(see page 112)

As part of the preparation for his new role, Catalde reviewed the notes from every presidential planning meeting held over the past six years. “There was a lot of jumping around because each new president wanted to work on something different from what the outgoing president had worked on,” he says. “Working on an issue for just a year—that lack of a long-term commitment—was a problem.”

Catalde hopes to solve the NAHB's habit of moving from one issue to the next like a bee buzzing from flower to flower looking for nectar. “This is a $100 million organization, and we need to operate with a large corporate mentality,” he says. “You run a big company by sitting down with your top execs and figuring out what your long-term goals are.”

Late last year, Catalde gathered his executive team, got them to share what they hoped to focus on during their own eventual presidencies, and brought the group to a consensus on the pertinent goals. “By establishing long-term priorities, we all know what we need to do to accomplish our goals,” he explains.

PERFECT FIT: Catalde brings a wealth of experience to his role as president of the 235,000-member NAHB, having served as president of the Building Industry Association of Southern California and the California Building Industry Association.

“We all want to be something bigger than just individuals. We want to be part of a great, record-setting team,” he says, adding that great leaders, whether in business or in politics, appeal to people's desires to be part of something greater than themselves.

“If we're going to get people to believe in our vision and get them engaged, we have to genuinely care for them,” Catalde adds. “To do that, you have to make one of the more difficult investments you'll ever be asked to make. It's not a financial investment; it's an emotional connection with them.”

During his stint as president of the NAHB, Catalde is going to focus on team building and achieving common goals. To that end, he plans to encourage the NAHB's senior officers to start working on their programs now rather than waiting until they become NAHB president themselves. He hopes that this long-term vision will help the NAHB ultimately achieve much more than would otherwise be possible. Communicating better with members, encouraging member diversity, and restructuring membership levels to reach out to more prospective members have emerged as the organization's key internal priorities, he says.

Catalde hopes that his efforts will change the NAHB's culture, but he admits that implementing this kind of long-term plan requires a certain level of finesse and self-sacrifice. “To do this kind of plan, you have to give up autonomy and work together for a common goal,” he points out. “You can't get people to buy in if you're king for a day.”

Jennifer Popovec is a freelance writer based in Fort Worth, Texas.