From Two Men and a Truck to a Scalable, Software-Enabled Business
The engagement concluded with a transformed leadership style, new operational capacity, a 50%+ revenue increase, and an owner who rediscovered his passion for the business — all through Ascent’s focused, eight-month Executive Coaching Program.
CLIENT
Division 5, LLC is a masonry contractor based in Stafford Springs, CT, founded in 2013 by Conrad Barker and Alex Pumiglia. The company has grown to $2M+ in annual revenue and expanded into projects across Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Tennessee.
CHALLENGE
Division 5 was experiencing growing pains trying to manage finances and operations with various disconnected software platforms, paper forms, and manual accounting. The owners knew the company was profitable overall but couldn’t identify which individual jobs were profitable and which weren’t.
RESULTS
Ascent delivered a complete operational redesign with standardized processes, implemented new accounting and project management software, created detailed roles and responsibilities, and provided a comprehensive Operations Manual — giving ownership the confidence and visibility to expand.
Experiencing growth but can't tell which projects are making money?
The Ascent Difference
We helped two founders who started as ‘two men and a truck’ build the operational infrastructure of a professionally managed, multi-state construction company.
Conrad Barker and Alex Pumiglia started Division 5 with a straightforward goal: build a business and a culture where they, their families, and their employees could thrive. From those humble beginnings, the company grew steadily in revenue, project size, and geography. But the systems that served two founders with a truck don’t serve a multi-state operation with employees and complex projects.
The growing pains were showing up in the fundamentals. Various disconnected software platforms, paper forms, and manual accounting made it impossible to see which jobs were profitable and which were eroding margins. The owners knew the company was profitable overall — they just couldn’t see where the money was being made and where it was being lost.
Ascent engaged through software evaluation, operational redesign, and implementation support. Our engagement included:
- Software evaluation across multiple platforms for accounting and project management
- Software selection, implementation, and team training
- Process mapping workshops to standardize procedures and protocols
- Job narrative development with roles and responsibilities for current and future positions
- Strategic growth plan with objective tools for evaluating opportunities
- Deliverable: Comprehensive Operations and Training Manual with software integration
“We sought out a consulting firm to reorganize and implement new practices and procedures and guide us into selecting a construction project management software to transform the way we do business. Ascent Consulting was hired to take us to the next level, and they did that!”
— Conrad Barker,
Managing Director, Division 5
Division 5 now has the visibility they’d been missing. The new software platform provides clear insight into operating expenses and project costs, identifying which jobs generate profit and which need attention. Documented processes give employees clearly defined responsibilities and enable the owners to work ‘on’ the business rather than ‘in’ it.
The strategic growth plan and Operations Manual have given ownership the confidence to continue expanding — armed with objective tools and repeatable systems rather than gut instinct alone.
For trade contractors who started small and grew fast, the transition from founder-led to systems-led is the hardest and most important evolution. The companies that make it are the ones that invest in visibility — knowing not just that they’re profitable, but why they’re profitable, on which jobs, and whether the next one will be too.
Ready to see what your numbers are really telling you?
If your construction company is growing but you lack visibility into project-level profitability, let’s talk about how Ascent can build the systems that give you clarity and confidence.