BUILDER CRUSH: FORMA Construction
Author:Lindsey ShookVision, passion and connection are the driving forces behind Bay Area construction company FORMA Construction. Founded over a decade ago by Victor Mezhvinsky, the native San Franciscan has a deep rooted love for the city’s architecture which guides their meticulous attention to detail and high quality development. Here, we share a recent conversation with Mezhvinsky about the firm’s strategic approach, technology and more.
–There are so many construction companies based in Northern California. What makes FORMA unique? As a founder-led company, each project is personal to me and meaningful to the team. FORMA is driven by a simple goal: to build great things with great people. This is encapsulated in our vision to become the most respected partner for complex and highly detailed residential construction projects. This clear goal has been instrumental in attracting and retaining the industry’s top talent, fostering a team culture focused on hiring the most qualified individuals for every position. This deep bench of talent enables us to be true partners for our stakeholders. Meanwhile, just like a sports team, we invest deeply in the team with great training, processes, and tools to build meaningful relationships so we can turn partners into advocates.
-Relationship development—not business development—seems to be at the core of your overall vision. Can you share any stories and or ways that demonstrate why this approach was successful?Relationships mean more than just knowing someone or grabbing a coffee; they involve caring for others and building mutual esteem that motivates people to do their best for one another. Doing this requires showing up, being a partner, and being a friend. If people don’t like you, they won’t trust you, and they certainly won’t want to work with you. This means creating win-win situations, finding ways to help others first, and then, if it works, maybe they can help you in return. However, there can’t be an expectation in the same way; you don’t keep score of favors with your friends. Fundamentally, this is a reputational business. People partner with us because they know we will do whatever it takes to build amazing projects in a collaborative and high-quality way. An example is our first project we ever built. We stayed in touch with the clients, and ten years later, when they went looking for new houses, they called us for help assessing potential projects and to help build a team to support their vision. Ultimately, we are fueled by a desire to be well-respected by those we respect. This vision goes beyond a revenue number or personnel count; it’s about showing up, helping others, and being great partners and team members. If we can do this, we should eventually find success.
-You speak about transparency as another key component to FORMA’s strategy. How will transparency play a role in your communication moving forward, with the potential rise of building materials? Fundamentally, we are in the business of expectations management, so I always say that clients are more comfortable with the outcome if they are part of the process. We primarily run our projects using an open book cost-plus approach. In exchange, we offer robust accounting practices that detail time and materials down to the nails, as well as trade partner invoices with clear backup. Our invoice packages are clear and designed to make everyone feel comfortable about the budget. In addition, all our accounting is done in the G702 standard form, with percentage complete shown for each item. We are proactive in letting clients know about any changes that affect the budget or schedule so that they can make decisions with confidence and in the context of the overall project. However, when unexpected issues arise, we are always there to work with clients to find solutions that move the project forward towards the ultimate goal of creating an amazing home.
-From what I have read, empowerment is a very tool for your internal team management. Are you using any specific training platforms or coaches to aid in this process? Growth is an important value at FORMA. The desire for continual improvement is something we seek out in our team members and is essential to building the dynamic and demanding projects we undertake. We look for individuals with a deep curiosity, which we nurture through various training sessions, books, and classes. Additionally, several of our team members are enrolled in Vistage, along with a few other mentors with whom we collaborate.
Another approach we have taken is developing clear and detailed roles, responsibilities, and expectations for each position at FORMA. These are not just job descriptions, but roadmaps that include suggested allocations of time for each role. We also publish comp bands for each role, so it’s clear to everyone what their current skills are and what they need to master to reach the next role if they so choose. Additionally, we created something called “FORMA University” as a resource for team members to bridge the skills gap with approved classes, books, videos, and online courses. We want our team members to know what’s ahead of them, see what’s possible, and help them get there if they would like.
-There are several construction management platforms now. What technologies do you lean on to streamline the building timeline and process for clients? Having grown up in the Bay Area, I often joke that I’m the only one in my friend group who does something tangible. However, the influence of technology from a young age has made me an early adopter of tools like Procore. Since then, we have also adopted strong tools for accounting, along with a custom integration between Procore, Sage, and an invoice management software. There are also other great options such as Beam, which we are currently studying. For estimating, we use PlanSwift to assist with take-offs and the Microsoft platform for email, Teams, etc. Given our early focus on software, we can operate more efficiently than most, which provides a big advantage for us.
-Are you utilizing or plan to use any AI platforms for your work? Yes, we are working with several AI software programs for estimating support and are starting to roll out AI search across our company.
-What do you feel is the biggest challenge the construction industry faces right now? Finding talented individuals who embody our values of urgency, ownership, and communication is crucial. We have also been involved with several nonprofits that train high school graduates to enter the construction field.
-Climate change issues continue to plague California housing. Are there any materials or programs that you feel would help build better and stronger homes for the future? One of the most significant effects of climate change that we face is the increase in wildfires. While we are actively installing design solutions to combat the destruction of physical structures caused by wildfires in our more rural projects—including, but not limited to, wildfire defense sprinkler systems, fire-safe landscape designs, and WUI-compliant materials and assemblies—we are also heavily focused on indoor air quality systems and requirements for all our projects. Approximately 50% of our current projects are located in San Francisco, and while the physical damage from wildfires is relatively low compared to our rural projects, the effects of smoke and poor air quality remain a climate change issue that we are constantly addressing. Our homes are high-performance; we pay close attention to air sealing, insulation values, and high-performance windows. The importance of fresh air is critical for maintaining a comfortable and healthy indoor environment. This is why we advocate for our projects to include specialized ventilation systems, such as ERV and HRV. A major concern with ventilation systems regarding climate change is that if outside air is contaminated (smoky, smoggy, etc.), we may introduce pollutants into the home. Therefore, we are starting to pair sensors that detect outside air contamination; when pollution is detected, the ventilation system will automatically shut off the outside air intake and circulate indoor air through filters. Although these systems have been pieced together from various manufacturers to date, we are excited about new start-ups that are beginning to develop these systems and components as a whole.
LIGHTNING ROUND!
-Favorite California hotel? Auberge du Soleil in Napa. My wife and I stayed there after our wedding, and it was pretty special.
-Which interior designers in SF are inspiring your work the most? We are lucky to live in an area with so many talented people; it’s impossible to name just one!
-If you weren’t a builder, what you do for work? A business coach. I would love to help other people fulfill their passions.
