ABC announced three finalists for its annual Young Professional of the Year Award on Oct. 26. Finalists were chosen based on their career achievement, leadership and vision for the future of the commercial and industrial construction industry from a field of more than 30 nominations representing 20 ABC chapters across the country.

“The nominees for ABC Young Professional of the Year represent the promise of the future of the merit shop construction industry,” said ABC Vice President of Environment, Health, Safety and Workforce Development Greg Sizemore. “Associated Builders and Contractors is proud to celebrate the outstanding talent that makes up our membership during Careers in Construction Month.”

The three Young Professional of the Year finalists are:

Rob Griffith
Vice President
Gaylor Electric Inc.
Indianapolis, Ind.
ABC Indiana/Kentucky Chapter

Andrew B. Lopez
Vice President
Cajun Industries, LLC
Baton Rouge, La.
ABC Pelican Chapter

Brooke Wenger
Director of Business Development
Triad Engineering, Inc.
Hagerstown, Md.
ABC Cumberland Valley Chapter

ABC’s Young Professional Program aims to shape the future of our industry by supporting the growth of professionals under the age of 40 who are employed by ABC member companies. The Young Professional of the Year Award program recognizes high performance from emerging professionals in the merit shop construction industry. The winner will be announced during ABC’s Leadership Week Conference in Dallas, Nov. 16.

ABC earlier this month announced that its members invest $1.1 billion in workforce development annually. The investment leads to training for approximately 476,000 construction professionals. ABC is working alongside its member companies to continue to develop the finest talent base in the construction industry through more than 800 apprenticeship, construction management, craft and safety training programs at ABC chapters around the country.

The Young Professional of the Year Award joins numerous ABC award programs that promote life-long learning and achievement at every level of the construction industry. These programs include the National Craft Championships, Construction Management Competition, and the Craft Instructor, Craft Professional and Student Chapter of the Year awards. You can read about workforce development programs in the construction industry at byf.org and careers.abc.org, and in Construction Executive magazine.