What does it take to build a hospital that will serve Detroit for the next 50 years? In this episode of The BOBcast, Bob Riney sits down with Ryan Maibach, president and CEO of Barton Malow. Ryan represents the fourth generation of his family to lead the firm, whose team is constructing Destination: Grand and the Henry Ford Health + Michigan State University Health Sciences Research Center. Ryan shares how a 1996 summer internship at Henry Ford's West Annex launched his career, why a more diverse trade workforce is strengthening the industry, and how AI could become a powerful equalizer for the people doing the hands-on work. He also talks about other projects his construction company is behind, including Little Caesars Arena and the new Detroit City Football Club stadium in Corktown, and why he's confident patients will walk through Destination Grand's doors on time in 2029.
What does it take to build a hospital that will serve Detroit for the next 50 years? In this episode of The BOBcast, Bob Riney sits down with Ryan Maibach, president and CEO of Barton Malow. Ryan represents the fourth generation of his family to lead the firm, whose team is constructing Destination: Grand and the Henry Ford Health + Michigan State University Health Sciences Research Center. Ryan shares how a 1996 summer internship at Henry Ford's West Annex launched his career, why a more diverse trade workforce is strengthening the industry, and how AI could become a powerful equalizer for the people doing the hands-on work. He also talks about other projects his construction company is behind, including Little Caesars Arena and the new Detroit City Football Club stadium in Corktown, and why he's confident patients will walk through Destination Grand's doors on time in 2029.
Time Stamps
Introduction
:22- Bob Riney introduces us to Ryan Mailbach, CEO of Barton Malow
Career and Family Legacies
2:29- Ryan talks about the family history of starting the company dating back to 1924
3:12- Ryan describes construction as rewarding because it produces tangible results and said leadership was not assumed, despite his long-standing interest in the industry
Detroit Projects
4:10- Bob and Ryan discuss Destination: Grand, the largest investment in Henry Ford Health history, which will greatly improve patients’ lives
Workforce and Innovation
6:31- Bob and Ryan discuss how the construction workforce is becoming more diverse, including greater participation by women and people entering through varied pathways.
7:27- About 25% of Barton Malow’s work is in Southeast Michigan, less than half is elsewhere in Michigan, and most is outside the state.
8:37- Ryan highlights his all-time favorite project being Little Caesars Arena, where fans see the Pistons, Red Wings, and concerts
9:14- Bob asks Ryan if his children are leaning into working for the company
9:33- Bob and Ryan discuss how advancements in AI and digital are impacting the construction industry
11:33- Ryan talks about how excited Barton Malow is in building Detroit’s first-ever soccer-specific stadium in Corktown
Community Commitment
12:34- Ryan linked his board service and civic involvement to a family, company, and regional culture of responsibility
13:20- His advice to his younger self was to recognize that organizational growth and personal fit can be messy but rewarding
Ryan Maibach 00:00
Walking around this morning, it's enjoyable just saying hi to the trades, stopping and talking. It's a friendly collegial environment, and there's a lot of benefit from that collaboration and teamwork that all help to advance the interests of the project as a whole.
Bob Riney 00:17
Welcome back to The BOBcast. I'm your host, Bob Riney, President and CEO of Henry Ford Health, and today I am thrilled to be joined by someone who is playing a massive role in Henry Ford Health's expansion in Detroit. is president and CEO of Barton Malow, the construction management and general contracting firm behind Destination: Grand, our new state-of-the-art hospital tower, opening in 2029, and the Henry Ford Health Plus Michigan State University Health Sciences Research Center, which will open next year in 2027. Ryan's journey with Barton Malow began with a summer internship in 1996. Since then, he has built a distinguished career across numerous operational roles, becoming the company's president in 2011 and assuming the role of CEO in 2015. In his role, Ryan carries forward a century-long family legacy, as he is the fourth generation to lead Barton Malow. Throughout his career, Ryan has been involved in some of Michigan's most notable construction projects, including the Eastern Michigan University Convocation Center and the expansion of Michigan Stadium. While Barton Malow is headquartered in Southfield, its impact extends far beyond our region, with major projects across the country. We are very proud to partner with Barton Malow and Ryan's team. Every day, they are bringing this vision to life right before our eyes. Ryan, thanks for being on The BOBcast.
Ryan Maibach 01:52
Hey, Bob, it's great to be here. And just one quick anecdote to the introduction: you mentioned that summer internship in 1996. Interestingly, that was working on the West Annex for Henry Ford, right across the street from us, down in Wyandotte.
Bob Riney 01:58
Oh, that's really cool! I did not know that. You know, we both started entry level. You and a family-owned enterprise, and me at the great Henry Ford Health. Let's start off by talking about your family's history with Barton Mallow and what it means to you personally to lead this firm today.
Ryan Maibach 02:29
My great grandfather started with the founder Carl Barton as a carpenter, and so he started in 19, late 1924, a few months after Carl Barton had founded the firm. Later, joined by my grandfather. My grandfather had eight children. Seven out of the eight actually worked in the business or were involved in a related organization. And so I don't really remember the first time that I ever heard Bart Mallow. It's always been a part of my life, and I am very thankful that my family's been a part of an organization that's had a really significant imprint on Southeast Michigan and arguably throughout the U.S.
Bob Riney 03:04
Have you always aspired to lead the firm? Did you ever consider other options, or was it always locked into you?
Ryan Maibach 03:12
I think I always aspired to do construction of some form or fashion, or work in in the organization. Leading is a different story. It's a really cool industry. I mean, having the ability as we sit here to look out a window and see the fruits of the labor, if you will, be able to see a tangible object that's created. I think that really got to me at a pretty young age. I would build in a sandbox next to my garage and then go with my dad or grandfather to, you know, see the real thing happen. And so, leadership, I don't think I ever took as a foregone conclusion, but really grateful to have had the opportunity.
Bob Riney 03:46
So let's get into some juice here. Best thing and worst thing about working for your dad?
Ryan Maibach 03:52
I definitely think I hit the lottery in the the dad department. My dad has been a fantastic father through my formed up years, and then today as well, not only for myself but so many in our organization, he's just a great cheerleader, great cheerleader for what we do, and really great champion for the region.
Bob Riney 04:10
Destination: Grand is the largest investment that Henry Ford Health has ever made in its history, and it's also the largest health investment in modern day dollars, in the city's history, what does it mean to know that your company is building a campus that is going to be needed and beloved by people for probably the next 50, 7500 years?
Ryan Maibach 04:32
First and foremost, we're just really grateful for the opportunity. We talk very frequently internally about the opportunity that we have to have a positive impact on people and communities through the projects we build. Everything that we work on is for a purpose. There's intentionality behind it, and we're fortunate to have had an opportunity to plug into some really. Impactful programs throughout Metro Detroit, and you know when you think about the role of a healthcare facility, and had the opportunity this morning to walk with our team, and quantity of ORs, the quantity of procedures that will happen here, and then the technology behind it is remarkable. And you then think about the type of events that will be occurring in there and how that positive impact on people will really be manifest through the work that your team does in healing is is really remarkable and it's motivating for our team out here and it's certainly motivating for us as an organization.
Bob Riney 05:35
You know, I've had a chance to tour and talk to some of your team and you've done a great job at helping them understand, in a very personal way, what they're building, and that they're building an OR that's going to be part of the environment that saves someone's life or that gives birth to new life. As I've talked to some of your guys, they seem to really feel that.
Ryan Maibach 06:01
I'd be remiss in not noting we're a part of a team, including Turner and Dixon, that are leading this effort. All of us have some measure of impact as a result of healthcare. All of us have a family member that have gone through something, so it doesn't take too much for anyone on that team to really understand the opportunity that can come from that impact-it's very motivating. Motivating to be good stewards of the dollar. Motivating to make sure that this happens on time, so that that process can really begin in earnest.
Bob Riney 06:31
You know, as I'm reflecting, I used an old term when I said the guys I've run into, but the reality is, you have a lot of women working in the field today. How has the change in attractiveness for both genders to a field that was historically dominated by men impacted your company?
Ryan Maibach 06:53
I think it's great. The traditional paradigm was the vast majority of people that worked in our industry were because there was likely a father or an uncle that worked in the trades or had some direct affiliation with the industry. That's not necessarily the case today. The points of entry into the trades are incredibly vast and diverse, and so that team that you're talking about is inclusive of a management team. It's inclusive of a trade workforce that is far more diverse today than it's really ever been in the past. As we see the benefit of that diversity of backgrounds and experiences come to benefit organizations, it certainly applies to projects as well.
Bob Riney 07:31
Are there any distinctions between the work you're doing locally versus the work you're doing elsewhere?
Ryan Maibach 07:37
Absolutely, and and to put that in perspective, I mean, I would say you know about 25% of the work that we do it would be in in Southeast Michigan. Less than half is throughout than the balance of the state of Michigan. But the majority of work that we do is is outside of of Michigan. But this is home, and of course, we're all biased towards our home. And what's wonderful about this community is, you know, it's deeply rooted in traditional Midwestern values. I mean, just walking around this morning, it's enjoyable. Just saying hi to the trades, stopping and talking. It's a friendly, collegial environment, and there's a lot of benefit from that collaboration and teamwork that all help to advance the interests of the project as a whole. It's not always the case everywhere, and you work in different places that maybe don't have that culture and environment that we really enjoy here in Michigan, and it's it just makes you really appreciate it.
Bob Riney 08:28
You work on projects big and small for all different types of industries. Talk to us about some of your all-time favorites.
Ryan Maibach 08:37
Little Caesars Arena, much like Camden Yards many years back, which was a really impactful project for us because it set the standard for that classic ballpark. Little Caesars Arena similarly has done that for arenas throughout the country, and the fact that it's in our own backyard and that we get to go to Pistons games or Red Wings games or concerts there. Every time we walk through the doors, coming up on 10 years later, it looks fantastic. It's held up, and it's just an outstanding venue. It's fun when you have the opportunity to directly use and benefit from the facilities you work on.
Bob Riney 09:14
Any early indications with your children that they'll be following in their dad's footsteps with the company,
Ryan Maibach 09:21
My three kids, all of whom are in college now, are all kind of going through that process and through the benefits of internships and working. You know, learning what they like and what they don't like, and so time will tell.
Bob Riney 09:33
You know, we're all in a period of time where we're looking at the advancement of AI and the advancement of digital, and just this rapidly changing world that we find ourselves in, are we going to see some seismic kind of changes in the construction industry coming up? How's all this fitting into your world?
Bob Riney 09:54
Gosh, I would love to say yes. I think unfortunately the data would suggest that construction tends to be a bit of a laggard and embrace of change and innovation, and we've certainly seen that firsthand. It's difficult to at times get the whole ecosystem to embrace really driving change because there's understandably there's risk. I mean, on this project, Henry Ford is deploying significant capital, and so you want to manage risk in that process, but I think what's most encouraging to me is I think about AI and its impact on our industry is AI can be such a great democratizer in putting an incredibly powerful tool in the hands of people that are directly executing the work. We enjoy being one of the largest, if not the largest, employer of construction-related skilled trades in the state, and the stories of how AI has benefited the work that our trades have done are really exciting and really encouraging. I think we're starting to see some of the benefit. Will it be quite the seismic change you were referring to? Hopefully, again, time will tell.
Bob Riney 10:57
Now that you have gotten to a CEO level, which really is far removed from the hands-on work that we both started early in our career. When you have a project at home, a remodel, a redo, is Sheri asking you to do it, or is she phoning in a friend?
Ryan Maibach 11:16
We do have that discussion fairly regularly. I won't tell you who always wins and loses. I will say, I do think I have a pretty great shop set up at home, so I definitely have the tools to do the work. Whether I'm always the best one to do it, that's debatable.
Bob Riney 11:31
Let's go back to something that's really exciting that's taking place in Detroit that Barton Mallow is once again building, and that's the new Detroit City Football Club Stadium. This will be the city's first ever soccer-specific stadium in Corktown. How excited are you about that particular project, and what do you think that's going to mean to a city that just seems to show no sign of quit for its entertainment industry,
Ryan Maibach 12:04
I think it's going to be a great catalyst project. In our whole portfolio, we have had well in excess of 100 collegiate and professional stadiums, and on our resume. But there are those ones that are unique, and I think that this one is going to be unique. What Sean Mann and team have done in creating a culture around that club is remarkable, and it's just such a great success story of how they've grown. Boy, you attend one of those games; it's infectious and it's exciting. So I think it's going to be really neat.
Bob Riney 12:34
You and I serve on several community boards together. Things that have great missions, great causes, and you devote a lot of personal time and a lot of personal commitment to these causes. What drives you in that direction?
Ryan Maibach 12:49
I think it ties back to a culture both within my family, within the organization, and I think within the region. We're all given a tremendous opportunity and platform, almost a responsibility through positions to try to figure out how to improve. I think there's a deep commitment to this being home, and how do we make it better?
Bob Riney 13:08
I want to just ask you if you could go back to the younger version of yourself and give yourself one piece of advice based on what you've learned today. What would it be?
Ryan Maibach 13:20
I think it's the process and the evolution of an organization. Your role and fit in it is at times messy and challenging, but when you look at that total arc, it's incredibly rewarding.
Bob Riney 13:31
I'd like to know in front of all of our listeners whether you can tell me emphatically that our project, this unbelievable project, is going to be early and under budget.
Ryan Maibach 13:43
That was a great tee up. We did actually just run through it with the team before coming over here, and it looks like everything is all green to be able to hit it and make it work. I mean, they reinforce back to that passion, commitment to being able to see patients on time in '29.
Bob Riney 13:59
Well, Ryan, you are an amazing part of the Detroit area success story. It's been personally gratifying to see you bring your own stamp, your own personality to Barton Mallow, but carry on the same incredible mission and ethics and just qualities that your dad has certainly brought to that company. So thanks for being on The BOBcast.
Ryan Maibach 14:22
Bob, thanks for the opportunity. Thanks for all that you do for our community.