Buildforce – a leading platform connecting skilled electricians with qualified electrical contractors – announced it has acquired Ladder, a Y Combinator-backed construction labor marketplace led by Atlanta-based Founder and CEO Alex Stewart, who will continue in a leadership role responsible for growing the presence of the company in the U.S. Southeast region.
This acquisition serves as a significant milestone in Buildforce’s expansion plans into the southeastern U.S. and comes amid unprecedented growth across the construction sector in the region and increasing demand for skilled construction talent.
Buildforce will utilize the Ladder customer base of 200+ customers across six states and its extensive electrician network of over 10,000 pre-screened electricians, the largest in the Southeast. Ladder has seen notable growth since its inception. It has recently marked its third year in partnership with The IEC Atlanta & Georgia Chapters, a non-profit trade organization. It was presented with the IEC Industry Award for outstanding support of the Atlanta Chapter IEC and the electrical industry in 2022.
Along with launching Georgia in connection with the Ladder acquisition, Buildforce launched in Arizona earlier this year and will expand into several additional high-construction volume states in 2025. And contractors in these regions will be introduced to a more integrated, technology-driven approach to talent acquisition and workforce management that drives efficiency and delivers higher-quality project outcomes.
Buildforce was created in 2019 by Moody Heard, Vu Brown, and Michael Orcutt, who identified a fundamental gap in the construction labor market affecting both skilled tradespeople and contractors.
The company was created to modernize construction staffing processes and empower the construction trades as a cornerstone of the U.S. labor market. And through an easy-to-use platform and marketplace-driven approach, Buildforce streamlines the process for identifying, screening, placing, and managing skilled construction professionals on behalf of contractors.
KEY QUOTES:
“There are two major problems plaguing the construction labor market. One, the project-based nature of construction work means tradesmen are constantly ‘working themselves out of a job’, meaning high employee turnover. And two, the industry is experiencing a secular decline in the supply of tradesmen relative to surging demand.”
“We are thrilled to welcome Alex and the Ladder platform to Buildforce as we look to further bolster our presence in the Southeast market and create new opportunities for contractors and electricians alike. Alex’s wealth of experience across the construction industry will be invaluable to our growth, and we look forward to continuing to shape the future of the construction workforce in one of the fastest-growing regions in the country.”
- Moody Heard, Co-Founder and CEO of Buildforce
“I am incredibly excited to join the Buildforce team to further its expansion into new markets, while staying true to its mission of helping people in the construction trades find more security and fulfillment. Buildforce is at the forefront of workforce management for the construction industry, and I look forward to working with Moody and the rest of the talented Buildforce team to drive the business towards continued growth.”
- Alex Stewart, Founder and CEO of Ladder and incoming Senior Account Executive at Buildforce
