The Evolution of Amelco Electric
by Rennay Craats with photos by Riverwood Photography
Published by Melissa Mitchell
For the past 40 years, Amelco Electric has been a top electrical contractor led by a dedicated, experienced team of professionals. The key to the company’s success lies with that team, which is constantly evolving and preparing for the eventual transition to the next generation.
“The guard is changing, and it’s by design,” says Ivan Houde, president of Amelco. “We’ve homegrown all of our people and the cream rises to the top. We’ve provided opportunity to those who have helped us succeed.”
Having a succession plan is something that has been entrenched in the business since it was established in 1983, and Houde, who joined the team two years later, worked his way up the ranks. He, along with a handful of other managers, took over the helm of Amelco when the founder was ready to retire, and now Houde and Trevor Gadd are the last of the old guard who are eying retirement themselves. They have six stellar ownership partners ready to take the reins: controller Matt Cowitz, residential managers Jarret Stewart and Joe Gomes, principal project managers Chris Hundey and Mark Treschel and vice president Mark Schwartz.
This succession plan, complete with shareholder agreements and timelines to feasibly buy in, has been carefully designed and slowly implemented over several years to ensure all parties are prepared and comfortable with the demands
of the role before they have to assume it. This preparation leads to a seamless leadership transition for both employees and clients. By the end of this year, Mark Schwartz will step into the president role and Mark Treschel will become vice president, all the while grooming the next generation to one day step in for them.
“That’s just a snapshot in time. There will be six owners but there are already plans in place for the next level of transition. The next generation is always in the works behind us,” says Schwartz.
Since the beginning, Amelco has focused on developing from within to fill required positions and the team takes pride in the number of employees who started as apprentices in the field and worked their way through the company. By the time they reach upper management positions, these employees have a thorough understanding of how the Amelco machine works. They have gained experience in all aspects of the business, first as apprentices and then journeymen electricians in the field before learning estimating and negotiating and finally project management.
“When we interview a new hire, we can say that we started out sitting right where they are, a first-year apprentice, and it’s up to them to have the passion and drive to advance,” says Chris Hundey.
It is obvious from the outset that there are ample opportunities for advancement and this attracts people who are looking for a career rather than just a job. While the team is serious about the work they do, the atmosphere at the office is relaxed, supportive and fun. Employees know their responsibilities and diligently meet their deadlines, minimizing the need for management to micromanage. This approach has made Amelco an enjoyable place to work. The management team encourages employees to discover their preferences and strengths when they start out and then aims to have them work in areas of the business that capitalize on those strengths. This helps them find the best fit between person and position to ensure that employees will excel in the jobs they hold.
Over the course of their careers, employees develop and learn new skills as they navigate the wide scope of Amelco’s work. At the same time, they’re expanding the breadth of experience the team can call on for each new project. Having such knowledgeable staff facilitates successful project management, and with every position outside administration filled by an electrician, the entire team is intimately familiar with the industry and understands what any given project will entail. If there are questions about a project, there is sure to be someone on staff who has seen it before and can provide the answer. This high level of expertise and collaboration has led to a huge number of long-time employees which in turn leads to continuity and incredible relationships with clients.
Congratulations Amelco Electric (Calgary) Ltd. on your 40 years of continued success.
“We have several clients that we’ve worked with for 25-plus years. We’ve been in business 40 years and we’ve grown and developed with those companies, and they’ve grown and developed with us at the same time,” says Schwartz.
Amelco is a Calgary-based business serving Calgary-based clients, but as clients have grown and branched out into new markets, the company is happy to follow them and complete their expansion projects in order to support their valued clients’ success and growth. The loyalty works both ways, and when people move from a client’s company to a new job at another company, they often bring Amelco with them.
After all, relationships are at the heart of the business, and Amelco has worked for years to develop incredible relationships with not only clients and employees but also suppliers to ensure projects run smoothly. And they are true partners; when supply chain issues caused product shortages, Amelco’s key suppliers found a way to bring inventory in for them and when the company was bursting at the seams, its suppliers
“We have worked hard on our reputation out in the field with both clients and suppliers over the last 40 years as somebody that can be trusted to work with. We’ve had great support in the industry, and our clients understand that we’ve always had the resources to deliver on time all the time,” says Treschel.
Over the years, Amelco Electric has delivered on some prominent projects in town including highrise buildings, many high-end custom homes, industrial warehousing and manufacturing facilities, and one particular feather in the company’s cap is its involvement in the entire Quarry Park development in the city’s southeast.
“There’s only a very small part of that community that we haven’t been involved with. We did everything from the high-rise multi-family apartments in there to all of the commercial facilities and Imperial Oil’s massive campus, all of the single-family residential and the retail development. That’s been a major part of our portfolio,” says Schwartz.
While projects like these have helped Amelco amass experience as well as establish itself as the
