Remodeling Leaders Say AI Is No Longer Optional—And It’s Already Reshaping Operations

During the Q4 Thought Leaders call organized by industry advisor Mark Richardson, executives across design-build and home improvement said artificial intelligence is moving faster than anyone anticipated and is already reshaping sales, marketing, and operations inside their businesses. The consensus: AI isn’t a future tool. It’s happening now, and companies that fail to adopt it risk quickly falling behind.

Dedicated chatbots for each project

Greg Harth described how his company, Harth Builders in the greater Philadelphia area, formalized AI adoption after discovering employees were using tools like ChatGPT independently and inconsistently. Harth’s team is now building a structured, company-wide AI framework with custom GPTs for each department and even per-project assistants for production teams. “Every department has low-hanging fruit that AI can help with immediately,” he said, from rendering upgrades to automated task lookups inside project management systems.

Call center improvements

Chris Sever, president of Thompson Creek Window Company in Lanham, Maryland, said his company has already felt transformative gains, particularly in marketing and call center operations. Instead of relying on a small number of expensive production shoots, the company now produces weekly AI-assisted creative, feeding social algorithms with far more varied content. But the biggest shift has been in the call center: all inbound and outbound calls now start with AI. Sever said their AI can schedule appointments, qualify leads, and produce quality-assurance feedback by analyzing 100% of call transcripts. “It’s your assistant,” he said. “Master it and you’re safe—ignore it and you fall behind.”

Keep the inputs and outputs real

On the design-build side, several leaders said AI is already improving communication and customer experience. Some mentioned AI-enhanced renderings and AI chatbots outperforming human responsiveness online. Others, including Michael Anschel, president of OA Design+Build+Architecture in Minneapolis, warned that adoption is happening faster than anyone expected. While exploring agent-based systems like Manas, Anschel emphasized the need to build internal “operating systems” to guide inputs and outputs, ensuring the models reinforce company values instead of drifting into inconsistent behavior. 

Do people like chatbots better than humans?

Several participants discussed a cultural shift: many consumers now prefer AI interactions in early discovery phases because AI is patient, consistent, and instantly available. But that raised parallel concerns about the human side of remodeling. “Have we really lost our skill to listen and be patient?” one leader asked, noting that AI’s communication quality may highlight deficits in human service expectations.

Despite different approaches, everyone agreed that AI is moving far faster than previous technological shifts. As one participant put it, “The internet took 20 years to mature. AI will take two.” The group’s takeaway was clear: remodelers must integrate AI into daily operations now or risk playing catch-up in a sector that won’t slow down.