Leadership comes in all shapes and sizes. There are many facets to what we may consider true showmanship to be. Earlier this year, Walls & Ceilings put out a call to those in the industry to select a person it believes holds the highest leadership attributes. There are many in the industry who are worthy of this honor. Nevertheless, we can only select one per year.

Travis Vap has exemplified all the qualities of what it means to be a leader. He has been involved in the industry, notably serving as a term president at AWCI, participated in community outreach and involvement, made sound business decisions and/or practices, runs a fiscally sound company and much more.

The South Valley Drywall president has displayed his involvement in leadership roles within the industry in recent years. Many owners/presidents are worthy of this recognition, but Vap has been very present in the role of someone who strives to move the wall and ceiling industry forward, whether through industry activity, a firm stance on safety standards, or the level of quality his company has distributed throughout his native Colorado.

We are proud to announce that Travis Vap is the first recipient of our annual W&C Leadership Award.

When Vap spoke with W&C Group Publisher Jill Bloom at BUILD23, he shared a particularly poignant story of a job site safety issue within his own company. An employee had seriously violated a job site ordinance on a piece of safety equipment, which resulted in the general contractor having words with South Valley Drywall. Vap could have easily fired the individual. However, he instead chose a hard stance of disciplinary action that saved this employee their job but taught a valuable lesson (read W&C’s June issue for Vap’s account of this episode).

Leadership such as this example led W&C to consider Vap among the many qualified contenders. He has repeatedly demonstrated the value of investing in his staff and implementing a responsible company culture that resonates beyond its own program. In short, W&C believes Vap to be a highly valuable player in the industry. Even his industry colleagues share testament to W&C’s assessment of his leadership qualities.

“Travis brings integrity and innovation to our industry,” says Travis Winsor, president/CEO of Raymond Group. “I have had the pleasure of working with Travis in several different areas, each unique to their demands. I have always appreciated his insight and his ability to challenge my thought process. Challenging the status quo makes for creative decision-making and improves our overall industry. I appreciate my friendship and partnership with Travis.”

“His passion sets him apart,” says Shawn Burnam of Performance Contractors Inc. “He truly cares about the success of the industry and others. He is not afraid to share his experiences and knowledge, even with competitors if he believes it is for the betterment of the total.

“He invests his time and energy in educating himself on future improvements and challenges the status quo,” Burnam adds. “He asks penetrating questions to find the root cause of behaviors and actions to learn from them. He isn’t afraid to challenge himself or those around him and leads by example.”

W&C is proud to name Vap as its Leadership Award Winner of 2023. We firmly congratulate him on this win and thank Georgia-Pacific DensSuite for its sponsorship of the award.