Ian Meachem is the winner of this year's 40 under 40 medium-sized business award.
A family crisis triggered a mindset shift that took Ian Meachem’s business in a new direction.
In 2019, three years after he founded his business, Constructive PD, Mr Meachem’s son Toby was diagnosed with cancer. With about 40 employees at the time, Mr Meachem had no choice but to pull back from the day-to-day running of the business.
“Family is always a priority, but this took it to another level,” he said.
“I really needed to be able to step back from some of the commitments I had and empower and trust my team to be able to deliver.
“The team … were more than capable of taking on more responsibility and taking on more ownership of the operations of the company.”
Mr Meachem and his wife did extensive research on their son’s illness during his treatment but, sadly, despite the best of care, Toby passed away.
Following the tragic loss, the Meachems established their own charity, Toby FCC, in 2022, with the purpose of improving the lives of children with cancer.
“The motivation to make a difference and make some change … is [so that] researchers can focus on research rather than trying to find money,” Mr Meachem said.
“Coming at it from a business-minded perspective, it’s different than a non-for-profit mindset.”
The charity is fully transparent, with 100 per cent of donations going towards research.
In the business, Constructive PD has grown to about 90 staff.
As a construction contractor, it partners with major builders to deliver mass timber, facade cladding and other innovative projects.
Murdoch University’s Boola Katitjin and the Bayswater Metronet station are among the company’s projects.
Constructive PD grew from Timber Insight, which Mr Meachem founded in 2013.
Mr Meachem also owns startup company Asset Engine, which provides software for asset owners to extend the life of their assets.
He also founded Engenuity Engineering, which he sold last year.
Mr Meachem’s decision to start his own business aged just 26 came from a simple need: to gain employment.
“When we started the business I didn’t have a job,” he said.
With no formal qualifications, Mr Meacham’s early lessons about running a business came from his father.
“My dad had a manufacturing business, which he shutdown during the GFC,” he said. “I did learn a bit from him through that process.”
