Mortell

James W. (Jim) Mortell is retired senior vice president and a member of the board of Cherne Contracting Inc. Under Jim’s leadership, Cherne Construction developed many new and innovative programs and techniques that have allowed it to be competitive as a union contractor in a non-union as well as a union environment. He joined Cherne in 1972 and served as vice president from 1974 to 1988, when he took on his senior vice president position. He was active in the Construction Industry Institute (CII) when Cherne became a CII member in the late 1980s.

Among the innovative methods at Cherne is a unique task assignment and material control systems that provides close monitoring and control of the work. Cherne also is the first contractor in the nation to form a project productivity task force involving contractor, owner, and labor. The company was the first in California to implement a substance abuse program as part of the labor agreement.

Jim and Karen live in Ocala, FL.