Details

What is your position within your company?
I am chief financial officer and general counsel for Wm. Molnar Roofing Inc., Brownstown Township, Mich.

What is the most unusual project of which you have been a part?
The Penobscot Building in Detroit is a 47-story high-rise designed with multiple roof sections at every floor above the 30th floor. Roof access required traveling through private office space, so we worked from 6 p.m. to 4 a.m. to minimize disruption to building occupants. The previous roof system consisted of stone tile, mortar, coal tar and substrate boards over a concrete deck. We used jackhammers to remove the top layer and carried it to the freight elevator. The new roof system was modified coal tar with a patio paver system. The project took four months to complete, and it turned out well.

Why did you become involved in the roofing industry?
My father started Wm. Molnar Roofing in 1981. When I was a kid, he would bring me to work with him. As an adult, I entered the industry because I needed to earn a living while attending graduate school. I was fortunate my father and brother were flexible with my schooling schedule. My brother and I completed our ownership succession in 2016.

What song are you listening to over and over?
My all-time favorite song is “No Rain” by Blind Melon!

What is your roofing industry involvement?
I am a director for the Associated Builders and Contractors, a director and shareholder of Roofers Insurance Ltd., and first-past chairperson and trustee of the Southeast Michigan Construction Academy. I also am a graduate of NRCA University’s Executive Management Institute—Class 4.

What’s the most exciting/adventurous thing you’ve done?
The most exciting thing I’ve done on purpose was whitewater rafting in West Virginia. But I am getting married to my fiancée, Candi, soon, so that might change!

People would be surprised to know ...
I have circumnavigated the globe.

What was your first roofing experience?
When I was probably 7 years old, my father would occasionally bring me to a job site. He let me run the skid steer on the ground to load the conveyer hopper with aggregate.

What are your favorite stress relievers?
Working on other peoples’ construction projects where I don’t have to be in charge of making decisions. I also enjoy taking my Newfoundland dog out for a boat ride.

What was your first job?
After finishing undergraduate college, I worked full-time as an investigator in a public defender’s office, part-time in the building materials division of Home Depot and as a night manager at Dairy Queen all at the same time.

What are your favorite roofing materials to work with? Why?
EPDM membranes and prefinished steel. From a single-ply perspective, EPDM is the easiest material to work with. Prefinished steel and other metals are customizable with the proper tools and knowledge and allow for aesthetics to be a primary focus.

My favorite parts about working in the roofing industry are ...
Early knowledge about community development and industry trends and being around hardworking people with grit

What do you consider your most rewarding experience?
Attending the annual Shooting with the Stars event at my alma mater, Carlson High School in Gibraltar, Mich. Every year, our high school athletes partner with the athletes at Wyandotte Jo Brighton Special Education School and play basketball together the Sunday before Martin Luther King Jr. Day. I sponsor the event and never miss a minute of the on-court action. In 2019, the coach got the students and organizers to autograph a team photo and gave it to me as a gift. The joy that comes from this event is paramount.