Top Builder Spotlight: Powered by ECI | Hayden Homes

This year, we’re highlighting ECI homebuilder ambassadors who were featured on the Builder 100 and Next 100 lists by "Professional Builder" and "Builder Magazine."

For this feature, we sat down with Sean Bearden, customer experience director at Hayden Homes, based in Redmond, Oreg. With 35 years in business, Hayden Homes has built a reputation for quality and community impact in the Pacific Northwest. As a longtime ECI partner, the team continually leverages AvidCX to improve customer satisfaction and strengthen homeowner relationships.

This interview is part of a mini blog series we’ll promote across our channels to celebrate your achievements and inspire other builders to invest in the right people, systems, and processes to grow.

ECI: Congratulations on being named a Top 100 Builder! What does this recognition mean to you and your team?

Sean Bearden (SB): Being named to the Builder 100 is a real affirmation of our team's work every day. At Hayden Homes, we believe in building community and creating experiences for families. Recognition at this level tells our team that their dedication to customers, trade partners, and each other is paying off. It’s both a celebration and a motivator to keep raising the bar.

ECI: What helped your company earn a spot (or move up) on this year’s list?

SB: We’ve invested heavily in culture, training, and customer experience. When you have great people aligned around shared values, the results show up in customer satisfaction, referrals, and growth. At the same time, we’ve become more data-driven, making sure we’re measuring what matters and using those insights to continuously improve.

ECI: How has your ECI tech stack helped support your growth, quality, or customer experience?

SB: AvidCX has been essential to our customer experience strategy. It allows us to listen closely to our customers and act on their feedback in real time. By turning survey insights into action steps, we’ve strengthened communication, resolved issues faster, and built greater consistency in the customer journey. Simply put, it helps us deliver the kind of experience our homeowners expect and deserve.

ECI: What would you tell another builder who wants to make the Top Builder lists next year?

SB: Focus on your people and your processes. Awards and lists are byproducts of consistently doing the right things: delivering quality homes, caring deeply for customers, and empowering your team. My advice would be to invest in technology that helps you stay connected to the customer's voice because that’s what drives long-term growth and reputation.

ECI: What’s one measurable result your team has achieved thanks to your technology — whether in time saved, cost reduced, or customer satisfaction improved?

SB: Our AvidCX data shows that we consistently score above 4.6 out of 5 across our customer base. This represents thousands of families who feel heard, supported, and happy in their new homes. These insights have also helped us identify opportunities to improve processes and celebrate successes at the community level, reinforcing what’s working well.

ECI: What technology decision has impacted your business this year, and what advice would you give another builder considering the same move?

SB: Expanding the integration of customer feedback into our daily operations has been a game-changer. Using AvidCX not just as a survey tool but as a driver of action has improved how quickly we address issues and how consistently we celebrate successes. My advice to other builders: Don’t just collect data. Make sure you have the discipline to act on it. That’s where the real value is.

For homebuilders constructing hundreds or thousands of residences per year, implementing comprehensive construction management software is crucial for tight coordination and oversight of all phases of their building projects.

The success Hayden Homes has achieved in part by focusing on customer satisfaction and loyalty provides a clear example of the impact a data-driven approach can have.

This commitment to leveraging technology for a better customer experience aligns with current residential construction trends, where builders are increasingly turning to software solutions to improve efficiency and profitability.