Ecmweb 7296 Bill Murdy Pr 1
Ecmweb 7296 Bill Murdy Pr 1
Ecmweb 7296 Bill Murdy Pr 1
Ecmweb 7296 Bill Murdy Pr 1
Ecmweb 7296 Bill Murdy Pr 1

Building and Empowering Your Team

April 20, 2015
A team approach is what really drives a successful residential service business.

"What is the one thing I need to do to build a successful residential service business?” I’d like the proverbial nickel for every time I’ve heard that one. Can I break it down to performing one function that will ensure the success of my service business? If I did, would it be recruiting? Maybe training or possibly marketing? What is that silver bullet that will solve all of my problems?

It’s human nature to look for the easy way out. We all do it, but is it realistic to believe we can accomplish one task at the expense of all others and get the results we need? I think you know where I’m headed here. Business, and, in particular, residential service, has a multitude of moving parts that all have to be coordinated so the machine will operate properly.

As owners or general managers, you are the conductors. To get to where you are, you had to bring a team together, spend time to train them, and then manage them to see your goals achieved. If there is a “silver bullet,” it’s you! You’ve got the vision for where you want to go, and you have to share that vision with your team and get their buy-in. You can’t do just one thing to see your company grow, and you can’t do it all yourself. Deep down you know that, but it’s difficult. You need to create a culture of teamwork so that your team can see their individual success growing with the goals of the company.

As you grow your company, it becomes more important that other employees take over some of your roles. Do a little soul searching, and find out if you’re the “funnel” in your own business. Do you get back to the office and have a list of people you need to call back at the end of the day? Could someone else have handled some of these calls? Were they all really that important? Empower your employees to make decisions, create the growth plan with them, and you’ll all share in the benefits of better teamwork.

Bill Murdy

How do you accomplish this? Create performance goals and track them. Remember, you can’t improve what you don’t measure. Get a performance baseline, and find out how you’re doing now.

For your customer service reps, check your closing percentage. Discuss with the team the challenges that are being faced, and establish a plan for improvement. Seek their input, and work with them to get their buy-in. Are they handling the challenging calls or just passing them on? Coach them to explore solutions with the customers themselves. Do you have inspections or service agreements that need to be scheduled or some other form of outbound calling to keep the guys busy during slower times of the year? Create the script, and track the results. Remember, incremental improvement is a win for all. Celebrate the gains, and post the results.

Look at the areas that need improvement in your service techs. Closing percentages are very important here as well. Do you have a star among you that is outperforming everyone else? Explore that employee’s process in your training meetings and allow him or her to mentor the newer techs. How are your material percentages on your job costing? Can you work with your techs to establish a better system for procuring material and getting returns credited?

Whatever you’re measuring, work with the team so that you’ll get their buy-in. Track the results, and once the baseline is established, look for improvement. But make it realistic, and set time deadlines to hold yourself and your team accountable. You’ll find yourself establishing systems that will streamline the way things are done and enable your team to handle any challenge.

As your company truly becomes a team, you’ll find that you’re no longer “putting out fires.” Your time can be spent steering your company toward the vision you’ve shared, and you’re no longer the only one rowing the boat.             

Murdy grew up in the electrical industry and holds a degree in electrical engineering. He has been in the residential electrical service industry for 30 years and has been a business owner for more than 25 years. He independently owns and operates the Mister Sparky electric franchise serving western Long Island, N.Y. He can be reached at [email protected].

About the Author

Bill Murdy | Owner

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