It’s easy to be successful in a great economy. You can get away with a lot of bad habits, lack of systems, and high overhead when jobs are large and margins high. But when the economy contracts, job sizes shrink, and margins erode, those bad habits can have a huge affect on the health of
I love to catch fish. I didn’t say I love to fish. There’s a difference. I love to put fish in the cooler so I can use them for food or bait. True fisherman love the activity of fishing. If they catch some fish, that’s good, but a day fishing with no catch is still
Victoria and Mark are just back from their own peer group meeting, and were inspired by what they learned. In particular, they were excited by something they heard from another member, Wayne Rivers. Wayne has a video blog, and we’re picking up one of his episodes about leadership. He says leaders tolerate bad behaviors in
As we prepare to meet at the Annual Remodelers Summit in September, we are focusing our presentations, content, and discussions on business growth — and what it takes to take your business to the next level. In today’s tough labor market that discussion undoubtedly turns to finding and keeping good employees. I found this article
Most remodelers wear many hats, and sales management is only one of them. So you have to handle sales functions on a part-time basis. As you grow and add salespeople, overseeing that department becomes yet another job duty. In this episode, Chip Doyle discusses how to successfully manage the sales department on a part-time basis
BYOD, or Bring Your Own Device, is common in small- to medium-sized organization like remodeling companies. Your employees use their own phones, tablets, and sometimes laptops in their business operations. A CBS MoneyWatch survey says more than 67% of workers use one or more of their own devices at work, and that doesn’t seem to
When it comes to performance reviews, the times, they are a-changin’. Though some managers and employees might still like a good old-fashioned numeric ranking, most prefer to take charge of their destinies — working with together to set goals and spur professional development. Allison Iantosca talks to Victoria and Mark about why we all need
Your inbox is probably similar to mine, with half a dozen emails from industry publications and organizations asking for nominations and entries into various industry awards competitions. In today’s PowerTips we throw it back to a previous episode of PowerTips TV as Victoria walks through “Tips & Tactics” when looking at entering, winning and then
So many remodeling companies start small, with the owner doing almost everything. But as your company grows, and you’re running multiple complicated jobs, trying to do it all only holds you back. But it’s hard to let go. You know you have to delegate some of your duties, but too often that merely leads to
We’re getting esoteric today — applying a sports concept to business. Not too long ago, Mark read an article and shared it with Victoria about fixing something that’s broken in basketball — the intentional fouls at the end of the game to stop the clock. Nick Elam is a Mensa member and basketball superfan, who
