First let me say thanks to all of you who sent e-mails with positive comments about last weeks message. It is certainly a topic that has evoked tremendous interest in our industry along with tremendous confusion.
My job is not to be an expert on the subject but hopefully direct you to some places where you can get helpful information. This week we continue that effort.
In addition to to the BSCAI information from last week and the information that Ruthann Laswick with Blue Water Consulting can provide, let me also suggest the following,
ISSA has an entire link on this subject on their web site which you can access at www.issa.com. IN FACT, THEY WILL BE HOSTING A COMPLIMENTARY WEBINAR ON HEALTHCARE REFORM AND ITS EFFECTS ON BSCs ON JUNE 11. Go to http://www.issa.com/? for more information and to register. This should be an outstanding free learning experience and I encourage you to set aside time to learn.
ISSA also has posted a library of articles on the topic at www.issa.com/?id=health_care_reform&lg. By the way the spaces between health care and reform are really underscores so be sure to include that if you go to that sight.
I realize there are rumors that this law will disappear because of all of the confusion but truthfully I don't think that will happen. Senator Cruz of Texas is attempting to delay further implementation until more clarity can be shown but again, his party is in the minority in the Senate and that most likely won't happen. I suggest you forge ahead anticipating that law will hit full force in 2014 as now designed. Better to be ready than to scramble at the last minute. Most of us will be doing that anyway, I suspect.
House minority leader, Nancy Pelosi, has issued a 70+ page talking points manual to all of the Democrat members to take back to their district to help clarify and "sell" the law. I have not seen this manual but recommend if you live in a district where you can obtain this information, I recommend you do so. If you live in a Republican district push your representative for more clarification on the points that are not clear to you.
I still contend, as I did in a recent SERVICES magazine article that this new health care law can be an opportunity for BSCs. Companies who employ in house cleaning staff members may want to shed the body count to save money on the new law and with BSCs being in the labor business we can take over their cleaning and other facility services and relieve them of this employee burden. In the end they pay, whether the people are on their staff or ours so why not use your sales ability and convince them to contract out the services. Everybody wins. The BSC gets a new contract and the customer gets a better maintained facility.
We will continue to monitor the situation and report as warranted on pertinent information as it pertains to our industry.
Don't forget to join us in Omaha Nebraska on Saturday June 29 for a workshop on Selling Contract Cleaning Services in today's economy. When you leave you will also be given a complimentary copy of our book entitled, Selling Contract Cleaning Services. You can register at www.bscai.org. I really hope to see many of you there. It is a fun learning experience.
Till next time.
Thursday, May 30, 2013
Wednesday, May 22, 2013
BSC'S AND HEALTHCARE REFORM
Last week I had the opportunity to attend the annual BSCAI Executive Seminar in Nashville, TN. Not only was it a great chance to see and meet many old collegues and make some new acquaintances, the content of the sesssions was outstanding. ]
The one session that really hit home was one conducted by Ruthann Laswick, President of Blue Water Consulting headquartered in Scottsdale Arizona on the new healthcare law being implemented. For purposes of this blog posting I will not try to spell out the entire title of the bill but rather just call it Obamacare as it is most commonly refered to as.
Several things were made perfectly clear to me in this session.
1. Ruthann is very knowledgable on this subject. I also learned many BSCAI members have used her consulting services to better understand what their responsibilities are on this new law and---many more will want and need to use her expertise.
2. It is a very complicated law and will affect all BSCs in some manner and if you haven't studied the subject and/or got professional advice, I recommend you do so ASAP.
3. That many people who thought with the passing of this bill, they would automatically get health care are going to be very disappointed. In reality, more people may be without healthcare after this law is implemented than at the present time. This is exactly what was not intended to happen.
One thing I was pleased to learn was that BSCAI and its team of consultants is building a toolkit that contractors can use to prepare, plan, react, and communicate regarding this healthcare reform legislation.
We were told that the reform toolkit includes:
Calculators---Members can determine the essentials, including company size as defined by the government, FTE employees, compliance with federal benefit laws, and penalties.
Checklist---This comprehensive checklisst will be based on company size and list the issues to consider related to healthcare reform legislation.
Compliance Tookkit---The toolkit will provide all necessary materials to be in complilance with PPACA and ERISA.
Webinar Series---BSCAI members will take a deep dive into topics critical to contractors and complliance.
Question and Answer "Hotline"---Members will be able to submit questions and receive personalized responses from BSCAI consultants.
Monthly E-newsletter---The newsletter will address hot topics, provide updates and link to resources and national stories related to healthcare reform.
Communication Templates---Members can use customizable templates for communicating with customers and employees related to changes made necessary by healthcare reform legislation.
Presentations--The lead consultant on topics related to healthcare reform, Ruthann Laswick, whom I referenced above, will give in-person presentation at BSCAI events such as the convention in Las Vegas in November.
I am told BSCAI will house all of this content and resources in the member section of the website. Members will be able to access these materials and additional resources, such as blogs and vendor websites.
All in all I think this will be a valuable benefit to BSCs. For those of you that are not members of BSCAI, this may be the time to investigate membership because Obamacare is probably one of the most important and confusing legislative issues that has affected our industry in a very long time. You cannot afford to get it wrong and the TIME IS NOW that you need to be right in the middle of documenting and implementing. You can get information at www.bscai.org.
Every day I hear people comment, both good and bad, mostly bad, about this important piece of healthcare legislation. Regardless of your political affiliation or opinion of the law, we will need to comply.
I personally see it as an opportunity for BSCs. If we will address the situation head on, I really believe we have the opportunity to begin providing services to current in house facilities. Many of them want to rid themselves of employees to ease compliance and cost issues etc. Since we are labor intensive we will have to address the issue and we should use it as a sales tool that we will relieve their burden and provide them quality service on a contract basis.
Let me again say I am extremely excited about the positive future the BSC faces. We should work hard at taking advantage of any opportunity that presents itself, particularly when it means we can possibly convert an in house operation to contract.
Anyway, check out the toolkit we refer to above. It just might save you lots of dollars and headaches AND provide new business opportunities.
Don't forget, we'll be in Omaha, Nebraska, Saturday, June 29 to conduct a worshop on Selling Contract Cleaning Services. This will be a session based on techniques that have worked. We will show actual mailing we did, proposals we prepared etc. No theory, just stuff that has worked. You can register at www.bscai.org. Click on the events icon and then the sales seminar registration icon. Hope to see many of your there.
Till next time.
The one session that really hit home was one conducted by Ruthann Laswick, President of Blue Water Consulting headquartered in Scottsdale Arizona on the new healthcare law being implemented. For purposes of this blog posting I will not try to spell out the entire title of the bill but rather just call it Obamacare as it is most commonly refered to as.
Several things were made perfectly clear to me in this session.
1. Ruthann is very knowledgable on this subject. I also learned many BSCAI members have used her consulting services to better understand what their responsibilities are on this new law and---many more will want and need to use her expertise.
2. It is a very complicated law and will affect all BSCs in some manner and if you haven't studied the subject and/or got professional advice, I recommend you do so ASAP.
3. That many people who thought with the passing of this bill, they would automatically get health care are going to be very disappointed. In reality, more people may be without healthcare after this law is implemented than at the present time. This is exactly what was not intended to happen.
One thing I was pleased to learn was that BSCAI and its team of consultants is building a toolkit that contractors can use to prepare, plan, react, and communicate regarding this healthcare reform legislation.
We were told that the reform toolkit includes:
Calculators---Members can determine the essentials, including company size as defined by the government, FTE employees, compliance with federal benefit laws, and penalties.
Checklist---This comprehensive checklisst will be based on company size and list the issues to consider related to healthcare reform legislation.
Compliance Tookkit---The toolkit will provide all necessary materials to be in complilance with PPACA and ERISA.
Webinar Series---BSCAI members will take a deep dive into topics critical to contractors and complliance.
Question and Answer "Hotline"---Members will be able to submit questions and receive personalized responses from BSCAI consultants.
Monthly E-newsletter---The newsletter will address hot topics, provide updates and link to resources and national stories related to healthcare reform.
Communication Templates---Members can use customizable templates for communicating with customers and employees related to changes made necessary by healthcare reform legislation.
Presentations--The lead consultant on topics related to healthcare reform, Ruthann Laswick, whom I referenced above, will give in-person presentation at BSCAI events such as the convention in Las Vegas in November.
I am told BSCAI will house all of this content and resources in the member section of the website. Members will be able to access these materials and additional resources, such as blogs and vendor websites.
All in all I think this will be a valuable benefit to BSCs. For those of you that are not members of BSCAI, this may be the time to investigate membership because Obamacare is probably one of the most important and confusing legislative issues that has affected our industry in a very long time. You cannot afford to get it wrong and the TIME IS NOW that you need to be right in the middle of documenting and implementing. You can get information at www.bscai.org.
Every day I hear people comment, both good and bad, mostly bad, about this important piece of healthcare legislation. Regardless of your political affiliation or opinion of the law, we will need to comply.
I personally see it as an opportunity for BSCs. If we will address the situation head on, I really believe we have the opportunity to begin providing services to current in house facilities. Many of them want to rid themselves of employees to ease compliance and cost issues etc. Since we are labor intensive we will have to address the issue and we should use it as a sales tool that we will relieve their burden and provide them quality service on a contract basis.
Let me again say I am extremely excited about the positive future the BSC faces. We should work hard at taking advantage of any opportunity that presents itself, particularly when it means we can possibly convert an in house operation to contract.
Anyway, check out the toolkit we refer to above. It just might save you lots of dollars and headaches AND provide new business opportunities.
Don't forget, we'll be in Omaha, Nebraska, Saturday, June 29 to conduct a worshop on Selling Contract Cleaning Services. This will be a session based on techniques that have worked. We will show actual mailing we did, proposals we prepared etc. No theory, just stuff that has worked. You can register at www.bscai.org. Click on the events icon and then the sales seminar registration icon. Hope to see many of your there.
Till next time.
Sunday, May 12, 2013
SUCCESSFUL SELLING IN TODAY'S ECONOMY
In my position as an advisor and consultant to the BSC industry, the one question I get asked most often, BY FAR, is "how can I increase my sales"? No other questions even comes close. And in recent years, with the United States economy in a slow growth or no growth state, the question comes even more frequently and many times with a sense of urgency. After 50 plus years in the business, I've made enough mistakes so I've learned a lot about what doesn't work and what does. I wish I had the dollars back for all the things I tried that did not work but I also reaped substantial rewards on those systems and processes that did work so I have no complaints.
At the risk of sounding to commercial, I want to alert you to a Successful Selling workshop we will be doing in Omaha, Nebraska on Saturday, June 29, 2013 conducted as a BSCAI regional seminar. It will run from 8:45 AM until 12:30 PM. Some of you may be aware that I wrote a book a few years ago entitled, Selling Contract Cleaning Services. That book will be used as a general outline for the workshop with the emphasis on the following topics,
1. Determining which accounts to pursue
2. Creating and maintaining a prospect list
3. Eight ways to go to market and which ones are most effective
4. Conducting an effective building walkthrough
5. Components of a successful sales proposal
6. How to close the sale
We'll be showing actual successful mailings that we did, an actual proposal, and forms that may be helpful in doing the walkthrough and computing the proposal price. These helped us a great deal and we will be sharing them in a way that attendees can begin a profitable sales process immediately upon returning home. Incidentally, BSCAI has graciously agreed to provide each attendee a copy of our book at the close of the workshop.
In addition, Jean Hanson, Co-founder of the Janitorial Store, will be providing a special session on social media selling. I have previewed this and she does an outstanding job on presenting the information. Jean is always a popular and effective presenter and this time is no exception.
Now, who from your company should attend such a workshop?
Professional BSC sales people who are interested in reaching those hard to see prospects. The techniques discussed in this workshop GET YOU IN THE DOOR.
Owners who double as a sales person and CEO. These processes will help you make the most effective use of your busy schedule. You talk only to those who can reasonably be expected to buy your service.
Operations people who are responsible for finding new customers in their area.
I have a lot of fun conducting these workshops and BSCAI has priced the half day get together very reasonable. It's even a better deal if you are a BSCAI member. I encourage you to go to their web site at www.bscai.org and complete your registration. They have indicated the registration information will be up on their site this week so if you don't find it immediately, check back the next day. I have talked with so many of you via the telephone or internet and hope that I finally get to meet some of you in person. It should be a fun half day learning experience.
So mark Omaha, Nebraska on your calendar for June 29. We'll both be glad you did.
By the way, don't forget to check out our FREE pod cast at www.tripodcast.com. This week Guy Hignite with Sprint is our special guest.
At the risk of sounding to commercial, I want to alert you to a Successful Selling workshop we will be doing in Omaha, Nebraska on Saturday, June 29, 2013 conducted as a BSCAI regional seminar. It will run from 8:45 AM until 12:30 PM. Some of you may be aware that I wrote a book a few years ago entitled, Selling Contract Cleaning Services. That book will be used as a general outline for the workshop with the emphasis on the following topics,
1. Determining which accounts to pursue
2. Creating and maintaining a prospect list
3. Eight ways to go to market and which ones are most effective
4. Conducting an effective building walkthrough
5. Components of a successful sales proposal
6. How to close the sale
We'll be showing actual successful mailings that we did, an actual proposal, and forms that may be helpful in doing the walkthrough and computing the proposal price. These helped us a great deal and we will be sharing them in a way that attendees can begin a profitable sales process immediately upon returning home. Incidentally, BSCAI has graciously agreed to provide each attendee a copy of our book at the close of the workshop.
In addition, Jean Hanson, Co-founder of the Janitorial Store, will be providing a special session on social media selling. I have previewed this and she does an outstanding job on presenting the information. Jean is always a popular and effective presenter and this time is no exception.
Now, who from your company should attend such a workshop?
Professional BSC sales people who are interested in reaching those hard to see prospects. The techniques discussed in this workshop GET YOU IN THE DOOR.
Owners who double as a sales person and CEO. These processes will help you make the most effective use of your busy schedule. You talk only to those who can reasonably be expected to buy your service.
Operations people who are responsible for finding new customers in their area.
I have a lot of fun conducting these workshops and BSCAI has priced the half day get together very reasonable. It's even a better deal if you are a BSCAI member. I encourage you to go to their web site at www.bscai.org and complete your registration. They have indicated the registration information will be up on their site this week so if you don't find it immediately, check back the next day. I have talked with so many of you via the telephone or internet and hope that I finally get to meet some of you in person. It should be a fun half day learning experience.
So mark Omaha, Nebraska on your calendar for June 29. We'll both be glad you did.
By the way, don't forget to check out our FREE pod cast at www.tripodcast.com. This week Guy Hignite with Sprint is our special guest.
Wednesday, May 1, 2013
BENCHMARKING
We hear a lot today about benchmarking. I can remember in the past going to conferences and having people ask me who I was benchmarking with and what we were benchmarking. The questions have subsided a bit but it is still a popular question.
Peer groups have helped a great deal in this area. I know I belonged to a peer group for over 20 years and it was a tremendous help in the benchmarking arena in that I had 5 other companies I could compare with on an ongoing basis. It is gratifying to see several other peer groups sprout up and I hope they are getting the benefit from them that I did. By the way, we should have a major announcement in the very near future regarding peer groups that will positively impact many companies. I will keep you posted.
Back to benchmarking. While comparing your numbers and processes against other companies in the industry, I think it is of vital importance that you benchmark against one major company---YOURS. Just think of what you can learn and improve on just by looking at some of the following items in your own organization,
---How are the sales this year compared to the same time last year?
---Why are sales up or down?
---What types of accounts did we lose and why?
---What types of accounts did we gain and why?
---How do the margins on various catergories of accounts compare to the margins at the same time last year?
---How has the size of our average sale changed since this time last year?
---How has our close ratio changed from last year at this time?
---How many appointments does it take to close a sales this year as opposed to this time last year?
---If we are telemarketing, how many calls does it take this year to get an appointment vs. last year at this time?
---Are we more successful in selling certain types of accounts this year vs. last year? If so why?
----Are there some different market segments this year we should be pursuing vs. last year?
---And the list goes on.
---And the list goes on.
These are just some of the areas you can benchmark against yourself. There are more and as you delve into the ones listed above I am sure you will find more to analyze. It is also important to remember that it, more often than not, is easier and much less expensive to tweek existing accounts to produce more profit than it is to pursue new accounts. Now having said that, if you are not pursuing new accounts you will eventually find yourself out of business so it takes a balance of both to make for a successful business.
As I post this article we are just completing the first 4 months of the 2013 calendar year. This would be an ideal time to compare this year vs. last year, either the first 3 months or the first 4--take your pick, but DO IT. You can learn an enormous amount just by looking at and analyzing the numbers in your own company.
I worked hard at comparisons within my own organization, looking at budget comparisons, market changes, branch profitability changes etc. and it made us a much better company. If you will dedicate the time, your company will be the better for it.
You can change what happens in your own company. That is why I so strongly believe in benchmarking your own numbers etc. While it is nice to see what other companies are doing, you have to execute the changes needed, the other companies won't do it for you.
I encourage you to take the time NOW to analyze what is really happening in your company, make the changes necessary, and reap the multitude of rewards you can gain from your efforts.
As always, we are interested in hearing your comments on what we write. Let us know through our web site at www.consultantsincleaning.com and listen to us each week at www.tripodcast.com.
Till next time.
Peer groups have helped a great deal in this area. I know I belonged to a peer group for over 20 years and it was a tremendous help in the benchmarking arena in that I had 5 other companies I could compare with on an ongoing basis. It is gratifying to see several other peer groups sprout up and I hope they are getting the benefit from them that I did. By the way, we should have a major announcement in the very near future regarding peer groups that will positively impact many companies. I will keep you posted.
Back to benchmarking. While comparing your numbers and processes against other companies in the industry, I think it is of vital importance that you benchmark against one major company---YOURS. Just think of what you can learn and improve on just by looking at some of the following items in your own organization,
SALES
---How are the sales this year compared to the same time last year?
---Why are sales up or down?
---What types of accounts did we lose and why?
---What types of accounts did we gain and why?
---How do the margins on various catergories of accounts compare to the margins at the same time last year?
---How has the size of our average sale changed since this time last year?
---How has our close ratio changed from last year at this time?
---How many appointments does it take to close a sales this year as opposed to this time last year?
---If we are telemarketing, how many calls does it take this year to get an appointment vs. last year at this time?
---Are we more successful in selling certain types of accounts this year vs. last year? If so why?
----Are there some different market segments this year we should be pursuing vs. last year?
---And the list goes on.
OPERATIONS
---How does labor compare this year to last?
---What are your top 10 profit accounts and how do they compare to last year?
---What are your 10 worst profit accounts and why? Do you need to decide on keeping them or canceling them?
---If your worst 10 accounts profit wise last year are still your 10 worst this year, why are you still doing them?
---What are your best supervisor territories and why?
---Who are your best supervisors and worst and why?
---What additional training do you need to do since last year?
---How are supplies running vs. last year?
---Are there new products that can reduce labor and supply cost?
---Are you scheduling all employees for focused retraining on new products and procedures?---And the list goes on.
These are just some of the areas you can benchmark against yourself. There are more and as you delve into the ones listed above I am sure you will find more to analyze. It is also important to remember that it, more often than not, is easier and much less expensive to tweek existing accounts to produce more profit than it is to pursue new accounts. Now having said that, if you are not pursuing new accounts you will eventually find yourself out of business so it takes a balance of both to make for a successful business.
As I post this article we are just completing the first 4 months of the 2013 calendar year. This would be an ideal time to compare this year vs. last year, either the first 3 months or the first 4--take your pick, but DO IT. You can learn an enormous amount just by looking at and analyzing the numbers in your own company.
I worked hard at comparisons within my own organization, looking at budget comparisons, market changes, branch profitability changes etc. and it made us a much better company. If you will dedicate the time, your company will be the better for it.
You can change what happens in your own company. That is why I so strongly believe in benchmarking your own numbers etc. While it is nice to see what other companies are doing, you have to execute the changes needed, the other companies won't do it for you.
I encourage you to take the time NOW to analyze what is really happening in your company, make the changes necessary, and reap the multitude of rewards you can gain from your efforts.
As always, we are interested in hearing your comments on what we write. Let us know through our web site at www.consultantsincleaning.com and listen to us each week at www.tripodcast.com.
Till next time.
Friday, April 26, 2013
THE QUEST FOR EXCELLENCE
A few years ago a friend of mine with Ecolob Corporation supplied me with a video CD of one of their internal documents that was also the theme of their company that particular year. It was entitled "The Quest For Excellence". It has become a mainstay of many of the workshops I do. I thought I would share with you some of the thoughts of that video. I will not supply the music but there is a beautiful song that goes with it. Let me know your thoughts on the Quest For Excellence.
--Take time to smell the roses.
--Never deprive someone of hope. It may be all they have.
--Don't be afraid to say "I'm sorry".
--Don't be afraid to say "I'm wrong".
--Take a nap on Sunday afternoon.
--Give thanks before every meal.
--Don't interrupt.
--Don't take good health for granted.
--Don't tailgate.
--Listen to your children.
--Leave everything better than you found it.
--Leave the toilet seat in the down position.
--Keep your promises.
--Don't be a quitter.
--Be kinder than necessary.
--Make it a habit to do things for people who will never find out.
--Keep good company.
--Take good care of those you love.
--Learn to listen.
--Be a good loser.
--Be romantic.
--Live so that when your children think of fairness, caring, integrity and honor they think of you.
--Never refuse homemade brownies.
--Sing in the shower.
--Don't nag.
--Don't gossip.
--Don't expect money to bring you happiness.
--Be forgiving of yourself and others. (well, most others)
--Never give up on people---miracles happen every day.
--Say please a lot.
--Say thank you a lot.
--Take your dog to obedience school--you will both learn a lot.
--Slow dance.
--Don't postpone jobs you need to do.
--Take responsibility for every aspect of your life.
--Take care of your reputation--it's your most valuable asset.
--Count your blessings.
--Marry only for love.
--Call your mother.
--Do more than is expected.
--Be there when people need you.
--Be someone's hero.
--Exceed your customer's expectations.
--Drink 8 glasses of water every day.
So there you have it. Some great thoughts for living, aren't they? I could probably do a blog on each one, but won't. Anything you need improvement on? If so, today will be a great day to start the process of improvement.
Let me know what you think. Send me a message on Linkedin or through my web site. Would love to get your comments and suggestions for other items that should maybe be on the list for the Quest For Excelllence.
We have a special guest the week of April 29 on our free pod cast. It can be heard at www.tripodcast.com. Listen and let us know what you think. You can comment on the web site right after you have seen and listened.
Till next time.
--Take time to smell the roses.
--Never deprive someone of hope. It may be all they have.
--Don't be afraid to say "I'm sorry".
--Don't be afraid to say "I'm wrong".
--Take a nap on Sunday afternoon.
--Give thanks before every meal.
--Don't interrupt.
--Don't take good health for granted.
--Don't tailgate.
--Listen to your children.
--Leave everything better than you found it.
--Leave the toilet seat in the down position.
--Keep your promises.
--Don't be a quitter.
--Be kinder than necessary.
--Make it a habit to do things for people who will never find out.
--Keep good company.
--Take good care of those you love.
--Learn to listen.
--Be a good loser.
--Be romantic.
--Live so that when your children think of fairness, caring, integrity and honor they think of you.
--Never refuse homemade brownies.
--Sing in the shower.
--Don't nag.
--Don't gossip.
--Don't expect money to bring you happiness.
--Be forgiving of yourself and others. (well, most others)
--Never give up on people---miracles happen every day.
--Say please a lot.
--Say thank you a lot.
--Take your dog to obedience school--you will both learn a lot.
--Slow dance.
--Don't postpone jobs you need to do.
--Take responsibility for every aspect of your life.
--Take care of your reputation--it's your most valuable asset.
--Count your blessings.
--Marry only for love.
--Call your mother.
--Do more than is expected.
--Be there when people need you.
--Be someone's hero.
--Exceed your customer's expectations.
--Drink 8 glasses of water every day.
So there you have it. Some great thoughts for living, aren't they? I could probably do a blog on each one, but won't. Anything you need improvement on? If so, today will be a great day to start the process of improvement.
Let me know what you think. Send me a message on Linkedin or through my web site. Would love to get your comments and suggestions for other items that should maybe be on the list for the Quest For Excelllence.
We have a special guest the week of April 29 on our free pod cast. It can be heard at www.tripodcast.com. Listen and let us know what you think. You can comment on the web site right after you have seen and listened.
Till next time.
Wednesday, April 17, 2013
PROFILING IS GOOD
I want to talk a bit today about the importance of profiling management and sales people in our industry. I am not talking about profiling cultures or nationalities but rather the importance of having prospective new staff members that you are considering bringing on board complete a profile questionaire that is then graded to determine their strengths and/or weaknesses. It can and will save you thousands of dollars in the long run not to mention the countless hours agonizing over a poor hiring decision. While a profile questionaire of the leading candidates won't totally tell you which one to hire, it sure helps determine where the candidate you do hire will need the most training etc. If you are already doing this, congratulations, you know the value, if not please read on and take note.
Let me tell you of a couple of personal examples we had in my own company. One cost me a bundle, the other one avoided what could have been an expensive hiring mistake.
Example number 1--I was trying to hire a branch manger for one of our offices in the Southwest USA and interviewed this man who had years of experience in the cleaning industry with a couple of large companies. At the time, I was in desperate need in that city as we were growing and I was having to fill the slot myself and I wanted to get on with my other duties which I enjoyed much more.
In this case he did the profile questionaire, I sent it on to my home office for grading with a "hurry up" request. The profile came back as a terrible candidate for the position. " This can't be" I said, "this guy interviewed great and understands the position. Maybe I rushed him in answering the questions, so I will administer the questionaire again".
This time the results came back even worse with a note from my person that did the grading that he was the worst candidate we had ever considered for a branch manager postion. What! He's questioning my professional interviewing skills? Yes he was.
Well, I know better. Something must be wrong with the scoring tables. I hired him and within two weeks I fired him. The areas I was told he would not do well in he did horrible in. But he interviewed so well!!! That was the last time I overrode the test results. I should have known better. Lesson here? Sometimes we are so eager to fill a position that we overlook all the red flags that appear. We feel we can overcome the weaknesses and depending on what they are, it may just not be possible. Besides, we have been in the business for years and surely know more than a piece of paper, right? This mistake cost me a bundle, mostly in company reputation as I was much longer without a permanent manager and the customers were getting restless.
Example number 2--My staff was needing to hire a sales representative in one of our Midwestern cities. They interviewed several candidates and called me to inform me that they had decided on an exciting candidate with all the right qualifications. My immediate response was, "That's great, send me the profile so I can review it". I was then told that a profile had not been done and there was no need to do so because they guy was the "real deal".
I reminded them of our policy and with much discussion they reluctantly proceeded with the questionaire. I waited a couple of days and then called to check on the progress and was told that the person was no longer a candidate. He was all interview charisma but his actual personality and ability would not at all match what we were looking for in a person to represent our company. It took a while but we eventually found a very capable individual. A major hiring mistake avoided.
I recently read a great example of getting caught up in the charisma of an individual and ignoring all the warning signs. The book is SALES AUTOPSY by Dan Seidman.
He tells the story of a business owner who became friends with a person he met at a convention and they spent countless hours together for an entire week and at the end of that week, the owner offered his new found friend the position of national sales manager for his company. He was excited, provided him a company car, a credit card, expense account, and all the other benefits of a national sales manager.
He goes on to tell the story of them getting ready to present a huge proposal to a major prospect. As they were sitting in the prospect's board room waiting for all of people to arrive, in walked a couple of gentlemen asking his sales manager for identification. After he identified himself, his head was slammed on the table, he was handcuffed and escorted to jail. He was wanted on outstanding drug warrants, physical abuse of a wife and girlfriend and thousands of dollars in missing child support.
They did not make the sale and the sad truth is the man was out of business within a year. Trouble like that gets around and nobody was interested in buying from a company that would hire "those" type of employees.
So, what about you? Are you taking the right steps in hiring your management and sales staff? They are your culture, image, and reputation to the public. Do you do a profile questionaire before making a major hire? Let me suggest it is worth spending a few hundred dollars up front before comitting to the hire rather than spending thousands later, not counting the damage to your company (and your) reputation.
There are several outstanding companies that produce excellent profiling questionaires. A google search will locate them for you. It is well worth taking the time to research and commit. I know it saved me enormous amounts of time and money.
Don't forget our weekly FREE pod casts at www.tripodcast.com. We have some great guests coming up that you will want to learn from.
Till next time.
Let me tell you of a couple of personal examples we had in my own company. One cost me a bundle, the other one avoided what could have been an expensive hiring mistake.
Example number 1--I was trying to hire a branch manger for one of our offices in the Southwest USA and interviewed this man who had years of experience in the cleaning industry with a couple of large companies. At the time, I was in desperate need in that city as we were growing and I was having to fill the slot myself and I wanted to get on with my other duties which I enjoyed much more.
In this case he did the profile questionaire, I sent it on to my home office for grading with a "hurry up" request. The profile came back as a terrible candidate for the position. " This can't be" I said, "this guy interviewed great and understands the position. Maybe I rushed him in answering the questions, so I will administer the questionaire again".
This time the results came back even worse with a note from my person that did the grading that he was the worst candidate we had ever considered for a branch manager postion. What! He's questioning my professional interviewing skills? Yes he was.
Well, I know better. Something must be wrong with the scoring tables. I hired him and within two weeks I fired him. The areas I was told he would not do well in he did horrible in. But he interviewed so well!!! That was the last time I overrode the test results. I should have known better. Lesson here? Sometimes we are so eager to fill a position that we overlook all the red flags that appear. We feel we can overcome the weaknesses and depending on what they are, it may just not be possible. Besides, we have been in the business for years and surely know more than a piece of paper, right? This mistake cost me a bundle, mostly in company reputation as I was much longer without a permanent manager and the customers were getting restless.
Example number 2--My staff was needing to hire a sales representative in one of our Midwestern cities. They interviewed several candidates and called me to inform me that they had decided on an exciting candidate with all the right qualifications. My immediate response was, "That's great, send me the profile so I can review it". I was then told that a profile had not been done and there was no need to do so because they guy was the "real deal".
I reminded them of our policy and with much discussion they reluctantly proceeded with the questionaire. I waited a couple of days and then called to check on the progress and was told that the person was no longer a candidate. He was all interview charisma but his actual personality and ability would not at all match what we were looking for in a person to represent our company. It took a while but we eventually found a very capable individual. A major hiring mistake avoided.
I recently read a great example of getting caught up in the charisma of an individual and ignoring all the warning signs. The book is SALES AUTOPSY by Dan Seidman.
He tells the story of a business owner who became friends with a person he met at a convention and they spent countless hours together for an entire week and at the end of that week, the owner offered his new found friend the position of national sales manager for his company. He was excited, provided him a company car, a credit card, expense account, and all the other benefits of a national sales manager.
He goes on to tell the story of them getting ready to present a huge proposal to a major prospect. As they were sitting in the prospect's board room waiting for all of people to arrive, in walked a couple of gentlemen asking his sales manager for identification. After he identified himself, his head was slammed on the table, he was handcuffed and escorted to jail. He was wanted on outstanding drug warrants, physical abuse of a wife and girlfriend and thousands of dollars in missing child support.
They did not make the sale and the sad truth is the man was out of business within a year. Trouble like that gets around and nobody was interested in buying from a company that would hire "those" type of employees.
So, what about you? Are you taking the right steps in hiring your management and sales staff? They are your culture, image, and reputation to the public. Do you do a profile questionaire before making a major hire? Let me suggest it is worth spending a few hundred dollars up front before comitting to the hire rather than spending thousands later, not counting the damage to your company (and your) reputation.
There are several outstanding companies that produce excellent profiling questionaires. A google search will locate them for you. It is well worth taking the time to research and commit. I know it saved me enormous amounts of time and money.
Don't forget our weekly FREE pod casts at www.tripodcast.com. We have some great guests coming up that you will want to learn from.
Till next time.
Wednesday, April 3, 2013
CUSTOMER SATISFACTION?
My subject this week was scheduled to be something entirely different but I can't resist discussing my difficult encounters with a company I am almost begging to do business with.
Our company and my wife and I personally are in the process of moving from our current location and that event is to take place in about a week. In preparation for the move we have had to make the usual amount of phone calls to connect various services etc. You are all familiar with the drill.
Many of you have probably seen the commerical of a certain satellite TV provider advertising how easy it is to move with their service. Just pick up the box, take it with you and they'll hook it up for you at the new location. Something got lost between their operations department and their advertising department. It would serve them well to have a meeting to discuss what is really happening.
I now have completed 6 calls to this company without any satisfaction. I was actually told by two of their representatives that getting the service hooked up at the new location was my problem, they provided the boxes, how I got service was not their problem. Since they have a contract with the building owner, I cannot just call up another service provider, I must work my way through the issue.
It got me thinking about the industry we are in. Do you have any customers that have tenants that would like to switch providers but can't because the building management signs the contract? Do you take some of the tenants for granted knowing they don't make the final decision or have the power to influence the decision? Do you really strive to have everybody in the building happy? I know, I know, that is impossible but the key word here is strive. Do you strive to keep everybody happy? Is there a disconnect between what you are selling and what you are delivering? Have you read your own advertising literature lately? Have you shown it to the operations department?
You see, someday one or more of the people in those buildings you clean may be in a position to purchase one or more of the services you provide and they will remember how they were treated by your organization back when. Do you "strive" to always provide customer satisfaction or have you more than once said "we don't do that".
I remember several years ago sitting in a consulting client's office and heard him say at least 3 times to different customers who called, "we can do that". I asked him about that phrase and he said they made it a company policy to always go out of their way to provide the customer with satisfaction and many times that meant finding a sub contractor to perform some work that he wasn't capable of doing. I remember him telling me that they didn't always make a lot of money on each of these special requests but he had been sucessful in developing the reputation among his clients of 'getting things done". They knew by calling him that the problem would be solved. It helped solidify his relationship and avoided the "going out for bid" process because the customers were concerned that another vendor may not be able to provide all the special services that my client could. Great concept, isn't it?
"We can do that" can be a difficult culture to establish in a company. If you are use to doing "only the specs" and have trained your staff accordingly, it can be culture shock to now say you are going to be an umbrella service provider. I know I had difficulty in my own organization creating that change in thinking, especially among my supervisors who didn't want any more work. It was just easier, when a customer asked at night, to say "we don't do that". For the most part we succeeded in changing to a "we can do that" company but it was a challenge.
What changed some attitudes among our staff was when they saw customer retention increasing because customers didn't want to risk losing their one stop phone call shopping. It sure made missing that trash can that before was a major issue seem like not a very important little blip in the grand scheme of things.
So...how about you? Are you taking some or all of your customers for granted? Are you saying "we don't do that" when a phone call to a sub contractor would endear you to that customer? In this day of e-mail and texting it is pretty easy to forget to get in front of the customer and tell them how much you appreciate their business and let them know all the services you can provide and that you want to be their service provider and not just the office cleaners. Let me challenge you to personally visit each of your customers this month and show your appreciation for their business. Some of them may be shocked to see you at a time you are not asking for a price increase.
By the way, while you are visiting with them ask them if their are any other facility services that you could provide that would help ease their workload. I know I just said that in the previous paragraph but I want to see if you are paying attention and it is very important. They might just be struggling with something that would be easy for you to provide and/or compliments what you are now doing. You will never know if you don't ask.
I will let you know how I resolve my issue.
Till next time.
Our company and my wife and I personally are in the process of moving from our current location and that event is to take place in about a week. In preparation for the move we have had to make the usual amount of phone calls to connect various services etc. You are all familiar with the drill.
Many of you have probably seen the commerical of a certain satellite TV provider advertising how easy it is to move with their service. Just pick up the box, take it with you and they'll hook it up for you at the new location. Something got lost between their operations department and their advertising department. It would serve them well to have a meeting to discuss what is really happening.
I now have completed 6 calls to this company without any satisfaction. I was actually told by two of their representatives that getting the service hooked up at the new location was my problem, they provided the boxes, how I got service was not their problem. Since they have a contract with the building owner, I cannot just call up another service provider, I must work my way through the issue.
It got me thinking about the industry we are in. Do you have any customers that have tenants that would like to switch providers but can't because the building management signs the contract? Do you take some of the tenants for granted knowing they don't make the final decision or have the power to influence the decision? Do you really strive to have everybody in the building happy? I know, I know, that is impossible but the key word here is strive. Do you strive to keep everybody happy? Is there a disconnect between what you are selling and what you are delivering? Have you read your own advertising literature lately? Have you shown it to the operations department?
You see, someday one or more of the people in those buildings you clean may be in a position to purchase one or more of the services you provide and they will remember how they were treated by your organization back when. Do you "strive" to always provide customer satisfaction or have you more than once said "we don't do that".
I remember several years ago sitting in a consulting client's office and heard him say at least 3 times to different customers who called, "we can do that". I asked him about that phrase and he said they made it a company policy to always go out of their way to provide the customer with satisfaction and many times that meant finding a sub contractor to perform some work that he wasn't capable of doing. I remember him telling me that they didn't always make a lot of money on each of these special requests but he had been sucessful in developing the reputation among his clients of 'getting things done". They knew by calling him that the problem would be solved. It helped solidify his relationship and avoided the "going out for bid" process because the customers were concerned that another vendor may not be able to provide all the special services that my client could. Great concept, isn't it?
"We can do that" can be a difficult culture to establish in a company. If you are use to doing "only the specs" and have trained your staff accordingly, it can be culture shock to now say you are going to be an umbrella service provider. I know I had difficulty in my own organization creating that change in thinking, especially among my supervisors who didn't want any more work. It was just easier, when a customer asked at night, to say "we don't do that". For the most part we succeeded in changing to a "we can do that" company but it was a challenge.
What changed some attitudes among our staff was when they saw customer retention increasing because customers didn't want to risk losing their one stop phone call shopping. It sure made missing that trash can that before was a major issue seem like not a very important little blip in the grand scheme of things.
So...how about you? Are you taking some or all of your customers for granted? Are you saying "we don't do that" when a phone call to a sub contractor would endear you to that customer? In this day of e-mail and texting it is pretty easy to forget to get in front of the customer and tell them how much you appreciate their business and let them know all the services you can provide and that you want to be their service provider and not just the office cleaners. Let me challenge you to personally visit each of your customers this month and show your appreciation for their business. Some of them may be shocked to see you at a time you are not asking for a price increase.
By the way, while you are visiting with them ask them if their are any other facility services that you could provide that would help ease their workload. I know I just said that in the previous paragraph but I want to see if you are paying attention and it is very important. They might just be struggling with something that would be easy for you to provide and/or compliments what you are now doing. You will never know if you don't ask.
I will let you know how I resolve my issue.
Till next time.
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