High Impact Management Hits the Music City

High Impact Management Hits the Music City

Nexstar® Network Reveals 20{938cd9e8dae860e800efc538277d4f7684e6f6981618ba70d1c34357a53c2e1f} of Management Efforts that make 80{938cd9e8dae860e800efc538277d4f7684e6f6981618ba70d1c34357a53c2e1f} of the Difference in Improving Business

Kari Logan
Contributing Writer
Nexstar Network,
Co-Owner & Media Relations Specialist

375 plumbing, HVAC and electrical home service contractors representing 200 companies gathered in Nashville October 13-15 to boost their business development and best practices.

Nexstar® Network’s 31st Super Meeting focused on the top 20{938cd9e8dae860e800efc538277d4f7684e6f6981618ba70d1c34357a53c2e1f} of high impact management activities that can make 80{938cd9e8dae860e800efc538277d4f7684e6f6981618ba70d1c34357a53c2e1f} of the difference in a plumbing, HVAC and electrical home service business and sales strategies focused on selling during a challenging economy.

The owners of three successful Nexstar member companies with annual revenues ranging from 8-20 million opened the doors of their business to their peers via video and a live stage presentation with Nexstar Business Coach Denise Swafford. John and Josh Ward, owners of Applewood Plumbing, Heating & Electric of Denver, Colorado, Mark Evans, owner of Burton AC/Heating, Plumbing and More of Omaha, Nebraska and Jeff Belk, owner of Plumbline Services of Denver Colorado shared these strategies for success:

High Impact Management Activity #1 – Creating a Culture

•Culture starts with the direction of the owner, so be clear on what you’re striving for. Communicate your vision to your employees
•Show your team that you’re willing to do whatever it takes to be successful. If they’re working late, you should stay late
•Set goals and translate them to employees
•Make sure your goals are smart:
-S – Specific
-M – Measurable
-A – Attainable
-R – Relevant
-T – Time Bound
•Post your goals in places where you will see them frequently

High Impact Management Activity #2 – People Development

•Place a constant focus on recruiting the right people
•Utilize profile/personality testing as part of the hiring process
•Offer top of the line benefit and incentive packages
•Create a fun work environment so employees want to stay
•Recognize employee accomplishments
•Show employees you care about them as people
•Recognize that employees have families and lives outside of work

High Impact Management Activity #3 – Marketing and Advertising

•Budget a significant amount of revue to branding an marketing to realize significant and predictable growth each year.
•Plan and develop advertising campaigns.
•Incorporate social media into your branding and marketing strategy
•Measure the effectiveness of your advertising

High Impact Management Activity #4 – Sales and Operations

•Identify the person responsible for training within your company
•Send employees to appropriate training on sales, customer service, technical and/or management
•Conduct regular staff meetings
•Show employees you want to help make them successful
•Have a proactive approach to your call center, focused on making outbound calls
•Regularly record phone calls and use them to train your CSR’s
•Dispatch the right tech to each call
•Ride along with your technicians on a regular basis

High Impact Management Activity #5 – Financial Management

•Plan and stick to a budget and measure performance against that budget
•Receive timely and accurate departmentalized financial statements
•Meet daily to review progress and make adjustments, as needed

Nexstar® Network is a business-development and best practices organization delivering comprehensive business training, systems and support to independent home service plumbing, heating and air conditioning professionals across the continent. For more information, call 888.240.STAR or email at info@nexstarnetwork.com.