That commitment must include the willingness to attend such classes, even if they run much of the day. Many contractors won’t make that commitment because it’s inconvenient or takes the tech out of the field for a day.

But you have to look at this as an investment for the future of your company, as well as for the benefit of your customers and the techs themselves.

One of the biggest dangers is the rationalization that if something goes wrong, you can always go back and fix it. That is self-deception. Call-backs are expensive, eat into productivity and profits, and in the end, is still training, though in a more negative way. It’s still a learning experience.

Belong to a third-party training organization like NCI – This includes any national organization in this industry that can teach you better ways to operate your company, how to price your services, as well as manage people, time, and money. This helps to legitimize your efforts and reinforce it with your people and customers.

Redundancy – You can’t just train once. Repetition reinforces – This goes back to commitment. You must commit to repeat training because that reinforces it with the technicians. For example, we spend time on basic electrical diagrams for furnaces. This is the basis for nearly every furnace manufactured. This teaches the secrets of operation and what each component contributes to the overall comfort system.

The challenge comes from younger people who graduate from tech schools but don’t understand control voltage and low voltage. It’s rare to find someone with a strong control voltage background. So we teach it. Regularly.

A Maintenance Program is required for success – Getzschman has 3,000 maintenance agreements. This helps us not only through slow periods in terms of work, but also helps us manage our maintenance and service techs in terms of conducting performance testing and diagnostics on every call.

At the end of the day, training is one of the most valuable things we can do for our people. If someone DOES leave, they are going out into the industry knowing how to do things right, and that is good for the entire industry. So, it’s a win-win.

Process Back-Up – Back-end support systems are also key. We have a service coordinator who manages that process ‘ from sales to record-keeping and more.

Many contracting companies use a top tech for this function. We are among them, though we hate to take a top tech out of the field.

However, there are many benefits to having someone as a resource for younger techs who may need help while in the field. This top tech is who they call when something is causing them issues.

The top tech service coordinator is also the guardian of the reminder ‘ reminding the field teams what they must or must not do on every job. The service coordinator can and does lead in-house training on the four working systems we have in-house just for that purpose.

He teaches the techs how to troubleshoot, how to do CO (carbon monoxide) readings, take static pressure readings, and so on.
So we invested in taking one of our top techs out of the field and putting him in this position to be a resource and guide for all the other techs.

Warranties and Guarantees – Any business must have warranties and satisfaction guarantees. We don’t squabble over anything with our customers. If a customer disagrees or is unhappy about something we’ve done; we take care of them ‘ no matter the cost.

Community Involvement – Though not directly tied into training, but it is tied into our culture and ethic. You need to give back. That involvement is important to your success.

At the end of the day, training is one of the most valuable things we can do for our people. If someone DOES leave, they are going out into the industry knowing how to do things right, and that is good for the entire industry. So, it’s a win-win.

Ron and Scott Getzschman are the owners of Getzschman Heating LLC., Fremont, NE. Their award-winning contracting firm has been recognized by national and local associations and trade groups for achievements in training, sales, and community service. Getzschman employs 60 people and serves HVAC residential, commercial, service, and new construction markets. To reach them,
go to ncilink.com/ContactMe.