Retaining Good People

According to a 2013 Harvard Business Review article by Michael D. Watkins (ncilink.com/CompanyCulture), ‘Company culture refers to the personality of a company. It defines the environment in which employees work. Company culture includes a variety of elements, including work environment, company mission, values, ethics, expectations, and goals.’

A big part of company culture is the relationship between management and the employees. One of my closest mentors used to tell me, ‘The quality of a relationship is a function of the extent in which it meets the needs of the people involved.’

How well your people rate that relationship is a function of how well their needs are met. Owners/managers should not have the objective of leading, guiding, or directing people. Instead, they should aim towards allowing, challenging, and inspiring people to blossom and grow.

What separates top-performing HVAC companies from the rest is the service delivery medium. That medium is your people! So, it makes sense that if you want to attract and retain the best people, you need a culture that supports this.

Five Cornerstones

There are three things all people need: Acceptance, Security, Validation.

Furthermore, here are five cornerstones that, if put in place, can create a culture of growth and lay the foundation for success:

• Strive to manage people in a way that protects and enhances their self-esteem. If people feel unappreciated, jerked around, underpaid, overworked, and insecure, then you’re perpetuating mediocrity in your culture.n Be objective and consistent in all actions and decisions. Don’t run on personal agendas, don’t play politics
• Delegate all tasks that do not uniquely require your attention. Managers can become territorial: they hold information back, don’t let people go. When that happens, people feel oppressed, bottlenecked
• Focus on productivity, not activity
• Lead by inspiration, but most assuredly lead. Someone needs to make decisions, step up, and take the heat.

In the world today, because of advances in technology, training, communications, and so on, there is parity between most contracting firms. The only differentiator is the people who deliver your products and services. Doesn’t it make sense then that you must have the best people possible? This starts with how you go about finding and hiring them through your advertising and marketing, followed up by providing them a strong culture where they can thrive and grow.

I believe these are profound cornerstones. Remember, success comes from the inside out. By understanding the numbers behind your marketing and advertising and adapting your message accordingly, you can truly become an impact player in your market.

Paul Vishnesky is president of Hire Dimensions, Inc., Dallas, TX. The company offers state-of-the-art hiring solutions for the HVAC Industry. Key among them is teaching contractors how to create hiring strategies and then using their Inbound Hiring Optimization to help contractors significantly increase the number of good job applicants. Go to ncilink.com/ContactMe for more information.