I aim to get those guys the right books to read to help them create the right mindset for leadership early on. The bottom line is that anyone can become a pod leader, given their talent, drive, and willingness to serve.

For these reasons, we focus on three third-party in-house training programs: people, sales, and leadership.

Continuous Improvement

As I have said, training never ends. Putting together career paths and training that coincide with those is hard. It required a lot of work to get it going. But as the training programs gain momentum, they take on a life of their own. They become a tradition and are vital to our culture.

It’s a lot of work to get it moving in the right direction, focus, and organize. But now that we’ve gotten into a rhythm — training happens consistently at consistent points in time in a technician’s career — my life has gotten so much easier.

It gives me more time to work on the business, not just in it. It gives me time to focus on what lies ahead regarding changes in the industry, technology, and regulations. And it allows me to see where we need improvement. Our in-house training and career program require continuous improvement.

Plus, my technicians love it. We frequently get feedback, and thanks for the training. It’s our culture, and it builds morale. It’s made everyone’s life better. I have technicians now who teach other technicians because they’re proud of what they are doing. It’s very gratifying.

I never dreamed that training would be so much a part of what I do each day. It’s become one of the most rewarding parts of my business because it’s one of the things that always returns on its investment.

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John Boylan is the general manager of Lakeside Service Company in Brighton, MI. The company specializes in designing, engineering, and installing complete comfort systems in new and existing homes. He strongly believes in the high-performance approach to HVAC contracting and is a champion for using KPIs as a management tool. To contact John, go to ncilink.com/ContactMe.