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I saw Ammon Child recently and he had a lot of good information on how he handles his employee.
For those who have employee(s), what traits, background, prior work experiences, etc. do you feel make a good candidate? In my prior career, I hired a lot, however, it was such a different environment that I am not sure my experience will help me now.
I would appreciate any additional input.
Thanks,
Mike
I just started with HB, but when I am looking to hire some help I DO NOT look for an employee I am looking for someone who one day intends to do their own “thing” even if it is not in the feild I am needing, I have always found these people treat your business like their business,
just my nickles worth, good luck,
PatMike,
We have four employees today (three full-time and one part-time). One has been with us for over two years, another for one year. The others are relatively new.
We do several things with our employees that you may find interesting. You can get alot of information from our website at http://marketing.heavensbest.biz.
There are a handful of things that I would specifically point out:
1. We pay mainly commission. This commission is calculated based on customer satisfaction (comment cards and calls) and productivity. Details can be found on the site above, in the documents called Position Contracts.
2. We do extensive training. Our guys are out for about 4 weeks before their first job alone. They work for 2-3 additional weeks with a light schedule, so that they can focus on quality first, speed second. There is a training plan on the site as well.
3. We don’t worry about carpet cleaning experience when we hire. Our biggest goal is to find someone who has a presence about them – someone who can command the customer’s respect at the door. Of course, we do want somethings in the resume/application. Those would include:
– keeping most jobs for at least one year
– no major gaps in employment history
– promotions at past jobs
– demonstrated ability to handle physical workI hope that this helps.
Maybe this should be set as a poll, but lets try this first. Who has the highest paid employee and at how much?
Barry,
Thanks! Your information and experience is great.We are all fortunate that you willingly share so much!
I have a couple of questions:
1. I reviewed your position contract, including your compensation plan — very creative. Question on the revenue target – how do you compute it? Basically, I’m curious what actual time is included. Obviously the time on customer’s site is included. How about drive time between jobs, drive time from the shop to the first job of the day, and drive time from the last job of the day back to the shop?
2. At what regular interval do you compute the revenue targets – daily, weekly, bi-weekly coinciding with pay periods, monthly?
3. I also noticed your evaluation cards. Concerning keeping Rexburg in the loop, do you also give your customers the standard HB eval card to mail back to Rexburg, do you forward a copy of your cards to Rexburg after receiving them from your customers, or perhaps something else?
Dennis,
I like the question you asked…interesting. Thanks.Mike
Dennis:
Our company’s highest paid employee is, me! All joking aside, I have four employees at; $8.50-$12/hr. I have quarterly spot bonuses based on follow-up calls, attendance (including arriving on time to jobs) and upsales on upholstery. These are items that I can montitor and reward accordingly. I used to pay commission for any protectant & upholstery upselling and it just was not working with my techs.
Do you have a tough time keeping emplyees when they’re making ~$1500/ month? I’m looking for the guy that will stick with me for a while. i think most of us would over pay for that “special” guy. I’m just wondering what that number might be. I think Randy Bird has had a guy for like 5 years. I wonder what he’s paying. Does Randy read this? randy??
We just hired our first employee today. We are paying her $8.50 to start and then after 60 days we’ll bump it up. We’ll see how it goes.
Dennis:
It is very hard to find the right person, if you are looking for a mgmt type tech. One of our main guys (Jesse) has been with us for almost 6 yrs and another for 4 yrs. I have a higher turnover with their helpers. I think the bonuses help bust their salaries and they do work 6 days/wk so they are making over $1500/month. I think they like being on their own and if they arrive to the jobs on time and provide good cleaning, I don’t get too involved the the daily activities. They have mentioned they really like that about the job and is one of the main reasons they stay. They are both in their twenties and not married. This may be another factor why this type of work and pay works for them.
3 weeks ago hired a new guy to replace the last guy who worked for 2 years and was running a van by himself, so he was good. I need to move this new guy along much faster than the last guy as the demands are high. Had him buffing on day 3 and have continued to work with him every day. Its been tough as many jobs are taking longer than if I did them by myself. I cringe and wince as I watch him struggle but I see improvemnets. I am trying to think back to my training and learning days and remember how much faster I improved when left on my own to sink or swim. Thankfully I only took in a few swallows of water. The part that I have struggled with is putting into words what I am doing and want done. It has made me rethink my whole opperation. He doesn’t know it yet, but next week he is going to be tossed into the drink a couple of times. Time to sink or swim. I will keep you posted. Hope some of this is of interest to some of you
Dennis,
I have an employee who has been with me for a year. He still makes me nervous at times, and I don’t know if that will ever change. I have found that he does better on his own and is more sure of himself because he has to be. As far as speed . . . I have found that he is as fast as he needs to be. If his schedule is packed, he gets through it in good shape. If it is not packed, he is not very time efficient. We pay him $10.50/hour. We check up on him and customers are happy.
I’ve taken the attitude that I need employees from now on. If I do my job to check on him often, he will never do enough damage to hurt my business too bad. His best attributes are that he tries hard and really wants to please. If your guy has those 2 attributes, you’ve got a good start.
Push your guy out of the nest . . . you may be really surprised how well he does. If he can’t preform, cut him loose.
I hired a full time guy on 3/6/06 and by 3/28/06, I had him work alone for a week while I was on vacation. I scheduled the week light, he did well and took on a couple of additional small jobs. He is sceduled to start in his own truck on 5/15/09. I and my employee are confident that he is ready. I think he would have been ready a couple of weeks ago.
Ferris
I am pushing hard. If he can’t do it, I’m not interested in keeping him around. It’s only been 3 weeks. I’m still trying to get a read on this guy. So I will have to see. As far as making me nervous, I hear you. The last guy did the same to me and yet, now as I am out cleaning again, I am hearing very positive feedback from customers. they liked him and he did a good job. It would seem that much of my fear was unwarrented. Go figure. I am willing to pay, even over pay, for a guy who will do great work. I would love to pay a guy $25-$33/h if he is making me $100-$150/h
The saga continues
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