WACO, TEXAS — The Dwyer Group Inc., a franchisor of seven service-based franchise brands, recently announced the promotions of several key executive team members to support the continued growth of the company. Mary Kennedy Thompson has been appointed executive vice president of The Dwyer Group and also will retain her current title as president of Mr. Rooter, a subsidiary of The Dwyer Group.
As executive vice president, Thompson will provide support to the CEO in the daily activities and operations of the company and its subsidiary brands.
“Running the largest brand in The Dwyer Group with an experienced team and hardworking franchisees helped season me and provided an outstanding classroom for me to hone my leadership and franchising skills,” said Thompson.
Thompson said that her new role is similar to that of a player coach who works with the players to share tactics and strategies.
“I’ll be working with our other six brands, Rainbow International, Glass Doctor, Aire Serv, Mr. Appliance, Mr. Electric, and The Grounds Guys, in the growth of those companies. I look forward to working even more closely with my fellow brand presidents who are a smart, strong and an innovative group of leaders.”
In her new role, Thompson is looking forward to applying best practices to all The Dwyer Group brands and working even more closely with the brand presidents and learning more about their businesses.
“While each brand has its own unique personality and needs there are some overarching best practices and processes that can be shared not only from Mr. Rooter but between all our brands,” said Thompson. “One of the things I most enjoy about the Dwyer Group is the opportunity to share best practices and the openness in seeking out those opportunities at every level.”
Live R.I.C.H
Dina Dwyer-Owens, the chairwoman and CEO of The Dwyer Group, has been appointed to executive chairwoman of The Dwyer Group. Her duties will include promoting the Code of Values and culture of the company, seeking out acquisition opportunities for complimentary service brands, and speaking on local, national and international stages on behalf of The Dwyer Group.“At The Dwyer Group, I am blessed to be surrounded by a team of executives who have gone above and beyond to support me as CEO for over 15 years,” said Dwyer-Owens. “Five years ago, our company president stepped up and assumed many of my CEO responsibilities as I chaired the International Franchise Association, went undercover for ‘Undercover Boss,’ and more. It’s time to formalize this role for Mike Bidwell as he has shown the dedication, drive, and skills necessary to lead our day-to-day operations. This will also allow me to leverage my talents and desires to promote The Dwyer Group and our Live R.I.C.H. culture while we take the company to the next level.”
Live R.I.C.H. stands for respect, integrity, customer focus and having fun in the process.
“It’s about treating people with respect and dignity no matter who you are: an employee, franchisee or a customer,” said Dwyer-Owens. “It’s about treating people right and if you do that you are rich in spirit and relationship building. Also, we have proven that when you do that right, profits are the applause you get for treating people well.”
An important component to The Dwyer Group’s Code of Values is that each category is defined and includes examples.
“We are really specific with these categories,” explained Dwyer-Owens. “It’s one thing to say that everyone should have core values, but to me, if I say respect, what do I mean specifically by this?”
For example, at The Dwyer Group, respect means treating others as you would like to be treated and listening with the intent to understand what people are saying and to acknowledge what they are saying is important.
To continue the discussion about company culture, go to our new Plumbing Talk forum.
“At The Dwyer Group this means that to respect you I am really listening to what you are saying,” explained Dwyer-Owens, so I will spend time with a new employee or franchisee and explain what this means to The Dwyer Group. We really dig into the Code of Values, and this is so employees really understand our Code of Values.”
Dwyer-Owens also believes in leading by example, which she will do in her new position, and she is also writing a new book that will benefit not only The Dwyer Group employees, but people outside of the industry that are interested in being the best they can be.
“I think leading our culture as we grow is the most important job I have,” said Dwyer-Owens. “At the end of 2013 we almost reached a billion dollars in system wide sales. That’s a big benchmark for a company to get to that level. The thing I need to focus on is how to keep this culture special, and keep it a respectful, family oriented culture. If we do that, we will continue to be the same company and attract the kind of people we want here. That’s my No. 1 responsibly.
“Our message is very unique,” continued Dwyer-Owens. “Statistics show that 95% of the businesses with core values do nothing with them once they are written. It doesn’t become practiced or internalized. There is no action or follow through. These companies didn’t own their core values.”
Dwyer-Owens will also look for high level strategic opportunities for the company in her new role.
Additional promotions
Mike Bidwell, the president and COO, has been promoted to president and CEO of The Dwyer Group. He will continue to oversee management and organizational support for the parent company and the operating companies belonging to The Dwyer Group. He will work with the franchise brand presidents and The Dwyer Group Board of Directors to create growth and success opportunities.
Debbie Wright-Hood, chief administrative officer for The Dwyer Group, has also been appointed to The Dwyer Group Board of Directors. A daughter of the late Don Dwyer, founder of The Dwyer Group, Wright-Hood has grown up in the business where her responsibilities have played an increasing role in the administrative direction for the company and its service brands. She has been through every stage of growth with The Dwyer Group and now, as a board member, she will become part of the governing body advising and supporting The Dwyer Group.
“One of the reasons leaders grow a great team is to give them the opportunity to promote from within, and I love to do this,” said Dwyer-Owens. It’s so much fun to see people grow in the organization. They get to the place where they should be doing certain jobs. I look at it as I should always be replacing myself at the company, and this is what a leader should do. I’m blessed to have a team at The Dwyer Group that does an amazing job that serves its franchisees and I’m looking to a very bright future.”
The Dwyer Group Inc., based in Waco, Texas, is a holding company of seven franchise businesses, each selling and supporting a different franchise under the following service marks: Aire Serv, Glass Doctor, The Grounds Guys, Mr. Appliance, Mr. Electric, Mr. Rooter (Drain Doctor in the UK and Portugal), and Rainbow International.
In addition, Dwyer operates glass shops in New England under the Portland Glass brand name. The Dwyer Group is a portfolio company of TZP Group LLC, a private equity firm based in New York that focuses on control investments in business and consumer services companies with enterprise values generally up to $200 million. More information on The Dwyer Group, or its franchise concepts, is available at DwyerGroup.com.