So, have you worked on that inventory control? Know what you have and where it goes? Feels good to have that information at the tip of your finger doesn’t it? I am willing to say that those readers who spent the time to get a handle on their inventory have a little bit better understanding of their businesses today than they did before. Focusing on one thing, and getting it in order, can set the stage for further improvements ahead in the coming year.
As we said in the previous column, focusing on the things that you know need improvement in your business pays big dividends. Another area that can always use improvement is communications. Whether it is between you and your field people, your office staff, subcontractors or clients, good communications is a key component of keeping your business profitable.
KISS…Keep It Simple Stupid!
That old acronym, as crude as it is, hasn’t lost its meaning. How often have you conveyed a request, or an idea, to someone thinking you were perfectly clear, only to find that they either completely misunderstood you or got it only half right? Probably more often than you would like to think is my guess.
Verbal communications are fraught with the danger of misinterpretation and misunderstanding even in the best of circumstances. Add to that the intricacies of working in the trade and it compounds the problem. Are you clear when transmitting your wishes to your field people? You should be. Vague and open-ended statements are a sure way to get your wires crossed.
A simple example of this is: “Send the backhoe over to XYZ project,” can be misconstrued as open-ended. I can almost hear the foreman saying, “I didn’t know you needed it now!”
Rather, saying “send the backhoe over to XYZ project as soon as you are finished with it,” is more specific, but even that statement might not give a complete picture of what you want. The statement “send the backhoe over to XYZ project on Thursday, we are digging first thing Friday morning” is much clearer as to your meaning and requirements.
Being clear in your communication means providing essential information in your message in such a way that misunderstandings are minimized. At best you will get the desired results, at worst you will get questions to clarify what you mean. The statement, “you know what I mean,” should have no place in your work day correspondence or communications.
Talk to, not at
When speaking to a person face-to-face make eye contact with them. You will be able to ‘read’ their reactions to what is being said much better than merely talking to the area at large. This is especially essential when asking for, or giving, specific instructions. You can tell if your audience understands what you are saying much better if you can see their eyes and take note of their body language.
In the case of your employees, your direct attention means that both you and they know precisely what you are asking from or telling them. It is much harder for your people to misconstrue, or disregard, a directive from you if you and they had made direct eye contact when the information was delivered. Further, making and holding eye contact conveys to the other person that you are interested in them and their understanding of what you are saying and will make them pay closer attention to the conversation.
Fewer misunderstandings
When communicating with your clients, being perfectly clear is the Holy Grail. The number of angry exchanges and hurt feelings caused by miscommunication between you and your clients is reason enough for you to pay close attention to what, and how, you communicate. Telling a client that you will be at their job at a certain time on a certain day is preferable to vaguely saying that you will be there ‘sometime this week.’ In service work, this is not so much an issue as it is in subcontracting.
In a well-run service shop, properly scheduled service calls are an absolute must, but what happens if your service people run into a problem on a job and you can’t fulfill your promises to the other customers who are expecting you? Does your dispatcher immediately call the other clients to advise them of the possible delay, or does he wait, hoping that the ‘plumbing fairy’ will magically provide him relief. Having angry customers is a part of service work. Most people, however, understand when a situation arises and causes delays. Keeping an open line of timely, accurate and honest communications is the key to keeping your clients coming back.
In subcontracting, making the hard phone call to the GC when you can’t get people to their project as agreed is something that you must do, and you must do it both clearly and timely. Sure you are going to get an earful. You might even get threatened with any number of sanctions, but making that call is your responsibility. Communicating clearly, timely and honestly is always your best option.
The Brooklyn, N.Y.-born author is a retired third generation master plumber. He founded Sunflower Plumbing & Heating in Shirley, N.Y., in 1975 and A Professional Commercial Plumbing Inc. in Phoenix in 1980. He holds residential, commercial, industrial and solar plumbing licenses and is certified in welding, clean rooms, polypropylene gas fusion and medical gas piping. He can be reached at [email protected].