Hiring a contractor coach as your board of directors
Two weeks ago I went to the national NARI business meeting in Atlanta and met many successful remodeling contractors from all over the country. I was interested to learn what was behind their success. The contractors I asked were eager to share the factors and experiences that led to their success. Here are some of the major factors shared;
1. Goals; determined and written down
2. Education and training for themselves and their employees.
3. Business planning
4. Use of Systems; specifically marketing, sales, estimating, and production systems based on modeling other successful contractors' best practices.
5. Hiring the right people who work smart and hard. Also helping employees who don't fit, become successful somewhere else.
6. Finding the right niche market and jobs they want to work on.
7. Knowing the true costs of doing business then using the right markup.
8. Referral and lead generation programs well established.
9. Networking and strategic alliance building at every opportunity.
10. Using an outside mentor or coach as a board of directors to hold themselves accountable and use as a sounding board.
Last week I surveyed one of my clients (Kyle Dube of Project Plus Builders) and asked him what he liked most about the coaching service he purchased from The Contractor Coaching Partnership. His answer was " as owner of a small remodeling company, I have no one internally to hold me accountable for the things I know I must do. Hiring a coach to hold me accountable is like having my own board of directors to keep me focused on the objective."
A remodeler from the midwest said "I use my mentor to come in and assess my organization because he has a fresh set of eyes and no hidden agenda. Sometimes it is better because internally we are too close and less apt to make some tough decisions. My mentor is my board of directors and always shares an objective view that is based on the realities."
Who holds you accountable for the things you know you must do to be a successful residential contractor?
Do you have a mentor, coach or board of directors that will give you the honest assessment of your performance?
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