Employees

I am not opposed to the use of cell phones on the jobsite as long as the phone is used solely to communicate information about the job, and the calls are direct and to the point.

Finding good employees is difficult, and you want to keep the ones you find. Sadly, I’ve spoken with a few contractors who’ve had their lead person, the one running their jobs, quit in frustration.

As you add employees to a growing company, you’ll both increase production and decrease productivity. You need to account for it when you’re estimating and pricing your jobs.

It’s true that employees are important, to your business and/or to your subs who get your jobs built. But they aren’t the reason you’re in business.

If I had a nickel for every time I’ve heard that it’s difficult to find employees, I’d buy an island in the South Pacific.

It’s the time of year when you should be planning for the coming year. Once you set your plans for the year, how much of those plans should you share with your employees?

Make sure your new hire is compatible with your business, in both personality and skills.

Issues that eat into profitability: It’s easy to hire someone who looks good on paper. If the resume is terrific and their references are glowing, they get hired.

I’m hopeful our industry will continue to improve as owners do the remodeling, repairing or building they’ve delayed. When you sell those jobs, will you use employees or subcontractors to get them built?

We have a major problem in our industry: we’re getting old. There aren’t enough young people getting into construction.

I recently had the opportunity to visit with some construction employees and it struck me that they didn’t know much about the company they worked for.