Company culture will make or break your HVACR business.  If you have created a great culture within your business, success will come naturally.  Employees are happier.  They want to work harder and perform at their utmost.  It’s contagious throughout your organization. We see this from many of our clients.  You can tell when you walk into their contracting business or even when you do virtual meetings with them. You can feel good vibes emanating from the entire company.  On the other hand, a bad culture will limit your contracting company’s success. If the culture is terrible, it brings your entire team down. Employees don’t care about their jobs or their performance.  It just becomes a “job” to them. Bad culture is just as contagious as a good culture. People have more sick days, they show up late, and they don’t go the extra mile for the customer.  It all starts from the top. It starts and ends with the owner.

Lead by Example as an Owner

I know we’ve all heard this before, but it’s the truth: The leader must lead. If you’re an “absentee” leader, a poor communicator, or someone who genuinely does not care about your business, it will show.  The employees will know and feel it.  It will begin to spread throughout your heating and air business. YOU MUST LEAD BY EXAMPLE:

•    Show great work ethic.
•    Be happy, smile. It’s contagious.
•    You must be the hardest worker in your company.
•    Compliment your employees.

Bite your tongue, even if it hurts.

Lead by example; be your team’s leader.

“You“  Work for Your Employees, Not the Other Way Around

This is the proper mindset every owner must have in order to build a great culture.  As owners, we often work long hours committed to growing our business.  Trust me, I know, nights and weekends, it doesn’t matter. We are invested in whatever it takes to make our company succeed. And we think our employees should do the same, right?  It’s just not going to happen in most cases, and you should not expect that from them.  You work for them.  Let me repeat that, “You Work for Them.”  The business world has changed from the old days.   When I started in the industry in the 1990s, we worked 60 hours per week, and we were glad to have a job.  It’s just a different day and age now. As an owner, you must treat your team with the utmost respect.  Be mindful of what makes them tick and be concerned about their personal well-being.  You must engage in what is going on in their lives, learn about their passions away from work, and get to know their families; you must genuinely care. They are the lifeblood of your HVAC company, and they are directly responsible for your success or failure.  If you have this mindset, you will succeed.

You work for them.

Give Attention to Your Employees 

Do you ever feel like your contributions don’t matter?  Employees often feel their efforts go unnoticed. We know the contracting business is a constant rat race, but if you take the time to recognize your employees, your company culture will improve tremendously.  Remember to spotlight accomplishments:

•    Employee Anniversaries.
•    Courses or Accreditations.
•    Better processes or ways to work more efficiently.
•    Going above and beyond for the customer.

Celebrate Your Company Wins and Don’t Dwell on the Losses

Our organization loves to celebrate wins by our team.  When we gain a new account, we celebrate during our team meetings.  Nothing outlandish, a simple “Hell Yeah,” and a round of applause.  It’s simple: keep your team involved in your company's victories.  The same goes for losses in business. Everyone can feel a “sense of failure” when your company loses business, in our case, when we lose an HVAC or plumbing client.  We analyze what happened, what we could have done better to keep their business, and what we learned from the situation. The team processes and mourns, but only for a short period of time.  Remember, it’s business, we have to keep our heads up.  It’s time to learn from our losses and, move forward and do better.  

Get Feedback from Your Team

Feedback from your team members is paramount to the success of any HVACR business.  Ask your employees for their thoughts and direction on how to improve your organization.  What can we do to improve our processes?  The sense of involvement makes your company stronger, and employees are more “bought in” on the direction your contracting business is taking.  If they feel they are fully involved in company decisions and direction, they become truly vested in your organization.  Your people feel a sense of unity with company decisions.

Team Events

Team or company events really drive the bond among your employees.  Heating and air conditioning is a tough business, especially during the summer.  It’s not fun to face150 degree attics, nor are 12-hour days.  So, we must make the time to reward our team members and have some fun. Here are some ideas for team-building events:

•    Cook or bring in breakfast for your company.
•    Cookouts (everyone loves grilling or barbecuing; invite family members).
•    Team building events away from the office;
 -    Mini-golf.
 -    Local sporting events (minor league baseball, soccer, football).
 -    Fun activities (scavenger hunt, egg drop, sack race). Things we did at field days growing up.
 -    Scavenger hunt.
 -    Top golf.
 -    Bowling.
•    Christmas parties every year.
•    Lunches paid for by you, the owner.
•    Training paid for by the company.

These types of events give your employees a chance to let loose and have fun together.  It works to grow your culture.  Jennifer Beatty, customer service manager at Andersen Heating & Cooling, says, RESPECT – “We all treat each other the way we want to be treated.  It might not seem like much; but after all is said and done, it is the little things that go a long way. I love my TEAM and would do anything to help any member of our team at the drop of a hat.”

Set Goals – Reward Employees for Going Above and Beyond 

Remember the old saying, “What gets measured, gets done.”  If we are not setting goals in our business, then how do we know if we are succeeding? Or even worse, how do we know if we are failing?  Set clear goals for all team members, tally the results, and then reward the overachievers.  

Example: Create sales goals for your customer service reps, managers, comfort consultants, and your service technicians. Competition can really drive people to go the extra mile.  The rewards don’t always have to be monetary (not all people are motivated by money).  Some are looking for accolades and respect; find what works for your organization.

Improve Your Culture Starting Today

Great company culture takes time.  It is a marathon, not a sprint.  You must work at it every day.  As an owner, start by leading by example and working for your people, not the reverse.  Strive to keep the workplace fun, reward your employee’s successes, ask their opinion, and celebrate the triumphs.  Great culture will follow. 

Will Merritt is the Managing Partner at Effective Media Solutions, a full-service marketing agency.  With 27 years of experience in the HVAC field, 10 of that in marketing for contractors, our agency has keen insight into our industry that others do not. Contact Will at will@myeffectivemedia.com or (704) 507-7858. “We Speak HVAC.”