First Stages of Growth

One of the more common questions I receive as I work with new Dealers is “where do I get my first employees?”  This growth normally comes in two stages, stage one, if needed, is getting the first person to help you in your installations. 

One of the advantages of the CTi Dealership model is it is not labor intensive.  There are Dealers who apply the product by themselves and operate very successfully as a sole proprietorship.  The installation process is much easier when you have someone to help you however.

Finding the first helper can come from different sources:

1) A partner in the business
2) Some Dealers will pay folks who work jobs such as Firefighter, Emergency Technician (ambulance), and similar.  These folks normally have a schedule with their other job that has them work 2-3 days in a row and then have two days off.  This schedule fits well with a CTi Dealership since most residential projects take 2 days to complete.
3) Temporary labor companies also offer the ability to hire someone just when you need them; you can find these type companies by performing a Google search for “Construction labor staffing agencies”.  I like to refer to this as an on the job interview for the folks who are working with you.  When you find a person who works well on the projects, you can ask for them specifically from the agency.  Should they work out consistently, you can then ask to hire them full time; some agencies will charge a fee to hire their workers, but it normally is more cost effective than other forms of finding employees.
4) Job boards, Craigslist, etc. are available as well to help in finding a full time or part time employee.  If you are hiring someone, remember your ability to consistently pay them is many times just as important as how much you pay them.  Make sure your marketing and sales efforts are securing projects consistently so you can keep this person in the hours they need to have a mutually beneficial relationship.

Stage 2 happens when your business has grown to the point where you need someone heading up the installation crew full time or pursuing new sales inquiries full time.  The best way to handle this stage is to first determine which job function you enjoy most (or are best at) . 

If you like being on the job sites and working with the products, you can hire a person to speak with customers and pay them a commission (normally 10%) of the sale price of any jobs they sell.

If speaking with customers is something you enjoy, start by grooming your initial helper to become the lead installer on the job site.  Many times this transition is simply a matter of finding an additional helper for your new crew leader as you begin to pursue new inquiries full time.