Charting a Course
Clearly communicating hiring, promotions, and compensation helps field crews understand their value to the company. Faller developed a system to help remodelers communicate this information systematically. His $799 program revolves around job descriptions and helps managers with hiring, promoting, and training. He includes descriptions for five levels of field personnel: entry level, carpenter 1, carpenter 2, lead carpenter, and production manager. He has evaluations for each level and the requirements to move to the next level. Carpenters know that if they demonstrate five new skills to their supervisor, they will earn more money. “Employees know their destiny is in their hands. When things are done fairly, people have better morale,” Faller says.
Tim Thompson, president of Thompson Building Associates in Columbus, Ohio, and a few members of his peer review group developed their own system to fairly evaluate and compensate field employees. Now, about five members of the group use a version of the matrix. Similar to Faller’s system, the detailed matrix lists five skill levels and tools and specific characteristics a field employee needs for the next level. A Level 5 manages several jobs, and each job has a Level 4 lead. Compensation is tied to the levels. During annual performance reviews, the employee and three supervisors fill out the matrix again. Thompson also does not wait to give raises. “If a guy is a quick learner, I’ll jump him in salary as fast as he wants to move up,” he says.
Thompson says before this system was in place, managers had to manage behavior. Now, they can manage results. They share the time and budget allotted to each phase of a project. Crews are free to choose their working hours as long as the work is completed within those parameters. Once the system was in place, Thompson was able to fairly distribute a bonus. “Once we started giving bonuses, our productivity went through the roof. I’ve been in business 27 years and never had this kind of productivity,” he says. “I don’t know how to motivate without giving them a piece of the pie.”
Tom Witts has a similar system. He had an excellent painter on staff who did not have drywall skills. “I told him, ‘If you had dry-wall skills, you’d be worth more to me.’ He worked hard on doing that and was rewarded,” Witts says. “It is not vague. You’re not dangling carrots in front of them.”
Follow the Yellow Brick Road One of the strongest segments of the systems used by Faller, Thompson, and Witts is providing timely and clear reviews. At Mark IV Builders, the managers ask superintendents for one personal and two business goals in their yearly reviews. Unless the employee asks for privacy, these goals are posted in the office. Hannan says one super’s goal was to complete $1.2 million worth of work during the year. Another wanted to work less than 80 hours per week. The employees and managers come up with a description, deadline, and resources needed to achieve the goals. “We break it into bite-size pieces,” Hannan says.
DeCiantis also requires both professional and personal goals. He schedules two reviews per year. One review is a performance review and the other is an advancement review where the employee sets goals that are measurable, realistic, and attainable. He puts these goals on his calendar and checks in with the staff throughout the year.
Providing a comfortable and fun place to work is also a way to keep field personnel involved. Thompson performs a mock swearing in ceremony for carpenters who reach Level 5. Employees swear to “follow the guidance and not question the orders of anyone who signs the checks,” and “give up all my free time for business and not pleasure.”
DeCiantis hosts breakfast meetings where employees are forbidden to talk about work. He also plans annual outings. In addition, he instituted a program where employees receive 10 tickets at the beginning of the year. They are charged with giving tickets to employees who have done something extra special. “It’s a way of complimenting that person,” DeCiantis says. An employee who collects 10 tickets receives a paid day off.
At Mark IV Builders, every employee fills out a time and talent sheet that includes personal information such as their favorite candy bar, soda, sport, flowers their spouse likes, favorite food, etc., . . . Hannan uses this information to reward the employee in small ways throughout the year. “If a super has been working like crazy on a project and you come on site and give him his favorite candy and soda, that gets you more than paying an extra $1 per hour,” Hannan says.