The part about situational hiring w/ contractors vs. employees is a really good point. Jason Calacanis said he used to or still does this in the startup world where he'll hire a few contractors to design the UI for a small project/idea, pay them each $500, see the results, give them a slightly bigger add-on project, pay them each $1000, compare the results of each contractor, and then hire the best one full-time. I bet there are interesting ways where the same concept could work in the home services industry, too.
Would love for you to do a budgeting/planning video and a video on the weekly internal team update. How long was it, what was covered, how was it delivered, etc.
Great insight! feedback from our customers to make sure we loose less clients every year is one of those things I need to do. It’s scary but i know it will help in the long run.
We always listened to our clients. We legitimately cared in a major way. But there's a difference between listening and accurately interpreting what they say... getting to the bottom of why they are happy or unhappy about something. Also, as I said in the video, are we listening to a diverse enough set of clients, or do we mainly listen to the noisiest group or a specific type? Doing it right is really hard and time-consuming.
@ that is true. It’s hard to know why someone is stopping service. Sometimes they just don’t want to explain. I’ll most likely do a survey this late fall/ winter to start getting some feedback back.
Would you recommend as the owner possibly going out in the field once or twice a month to stay grounded and in tune with the service pain points ? When I was out of the field, I felt like I was so disconnected and got lazy with problem-solving because I personally wasn’t feeling those pain points anymore.
One of the best things about budgeting is it forces you to think through the plan. For example, we are going to grow revenue 500k next year. How? Figuring out the how is how you actually get the 500k growth. Most of us make up the number. Don't figure out how. As a result, we don't get the outcome.
Jonathan, I truly miss your leadership in SA. Your “state of the union” were like a compass and giving the client/end user the reassurance in vision and a form of belonging to the “right” tribe. How much did you think about the continuation of company culture once you stepped out? Hint…what used to feel like a tight knit family of SA employees and users under your leadership is now a faceless and generic corporate entity. Just curious if this was a concern of yours back then.
The team, our members and the ability for the company to be competitive for the long term were our top concerns when we did the deal. We absolutely thought about it. Company culture is driven by who is at the top running the business and the people allowed on the team or not moved off the team. It's driven by how much the team believes the leadership of the company cares about them. Etc. Etc. Based on what I've observed, when the founder (and their core leaders) leave a business, the original culture is rarely preserved.
I love how straightforward and transparent you are. Please keep this up as your channel starts to grow.
This type of content is super refreshing .
That's great to hear! I plan too.
The part about situational hiring w/ contractors vs. employees is a really good point. Jason Calacanis said he used to or still does this in the startup world where he'll hire a few contractors to design the UI for a small project/idea, pay them each $500, see the results, give them a slightly bigger add-on project, pay them each $1000, compare the results of each contractor, and then hire the best one full-time. I bet there are interesting ways where the same concept could work in the home services industry, too.
Since getting back involved at CitiTurf I am using this approach. Big fan. It absolutely changes how I do things moving forward.
Would love for you to do a budgeting/planning video and a video on the weekly internal team update. How long was it, what was covered, how was it delivered, etc.
Added it to my content list. Thx.
Second that!
Great insight! feedback from our customers to make sure we loose less clients every year is one of those things I need to do. It’s scary but i know it will help in the long run.
We always listened to our clients. We legitimately cared in a major way. But there's a difference between listening and accurately interpreting what they say... getting to the bottom of why they are happy or unhappy about something. Also, as I said in the video, are we listening to a diverse enough set of clients, or do we mainly listen to the noisiest group or a specific type? Doing it right is really hard and time-consuming.
@ that is true. It’s hard to know why someone is stopping service. Sometimes they just don’t want to explain. I’ll most likely do a survey this late fall/ winter to start getting some feedback back.
Would you recommend as the owner possibly going out in the field once or twice a month to stay grounded and in tune with the service pain points ?
When I was out of the field, I felt like I was so disconnected and got lazy with problem-solving because I personally wasn’t feeling those pain points anymore.
Yes. Eventually, you don't have to do the work to still get the insights. You can do a ride-along with three different team members in one day.
@@5ForFiftygenius.
@@5ForFifty how would you recommend doing this without intimidating the team members or making them uncomfortable?
I think learning true budgeting would be beneficial. It's boring to me but I feel like it's necessary ans could always be worth learning more about
One of the best things about budgeting is it forces you to think through the plan. For example, we are going to grow revenue 500k next year. How? Figuring out the how is how you actually get the 500k growth. Most of us make up the number. Don't figure out how. As a result, we don't get the outcome.
Good talk. Thank you.
Glad you liked it!
great business content
👍
Jonathan, I truly miss your leadership in SA. Your “state of the union” were like a compass and giving the client/end user the reassurance in vision and a form of belonging to the “right” tribe.
How much did you think about the continuation of company culture once you stepped out? Hint…what used to feel like a tight knit family of SA employees and users under your leadership is now a faceless and generic corporate entity. Just curious if this was a concern of yours back then.
The team, our members and the ability for the company to be competitive for the long term were our top concerns when we did the deal. We absolutely thought about it. Company culture is driven by who is at the top running the business and the people allowed on the team or not moved off the team. It's driven by how much the team believes the leadership of the company cares about them. Etc. Etc. Based on what I've observed, when the founder (and their core leaders) leave a business, the original culture is rarely preserved.
@@5ForFiftywhen this happens does the business become less valuable?
@@BigLakesLawncarenot necessarily. The business is still valued on speed of growth and profits.
Using service auto pilot was the worst two years of my life.
😂 probably because you weren’t using it right…
@@terribleone8962I agree. SA has been a great tool for us. Wouldn’t be here without it.
2 bells of pine straw.