• Sign In
  • Create Account
  • Sign Out
  • My Account
  • NEWS
  • PRODUCTS
  • CONTRACTORS
  • ENGINEERS
  • RADIANT & HYDRONICS
  • INSIGHTS
  • MEDIA
  • RESOURCES
  • EMAGAZINE
  • SIGN UP!
cart
facebook instagram twitter linkedin youtube
  • CONTRACTORS
  • BATH & KITCHEN PRO
  • BUSINESS MANAGEMENT
  • HIGH EFFICIENCY HOMES
  • TECHNOLOGY
  • WATER TREATMENT
  • PMC COLUMNS
  • PMC COLUMNS
  • Dave Yates: Contractor’s Corner
  • John Siegenthaler: Hydronics Workshop
  • Kenny Chapman: The Blue Collar Coach
  • Matt Michel: Service Plumbing Pros
  • Scott Secor: Heating Perceptions
  • ENGINEERS
  • CONTINUING EDUCATION
  • DECARBONIZATION | ELECTRIFICATION
  • FIRE PROTECTION
  • GEOTHERMAL | SOLAR THERMAL
  • PIPING | PLUMBING | PVF
  • PME COLUMNS
  • PME COLUMNS
  • Christoph Lohr: Strategic Plumbing Insights
  • David Dexter: Plumbing Talking Points
  • James Dipping: Engineer Viewpoints
  • John Seigenthaler: Renewable Heating Design
  • Lowell Manalo: Plumbing Essentials
  • Misty Guard: Guard on Compliance
  • RADIANT & HYDRONICS
  • RADIANT COMFORT REPORT
  • THE GLITCH & THE FIX
  • INSIGHTS
  • CODES
  • GREEN PLUMBING & MECHANICAL
  • PROJECT PROFILES
  • COLUMNS
  • SPONSOR INSIGHTS
  • COLUMNS
  • Codes Corner
  • Natalie Forster: Editorial Opinion
  • Guest Editorial
  • MEDIA
  • PODCASTS
  • VIDEOS
  • WEBINARS
  • RESOURCES
  • INDUSTRY CALENDAR
  • DIRECTORIES
  • EBOOKS
  • PM BOOKSTORE
  • CE CENTER
  • MARKET RESEARCH
  • CLASSIFIEDS
  • EMAGAZINE
  • EMAGAZINE
  • ARCHIVE ISSUES
  • CONTACT
  • ADVERTISE
  • PME EMAGAZINE ARCHIVES
search
cart
facebook instagram twitter linkedin youtube
  • Sign In
  • Create Account
  • Sign Out
  • My Account
  • NEWS
  • PRODUCTS
  • CONTRACTORS
    • BATH & KITCHEN PRO
    • BUSINESS MANAGEMENT
    • HIGH EFFICIENCY HOMES
    • TECHNOLOGY
    • WATER TREATMENT
    • PMC COLUMNS
      • Dave Yates: Contractor’s Corner
      • John Siegenthaler: Hydronics Workshop
      • Kenny Chapman: The Blue Collar Coach
      • Matt Michel: Service Plumbing Pros
      • Scott Secor: Heating Perceptions
  • ENGINEERS
    • CONTINUING EDUCATION
    • DECARBONIZATION | ELECTRIFICATION
    • FIRE PROTECTION
    • GEOTHERMAL | SOLAR THERMAL
    • PIPING | PLUMBING | PVF
    • PME COLUMNS
      • Christoph Lohr: Strategic Plumbing Insights
      • David Dexter: Plumbing Talking Points
      • James Dipping: Engineer Viewpoints
      • John Seigenthaler: Renewable Heating Design
      • Lowell Manalo: Plumbing Essentials
      • Misty Guard: Guard on Compliance
  • RADIANT & HYDRONICS
    • RADIANT COMFORT REPORT
    • THE GLITCH & THE FIX
  • INSIGHTS
    • CODES
    • GREEN PLUMBING & MECHANICAL
    • PROJECT PROFILES
    • COLUMNS
      • Codes Corner
      • Natalie Forster: Editorial Opinion
      • Guest Editorial
    • SPONSOR INSIGHTS
  • MEDIA
    • PODCASTS
    • VIDEOS
    • WEBINARS
  • RESOURCES
    • INDUSTRY CALENDAR
    • DIRECTORIES
    • EBOOKS
    • PM BOOKSTORE
    • CE CENTER
    • MARKET RESEARCH
    • CLASSIFIEDS
  • EMAGAZINE
    • EMAGAZINE
    • ARCHIVE ISSUES
    • CONTACT
    • ADVERTISE
    • PME EMAGAZINE ARCHIVES
  • SIGN UP!
Columns

The Present

By Al Levi
December 1, 2006
Don’t dwell on what your employees did wrong in the past, but think of what you can do to help them change for the future.



Imagine telling your son on New Year’s Day, “Johnny, if you’re a good boy this year and do all the right things like keep your room neat and clean, Mom and I will take you on a dream-come-true vacation to Disney World® this December.”

When December arrives, Johnny has his bags packed and waiting by the door. He’s been so excited planning which rides he’s going to go on first that he hasn’t slept a wink for over a week.

You walk over to the door and ask, “Where are you going?” and he replies, “Disney World!”

“Son, I’m sorry, but you remember on June 15th when I asked you to clean up your room and you didn’t? Well, that’s why we’re not going to Disney World.”

Excuse me, how fair is that?

Well, it’s as fair as you waiting all year to let your employees know where they stand when all you do for feedback is an annual review. When you only review and comment on their body of work once a year, it creates a sink or swim situation where the results are usually unsatisfactory to you and to them. One of the best things you can do is to end your relying on annual reviews to evaluate staff.

The very best thing you can do is to commit to ongoing coaching that is both objective and immediate. This will have the greatest impact on improving your company going forward. To do this correctly, you must all agree on some measurable performance indicators that are both objective and fair.

Coaching & Feedback Tips: For instance, I recommend to clients that they take digital photos of what their techs should look like when they dress correctly. When they walk in looking like anything other than the digital photo, now you can sit down with the picture and say, “Tom, tell me how the way you’re dressed today is like the way you look in this photo.”

A couple of objective ways to give quick corrective feedback is to also take digital photos of what their trucks look like when they’re clean and neat and set up to standard. You also need to track weekly statistical performance indicators like total sales and total callbacks per calls run, which is what I call the callback ratio. Then, once a week have a coaching session on these performance indicators to congratulate or to coach improvement going forward.

Remember, the past is gone. Stop bringing up the ways they’ve let you down. The present is your gift because it’s the only time you really have to improve your future. The future is doomed to be your past without constructive coaching done on a timely basis.

Now is the time to act if you want a brighter future. Having a fair system that promotes accountability will highlight your employees’ weak and strong skills in the three critical areas of sales, operational and technical skills.

Coaching needs to be frequent and with the clear intent of putting into place a plan to improve going forward. The purpose is to narrow your focus to what actions they could take that would have a positive impact.

For example, you may see certain employees have low average invoice sales. You could role-play ways they can ask good questions and make good suggestions that provide the customer with solutions to his problems, which all leads to improving the average invoice sale. Conducting effective ride-alongs will also make a dramatic improvement in their sales.

To change the future, you need to let go of your tendency to dwell on what your employees did wrong in the past. Yes, you do need to follow the same steps of discipline for everyone every time to promote fairness and to weed out those who refuse to improve. But the emphasis is more on what they need to change starting right now and what you, as owners and managers, can do to help them get better both now and in the long-term.

Carrying along the past is akin to taking a walk and stopping every 20 feet to pick up a pebble. At first, it’s no big deal. But try stopping every 20 feet to pick up a pebble on your next five-mile walk. Not so easy, is it?

We carry along the freight of the past and it’s like pebbles in our pockets. Periodically, we need to pull over to the side of the road and dump our pockets. It makes our normally burdensome job a whole lot easier to do.

Be in the present. Past failures are worthy as lessons learned, nothing more. Fear of the future is unhealthy and unhelpful. Instead, spend your precious time, energy and money preparing today, in the present, for how you’re going to build your wonderful new future.

You’ll feel better if you follow these rules on responsive coaching.

You’ll provide the lesson of how to reach the good, and you’ll enjoy the ride as well.

Share This Story

Looking for a reprint of this article?
From high-res PDFs to custom plaques, order your copy today!

200x200 7power blog

Al Levi teaches contractors how to run their businesses with less stress and more success with operating manuals. To get control of your business and grow the right way, check out the "7-Power Contractor Signature Operating Manuals System," at 7powercontractor.com/manuals. Also check out Zoom Franchise Co. at zoomdrainfranchise.com. It’s a living example of the power of manuals and more in action.

Recommended Content

JOIN TODAY
to unlock your recommendations.

Already have an account? Sign In

  • Worker using the Milwaukee Tool SWITCH PACK drain cleaner

    Pipeline profits: Drain cleaning, pipe inspection create opportunities

    Drain cleaning and inspection services offer lucrative...
    Plumbing News
    By: Nicole Krawcke
  • Uponor employee, Arturo Moreno

    The reinvestment in American manufacturing and training

    Plumbing & Mechanical Chief Editor Nicole Krawcke and...
    Plumbing News
    By: Nicole Krawcke and Natalie Forster
  • March 2024 Women in Plumbing hero image of woman engineer overlayed by circle of hexagon shapes with numbers from 1 to 10

    Celebrating 10 Influential Women in the Plumbing Industry

    Celebrating Women's History Month and Women in...
    Plumbing News
    By: Nicole Krawcke
Subscribe For Free!
  • eNewsletters
  • Online Registration
  • Subscription Customer Service
  • eMagazine
  • Manage My Preferences

NIBCO Press Solutions

NIBCO Press Solutions

IPEX celebrates grand opening of new Florida distribution center

IPEX celebrates grand opening of new Florida distribution center

AI can boost efficiency and profitability for plumbing, HVAC contractors

AI can boost efficiency and profitability for plumbing, HVAC contractors

Bell & Gossett Illustrates Path to Net-zero at AHR Expo

Bell & Gossett Illustrates Path to Net-zero at AHR Expo

More Videos

Sponsored Content

Sponsored Content is a special paid section where industry companies provide high quality, objective, non-commercial content around topics of interest to the Plumbing & Mechanical audience. All Sponsored Content is supplied by the advertising company and any opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and not necessarily reflect the views of Plumbing & Mechanical or its parent company, BNP Media. Interested in participating in our Sponsored Content section? Contact your local rep!

close
  • J.J. Keller CMV vehicles on road
    Sponsored byJ. J. Keller & Associates, Inc.

    The dash cam game-changer for small business safety

Popular Stories

Figure 1 is a sketch of the flow problems of the current plumbing system.

Hydronic heating glitch solved: Why adding a circulator won't fix primary loop flow issue

The interior of a government building.

President Trump signs executive order promoting skilled trades and apprenticeships

Underfloor heating installation with drain sewer hole in bathroom close up on water floor heating.

Using hydronics to leverage time-of-use electrical rates

PM BEMIS June 25 Free Webinar: Optimizing Plumbing Solutions for Single-Family, Multi-Family & Public Spaces

Events

November 13, 2024

Future Proofing MEP: Navigating the 2026 High Efficiency Water Heating Standards

Join our deep dive into DOE’s new standards so you can future-proof your MEP practice.

EARN: 0.1 ASPE CEU; 1 AIA LU/HSW; 0.1 IACET CEU*; 1 PDH

View All Submit An Event

Poll

Will business be up or down in 2025?

Do you anticipate business in 2025 to be up or down in comparison to 2024?
View Results Poll Archive

Products

The Water Came To A Stop

The Water Came To A Stop

See More Products

Download the FREE Water Conservation, Quality & Safety eBook: Plumbing Trends Increasing Safe Water Availability

Related Articles

  • March 2024 Matt Michel column Ad Mockup

    7 reasons manufacturers advertise in the trade press

    See More
  • Supervisor talking to a group of men and women employees.

    The power of reverse mentoring

    See More
  • Siegenthaler PM

    Properly sizing and operating circulators

    See More
×

Keep your content unclogged with our newsletters!

Stay in the know on the latest plumbing & piping industry trends.

JOIN TODAY!
  • RESOURCES
    • Advertise
    • Contact Us
    • Directories
    • Store
    • Want More
    • Supply House Times
  • SIGN UP TODAY
    • Create Account
    • eMagazine
    • eNewsletter
    • Customer Service
    • Manage Preferences
  • SERVICES
    • Marketing Services
    • Reprints
    • Market Research
    • List Rental
    • Survey/Respondent Access
  • STAY CONNECTED
    • LinkedIn
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • YouTube
    • X (Twitter)
  • PRIVACY
    • PRIVACY POLICY
    • TERMS & CONDITIONS
    • DO NOT SELL MY PERSONAL INFORMATION
    • PRIVACY REQUEST
    • ACCESSIBILITY

Copyright ©2025. All Rights Reserved BNP Media.

Design, CMS, Hosting & Web Development :: ePublishing

search
cart
facebook instagram twitter linkedin youtube
  • Sign In
  • Create Account
  • Sign Out
  • My Account
  • NEWS
  • PRODUCTS
  • CONTRACTORS
    • BATH & KITCHEN PRO
    • BUSINESS MANAGEMENT
    • HIGH EFFICIENCY HOMES
    • TECHNOLOGY
    • WATER TREATMENT
    • PMC COLUMNS
      • Dave Yates: Contractor’s Corner
      • John Siegenthaler: Hydronics Workshop
      • Kenny Chapman: The Blue Collar Coach
      • Matt Michel: Service Plumbing Pros
      • Scott Secor: Heating Perceptions
  • ENGINEERS
    • CONTINUING EDUCATION
    • DECARBONIZATION | ELECTRIFICATION
    • FIRE PROTECTION
    • GEOTHERMAL | SOLAR THERMAL
    • PIPING | PLUMBING | PVF
    • PME COLUMNS
      • Christoph Lohr: Strategic Plumbing Insights
      • David Dexter: Plumbing Talking Points
      • James Dipping: Engineer Viewpoints
      • John Seigenthaler: Renewable Heating Design
      • Lowell Manalo: Plumbing Essentials
      • Misty Guard: Guard on Compliance
  • RADIANT & HYDRONICS
    • RADIANT COMFORT REPORT
    • THE GLITCH & THE FIX
  • INSIGHTS
    • CODES
    • GREEN PLUMBING & MECHANICAL
    • PROJECT PROFILES
    • COLUMNS
      • Codes Corner
      • Natalie Forster: Editorial Opinion
      • Guest Editorial
    • SPONSOR INSIGHTS
  • MEDIA
    • PODCASTS
    • VIDEOS
    • WEBINARS
  • RESOURCES
    • INDUSTRY CALENDAR
    • DIRECTORIES
    • EBOOKS
    • PM BOOKSTORE
    • CE CENTER
    • MARKET RESEARCH
    • CLASSIFIEDS
  • EMAGAZINE
    • EMAGAZINE
    • ARCHIVE ISSUES
    • CONTACT
    • ADVERTISE
    • PME EMAGAZINE ARCHIVES
  • SIGN UP!