Will this incident affect the quality of the contractor’s future work? Because the builder did an excellent job of reassuring the contractor of his company’s importance, it probably won’t. But for other trades and contractors who perceive that in some way they are not being treated fairly or with dignity and respect, the quality of work will often follow the quality of treatment.
Pointing fingers doesn't help
We’ve all heard stories of homeowners taking time off work and contractors not showing up. You know the outcome. No matter how above and beyond the sales and construction teams went to delight the homeowners, in an instant, homeowners were angry, and customer satisfaction scores get slammed. String enough incidents together and there goes the builder’s reputation—at least in the eyes of that homeowner and everyone they tell.
It’s easy to blame it all on the contractors. However, experience tells us that contractors often do not have an intimate understanding of what the builder is trying to accomplish in terms of quality and customer satisfaction. It’s the builder’s responsibility to make sure they’re getting the message across in a way that the contractor can understand and relate to. That means communicating without threat or intimidation. To accomplish this effectively means educating and involving the trades and contractors in decisions that affect them and the quality of their workmanship.
Involve your best trades and contractors at the planning stage. Contractors who are involved in decisions that affect them tend to be more committed to providing quality workmanship and are more likely to go above and beyond the scope of work.
Invite contractors and suppliers to your in-house quality seminars. Give them an opportunity to interact and develop a more cooperative relationship with field and office personnel away from the job site. Across the country, we’ve heard that contractors appreciate the opportunity to participate in these types of meetings.
Implement an advisory council. Since builders have to manage what is, by nature, a very unpredictable process, structure and stability must be imposed. An effective solution is to implement an ongoing advisory council of key suppliers and trades. This group represents a core leadership body from the mass of people who do the daily work of the builder, but are not under that builder’s direct control. They serve as a conduit from the builder to the worksites that enhances communication both ways and serves as a monitoring and measuring device, giving the builder continual feedback from the work site.
Involve contractors
One superintendent told me of communication problems he was having with non-English speaking contractors. “I’d have to always ride those guys to make sure the work met our quality expectations. It was kind of a brute force management method. I kept thinking ‘there’s got to be a better way.’ Then it dawned on me that I was always expecting the contractors to see the world in my terms. A couple of the other superintendents laughed when they caught me with a paperback dictionary in my hands trying to speak several Spanish phrases. They stopped laughing, however, when we were coming in with few major items on final walks. I began noticing over time that the contractors began seeking me out, anticipating problems and going the extra-mile, as they seemed to feel a greater sense of respect for their skills, knowledge and culture.” This superintendent’s small gesture of respect yielded significant and positive results.
All for one, and one for all
From the homeowner’s down payment through the warranty period and often beyond, think about how many disciplines will be involved directly or indirectly in building a quality home with satisfied homeowners.
Now think about how many homes you hope to close in 2003. What should your customer satisfaction survey scores look like in order for you to become or maintain your reputation as the builder of choice in your area? Now, which discipline or function don’t you need in order to hit your numbers on every level? Which realtor, contractor, trade or supplier does not need to understand precisely why quality and customer satisfaction are important as well as to be treated with total dignity and respect by all builder employees?
The answer should be clear. What goes around comes around. Treat contractors, trades and suppliers with at least the same level of dignity and respect you show your homebuyers. The quality of your communication, education and treatment will follow in the quality of workmanship.
--Daron Powers
Daron Powers is the Senior Associate and Director of Quality Programs at TrueNorth Development, Inc. which is a consulting and training company specializing in residential homebuilding located in Northville, Michigan. E-mail: Daronpowers@aol.com
|
