By Craig A. Shutt
There are lots of new technologies available to business owners these days, but becoming George Jetson doesn’t mean you’re running an efficient company. "You have to find the proper balance between the old ways of doing things and the new technologies," says Mark Stephenson, president of HUB Design/Build in Villanova, Pa. Here are some of the technologies Mark has incorporated–and why:
In-home personal computers for lead carpenters. HUB outfits the home of each of its five lead carpenters with a personal computer and high-speed Internet line. The leads use them for Internet searches and emailing to the office and to customers. "The majority of our clients use email, and it streamlines everything," he says.
Email creates a paper trail of every message from and to the client, and everyone always has the same information. Furthermore the client can talk directly with the lead, reinforcing their relationship. "Remodeling is all about communication," Mark stresses.
The leads do their planning and scheduling at home, and they create schedules in Microsoft Project software, for which HUB created templates that they simply fill in. "It creates good, consistent planning, and it looks 1,000 percent better than a handwritten schedule."
The computers' cost is more than recouped by saving time; the lead carpenters don't have to come to the office to drop off time sheets, pick up material, or track Mark down for a conversation, etc. "It’s a no-brainer," he says.
Color fax/scanner/printer. HUB also supplies each lead carpenter with this home equipment and a dedicated phone line. "Clients often give us pages torn from magazines. We can drop that into the fax and let the lead see it." Spec sheets, advertisements and other printed materials are faxed whenever needed. This system overlaps with the scanner and email, he admits, "but we are so dependent on technology that we have redundancies to ensure we communicate however works best."
Wireless picture phones. Another piece of standard equipment for HUB leads is a picture phone, which allows them to quickly transmit photos of any particular problems, tile layouts to be okayed and other details for a consultation. Mark also has the lead send him one photo per day, every day, of something accomplished at the site that day. "A picture is worth a thousand words, and I get a picture of each project every day, even if everything went smoothly." Every photo goes into the client’s computer file for a day-by-day record of progress.
Mark relies on text-messaging but discourages cell-phone conversations during work time. "I built hundreds of homes before I got a cell phone, and I did fine," he notes. "People have become lazy, waiting until the last minute to call someone. That should be done on a schedule to make it less distracting." The phones are programmed with a variety of standard responses; the leads can respond to basic questions from the office with the push of a few buttons.
Newsletters. The company produces a quarterly client newsletter, and it archives back issues at its Web site. But it mails out the publications on thick, glossy paper rather than using email to deliver them. "There’s nothing like holding a piece of glossy paper in your hands, and our newsletter looks very, very nice," he says.
That approach underscores the need to understand technology and incorporate it where it works best. "It’s critical to have a balance between your systems that work and technologies that can improve them," Mark adds. "Technology isn’t the answer to everything, and if you think it is, you’ll die. But if you think you can use your old ways without it, you’ll die too."
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