Repeatable Process for your Business Model

Part 7 – Right From the Start

Its Monday and you get the dreaded call. Your customer is unhappy with how long the project took, how much they had to spend and the lack of communication. Was the job done to their satisfaction? Yes! Will they benefit from your services? Yes! Will they refer you to a friend? No! Why, you ask, don’t I get a referral? There are many reasons, but one that my client just experienced was that it didn’t meet the same expectations that his customer had of the job. Mind you, the customer upped the original Estimate twofold and it was way over the timeframe (because more work was added to the original Estimate), but the customer is always right. How do we learn a lesson here?

Words of wisdom to my contractor client that is trying to avoid these responses and remove the barriers to smooth sailing jobs: ESTIMATE, TIMELINE CHANGE ORDERS, WEEKLY UPDATE, DEBRIEF. These simple activities not only keep the customer’s expectations managed but it also drives a repeatable process in your business. My client is not one to be defined by processes, but given the growth he is experiencing, he realizes it’s time to get set the roadmap on paper and turn on GPS tracking. Let’s break down these suggested activities and see how each area serves the purpose of keeping expectations and execution aligned.

ESTIMATE/PROPOSAL/BID: Whatever you call it, it is the starting point for which you and your customer can agree on the points of interest, services rendered, cost and upfront expectations of the project scope. This estimating process may be based on time and materials plus markup. This takes some shopping around for material costs and contractor bids, but it must be accurate and irrefutable in the eyes of all involved. Once it is approved, it should be entered into an automated accounting solution, such as QuickBooks, to track the success of your estimating capabilities. If it is a flat amount bid, then all the more reason to do the homework and get buy in from the customer as to it’s value and/or return on investment.

TIMELINE: I believe this is the hardest part of all. It takes true insight of all of the people and processes involved and making the puzzle pieces work together. With the right historical perspective, each party involved can contribute to the timeline (vendors, suppliers, customers) as each one plays a role in the project’s roll out. Yes, there may be hiccups, but how they are handled and the rate of response make all the difference in the world.

CHANGE ORDERS: I have a separate article about this (Accounting for Lost Revenue), but I can tell you from this recent incident with my client that it would’ve changed the tone of the phone call. Picture this: Initial Estimate is approved but, oh, since you are here, can you just add this responsibility that we DID NOT DISCUSS nor did we agree on initially? Also, if you do this one little thing for me, I’d really appreciate it BUT GET THE JOB DONE IN THE SAME AMOUNT OF TIME. This appears to look unreasonable all in one paragraph, and you would be right. But if you put these conversations in a span of a few months, the customer is perplexed as to why this job is taking so much time. Pretty crazy stuff!

WEEKLY UPDATE: Not all companies do a Monday morning quarterback meeting, but I suspect there is no better time spent with your customer as when you call them on a pre-defined frequency with a report of where you are with the job. A very helpful document is a project scope, the estimated numbers, the cost to date, here’s where we are in our timeline, these are reasons why we had trouble this week and how we resolved the issues would be all the information the customer would need to trust that you are on top of the situation. This is also a great time to ask for feedback from the customer as to what is their perspective of the job and your processes. It is my belief that some clients would rather not tell you how they feel about you unless you ask. If you don’t ask, they may just not call you/refer you rather than drop a bomb on you face to face. Make it easy for them to give you a heads up by developing a great relationship.

DEBRIEF: This is different from your feedback from the customer. This is you asking the project players what could’ve been done differently and how can the process be improved. Were tasks missed? Was it difficult to reach people? Was the information that started the project and other salient points missing in the team communications? Be specific, dig hard and encourage honesty in these sessions. Everyone will thank you!

A good 360 session from all involved helps with evaluating where you are in this repeatable business model process. This will also make hiring easier as your job descriptions for each player will have solid definition. If there is a need for project management automation and tracking as well as communication tools, it’s best to get those in place as soon as possible before the next call comes knocking at your door.