partnerships Archives - PowerTips Unscripted

Ep.87: Partnership — Creating a Unified Vision for your Company’s Future with Matt Carlson

November 6, 2019 00:23:17

Having a business partner can be an enormous advantage if you approach it correctly. Most people underestimate the commitment and work that goes into a partnership. Ensuring that you’re on the same page and share the same vision goes far beyond having a plan on paper.

In this episode, Matt Carlson shares his story with Victoria and Mark, and what he’s learned as the minority partner in his business in making the relationship work.

Matt is the general manager and co-owner of Fox Home Innovations in Manhattan, KS. After 10 years in the business, and nine as an owner he has a unique perspective on the lessons he has learned from growing FHI alongside his business partner Chris Fox.

Matt and Chris met in college, and worked on several projects together there while both where studying entrepreneurship. Matt then joined Chris in his new remodeling company. He started out working in the field, and Chris proposed the partnership idea quickly. It started as a trial run for a year, while he was still considered an employee. They made it official after the trial period. Matt talks about what you need to do to create and maintain a successful partnership, including:

Making the commitment
Being open and honest
Putting egos aside
How to maintain an equal partnership regardless of ownership stake
The importance of having open books
Delegating duties and responsibilities
Keeping egos out of it
Resolving conflicts
Speaking with one voice
Taking a thoughtful approach to long-term company health
And more …

If you’re in a partnership, or are considering one, Matt says the biggest thing to remember is to put the business first — above any personal relationship you share.

Never Stop Learning…

In today’s episode, Mark mentions our Masterclass sessions that are now available. These two-day courses are intimate, interactive sessions with plenty of hands-on instruction. Small class sizes mean you have plenty of time to interact with your trainer and classmates. All of our instructors are industry experts and among the best in their fields of expertise. To see our slate of available courses, go to https://www.remodelersadvantage.com/events-training/masterclass

Ep.86: Connecting with a Few Good Realtors with Kathi Fleck

October 30, 2019 00:27:20

Working with just a few Realtors can bring additional jobs to your remodeling company. It’s not about appealing to the masses, but about developing relationships with several realtors who appreciate how you work, your quality, attention to detail, and exceptional client experience.

In this episode, Kathi Fleck discusses working with Realtors with Victoria and Mark, and how to establish and maintain relationships that can get more jobs for your company, help them sell more homes, and take care of your shared clients.

Kathi is co-owner of LoneStar Design Build in the Dallas-Ft. Worth, TX, area, where she leads a team and their clients through the design-build experience. Kathi has a long-term relationship with Coldwell Banker Real Estate, and other Realtors who send business her way.

Realtors go out of their way to support the seller/ buyer experience, says Kathi. Helping their clients with remodeling and providing referrals is part of their daily routine. As remodelers working with realtors, understand how Realtors work and make them look good as they support their client. It can be challenging, but Kathi says a few simple tricks can pay off with easy referrals, including:

Finding partners who fit your company and market
How to make their lives easier
Getting the right referrals
Dealing with bad leads
Avoiding the bid process
How referrals can go in the other direction
How much to invest in marketing to Realtors
The power of free food
And more …

The best way to start is by contacting real estate offices and setting up a presentation, calling an agent who works in the same neighborhoods you do, and taking advantage of networking groups.

Building a Better Design Process

Kathi will be presenting on another topic as she helps lead our next MasterClass, Building an Effective Design Process, on Dec. 11-12, here in Baltimore. She’ll be joined by other experienced, award-winning remodelers who will teach you or your designers how to improve your design process and create an extraordinary experience for your clients. Get the details and register here.

Ep.54: Solving the Labor Shortage with Paul Eldrenkamp

March 6, 2019 00:30:24

Regional remodeling companies are desperate for more good labor. Regional carpentry programs are constantly on the lookout for good jobs for their students. How do you bring these groups together effectively?

In this episode, Paul Eldrenkamp talks to Victoria and Mark about the program he and his local NARI chapter have developed to bring students and remodeling companies together, and what you can do in your area.

Paul works for Byggmeister, a design-build remodeling firm based in Newton, MA. He’s working closely with his NARI chapter to build better connections to carpentry students and teachers at local high schools and vocational schools.

His first outreach experience stemmed from a talk he did at a Boston-area high school about green building practices. The school reached out for help in preparing their students who weren’t going to college to enter the workforce with those building skills.

It grew from there. At first, Paul tried building an outreach program through the company, but it was overwhelming their resources. Working through other NARI with other interested member companies, a workforce committee was born. He talks about how they did it, and the benefits, including:

How to find people in the school systems and state agencies to help
Creating internship programs
The big hurdles, and how to get over them
Coaching kids toward lifelong success
The benefits to your own team
Budgeting internship hours
Identifying good candidates
Increasing diversity
The responsibilities of the industry
And more…

The future for the Boston program is bright, filling open jobs with candidates who might not be seen otherwise. If you’d like to reach out to Paul about your initiative or for help starting a program near you, send him an email at paul@byggmeister.com.

Ep.37: The Art of Effective Communication with Paul Winans

October 24, 2018 00:37:37

Most work requires more than one person to get it done. Effective communication is essential to the enterprise. Everyone has to learn the skills to communicate effectively. One key is concentrating on what brings you success — in work, with your spouse or partner, and in the rest of your life. Build on that.

In this episode, Paul Winans joins Victoria and Mark to dive in to work on having effective arguments, resolving conflict, and working on listening.

Paul and his wife Nina owned a remodeling company for 30 years, living and working together, selling the company in 2007. Paul continues to work in the industry as a consultant, writer, and facilitator with R/A’s Roundtables. As a facilitator, Paul works with our members to help them improve every aspect of their communication.

The biggest problem in effective communication happens when people just want to be heard, and don’t take on the responsibility to listen. For entrepreneurs, especially, It’s easy to say you have to listen, but you’ve built your business on others hearing you, and that habit is hard to break.

It takes a conscious and constant effort toward improvement. Paul gives examples and tips for improving your communication skills, including:

Focusing on understanding the other person
Using “I” language, not “you” language
Avoiding verbal attacks, even if they’re unintentional
Asking neutral questions
Establishing a foundation for decision making
Bridging the gap between communication styles and paces
How to tell if someone’s just visiting the conversation
Why meeting about nothing is good, actually
And so much more…

2019 Couples Retreat Workshop

This episode covers a lot of valuable ground, and you have an opportunity to go even deeper as it pertains to working with your spouse. As we mentioned in this episode, Paul and Nina will lead a Couples Retreat Workshop 2019 in Scottsdale, AZ, on February 7-8, 2019.

It’s an intimate group of 15 couples who will learn how to deal with conflict, argue effectively, and set goals for yourselves. The spots are going fast (a reservation was made during the podcast!), so act quickly to take advantage of this incredible resource. Register here!

Ep.32: Industry Insights with Rick Strachan

September 5, 2018 00:33:16

If you’re curious as to where the remodeling industry is going and the key opportunities for the future, Rick Strachan of Hanley Wood has your answers.

In this episode, Rick breaks it all down with Victoria and Mark, telling you what will drive growth, and how to face the coming challenges. You’ll get the big picture, detailed information to help you make strategic decisions for your future, and more numbers than you can shake a stick at.

Rick has worked in the media and information business serving the construction industry for 35 years, and for the last 26 years has been with Hanley Wood’s Remodeling Group. He is a founding member of the Harvard Joint Center Remodeling Futures Program, and is a past board member and former chairman of the Home Improvement Research Institutes Remodeling Professional Committee. He has also received NARI’s President’s Award for service to the industry.

The biggest drivers of remodeling, now and for the near term, are the Baby Boomers. Rick tells you what you need to know about this generation’s buying power and habits, as well as:

The predicted habits of Millennials in the remodeling space
The phenomenal growth in the industry and why the future looks bright
How to address your labor shortage
Why product and materials costs will escalate, and how to deal with it
Why HGTV isn’t all bad for business
What our aging housing stock means for you
And much more…

This episode is as close to fortune-telling as we can get. If you have any questions for Rick, you can email him at rstrachan@hanleywood.com. For more information about Hanley Wood and its news and information about the remodeling industry, go to their website.

Summit Partners

We are proud to partner with Rick and his team at Hanley Wood on producing the Remodelers Summit and we’re excited to get down to New Orleans for this year’s event. We only have 5 seats left for Summit so if you haven’t registered yet, please do so ASAP. You do NOT want to miss this year’s event!

Ep.24: How to Build Strong Partnerships with Architects with Kyle Lissack

July 11, 2018 0:33:23

One of the toughest things for remodelers and builders to do is work with architects or designers and still stay profitable. It can be done, says Kyle Lissack — but it’s a specific business model, and it doesn’t depend on bids, but on the strong partnerships.

In this episode, Victoria and Mark find out how Kyle builds and nurtures relationships, the importance of partnering with architects for the long haul, and how it can benefit your business.

Kyle owns Pinemar Builders, a second-generation full-service remodeling and home-building company just outside of Philadelphia, and is a Roundtables member. Kyle describes Pinemar as a design-driven company where every project involves at least an architect or designer, and often both. “We want to build beautiful homes for nice people,” he says.

Victoria, Mark and Kyle talk about how he adapted his business model from building spec homes to partnering with design professionals in remodeling and building projects, including:

Identifying architects, interior designers and landscape architects to approach
How to build value for you and your partners
Juggling different personalities and approaches throughout a project
Treating your partners as customers
And more…

This episode gives you insight into how to successfully work with architects, and you’ll find out what Kyle would do with a frozen penguin. Click through to find out more about Pinemar Builders.

We’re excited to have Kyle as a “Power Talks” speaker at the 2018 Remodelers Summit in New Orleans in September. He will be presenting “Cultivating & Nurturing Mutually Beneficial Relationships With Design Professionals” at 2:35pm on the Main Stage.

Summit is on track to sell-out early this year so make sure you REGISTER TODAY!

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