Is your team performing at a consistently high level? Is the morale or ‘mood’ of your business dictated to you by one or more individuals in your team?
Every builder or contractor has a “Culture” or “Code of Conduct” including yours. If you haven’t intentionally defined the “Culture” or “Code of Conduct” in your business, then this will be decided for you by the people with the strongest personalities in your business. We’ve worked with clients who’ve had the morale or mood of their business dictated to them by one or two members on their team. If these individuals were having a bad day, then so was everyone else. Sound familiar?

Would you like a team that sets their own performance standards, holds each other accountable and attract more good people?

Having a Code of Conduct developed by your team which they take ownership of and hold each other accountable to helps set the tone for your business. You’ll be free to remove yourself from the business and backstop performance standards even when you’re not there. The right Code of Conduct also ensures that you keep your best people and attract the best people for your business.

For more specifics on how we can help your business in this area, contact us direct to book in for your free “Strategy Session” with one of our expert Business Coaches. Lets talk about your business and see how we can take you to the next level. 

 

Case Study

The Challenge: Team Communication
The Cause:
Tim knew that the level of communication in business needed serious attention but he always seemed to have more urgent matters to attend to. He never made time to sit down and think about how he could improve how his team related to each other. Eventually (as with anything that gets ignored for long enough) the problem reached a point where Tim had no choice but to fix the problem.

The Business Pain:
Inefficiencies, delays and bottlenecks on jobs were too numerous to mention. Project management became a nightmare as changes in delivery dates of supplies and contractors was not communicated or done so too late.

Besides the endless ‘hiccups’ with suppliers and contractors, there were team relationship breakdowns due to the lack of communication. Some of Tim’s team were having personal problems, which affected their performance on-site. In one case, a new worker was going through a marriage separation but his team-mates were unaware of the issue. One day he got remanded for his attitude by a supervisor and responded aggressively because of the pent-up emotion he was feeling. There were other sensitive issues like these, which required better systems for communication.

The Personal Pain:
Tim often found himself in confrontational situations with either his team or contractors. Because Tim was naturally a soft natured person, these confrontations weighed quite heavily on his conscience. He would take the stress and worry with him when he went home and this impacted on his quality of life and the time he spent with his wife and children. Tim knew something had to give.

The Solution:
Tim searched for an answer and found that there were a number of choices available to him to alleviate the business and personal pain he was experiencing. He immediately set to work putting the following strategies in place:

1. The first thing Tim did was to implement regular team meetings that had watertight agendas and a nominated chairperson.
2. Each meeting started with an ‘Indian rain stick’ where each member of the team had an opportunity to speak uninterrupted about any business or personal issues they were having. This proved to be a very powerful process and put everyone on the same page as well as flushing out any minor grievances.
3. Every two months, anonymous team questionnaires were sent out to the each team member to get their feedback on areas of improvement and their opinion on the management style.
4. A monthly team bulletin was published and sent out to each team member updating them on any changes and inviting them to participate in regular social activities.

 

The Outcome:
The result for Tim and his team was a business with more open communication from top to bottom. On the business-front, mistakes, bottlenecks and inefficiencies were less frequent. Because team members were given an opportunity to express themselves in a safe and unthreatening environment, everyone had a good understanding of each other’s personal situation. The social events helped further galvanise the team and brought a fun and friendlier dynamic to the team. The culture within Tim’s team was starting to shift and it gave him more peace of mind and allowed him to enjoy a better quality of life with his wife and children in the evenings and on weekends.

For more specifics on how we can help your business in this area, contact us direct to book in for your free “Strategy Session” with one of our expert Business Coaches. Lets talk about your business and see how we can take you to the next level.  

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Are you tired of dealing with leadership issues that fosters a negative atmosphere among your team members and in your workplace?

Most builders and contractors have to juggle so many responsibilities at the same time that they sometimes make the wrong decisions and become ineffective leaders. This video will help you overcome these limitations and become a great leader.

Would you like the peace of mind that comes from knowing how to recognise and avoid the many Leadership Pitfalls that comes with owning and running your own business?

Having the right Leadership Skills can make a lot of difference when it comes to steering your team and business in the right direction, grooming future leaders among your team and allowing more potential to help grow your business. Knowing what Leadership Pitfalls to avoid and learning how to apply the right skills can ensure your business success.

For more specifics on how we can help your business in this area, contact us direct to book in for your free “Strategy Session” with one of our expert Business Coaches. Lets talk about your business and see how we can take you to the next level. 

Case Study

The Challenge: Poor Time Management
The Cause:
Steve was an experienced builder and took pride in his work. After 18 years in the building game he had a solid reputation and received a consistent flow of referrals. Although his business was doing ok financially, Steve never seemed to have enough time in his day. Steve planned his jobs down to the finest detail but the same couldn’t be said for how he managed his time. Steve had no short, medium or long term plans in place for managing himself and his time more efficiently.

The business pain:
Steve felt like a cork in the ocean being pushed helplessly from one direction to the next. He was totally reactive to his environment and had no control over what happened next from the time he got into the office until he left for home in the evening. He would take numerous calls each day from clients and his team, helping them troubleshoot or put out fires. This meant he often fell behind on projects and especially his paperwork. Steve’s was nowhere near as productive as he would like to be.

The personal pain:
The worst part about Steve’s lack of control was the impact it was having on his personal life. The constant pressure of being behind the eight-ball caused him to feel tense and stressed. His wife and kids had to put up with him being unreasonably short with them after a bad day or have him totally zone out in front of the TV. His mind would constantly race with thoughts of the day just gone and the day to come. There were times when he’d sit up watching TV in the early hours of the morning, trying to tire his own mind and get back to sleep. Steve very rarely made it home in time for dinner, which bothered his wife Tracey. Steve’s marriage was starting to take strain and the saddest part is that he was doing it all for the people he cared about most, his family.  Steve loved his wife and kids but he could feel them slipping through his fingers. Something had to change and it had to change soon.

The Solution:
Steve knew that in order for his situation to change, he would have to change first. He realised that managing his time was more about managing himself and would require a powerful new mindset as well as a time-management system. Steve braced himself for better self-management and the more focused and efficient use of his time. He looked into the future and saw himself in a calm, relaxed and controlled state as he mastered his new time management skills.

Steve set to work straight away on the following Time Management Strategies:

• To value himself and his time more Steve calculated what his time is worth an hour based on his annual earnings.

• He looked at where he was spending his time based on the 80/20 rule. Was he spending his time on the 20% of activities that generated 80% of the results? The ‘Pareto Principle” helped Steve understand the importance of focusing his time and energy on the 20% of tasks that generated the majority of the results in his business. Generally speaking, 20% of our activities are responsible for 80% of our results. By the same token, 20% of Steve’s team was responsible for 80% of the results in his business. Team meetings and quotes were two activities that fell into Steve’s 20% of activities. Steve made sure that these activities took priority over anything else that was going on in his business at any time. Only a majorly urgent and important issue could override the importance of the above activities.

• As part of identifying how he spent his time Steve started with the big picture and gradually worked his way down to the more specific details of what went on in his business on a day-to-day basis. First, Steve pulled out his Organisational Chart and reviewed all the positions listing the roles and responsibilities for each person.

• After reviewing the roles and responsibilities Steve personally performed in the business, he categorised them into daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly and yearly tasks. Finally, he then categorised the tasks according to the amount of Skill and Fun required to perform each task. He soon realised that opening the mail, bookkeeping, and taking calls were the tasks he’d start delegating first.

• Steve then blocked out time in his weekly plan so that he could assign the amount of time required for each task. He also used a daily ‘to do’ list to ensure he stayed focused on the highest priority tasks in his business. Steve prioritised the tasks on his daily ‘to do’ list in order of importance from ‘A’ to ‘E’. ‘A’ being an absolute must to complete by the end of the day, ‘B’ being important but not essential before the end of the day. ‘C’ tasks would be nice to complete but are not essential, ‘D’ are tasks he can delegate and ‘E’ are those he can eliminate.

• Once Steve had a solid weekly and daily plan, recognising and eliminating distractions was the next area of skill development. The first thing he did to this end was to switch his cell phone off during the day and to only respond to calls at designated times during the day. Steve also created a script and had his admin assistant field all landline calls and take messages during the day. A 15-minute time slot was also allocated at the end of the day for senior office staff to run through any questions they had. They were asked to hold their questions unless absolutely urgent for this allocated question time.

The Outcome:
Within a few months Steve had started making dramatic changes in how he managed himself and his time and the results were significant. Steve’s productivity had improved by more than 35%.  His mind felt clearer and he slept better at night because he was keeping all his plans in his diary and on a spreadsheet instead of in his head.

A few of Steve’s friends criticised his decision to become a time ‘hound’ and asked him if he enjoyed being so regimented. Steve response was always swift and clear, “Every minute I waste during working hours is another minute I take away from my family.” This thought alone was enough to drive Steve’s level of discipline to new heights.

Steve’s newfound control in his business and his life meant he had more time to spend with family and friends. He was able to play tennis again on Wednesday nights and there would soon be an enough time for him to explore other business opportunities like the developments he had been meaning to do for so long.

For more specifics on how we can help your business in this area, contact us direct to book in for your free “Strategy Session” with one of our expert Business Coaches. Lets talk about your business and see how we can take you to the next level. 

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