Owner/operator...falling back in!

[matdand]

So my little company has alot of work. I went from 2 full time and one part time employee two years ago, to 7 full time this year. Let's just say, it has been rough! Lots of HR, crew chemistsry, personnel problems, egos... I realy wanted to try to pull myself out of the on-site work this year, focus on getting work, office stuff, estimates, taking care of the clients.

I'm finding myself falling back into the owner/operator role. Things just seem so much smoother when I'm on-site.

This is partially my fault. I know I didn't prepare the crews properly. I put together a little document with the basic outlines of how I want tings to work, but I haven't been consistant enough with it. I'm working on trying to put out clear work orders. I also want to have an employee manual which states expectations, roles, client rapport, etc. Another thing I want to start doing is having a weekly tailgate meeting within each crew, and a general each month.

This is a process. I've lost one good employee cause I just thought everything was gonna fall into place and keep steamrolling like last year. Not the case!

Any tips on trying to remove yourself from the work? Running a business as an owner, not a climber? It's hard finding good groundies, even less good climbers that can deal with clients and the likes!

 

[96coal449]

Your lucky to have that many guys. No one around here wants to work. Trades are dying and kids won't get there faces out of I-phones and tablets. I'm trying to step up and venture out again myself, with my own work. I find it easier to float and work with guys I know to make a good days pay and some sub work. I do both tree work and roofing so I easily stay busy. Finding help is a joke, which makes it easy for me to float around and name my price. Good luck to you.

 

[colb]

So my little company has alot of work. I went from 2 full time and one part time employee two years ago, to 7 full time this year. Let's just say, it has been rough! Lots of HR, crew chemistsry, personnel problems, egos... I realy wanted to try to pull myself out of the on-site work this year, focus on getting work, office stuff, estimates, taking care of the clients.

I'm finding myself falling back into the owner/operator role. Things just seem so much smoother when I'm on-site.

This is partially my fault. I know I didn't prepare the crews properly. I put together a little document with the basic outlines of how I want tings to work, but I haven't been consistant enough with it. I'm working on trying to put out clear work orders. I also want to have an employee manual which states expectations, roles, client rapport, etc. Another thing I want to start doing is having a weekly tailgate meeting within each crew, and a general each month.

This is a process. I've lost one good employee cause I just thought everything was gonna fall into place and keep steamrolling like last year. Not the case!

Any tips on trying to remove yourself from the work? Running a business as an owner, not a climber? It's hard finding good groundies, even less good climbers that can deal with clients and the likes!

I'm a couple steps behind you, but same problem: Who do you trust with the 25k mini? Who do you trust to not put a log through a roof? Who do you trust to keep a groundie from getting a headache? I don't know how to let go. I've let go for two weeks once, on a "pull 'em all down" pine lot clearing job. It felt fantastic. I've let go for a couple hours of cleanup so I could parent my son. It's hard and makes me question whether I can grow the business past the one crew stage.

 

[96coal449]

I'm a couple steps behind you, but same problem: Who do you trust with the 25k mini? Who do you trust to not put a log through a roof? Who do you trust to keep a groundie from getting a headache? I don't know how to let go. I've let go for two weeks once, on a "pull 'em all down" pine lot clearing job. It felt fantastic. I've let go for a couple hours of cleanup so I could parent my son. It's hard and makes me question whether I can grow the business past the one crew stage.

I hear ya loud n clear on that.

 

[matdand]

Your lucky to have that many guys.

I have a great group of guys, knowledgeable tree guys, great climbers, most of the time hard workers. They handle the equipment decently, I mean, as best as employees will . They are pretty much independant with a tracked lift, mini, trucks.

I just lost my longest employee who was with me for 5 years, and basically my best all-around guy. I might have put too much pressure on him without realising it. He was getting a good hourly rate, so I was expecting him to do the tough, bigger jobs. This probably wasn't communicated clearly enough.

I think it boils down to that, better communication. I need to get a better understanding of what I want from each employee and make sure they understand that as well.

 

[96coal449]

Don't forget to listen to them also. GOOD employees are hard to come by.

 

[treehumper]

So you wrote some stuff down, hopefully on full sized paper not the back of cocktail napkins, good start but that's all it was. Do sports teams just tell the players what to do then hope for the best? No, they train and practice, train and practice, play then they debrief and analyze from which they learn where they need to focus in their training and practice.
What you may be thinking of as "running your business" is only other roles within the team. Sales, estimating, maintenance, administration, accounting, etc.... All are just things to do and no different to the business than setting lines, pruning, removal, clean up, and the like.

What you need to do is formulate the team structure including all the roles including the back office as well as the operations. Who does what, where, when and how. Then develop the way they'll do it. While most have the basics defined already you'll fill that out with the specific approach you feel is right (this is part of the business "culture"). Where you have expertise you'll feel much more comfortable and will have more input. Where you're not, say like accounting, you'll rely on hired guns and learn to fit their approach. Since the business is operational then you'll be doing this on the fly.

The next major element, and you may guess it from my opening paragraph, is the training and practice. You're now in the role of coach/mentor. What seems to have happened was you told the guys what to do then left them to apply it with little if any oversight or real time direction. As well, you may not have incorporated into your own perception the need to allow for their individual attitudes, strengths, weaknesses and styles. You can only do that by spending some time watching and assessing. There's how you'll better manage them. When you're in the field don't do the work and expect them to learn by osmosis, coach, direct, keep your hands off and, like the coach on the sidelines, give feedback and direction, don't jump in and play the game for them.

Hold meetings on a regular basis, both with the whole staff and with individuals. Let them know how things are going, Keep them up to date on successes and setbacks. Let them know what you're planning to do next, major purchases, entry into new markets or additions to the business. Ask them for their feedback on what they see as working and where there could be improvements. These are the eyes and ears of the company that you as the owner need to rely on to manage your business.

Where does it all begin? With a vision of what the company will be and a plan for how it will get there. This isn't written in stone but will be a guiding force that you revisit and revise to reflect the realities of the times, the challenges and the opportunities that arise as you move forward. It may be simple at first but then become more sophisticated as you learn what all goes into the decision making processes at varying stages of your business growth.