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Happy Employees = Happy Customers
It only stands to reason that if your employees are happy, they will work to make your customers happy. By maintaining an open-door policy, following through and having your employees' backs, you can ensure the happiness of both your staff and customers.
MORE12 Rules for Work and Life
In Stephen Schwarzman’s recently-released book, What It Takes: Lessons in the Pursuit of Excellence, he lists 25 Rules for Work and Life. We selected 12 of these rules that we believe can be harnessed to improve work life and personal/home life.
MORETaking Ownership
There's a reason Standard’s company name now ends with the word “Solution.” Customers frequently come to me with a problem that is not necessarily related to the building envelope. Whatever a customer’s commercial facility problem is, Standard is committed to taking ownership of that problem and helping them solve it.
MORERecruiting
Recruiting in any market today presents unique challenges for every business. To maintain the strongest team we possibly can, Standard adheres to a four-point strategy for recruiting and retaining the best employees. “Take care of your employees and they will take care of your business. It’s as simple as that.” —Sir Richard Branson, Founder, Virgin Group.
MORECustomer Service
At Standard, there are 4 areas in which we consistently strive for perfection to achieve excellence in customer service: in the office, in the field, through project management and in close-out. Our customer service is inspired by and rooted in the words of the great NFL coach Vince Lombardi, “In our pursuit of perfection, we will catch excellence.”
MORETurning Obstacles into Opportunity
A positive attitude can go a long way. This piece of advice should be applied to both your personal and professional life. Standard is committed to overcoming obstacles with a positive attitude–it’s part of our Core Values. Finding the opportunity to overcome a challenge ultimately makes you stronger.
MORELeadership is a Responsibility We All Bear
As we begin to wrap our minds around living in a world that exists with COVID-19, a return to a “normal” way of life for Americans will come at a gradual, methodical pace. Opening retail, restaurants and similar establishments, according to guidelines directed by state and federal governments, will dictate the pace to recovery. And just like there are risks associated with virtually every aspect of everyday life, elected officials must accept that bold leadership will come with taking some chances. Even the consumer will have to take a leadership role by working hard and contributing their share to help our country return to a more “normal” way of life.
MOREHR Standards of Success
There are certainly multiple components that lead to the success of an organization, but it can be argued that effectively managing the human resources of a company is the most important determinant of that company’s long-term success. And the effective management of the HR function depends on more than just the HR department. Getting it right takes an active team approach that includes the HR department as well as supervisors and managers all the way up to the CEO. And just like on any successful team, members each have critical roles. It’s important to note that all of these functions are ongoing, interrelated and should be conducted in as near to “real-time” as possible.
MOREUnderstanding a Contractor’s Accounting System
Contracting can be a complicated and risky business. If a contractor doesn’t know its true financial position, then trouble can’t be far away; and when trouble arrives (and it will), no owner wants to be impacted by the fallout caused by a financially-stripped contractor. For this reason, it’s important that owners not only thoroughly vet contractors before awarding a project, but also understand which accounting and billing methods the contractor adheres to.
MORECommunication is Key to Re-roofing Project Success
It’s a fact; commercial re-roofing projects are very different and are many times more complex than new construction roofing. Because of this, one of the most important components to a re-roofing project’s success is a healthy and productive line of communication between the owner, the roof architect/designer and the contractor throughout the life of the project. Here, we share what a good communication process looks like and offer up a case study that examines how open lines of communication helped mitigate unforeseen complications and ensure project success.
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