A recent series of conversations with frustrated HVAC technicians, managers, and company owners revealed an increasing concern that it is harder than ever to find high-performing technicians. Let’s take a look at their observations and decisions that led them to identify three classes of technicians. By the way, they even assigned percentages to these classes to show the makeup of their workforces. See if their conclusions agree with your view of technicians, or not.
Three Technician Classes
In each case, these leaders struggled to understand their role in how to inspire and help build the careers of others in their companies. Once they understood the levels of commitment that each class of technician needs, they accepted these distinct roles and felt better equipped to work with each group.
Their common interest was to advance people’s careers. The revelation was that their success in helping others is limited by the effort each technician decides to invest in themselves.
This made the leaders’ responsibility clear. They need to build company cultures that invite every technician to grow. They must understand it will always be the decisions and actions of each technician to rise to the class they desire or remain at their current level.
Consider this adaptation of a baseball Hall of Famer Tommy Lasorda’s quote: “There are three types of HVAC technicians: Those who make it happen, those who watch it happen, and those who wonder what happens.”
It doesn’t matter whether you read this as a technician or company owner. There’s a message in it for all of us.
The High Performers
The high-performer class of technicians lead by example. You can rely on them to deliver quality work that defines the highest culture of the company. According to the contractors I spoke with, High Performers make up the top 20% of their technicians.
The 'high-performer' class of technicians lead by example. You can rely on them to deliver quality work that defines the highest culture of the company.
These technicians build and maintain the final quality of heating and cooling systems each company wants to be known for. They also have the customer relations skills to match. They are the last to leave a job and expend the extra effort to assure the system performs as promised.
Their careers constantly advance as they improve their knowledge, skills, and attitude to consistently deliver top results.
The high performers are naturally rewarded the most and given the most recognition because they earn it. Owners and managers do all they can to assure their job satisfaction and provide for their advancement.
Most importantly, the leaders I spoke to say they extend an invitation to enter this class to every technician. However, it each tech’s individual responsibility to rise and maintain the level of results matching this class.
The Keepers
Keepers usually show up on time, complete most of the work according to industry norms and deliver a standard quality of work.
They typically enter the industry with a commitment to build a career and receive some basic training in the classroom and field. Eventually, they achieve their place in the keeper class. These technicians maintain a level of comfort with relative ease and plan on staying there. According to the contractors I spoke with, keepers make up the middle 60% of their technicians.
'Keeper' technicians maintain a level of comfort with relative ease and plan on staying there.
In fact, the class title ‘keepers’ came from one owner who was annoyed that his middle level techs failed to advance and follow the high standards of his company. But then a light bulb went off when he realized the hard truth that many in his keeper class would never become high performers and may always be satisfied doing just an average job. He is now in the process shifting system commissioning to his high performing technicians to assure product quality.
Once he understood their place and role, he said, “I realized how much we depend on and need them, so we’re happy to keep them.” Hence, the name, keepers. He committed to offer advancement opportunities to them and leave it up to them to rise to the next class.
The Laborers
These folks have a job and may not be interested in a career. Unless they choose to advance, they enter and exit through the revolving employment door of the HVAC industry. According to my sources, this class seems to include the lower 20% of today’s technicians in their companies.
For the 'laborers' the paycheck is their primary motivation. Being on time to the shop or jobsite is difficult for them.
The paycheck is their primary motivation. Being on time to the shop or jobsite is difficult for them. There is little interest in acquiring their own tools and they make excuses as to why they don’t have any. Typically, they view training and education as a forced job requirement.
While some technicians remain in this class or move on to another job, the hope is that a spark will ignite them and push them forward into a meaningful profession in the future.
Equal Opportunity Does Not Mean Equal Outcome
Like it or not, your individual efforts place you in classes of some sort in different areas your life. A careful self-examination shows we all earn our class and are rewarded accordingly.
Perhaps you’re a top performer in some things and choose to be a keeper or a laborer in others. That’s your choice.
The goal is to build a career or company culture that offers opportunities for the advancement of all.
The message from these related conversations is that each of these leaders desired to provide an equal opportunity in their companies for others to advance. When they realized many may not take advantage of the opportunities and settle for a lesser outcome, they better understood each class and how they can work with them.
Of course, the lines are blurred between technician classes. That’s because people constantly change. The goal is to build a career or company culture that offers opportunities for the advancement of all.
Rob “Doc” Falke serves the industry as president of National Comfort Institute, Inc., an HVAC-based training company and membership organization. You can contact Doc at [email protected] or call him at 800-633-7058. Go to NCI’s website at nationalcomfortinstitute.com for free information, articles, and downloads.
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20% of technicians that are considered high-performers, 60% that are keepers and 20% that live in the industry’s employment revolving door.
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