Over 40 attendees from 22 member companies met in Fort Myers, Florida January 22nd – 25th to attend our Service Management Forum where members share best practices, learn about new technology and bring home a few ideas to save time and money within their own organizations. “These meetings rejuvenate me to start the year off with a bang.  I always wish we had more time with all of these great leaders when the conference ends.” Chris DeMers, CMC Corporate Solutions

Jeff Ruby, Founder and CEO of RedRock Leadership, kicked off the first day with Design & Build Your Foundation for Success…then run your business so that it doesn’t run you.  Each attendee completed a DISK profile and read the book “Traction” by Geno Wickman.  The Disk profile guided attendees on how to lead with emotional intelligence, as all people do not communicate in the same manner or have the same personalities. We then moved on to the Traction book and learned how to have more effective meetings and the IDS system to solve problems (Identify/Discuss/Solve).  The end goal is to be a mentor, not a micro-manager, to protect your organizations culture and to motivate your team by holding all members accountable.

On our second day, we had a large group discussion on finding, hiring, training and retaining technicians.  Jeff Zenoniani (B&I Contractors) and Dave Robistow (VHV Company) shared their dispatching rules and guidelines to ensure the right person is on the job.  Chris DeMers (CMC Corporate Solutions) and Joel Knight (Harvey W. Hottel, Inc.) showed the group their process for monitoring quality control in the field and the impact it is having within their organizations.  Mike Devito (Air Comfort Corporation), Mike Kerner (Cox-Powell Corporation), Frank Quintanar (J&J Air Conditioning) and Desiree Cespedes (Standard Plumbing &Heating, Inc.) showed the group their benchmarks and KPI’s they have in place for measuring things like technician productivity and days to bill. “This day was helpful.  We have improvements that we need to make.  The things discussed are things I will take back and try to implement.” Jeff Adams, Mechanical Service & Systems

On our final day, Mike Devito (Air Comfort Corporation) started off the discussion on using technology to streamline operations and communicate more effectively by sharing how they are using Tech Tool software. Chris DeMers (CMC Corporate Solutions) challenged all in the room to take time to focus on personal growth during the coming year.  James Sandoval (J&J Air Conditioning) shared his experiences on managing change.  He discussed the many changes that he has faced during his career and how he handled them; sometimes right, sometimes wrong and asked for feedback on what he could have done differently. “This was one of the most open and vulnerable presentations I've heard.  James really put himself out there.  This is a great example of the commitment and importance of The Unified Group.” Chris Stokes, Air Controls

Throughout the meeting, we had breakouts on technology and the groups discussed their biggest challenges and received ideas and feedback from their peers to help solve them upon return.  “Attending a Unified Group meeting is like a family reunion.  You will see people you know, people you want to know, and you will have fun no matter what because you know you are all related in some way. You get to build relationships with this knowledgeable group of peers and getting to know what they are all about really expedites the warm up process.”  Rachel Sykes, Service Unlimited, Inc.

Special thank you to our task force:  Mike Devito (Air Comfort Corporation), Jeff Zenoniani (B&I Contractors), Chris DeMers (CMC Corporate Solutions) and James Sandoval and Frank Quintanar (J&J Air Conditioning) who had many calls to plan the session topics.  They created an impactful agenda!