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Jim Paluch Sold Me a Bill of Goods

July 14, 2011 By Nanette Seven Leave a Comment

As I get ready to journey into Chicago’s Millennium Park for the first time I am thinking about this month’s newsletter on change and how what I thought I was getting into with JP Horizon’s Come Alive Outside event is quite a change from what I initially thought it was going to be.

Now depending on the way you are geared you could take this change as being bad or good. For me I am taking this change as WORK. As a Smart Company Facilitator I THOUGHT I was going to be spending a day leisurely leading a group through the park, exploring the different areas, seeing the “bean” in person, networking with friends, clients, and colleagues. I figured we’d then come back the next day, and in typical JP Horizons fashion, brainstorm ideas, narrow them down, and come up with the one great thing we could take back to our companies to inspire others to Come Alive Outside. This is what we have done in the past, so it did not seem unreasonable that this is what we would be doing again. Right? WRONG!!! I was WRONG! Seriously WRONG. Dead WRONG! OMG what did I get myself into WRONG? I should have known that our leader, Jim Paluch, would throw us a curveball at our outdoor “change” conference!

Again, depending on you and how you are wired, you have probably drawn a conclusion that I am either upset about the change of approach or I am happy. Well, I am ELATED with what we have in store for the next two days. This is in spite of having an EIGHTY EIGHT page “Field Guide” to help facilitate my group on our mission, which is to:

• Create a 15-minute PowerPoint presentation that will show how our company will COME ALIVE OUTSIDE.

The PowerPoint will ENERGIZE a company culture, DEFINE a company’s marketing and message and GROW a company’s sales.

Sounds simple enough, right? There’s a catch, this is a competition, and I am one of the most competitive people I know. I don’t like to lose. Now, I didn’t get to pick my team, they were picked for me. Hmmm. I know some of the players, but not all of them. How do I challenge them to want to win this as much as I do, to be on the cover of Pro Magazine.

Will I have to change my mindset? Will I have to help others change theirs? Only time will tell, but I will be sure to let you know who wins, and I’m sure we can all learn something from it.

Filed Under: Landscape Industry, People

CRM

July 11, 2011 By Jody Lenes Leave a Comment

You may have heard the term “Contact Relationship Management or Customer Relationship Management” or “CRM” for short, but do you know what it means? I have spoken with hundreds of companies all around the country and when I ask what they use for CRM, I get a range of answers. Some will say that they do it manually with paper and pen. Some have upgraded to Excel spreadsheets to manage the leads and some might have invested in a standalone package that will help them to manage all of their contacts. Some have even said that they don’t have anything formal in place, even in this day and age.

No matter what system you are using, CRM is something that can make or break your sales process and you need to be thinking about it. No matter how you define the actual term, CRM is a process of managing your list of clients, vendors, prospective clients and all the people that you might talk with. Serious CRM software should be able to give you one area that you can go to see a list of all people you are working with, track their communications, manage schedules and much more. Some of these tasks are kind of basic and most CRM packages offer them. Let’s take a look, though, at things you might not be thinking about and how they can help you.

  • Sales Tracking – If you are a salesperson, you should be able to get a quick glimpse into your sales goals, where you stand compared to those goals, and what your closing ratios are. A sales manager in the CRM software should be able to see each salesperson’s data plus be able to report on the team as a whole.
  • Job/Client Integration – As you are doing work for particular people in your contact list, you will be communicating with them. If the communication is related to a particular job, you should be able to have all of the information about that job at your fingertips. You should be able to see the hours used on a job, what services have been provided, and when or even where their account stands with open invoices and payments received.
  • Email Capabilities – If the contact management is tied into your email service, you get a streamlined way to have all emails stored within the client history. Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to easily find that email someone had sent you, which is related to a project that you did for them?
  • Document Management – As you communicate with different people, you are going to acquire documents that they feel are important to share with you. As nice as it would be to just trash them all, you need to be able to access them at a later point. Having those documents in the record of your contact management is a quick way to store, manage, and access those documents.

There are many other features, but this is a great start to get you thinking about your current Contact Relationship Management system. Does it provide the tools you need to get a good understanding of your company and the communications people are having with customers and potential customers? Do you have security on the information so that if a sales person were to leave, you are not losing valuable communications with your clients? Do you even know who your company has talked to that is not in your accounting software?

If you have questions on CRM options you can Google the term and see thousands of links. You are also more than welcome to contact us here at Include® Software and we can share Asset™ with you and the many ways that CRM is integrated into your daily operations.

Filed Under: Asset Planning, Client Care, Training

Working in the Weather

July 6, 2011 By Jody Lenes Leave a Comment

It comes with the territory. This is an industry that has to deal with the elements; rain, heat, cold, snow, droughts… So what’s new? Why is any of this important? To continue to be productive through all of these conditions, and to look out for the health of your employees, you need to be prepared. Are your crews prepared to deal with summer’s excessive heat? Do they know the signs of heat stroke, heat exhaustion, and dehydration?

We have looked at training in the past and focused on proper use of equipment and general safety, but let’s look here at personal safety with regard to the heat. Water is a precious commodity that you hear being discussed every day with regards to irrigation and how much is allowed to be used on lawns and landscape. You know that it is healthy for us to drink water, but from a safety standpoint it is something that is key during this time of year. Are your crews drinking enough water? Do you provide the resources for them to have enough water through the day? (i.e. 5 gal. jugs filled with ice and water; ice machines for them to use; production managers or supervisors going around to make sure they continue to have enough to drink, etc…)

It is important for people to know how much water they should be drinking and how to recognize the signs of dehydration. Some of the signs of dehydration include; a dry mouth, the lack of sweat – especially noticeable when working outside – muscle cramps, nausea and lightheadedness. You should hold safety meetings with your crews and make sure that they know how to recognize the signs of dehydration and what to do to prevent it.

Dehydration is one of the many concerns about working outside, but what about that beautiful sunshine? When I worked in the field, everyone was jealous that I was outside all day getting a tan. As science continues to tell us, the sun, while providing beneficial Vitamin D, also has a negative effect on our skin. Make sure that you are providing proper protection from the sun. Are your crews wearing proper clothing such as long sleeves and pants? Do they have hats on to protect their heads and provide a little shade to their faces? Are all of the trucks equipped with sunscreen that can be applied throughout the day to exposed skin to prevent sunburn or sun poisoning? All of these little steps help to prevent future skin cancer and skin blemishes.

How about heat stroke or heat exhaustion? Look for the symptoms of this; high body temperature, rapid pulse, difficulty breathing, confusion, disorientation, etc… Your crews need to know how to recognize these symptoms and what to do. Spending a little time with your crews now preparing and knowing little steps to prevent the condition will save you time and money and prevent a major accident from occurring. Work with your crews that are out in the heat to look for areas that they can find shade for breaks from the heat. Encourage them to get into the air conditioning in the truck periodically to cool down. Some companies have even adjusted work hours to prevent being out in the heat of the day. These are just a few ideas, but great ways to start thinking about how to beat the heat.

No matter what weather conditions you and your crew members are facing, being prepared is the key. There are a multitude of resources available to help you with training for your crews and many insurance companies will also provide tools for you. Check with your insurance carrier, your local health department, industry associations and companies that specialize in training. Being prepared, and knowing how to prevent and recognize the symptoms will help everyone have an enjoyable and profitable summer season.

Filed Under: People, Training, Weather

Making the IT Investment

July 6, 2011 By Lisa Scrivener Leave a Comment

Nothing lasts forever.  No truer words have been spoken especially in the world of technology.  The instant you make an electronics purchase it is basically obsolete.  That may be slightly over-dramatic, but it is not too far off the mark.

It is overwhelming and daunting for a business owner to try to keep up with the fast pace of changes and evolutions in technology.  It is a vital component to running a business optimally.  However, eventually, PC’s need to be replaced, printers wear out, servers need updating, operating systems become out-dated, the list goes on and on.  It is a costly proposition and which is compounded  if delayed and procrastinated.

Accountants amortize computers over three or four years for a reason.  After that point, hardware is prone to problems, inefficiencies, and flat-out failure.  Yet, over 40% of PC’s in small to medium businesses are more than three years old.  It may seem wise to try to save a few bucks by holding off on making upgrades.  However, according to TechAisle, the cost of maintaining older equipment can be up to 150% more than that of newer replacements.  The loss of productivity and the cost of downtime is a vital consideration when faced with laying out the cash to invest in updated technology.

The benefit is clear.  Updated hardware, running the most current software results in seamless operations, increased flexibility, and higher productivity.   In general, most businesses do underestimate equipment expenditures.  Often over-looked areas are servers, telecommunications and wireless equipment.  The need for a business to budget and plan, accordingly, is obvious.  When doing so, however, there are some tricks to stretch your IT dollar and items to consider from inc.com so that you allow for all associated costs.

  • Do not replace all of your hardware at once, so as to stagger the lifecycles for replacement.
  • Account for the resources necessary for installation, maintenance, and support.
  • Remember to include costs for software changes and the people power required to make the change.
  • Allow a cushion for installation, testing, and potential downtime.

Another important tip is to stay on top of technology trends.  In looking at upgrading and replacing current equipment look to see what new technologies might meet your specific needs.  Is cloud computing right for you?  Might tablet computers suffice as a primary computer for certain staff?

The bottom line is that updating and replacing your technology is inevitable.  Face it head on – do not bury your head in the sand and hope that you can hang on a little longer – it will cost you more in the long run.  Plan accordingly and do your homework.  It will ensure minimum disruptions to your operations and keep all sailing smoothly.

Filed Under: Efficiency, Technology

Change Can Be Good

June 27, 2011 By Lois Findlay Leave a Comment

Recently one of our clients said, “Right now I’m struggling with the good internal tension of doing scheduling the way I did it before, versus taking advantage of the tools in Asset™.  The critical word in his observation was the word good. He recognized that the uncomfortable feeling of having to change his process was a good thing, because it allows for the possibility of improvement. Smart guy – he knows his business and sees that growth may necessitate change.

I’m all about process improvement, and what it takes to make it happen. I appreciate how hard it can be to embrace change. Implementing Asset almost guarantees a company will change the way it does some things. Our product offers many tools to run a business more productively and efficiently. Making use of those tools usually requires work flow changes in one or more areas.

We’ve recently launched a program for experienced Asset users to evaluate their use of Asset in conjunction with their estimating, production and accounting workflows. The program features a survey we call OptimizationPlan. It models the PlanFirst™ evaluation form we use for new and prospective Asset users. Some companies learn what they need to know from this self-evaluation process. For others we can provide consulting services to facilitate their process changes and training needs. For one client this resulted in the identification of significant improvement opportunities throughout the firm. We are assisting them in this challenging but valuable exercise.

Filed Under: Efficiency, Products, Training

A Personal Note

June 7, 2011 By Jody Lenes Leave a Comment

I’d like to share a personal story with you. Soon, I will be honored by the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation at a special event recognizing outstanding young professionals in my community. The event is called Howard County’s 39 Finest Under 39. In accepting this distinction, I have committed to raise money to help the Foundation realize its mission of controlling and curing cystic fibrosis (CF). Please help me meet my goal by making a donation.

Cystic Fibrosis is a devastating genetic disease that affects the lungs and digestive system. More than ten million Americans are symptomless carriers of the defective CF gene. Advances continue to be made in finding a cure, but your help is needed now, more than ever, to help keep up the momentum of this life-saving research.

A few weeks back at our kick-off event, the group of 39 of us was humbled to have with us a young woman that is living with this devastating disease. Diagnosed with CF at birth, with a life expectancy of 16 at best, she has endured stay after stay at the hospital, fighting off infections and battling to save her life. With the advances that have been made to help fight CF, she is now 26 years of age, married and has spent 5 months without a visit to the hospital. The median age of a survivor of CF has now moved to almost 37 years. Even with all of these advances, she still requires 2 breathing treatments every single day for an hour at a time. Seeing the excitement in her face as she told us that thanks to the efforts of the millions that have donated, she is one day hoping to start a family with her husband and enjoy a normal life, where she doesn’t have to be tied to a fear of is this her last birthday.

I would like to ask for you to consider donating to this wonderful organization that is helping this young woman and thousands of others like her to continue to experience life and enjoy more and more birthdays. As a father of a 4 ½ year old myself, I couldn’t image having a child who would have to endure what she has. Together we can make a difference in the lives of those with cystic fibrosis. Thank you for supporting the mission of the CF Foundation. Please click on this link to be directed to my personal page where you can make a donation or learn more about CF.  On this same page you will be able purchase tickets to the event on July 20th at Turf Valley Resort in Ellicott City where each of the honorees of Howard County’s 39 Finest Under 39 will be recognized along with a silent auction and dinner. Thank you!

Filed Under: Uncategorized

Precision and Accuracy

May 26, 2011 By Nanette Seven Leave a Comment

The last week of May in Annapolis has always been, to native Annapolitans (folks who live in Annapolis), “Graduation Week” or “Commissioning Week” at the US Naval Academy.  Each year’s class of over 1,000 midshipmen graduate and receive their commissions into the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps.   The week-long celebration includes such events as The Ring Dance, Herndon Climb, dinners and concerts, but the most notable, which can been seen from almost any place in Annapolis, is the aerial demonstration by the US Navy’s Blue Angels.  We are privileged to watch the Blue Angels practice on Tuesday, perform for the graduates and their families on Wednesday, and conduct their congratulatory flyover at graduation ceremonies on Friday.  Eyes don’t leave the sky in Annapolis during commissioning week as there are always sights to see.  But this week we will not be looking to the sky to see their precision and execution.  The Blue Angels have been ordered to stand down. Their commanding officer stated that a lower than normal maneuver took place during the team’s performance on Monday and caused a safety issue to the members of the team.

If you have never seen the Blue Angels fly you are definitely missing a remarkable show.  There is nothing to compare their precision and execution of their maneuvers in the sky.  Their formation, wings that appear to be just inches away from one another, barrel rolls and dives that send your heart racing, are truly extraordinary displays of practice, execution, discipline, and planning.  To hear the news that they were grounded and not performing because they “messed up” was alarming.  They have gone back to the “office” to review their reports, re-work their plan and then execute or practice their revised plan.

It started me to think about the Blue Angels and how their work model applies to the businesses that Include Software comes in contact with every day. Precision, accuracy, and the ability to recognize when something goes awry and needs to be corrected are needs that we all have in business.

We work with outdoor service providers on a daily basis and we continually are asked what can our software do to make their businesses better?  To have more time, to have information (reports) to make strategic business decisions when needed and ultimately to make more profit.   It goes to the same ethics that are instilled in the Blue Angels: the discipline to create a plan, the process from which you execute the plan, and the people and products that are needed to make the plan happen.  Once these things happen and the business plan has taken root, you should have a business that is based on precision and accuracy.

But what happens when the people & products change?   If you’re not careful, the processes change, the plan changes, and the business changes.  You start running the business yourself, and stop managing.  You fail to stop and analyze, review, and rework what needs to be changed.  You can soon be faced with a business that was once well run, but is now no longer making money and just barely getting by.

Take note from the Blue Angels, even though they were to perform at one of their biggest venues of the year, they had to stop, review, and revise.   This was a very difficult decision that is negatively affecting ten of thousands of people.  But it’s a decision that is probably saving lives because their commanding officer had the discipline to stick to the plan that was already worked out, making an otherwise tough choice much easier, because he’s just following protocol…with precision and accuracy.

Filed Under: Efficiency, Landscape Industry

The Indispensible Employee?

May 19, 2011 By Lisa Scrivener Leave a Comment

Recently, within a week of each other, I had two clients in quite a similar jam.  Both had to fill the void left by employees who were suddenly not able to perform their duties for very different reasons.  One office manager was unexpectedly and immediately relieved of her duties.  Another staff accountant was called away by an unfortunate, family emergency.  In each of these situations, functions critical to the operations of the business had to be completed by those left in the wake of the turmoil – those who had very little clue of where to begin and just a slight idea of exactly just what needed to be done.

Life happens.  A trusted employee is no longer and must be let go.  Someone hits the lottery.  A bout of the flu hits with a vengeance.  People on whom you rely to produce and keep your business up and running are unable to do so.  Nevertheless, pay checks must be written, bills must be sent, and vendors must be paid.  Are you prepared for such a situation?  Do you have a backup plan?

Ideally, in a perfect world, every company would be fully staffed with employees that were totally cross-trained and well-versed in all aspects of the operation.  In the real world, however, it is more typical that employees struggle and juggle to get take care of what is on their own plate and cannot even fathom taking the time or expending the effort to learn the duties of others.

But, to avoid catastrophe when life’s little surprises appear, there has to be some extent of cross training in every organization.  Even the most basic documentation of procedures will assure some continuity in the event an employee is unable to perform.  According to Entrepreneur.com, for each employee you should be able to answer these three questions:

•What are the typical tasks and obligations the current employee fulfilled?

•What are the interactions and outcomes of working with internal and external clients?

•What are the responsibilities on a daily, weekly, monthly, semi-annual or annual basis?

The ability to answer these questions is key.  In addition, understanding the tasks each employee performs day in and day out, as well as being aware of the “go-to” people with whom each of your employees interact regularly will position you or others in your company to pick up the pieces and maintain some form of productivity.  This information can be kept up-to-date through regularly scheduled meetings and updates and periodic performance reviews.

The chart below can help you get a handle of the things in Asset that need to be done and by whom on a daily basis.

Activities listed on Weekly, Payroll Day, Monthly, Quarterly, and Yearly basis can be found in the Asset Help File under “Activities”.

Of course, Include Software Client Care and Training is your partner, an extension of your staff, always here to help.  The client that urgently needed to get the monthly billing out to clients was able to do so in less than an hour through an online session with Client Care.  In the case of the office manager who did all things Asset in the company and was suddenly let go, we were able to offer support for the immediate needs of payroll, billing, and satisfying accounts payable.  We were then able to devise a longer term plan to assess the knowledge base of the current staff, prioritize the training needed to keep operations flowing, and establish a schedule for a fast-track re-implementation of Asset.

It’s good to know that not only does life happen, it also goes on.

Filed Under: Asset Planning, Communication, Training

Share the Love

May 9, 2011 By Lois Findlay Leave a Comment

A recent conversation with a client illustrated the importance of sharing your appreciation with your coworkers, staff, vendors and even clients. It might seem like a little thing, even trivial. But the little things DO matter.

In this case the client chose to call me to express his appreciation for the over-and-above support Include Software has been providing his firm during a transition. How gratifying to hear such kinds words! He could have just sent an email, or taken our efforts for granted. But he wanted to confirm that he wasn’t wearing out his welcome. I assured him it was quite the opposite. While we strive to work hard on behalf of all our clients, it’s easy for people who show their appreciation.

Within your firm, have you taken the time to acknowledge a staff member’s successes? Thank a co-worker for their team support? Praise a consultant’s contribution? Celebrate a client’s milestone? It only takes a minute and has a multiplier effect. Every private and public acknowledgement reinforces your trust in that person as well as bolstering your team’s spirit. It also helps to set a tone of professionalism. Expectations may be high, you’ll hold your staff and vendors accountable, but you’ll also share the love when it’s appropriate.

Filed Under: Communication

Coping with Sky-Rocketing Fuel Costs

May 3, 2011 By Lisa Scrivener Leave a Comment

There are steps businesses can take to attempt to deal with the ever-upward climbing price of fuel.

Taking into account logistical considerations such as arranging more efficient routes and making adjustments for traffic patterns can make a slight impact in the amount of fuel used on a daily basis is one strategy.  Those savings, even if minor, can add up over time.  Every little bit helps.

Of course, there are methods to reduce fuel consumption that pertain to the fleet, itself.  Maintaining all vehicles and keeping them in good repair is effective in cutting down fuel costs.  When making additions to a fleet, consider the fuel efficiency of the vehicle as well as its cost effectiveness.  This may require a little innovative thinking and going beyond the usual gas-guzzlers selected in the past.

When all else fails, however, companies may be left with no choice but to pass this increased cost of doing business along to its customers.  It is a tough decision for a business owner.  No one wants to push this pain on to their customers, but profits must be maintained to survive.

Prices can be increased, outright, across the board.  However, a more temporary solution to recover increased expenses that will hopefully, eventually, drop again, is to assess a fuel surcharge.  This surcharge can then be eliminated when costs do normalize, making it a less permanent alternative to an overall increase in price.

Fuel surcharges can be easily assessed and managed within Asset.  There is a function in the Invoice Entry area of AR Manager that will allow you to apply an additional charge to invoices.

From the Functions menu, select Add Percentage or Amount to Invoices.  Here you can enter the surcharge you want to apply, either as a percentage or a flat dollar amount, with a description.  It can be added to one invoice at a time or to all approved invoices.  The invoice to your customer will reflect this additional charge formatted as its own line item with the description you entered.

Filed Under: Asset Planning, Efficiency
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