communication in business | iRestore Restoration Software

Category: communication in business

Elevate Your Leadership: What to Expect at the 2023 Owner’s & Manager’s Retreat

Posted on by Jennifer Laffan

14 IICRC CEC Elevate Your Leadership: What to Expect at the 2023 Owner’s and Manager’s Retreat! Get ready for an immersive two-day event that promises to supercharge your leadership skills, inspire success, and connect you with industry experts and peers. In this blog, we’ll walk you through all the details of this exciting event, from the agenda to the presenters and everything in between. Plus, we’ll show you how you can secure your spot and make the most out of your experience.

Event Details:

  • Date: November 2-3, 2023
  • Time: 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM (EST)
  • Location: 1145 Commons Blvd, Reading, PA 19605
  • Cost: $795 (Includes breakfast, lunch, and dinner)

REGISTER TODAY

Comradery, Collaboration, & Workshops

Objectives:

At the 2023 Owner’s & Manager’s Retreat, we’ve designed a dedicated space for you to strategically focus on your organization’s growth while allowing you to recharge and rejuvenate. Our event will address pressing issues faced by leaders in service-based industries and equip you with actionable insights to implement in your own organization.

Meet the Presenters:

Our event boasts a stellar lineup of accomplished subject matter experts, each ready to share their knowledge and passion for success:

Day 1 Agenda:

8:00 am – 5:00 pm (7 Hours)

Day one kicks off with an exploration of effective sales strategies, tools, and knowledge to diversify your referral sources and create a culture of strategic discipline. Discover the art of operational sales, designing functions, and best practices that build long-term relationships based on trust. Then, put your knowledge to the test with a collaborative brainstorming session. Gain insights into company financials, including balance sheets, profit and loss, and cash flows. Understand how these numbers drive decisions and explore the concept of EBITDA. Wrap up day one with a panel discussion on financials and accounting, where our experts share their insights and answer your burning questions.

  • Unlocking the Referral Goldmine: Strategic Sales Tactics for Restoration Business– Presented by Scott Miller, The Growth League
  • Operational Sales with Facility Tour– Presented by Lisa Lavender, Restoration Technical Institute, and iRestore
  • Sales Collaborative Group Activity: Brainstorm and Develop Strategy
  • Keys to Understanding Your Financials– Presented by Craig Mengel, Herbein + Company, Inc.
  • Financials and Accounting: Panel Style Discussion and Wrap Up- Panelists– Lisa Lavender, Scott Miller, Craig Mengel

Day 2 Agenda:

8:00 am – 5:00 pm (7 Hours)

Reflect on day one and prepare to implement the knowledge gained. Lisa Lavender will guide you through actionable takeaways and action items. Explore workforce trends, talent acquisition strategies, and ways to engage with the local workforce. Expand your reach beyond your immediate region. Delve into work loading, technology, and warehousing principles to enhance efficiency and streamline your operations. Learn how to unleash your leadership potential by changing the way you communicate and listen to your team. Regain time, improve accountability, and develop your people.

  • What Are We Taking Back and Doing?- Facilitated by Lisa Lavender
  • Expanding Your Talent Attraction Outreach- Presented by Laurel Cline, Herbein + Company
  • Work Loading, Technology, Warehousing for Efficiency- Presented by Mark Warner, The Bullen Companies, with Chuck Boutall, Restoration Technical Institute, John Perella, Restoration Technical Institute, Lisa Lavender, Restoration Technical Institute
  • Developing a Culture of Accountability, Unleash your Leadership Potential- Presented by Erik Berglund, Language of Leadership

In the words of Armstrong Williams, “Networking is an essential part of building wealth.” Throughout the event, you’ll have ample opportunities to network and collaborate with fellow industry leaders, further enriching your experience.

Don’t miss this chance to propel your company forward, foster team engagement, and hone critical operational facets. Secure your spot at the 2023 Owner’s & Manager’s Retreat today and get ready for a transformative experience in leadership and business success. We look forward to seeing you there!

REGISTER TODAY!

AGENDA

FREE WEBINAR: Introduction to Insurance Claims for Contractors & Join the HOMEE Network

Posted on by iRestore
Duration: 1hour 30 minutes Date:  Tuesday, September 12, 2023 Time:  11:00 AM to 12:30 PM (EST) Location:  Virtually via ZOOM Who Should Attend: Owners, Managers, Account Execs, Marketing Reps, Restoration Professionals, & Contractors Overview: For contractors who are interested OR are already delivering insurance-related restoration and reconstruction services, this webinar will give you insights and understanding into how a contractor fits into the property insurance claims process. The ability to consider different perspectives on the process that may help you develop your approaches. In addition, you will have the opportunity to learn more about and apply to become a HOMEE Pro. Instructors: Lisa Lavender and Larry Nettles Objectives:
  • Gain an understanding of the overview of the insurance claims process.
  • Learn key terms and parties involved in claims.
  • Understand how a third party and a contractor fit into the process.
  • What does it mean to be a contractor that is helping to deliver on the promises in a policy?
  • Introduction to the Homee Vision and Purpose
  • How you can be a Homee Pro – with Q & A
Modules:
  • Zoom link to Webinar
  • Introduction to Property & Casualty Insurance
  • Taking a First Notice of Loss or Property Damage: New Loss or Job
  • First Notice of Loss Template
2 IICRC CEC – Must complete all modules to receive certificate of completion and documentation of your CEC.

From the Desk of Dad: 10 Wisdoms for Business

Posted on by iRestore

By Lisa Lavender M.T.R., M.F.S.R., M.W.R.

 

Photo credit: Poike / iStock / Getty Images Plus via Getty Images

August 7, 2023

I lost my dad unexpectedly in June 2023. He was an amazing dad, grandfather, friend, mentor, coach and much more. He left a lasting impact on everyone he encountered. He was also my editor and so if there is a comma out of place or a poorly constructed sentence, you now have insight into my going off the rails a bit. As a bonus, he would pass along overall encouragement, constructive feedback, and his least favorite topics would be tools and technical which I would respond, “Dad, restorers like it.”

I could write a book to memorialize the lessons and wisdom that he passed along to me, my family, and anyone who was simply willing to listen and learn. I knew he contributed to the business. As I reflect, my father shaped me as a human being but also in business, and I realize more now that it is completely intertwined.

Since retiring as an executive from Prudential Insurance in 2004, he joined the team, giving himself the title of Consultant and then promoting himself to Sr. Consultant. He worked for snacks and an occasional thank you sandwich. He could do anything, but he chooses to work, mentor, coach, and follow his professional passions of insurance, developing others, company culture, and operations. He developed and executed courses, human resources, coaching, articles, research, and even would help prep meals for class, anything to help. And to quote my sister, on a note that he had saved and cherished, “We could not have done it with out you!” (the building of the business)

I take the opportunity to share some of the wisdom that he has passed along that has helped me and others find joy and success.

  1. Be responsible and take care of your things: When I was 5, he had bought me new sneakers. I had left them outside. He hid them and addressed the “situation” to make sure that I learned and understood the value of the sneakers, the importance of respecting the value, and taking care of my things. He was fun-loving, not too strict; this story was an on-going joke our entire life as I would often dramatically recount the story and tell him that it traumatized me. Which leads to…
  2. Laugh every day: We joked and laughed every day, like the day I accused him of taking the Ding Dongs. Inspiring the value of laughter and happiness. At the Restoration Technical Institute our purpose is found in Inspiring Happiness, Pride, and Innovation in others. The value of laughter and happiness in our operations is shared in: Is Your Organization HAPPY? Which leads to…
  3. Shared values:  It was over 20 years ago that he said, “Lisa, it is time to document the company values,” which inspired my first Restoring Success article, Core and Shared Values. Which leads to… 
  4. Focus on what is important and maintain perspective: He taught us to calibrate our perspective meter and focus on things that matter in the business. In a management meeting, he wrote on the board a “Give a SH!# Meter” that I adapted to be more “professional” and wrote about in, It’s All About Perspective. Which leads to… 
  5. Tacit approval: He educated me and brought focus to the concept of tacit approval by walking into my office and garnishing my attention to the matter by holding up a piece paper with the words, TACIT APPROVAL, which inspired a New Years Resolution and my article, No More Tacit Approval.  And then there is… 
  6. Understanding insurance:  He coined the phrase when teaching restorers about insurance, explaining how important we are in the system, that we are “delivering on the promises in the policy.” The story of Dad teaching me about insurance and the value as a restorer is found in, Understanding the Insurance Industry. Which leads me to add… 
  7. Lead by example and embrace change:  He led by example which garnished unwavering respect from others. When he fought eLearning, Zoom, and any related technology implementation, he self-assessed, came in and said, “I need to be open- minded and embrace change.” He was 72. And so, we began creating his Insurance for the Restoration Professional materials, eLearning. Which led to…. 
  8. Drive safely: Another story for another time, but he was extremely passionate about safe driving, the dangers, the distractions, and was in constant motion on how he could make a positive impact in this area. He created this course, offered for free:  Driving:  What you need to know! By Paul Pinchak. He would always be notified when someone “bought” his free course. This made him feel fulfilled.
  9. Be clear and concise: Let’s just say that I am a work in progress on the concise part.  He would look at me and others and move his finger and say, “get to the bottom line”.  
  10. I believe he began to document a list for others to reflect and consider to help them find joy, work ethic, and fulfillment.

On his desk, was a yellow legal pad with the notes below sketched out. I know he intended to finalize, show me, and share it with others:

    • Be Selfless – “concerned more with the needs and wishes of others than with one’s own”
    • Be Curious – “an eager desire to learn and, at times, to learn what may not concern you in the moment”
    • Be Influenced – “by the right people…we decide who we affect and who we allow to affect us”
    • Care – “about what you are doing…believing and committing makes a meaningful difference in one’s well being”
    • Be in the Right Culture – “more important than strategy…work in a culture where the values align closely with yours”

May some of dad’s wisdom that has helped me, and others, also bring you much Restoring Success.

Large Loss in the Restoration and Remediation Industry… Are You Ready?

Posted on by iRestore

Lavender M.T.R., M.F.S.R., M.W.R., Thomas McGuire

June 7, 2023

As a restorer, once you catch the bug, the thrill of being called to action to respond, restore, and leave an impact, it is not uncommon to want to go to the next level; the Large Loss. We could consider this the Olympics of Restoration where all your technical, soft skills, and project management abilities are challenged. For those of us who are a bit of adrenaline junkies, it is a rush.

When speaking to CAT Volumes, large loss, or commercial restoration opportunities think about the Seneca quote, “Luck is when preparation meets opportunities.” In other words, as Director of Education, Chuck Boutall, would say, “You have to be ready before you can do it!”

As restorers, we often get caught up in the urgencies of the day. If we seek the opportunity to successfully respond to a large loss, we must get ready. Tom McGuire who developed and delivers his Large Loss Mastery course all over the world was inspired to get restorers ready before the call with the big one. “Learning on the job of a Large Loss will lead to disappointment and heartache. Why would you do that to yourself when you have decades of experience with some of the largest projects ever done at your fingertips?” McGuire states. His approach based on years of large loss experience is to prepare restorers to do the job right, on time and make a profit.

As we begin to consider what we need to do, consider doing a needs analysis. Evaluate your general operations, administration, in-house skills, and resources. The following is a brief list of considerations that we compiled to help you start evaluating your needs and determine if you are ready:

  • Knowledge and Skills: Do we know what we are doing?
    • Soft Skills
      • Confidence
      • Communication
      • Resourcefulness
      • Drive for Results
      • Other
    • Technical & Management Skills
      • Consider the types of losses, industries, buildings, stakeholders, and the related complexities. Evaluate yourself and your team’s proficiency and seek to learn where you find gaps. Being resourceful when you have a technical expertise gap will also serve you well.
      • Excellent Project Management skills are an absolute. Scheduling, planning, coordination, and documentation will need to go to a new level.
      • Management and Administrative:  From estimating to invoicing, managing resources, budgeting, and job costing, the team and systems must be ready to manage and support the complexities related to a large loss.
    • Resources:  
      • Equipment, Supplies, and Materials
      • Alliances, Partners, Subcontractors, Consultants
      • Finances:  You are not a bank, and it is important to have the financial resources available to fund a large-scale project.

Once you have evaluated the needs and capabilities of your organization, you can focus on next steps to get the team ready. The following is a list of considerations and tips:

  • Self-Assess:  Engage the team in a self-assessment to drill down on development and training needs. It is critical that the team has confidence in the skills and abilities necessary to effectively manage a large loss.
  • Training and Courses:  Based on the identification of skill gaps and training needs, enroll in courses. Training and courses will give you access to experienced experts, knowledge, and certificates that validate your expertise. Large Loss Mastery has developed a series that helps fill the gaps for the key roles needed to execute.
  • Practice: How do you practice when you do not have the opportunity?
    • Start a “What would you do if”? This is best done as a group exercise.
      • What would you do if your local Museum had a fire?
      • What would you do if the Court House had a major water loss?
      • What would you do if the Hospital had a fire in one wing?
    • When you have a loss, that may be only one or two units in a Condominium or one store in a mall; play out the scenario of it being eighty units or the entire mall.
    • Look around any facility you step into and ask yourself what would you do to help the client recover from a catastrophic event? Fires, Floods, Mold, and Natural disasters happen all the time.
  • Resources: The skill of being resourceful and having the right resources when the opportunity to respond presents itself is imperative.
    • Internal Resources:  Evaluate and train.
    • External Resources:
      • Existing – What do you have? Take an inventory and identify gaps.
      • New Resources – What other resources, relationships, and subcontractors are needed?  Build and prepare your relationships and resource lists. It is good to have multiple resources per category.
  • Operations and Systems: Once you identified areas that need to be developed, make it happen. If you need to strengthen systems, administration, and documentation, doing so at the time of a large loss is not the time to address it. There are many details and the following article will give you some helpful tips: 8 Tips to Manage the Thousands of Details. 
  • Finances: The billing and collections processes must be sound. Always know where the money is and who is paying, Receiving your Receivables. It is also best to evaluate your banking relationships and your cash flow needs for a large loss.
  • Confidence: Find confidence in your existing experiences, get training, and find experienced mentors.

When you are prepared for the moment, even if the job looks like luck to everyone else, you will know better, it was because of your dedication to having all “your ducks in a row” and being prepared for WHAT IF? HOW MUCH? AND HOW LONG? When you ask if you and your company are ready for large loss, say, “YES!”  Preparation is an investment!  Habit #3 of the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, Stephan Covey, Put First Things First. “Prioritize and achieve your most important goals instead of constantly reacting to urgencies.”  Put that big rock in the bowl: https://youtu.be/zV3gMTOEWt8.

May getting ready for Large Loss bring you much Restoring Success.

Restorers Need to Ask: To Reply All Or NOT Reply All

Posted on by iRestore

By Lisa Lavender M.T.R., M.F.S.R., M.W.Rcommunication in business, company culture, restoration business leadership.

When I created the weekly tip for success, “Know when to Reply All and NOT to Reply All,” I did not expect to receive so much enthusiastic feedback. After hearing the horror stories, the frustrations and the passion surrounding the topic, it was clear that it demanded an entire article. The topic seems a bit silly and if you are reading it, you may already be reply passionate. I encourage to you to add any reply tips in the comments below for all to enjoy. You can use this article as a tool to help train and inspire good reply to etiquette.

Email is one of the most popular forms of communicating in our day-to-day lives. It comes in all forms: Internal, external, instructions, updates, announcements, junk, and more. For many, it is a critical means of communication that we rely on to function.

It is also a skill to use properly. Like all forms of communication, it reflects on our presentation and professionalism. We have to “manage” the email madness. In my ongoing personal quest to “Stop the Email Madness,”  I estimate that I probably spend about 3 hours a week deleting unnecessary “Reply Alls” or the more complex redistribution of information to others because the respondent did not appropriately “Reply All.”  This can cause a flurry of broken communication and inefficiency. Some of you may have had or observed embarrassing situations from haphazard replying. Some of you may have thought or said, “Stop Replying to All!”  Proper replying leads to improved email effectiveness and efficiency for all.

REPLY TO ALL  

The following is a list of things to consider while applying good judgement: 

  • Small groups of participants
  • Work plans, questions and answers, meeting follow ups, etc.
  • Consider that the creator of the string was deliberate on who was on the initial email
  • Whenever everyone on the email needs to know the response; this can apply to a variety of scenarios. This is my personal number one passion as I have to recommunicate with people who get disconnected because someone should have “Replied All” 

NOT REPLY TO ALL

Another short list of considerations that should be applied with good judgement:

  • Large groups
  • General announcements, Dissemination of information, etc.
  • Thank you. I do like thanking and acknowledging, however, imagine an email with 50+ people and each one replies to all with a Thank you. That is fifty extra thank you emails to delete. If is it a large group and I want to express enthusiasm or gratitude, I will sometimes simply thank the sender.
  • Donotreply senders: This is not a person by the name of Dona Reply; this is from an account that is not designed to Reply to All – Do Not Reply = donotreply.
  • When saying something inappropriate or you may not want someone on the string to see, proceed with caution. Or do not share your thoughts in email at all. Yes, there are many horror stories here. Which leads to….
  • Pay attention to who “All” is…pay attention in general. Someone may have included the wrong contact by mistake (guilty!). Maybe a key person was missed. Maybe the person replied to only you with information that is needed by others.  

OTHER REPLYING ETIQUETTE 

REPLY: This sounds simple. It can be difficult to keep up with our email communications. We also have the added complexity of checking our Junk and Spam filters to make sure that important communications are not overlooked. We cannot ignore emails, or not respond in a timely manner, because it can have a ripple effect that includes straining relationships, workflow issues, and more. Not replying to an email can be the equivalent of saying, I do not care, I am not listening, I do not want to collaborate with you and more. I personally strive to be timely and diligent in my replying. Even with my “reply to” passion, I sometimes falter on my own best practices. I take it seriously, apologize, and work to get better.

MOVE SOMEONE TO Bcc: This is good etiquette when being connected to someone and an email string will ensue that is not relevant to the connector. It may sound like: Jane, I thank you for connecting me to Tom, I have moved you to BCC. I will coordinate the next steps with Tom.

ANNOUNCE CONTACTS THAT YOU ADD: Consider this the equivalent of announcing that you put someone on speaker phone and those who are present for the call. I do this often when needing to facilitate or inform key people that I work with. It may sound like: I have added Joe, Director, who can help us facilitate the next steps.

FORWARD: This was a special request for the article. Be thoughtful and considerate when forwarding emails and/or adding people when it may not have been the intention of the sender to share. If in doubt, ask the original sender. If you do appropriately forward an email to inform others, forward it with an FYI or brief description. This will allow the receiver to know if there is an action item in the email or if you are just passing along information to keep them in the loop.

BCC: If you were Bcc’d, it was likely the intention of the creator that you are not to reply, and you are only on the string for informational or awareness purposes.

JUNK AND SPAM: I was recently on a string that was a fraudulent invoice. All participants were Bcc’d. Many of those in receipt, began replying and then began replying to all. All the participants became exposed further, and it was an email scam mayhem string of replying to all. Finally, someone said, “STOP REPLYING TO ALL!”

TIPS TO EMAIL CREATORS: To help control bad replying, as the creator, you can help manage the situation.

  • Use To, Cc, and Bcc deliberately. As a rule, the TO contacts have some kind of action item. Ccs are there for the information and possible ensuing communications.
  • Tell the recipients how to reply. Please Reply All with your response. Or Reply with questions directly to me. 

Email etiquette is something we have to train on and talk about. I hope this seemingly silly topic can contribute to your Restoring Success.

©2018 At your Service Systems, Inc | A Melior Website

Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Site Map

©2018 At your Service Systems, Inc | A Melior Website

Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Site Map