If you’re a rental company owner, it is incumbent upon you to pursue the research in a different yet equally dedicated way.
Investigating the equipment marketplace, reading and talking with peers about technologies that can help you deliver your services in the most reliable and technologically advanced manner, is time and money well spent.
Get your hands on as much demo equipment as possible, and ask for the demo support to fully understand what’s in front of you and its benefits. You need to grow your company capability as often and with as much vision as a manufacturer. Your services need to reflect quality of product just as importantly.
Training – As a manufacturer, whether it’s the training of your clients, your prospective clients or your staff, there is no single investment more important than ongoing training.
This has to be capitalized and fully supported through any economic climate or business cycle, and at its core, is a philosophical investment, a worldwide mission that needs consistency of message and curriculum.
The communication capabilities that we have at our hands now allow an inexpensive set of media to establish contact with any portion of the world in real time.
Videoconferencing, webinars, DVDs and websites afford us the luxury of pinpoint contact throughout the world, enabling the delivery of a consistent and singular message.
In-house training of staff and personnel, whether you’re a rental provider or a manufacturer, is essential to the empowerment of the team. Knowledge is power, and just as important, knowledge is empowerment. We’re so fortunate that the industry we’re in is populated with passionate, devoted people that really do thirst for knowledge. Feeding that passion is crucial in the happiness and stability of your enterprise.
If you’re a rental company, make sure that whether you’ve invested in some new equipment requiring staff training, or if they simply need to be more fully qualified on a new processor (or new console, etc.), it’s vital to provide them with educational support.
Infrastructure – People and disciplines are infrastructure, just as much as new gear, computers or trucks. Investing in people with new capabilities broadens the organization. Deepening the bullpen allows for more day-to-day support and growth. Establishing a high priority to personnel growth allows those already onboard to understand that their company and jobs are more secure and stable.
Employee happiness and satisfaction is an absolute requirement and necessity. It radiates outward into the field of your clients. It cannot be undervalued.
The Wheel
Quality of Product and Service→Customer Satisfaction→Customer Loyalty→Profitability→Investment and Empowerment→Quality of Product and Service→∞
The five components of this cycle are each critical to feeding the next. A weakness in one will stunt the growth of all other components throughout the wheel.
Rather than digressing into each of the facets in a more thorough way, my intention is for you to come away with the concept as a whole, and for you to realize that this model is present in your world, whether you realize it or not.
Take some time to evaluate your business under this prism, and look for weaknesses and depth of commitment in a practical fashion. There is success in this wheel when it’s in balance.
Jeffrey Cox has spent the past 43 years on the road and in studios, in airplanes and cabs, hotel rooms and at front of house, dumps and dives, clubs, sheds, arenas, and a couple of “very big chairs” – all for the love of audio and music. He has founded an organization, 17 Degrees, LLC, to provide consultancy to manufacturers and rental providers alike. He can be contacted through the website at www.seventeendegrees.net.