Storm-fueled business surge challenges local firms
Two years ago Roger Tully committed to growing his electrical service business. But the storm-fueled surge in business that has led to 16-hour days and doubling his staff (to six) is a little more than he had in mind.
“Going from three employees to six during the worst economy since I founded the business in 1989 has been both exhilarating and terrifying,” says Tully, president of Tully Lighting & Electric Inc. in West Chicago. “But we’re hitting our rhythm.”
Tully’s growth has a lot to do with the fact that his business’ product offerings include standby residential generators. Generators have been behind a similar new business explosion at Saturn Electrical Services Inc. in Roselle.
“It was very tough” earlier in the year, Saturn owner George Schembari said. “We were questioning whether we should stay in business. But with the storms, our business is on steroids.”
So is Mike Odeh’s year-old Servpro of Northbrook, a water (and fire) cleanup franchise.
What’s instructive is how the businesses have managed their sudden growth, scrambling to serve new customers while making certain existing customers aren’t overlooked.
When Odeh needed additional crew, for example, he posted openings on Craigslist “We got a huge number of calls — and found and trained the right people,” Odeh says.
Schembari turned to temporary employment agencies that serve the building trades. The temp process “gives us an opportunity to test drive potential new employees,” Schembari says. “We’ve been struggling to keep up with the demand, but the reality is that the surge in demand probably is temporary.”
To adjust for that probability, Schembari is developing a business plan for next year. Chances are, generators will be part of the Saturn plan.
We’re looking for consistent work flow,” Schembari says. “Generators are machines, and they need regular service and maintenance.”
Although the generators that started as a sideline in 2002 now are an integral part of Tully’s business, the Tully core continues to be electrical service and repair: Custom interior lighting; architectural and security lighting, both residential and light commercial; and service upgrades, especially as customers use more technology.
Tully has gone digital to assure a quick response to customers. Calls to the Tully office initially are handled by a receptionist, who immediately emails the message and contact information to both Tully and Kent Stoneburner. Stoneburner, a combination salesman-scheduler, is one of the three new employees.
Whoever is free will respond to the call and notify the other.
Like Schembari, Tully and Odeh know that storms come and go. Tully, therefore, is working on a 2012 plan that will “create procedures that will take us forward.” Servpro’s Odeh is considering flexible employee hours and “more advertising” during the slower winter months.
Ÿ Contact Jim Kendall at JKendall@121MarketingResources.com.