Is your business searching for effective strategies to enhance productivity, reduce turnover, and boost your employees’ overall job satisfaction? Learn how empowering your trades workforce can lead to increased financial gains and improved market position.
In a recent webinar, Kathey Palmer, Chief Growth Officer for Inova Payroll, the preferred payroll/HR solutions provider for ServiceTitan, delves into how a motivated and involved team of employees can have a transformative impact on your bottom line.
Key takeaways focus on:
Why workforce empowerment and engagement matter for trade businesses
How workforce empowerment can improve profitability and growth
How engaged employees improve customer satisfaction and retention
Proven strategies for success
Ready to unlock the financial potential of your workforce? It starts with understanding your workforce challenges.
Key trade industry trends
Every trade business experiences workforce challenges, such as:
Retention and turnover
Skilled labor shortage
Training and development
Safety and health concerns
Wage and benefit expectations
Recruiting and talent acquisition
“Retention and turnover is especially challenging for trade businesses due to the skilled labor shortage. They run hand in hand,” Palmer says. “Keeping good people has been a challenge all across the country.”
Training and development is also a concern, Palmer says, with current data showing 65% of all employees in the trades asking for upskilling on the job.
“They want to learn more,” Palmer says. “They want to be able to advance their careers and maybe move in a different area, but within the same company.”
Wage and benefit expectations present challenges as well.
“All industries across the U.S., and across the globe for that matter, have been facing wage inflation,” she says. “People are expecting higher and higher wages. Benefits—the competition has been so competitive in bringing those things to the table.”
Palmer says Nick Pinchuk, Chairman and CEO of SnapOn Inc., sums up the key challenges facing contractors today:
“The trades are the backbone of any economy, but they face a perfect storm of challenges: a shrinking labor pool, advancing technology, and the need for continuing upskilling. The future success of our industries depends on how we address these issues today.”
Why engagement and empowerment matter
First, let’s talk about engagement. There are three different types of employee engagement:
Engaged employee: Someone who comes to work in the morning with a purpose. They're excited about the day. They want to spend time learning.
Unengaged employee: They do what they need to do to get by, and they don't want any additional responsibilities. They're not overly passionate about their job, nor do they ask for opportunities to grow or advance.
Disengaged employee: This person is the most toxic of your employees. They don’t care, they're not accountable, and they don’t want to grow. “They’re basically causing cancer within the team and the organization,” Palmer says.
Hidden cost of disengaged employees
When disengaged employees remain on your payroll, their actions (or inaction) add hidden costs to your business, such as:
Reduced productivity
More likely to leave
Deflated team morale
“All of that is going to lead to mistakes, delays in the project, increased accident risk, customers who aren't satisfied, and lost profits,” Palmer says. “Understand what the risks are.
“You want to do everything you can to move up anybody who's unengaged into the engaged. You also don't want to have toxic people in your organization, so you might need to look at moving them out,” she adds.
Impact of highly engaged employees
“The numbers don't lie,” Palmer says, referring to recent studies on the impact of highly engaged employees.
According to Gallup, companies with highly engaged employees experience:
23% more profitability
3X faster growth
17% more productivity
31% lower turnover
80% client retention
41% reduction in absenteeism
10% higher customer loyalty
“Very compelling,” Palmer points out.
If you still need convincing, consider another study by Gartner:
31% are more likely to stay with their companies
31% are more likely to exceed expectations
15% are more likely to contribute more than their co-workers
The power of engagement + empowerment
Palmer says engagement and empowerment work hand in hand, but empowering employees doesn’t happen without first engaging them.
“Engagement is your foundation,” Palmer says. “With engagement, you're looking at motivation and productivity. You're getting the right people. These are the folks who believe in your company values. They believe in the mission, they feel purpose, and they're fulfilled. And these are the folks who are engaged to go above and beyond what's expected.”
Empowerment follows engagement, where you provide employees more autonomy to do more on their own. Your company provides greater access to resources, such as training materials or new technology. You allow employees to innovate and be more active in process improvement.
“With all of this, employees begin to get a sense of ownership and trust,” Palmer says. “When you combine the two, this is where everything comes together.”
The impacts of a highly engaged and empowered workforce include:
Higher productivity
Reduced turnover
Fewer mistakes and accidents
Innovation and efficiency
Improved client satisfaction
“Who knows more about your day-to-day operations than your technicians who are out on the road or visiting customers? They know what's going on. They can provide you guidance on how to best use the technology that's available, how best to become more efficient, how to get waste out of the system, and improved satisfaction will follow,” Palmer says. “Remember, businesses that follow this guide will be 23% more profitable.”
Drivers of Engagement
Palmer identified six areas in your business that drive employee engagement:
1. Leadership
“Leadership is key. It starts at the top. It's the owner, it's your CEO, it's your executive team. Everybody has to buy in. If you’re able to engage your employees and provide them more opportunities for empowerment, your business will thrive,” Palmer says.
2. Culture
What is your company culture? Are you a family-owned business? Are you customer-first focused? “Whatever your culture is, you need to live the culture. It’s the embodiment of your organization,” Palmer says.
3. Recognition
Recognizing employees for a job well done doesn’t cost anything, except a few kind words.
“That goes so far with people. And it's a simple type of thing,” Palmer says. “If you want to do more formal recognition like employee of the month, employee of the week, or the best salesman, there are a variety of ways to do it. But the easiest and most simple way is just to say, ‘Thank you, I appreciate you, and you’re making a difference here.’”
4. Feedback
Employees want to know how they’re doing, so be sure to schedule regular performance reviews to give and garner feedback.
“It's amazing how many people don’t [do performance reviews],” Palmer says. “It’s the backbone of any healthy organization.”
It’s also important to make sure employees feel heard.
“Encourage your managers to meet with their staff individually at least once every other week,” Palmer suggests. “It could be a 15-minute meeting, but talk about, ‘How are things going? How can I help you? Is there anything that’s bothering you? Is there anything we can do differently for you as an organization?’”
Employee feedback also matters for innovation and efficiency.
“Who knows more about your organization than the people who are out there on the streets every day taking care of your customers? Ask them periodically, ‘What can we do differently? Are there ways we can be more efficient? How can we improve our client service?’
“Ask for feedback in both of those areas, and I guarantee you, you’ll have a more engaged employee group,” she adds.
5. Work-life balance and well-being
Beyond health benefits, trade businesses must also pay attention to their employees’ work-life balance and well-being. For instance, employees may be highly interested in ways to achieve financial wellness in a difficult economy.
“The cost of just about everything has gone through the roof. And I can guarantee your employees are struggling just like everybody else is to make ends meet,” Palmer says. “If you can go that extra level of providing programs to help them to be more financially astute in their personal lives, how to balance a checkbook, how to really understand their financial situation and what resources are available to them, it goes a long, long way.”
6. Honesty and transparency
“Your employees want to know the truth and they want to be spoken to truthfully,” Palmer advises. “They want to know how the business is doing. They want to know how their contribution and what they're doing day in and day out is making an impact on the business overall. So, it's very important to have that transparency and honesty.”
As one of ServiceTitan’s largest clients, Tommy Mello of A-1 Garage Door Service believes wholeheartedly in providing programs and training to all employees to help them find their career path and work-life balance, Palmer says. Mello recently told her the key to success was hiring the right people who are passionate about service and building a career in it.
“The No. 1 asset to him is his people,” Palmer says of A-1 Garage Door Service, with 34 locations in 14 states.
“This starts with me. It's my job to be the whisperer for all employees, to be the one who is listening to them, learning from them, guiding them, and helping them grow.” — Tommy Mello of A-1 Garage Door Service
Mello also recommended reading “The Dream Manager,” by Matthew Kelly, with lessons applicable to the challenges contractors face today, like labor shortages and high-wage expectations.
“The first reaction to someone looking to leave your organization is not to give them more money. It's to find out what else they’re looking for,” Palmer says. “They may want more recognition. They may want an opportunity to grow into another role. They may want more training on a certain new technology. A lot of times, all you have to do is ask. All you have to do is listen,” she says.
Palmer offered a few other inspiring leadership quotes.
“Take care of your employees, and they'll take care of your business. It's as simple as that.” — Richard Branson, Virgin Group Founder
“Our ability to change our culture is the leading indicator of our future success.” — Satya Nadella, Microsoft CEO
“Satisfied employees means satisfied customers, which leads to profitability.” — Anne Mulcahy, former CEO of Xerox
“No company, small or large, can win over the long run without energized employees who believe in the mission and understand how to achieve it.” — Jack Welch, former CEO of General Electric
The #1 newsletter for the trades.
Strategies to foster engagement
What are you doing to foster employee engagement at your company? Palmer offers her top eight picks based on experience and research.
Listen to employees. A retention issue, for example, may have nothing to do with employees wanting more pay but more about finding a better way to commute to and from work.
Provide recognition and rewards. This can be as simple as a thank-you note from the CEO or owner from time to time.
Promote learning and development. “If 65% of all employees in the trades say they want upskilling, they want to learn more, we need to provide them the opportunity to do that,” Palmer says.
Foster employee well-being. Show them you care. Show them they're more than just a number. Make sure managers display the same passion and understand words matter.
Encourage team-building. Do this on a team level and company level.
Celebrate team wins with a monthly lunch, family event, or gift cards.
Hire the right employee with the right attitude. In light of the labor shortage, contractors are often tempted to hire the first person with a skill who applies, but their personality may not be a good fit. “You're in the service business. Your customers want to work with people who are nice, pleasant, accommodating, and have the right attitude. So, it's important to hire the right employee upfront,” Palmer says.
Re-evaluate your mission and values. Write it for your employees, who need to believe in it and live it.
To recap, contractors in the trades can empower employees by:
Encouraging open communication and collaboration
Recognizing and rewarding achievement
Providing training and skills development
Investing in innovative HR technology
What is Inova?
Inova, a human-capital management company, offers a unified platform to streamline payroll, HR, and benefits, and provide businesses with time savings, enhanced efficiency, improved financial reporting, and strengthened employee development and engagement.
This summer, Inova earned 32 badges on G2, a database of business software reviews from users, for leader and high performer to momentum leader in 10 categories. The privately held company was founded in 2011, and has earned Inc. 5000’s fastest growing privately held company awards seven times, including in 2023 and 2024.
Inova offers tools for recruiting the right talent, onboarding employees with well-being benefits, and reporting on analytics.
“If you have a unified platform, one with all of these tools under one umbrella, you can attract and retain talent, you can engage your workforce, and you can manage the employee life cycle better,” Palmer says.
Inova provides customers with a company hub, a place where associates and all of your employees can stay engaged, be informed, and participate in surveys.
“All of this helps to reinforce your brand and reinforce your commitment to your employees,” Palmer says.
The way in which you onboard employees also matters. Make sure the first impression is memorable, Palmer advises.
For instance, touching base prior to your new hire’s start date leaves the impression that you’re a company who cares about its employees, Palmer says. At Inova, all new hires receive “bridge calls,” where all of the executives, including the CEO, call each individual employee to welcome them to the company.
For businesses interested in providing online courses to employees on financial well-being and skills-based training, Inova offers a Learning Management tool that allows you to leverage existing courses or create your own.
Inova also provides tools for monitoring and measuring goals, assessing risk reduction, benchmarking, and other key metrics.
“I think it's very important to create a memorable experience through engaged employees. And when you do that, you're going to boost creativity and innovation. You're going to have employees who feel like you care about their well-being, you’re going to strengthen the culture of the organization, and you'll be living your values,” Palmer says.
Final thoughts
“Every business owner must recognize that their business thrives when their employees succeed,” Palmer says. “And when an employee feels empowered in the workplace, they're more likely to thrive and excel in their roles and to tell their friends this is a great place to work.”
