Episode Overview
Don’t tell Aqua Clear Water Systems General Manager Lydia Brewster there aren’t enough service industry candidates to hire out there in the potential workforce pool.
“As long as they are good people who have good people skills, I can teach everything else,” Brewster says.
Aqua Clear delivers fresh, clean water to homeowners (and some commercial clients) in Tennessee. When Brewster hears the industry-wide claim that companies can’t find workers to fill their rosters, it makes her blood boil.
“That’s the biggest excuse leaders make,” she says. “It basically means they’re not willing to take extreme ownership for themselves, new hires or employees.”
Brewster believes the “there’s-nobody-good-to-hire” mindset is a self-fulfilling prophecy. Rather, she hires on soft skills and is confident she can pick the right people to train in the hard skills.
Her hiring methods are a bit unorthodox. Candidates call her for interviews, not the other way around. She looks for initiative, and in her questions she listens for positive attitudes.
If Brewster thinks you’ve got a chance to make the grade, she’ll send you out on a job shadow right away. Afterward, she’ll grill the tech who the new candidate just went out with, and bring that tech in on the hiring process.
She’s also clear with candidates that this is a job and a career, and that the company is a team – not a family.
Working in the company comes with accountability, and Brewster says communication is crucial.
“I tell [prospective employees] in the interview process, ‘I have to like you as much as you like me,’” she says. “And we have to make sure that all communication is good.”
Obviously, Brewster takes her role extremely seriously.
“My job is to change lives,” she says. “My job is to make sure that you love this job and make sure that you're the right fit.”
Lydia Brewster recently joined ServiceTitan’s Jackie Aubel on the “Toolbox for the Trades” podcast, which included Brewster’s thoughts on:
[03:49] The challenges of hiring the right people
[07:25] Brewster’s successful interview process
[15:02] How to create an effective job-shadowing process
[28:09] The importance of have a good training and onboarding process
[41:53] Why Brewster doesn’t use the word “family” to describe her team
To hear more stories from the trades, subscribe to Toolbox for the Trades on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google, or anywhere you get podcasts.
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