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Aaron Crowley
is the owner of Crowley's Granite Concepts.
Aaron not only has his own successful business,
he is a writer and speaker who helps others
improve their businesses.  With
Crowley's Granite Concepts you get more than
a quality supplier of granite and stone counters,
you get a countertop fabricator that teaches
others how to run their business in a way that
results in happy, satisfied customers.
One way Aaron
helps other stone cutters is through a monthly
column in the magazine Stone Industry News.
The following is an example of one of Aaron's
columns. From what he says you can see Aaron
runs his business in a way the ensures quality
granite counters and satisfied customers.
Stone Industry News May 2007
Eliminating Irritation
by Aaron J. Crowley
When was the last time you were frustrated
by something in your business? Last night? This
morning? Five minutes ago? If you own a stone
business, you probably deal with the regular
irritation of re-occur-ring issues.
Maybe the issue that occurred five minutes
ago, was that an under mount sink piece broke
because it didn’t have rods. The infuriating
thing about it is that it has happened three
times in the last two months. And despite the
fact that three workers in the shop are capable
of cutting, preparing, and gluing rods in an
under mount sink piece, somehow this step was
still missed. You are asking yourself the question,
“How can my employees neglect something so fundamental
to fabricating…over and over again?”
Maybe you’re asking yourself if running this
business is really worth all the frustration.
Question: Is it possible to run a stone shop
with out cynically believing that ALL problems
are the result of lazy employees?
The answer is yes, but the owner must first
resist the temptation to blame employees for
the problems and then get proactive in resolving
them.
By adopting this perspective and taking the
following steps, the irritating issues that
drive many shop owners up the wall can be drastically
reduced.
Step One: Clearly state who is responsible
for what task and when that task is to be completed.
It is
shocking how many employees don’t really know
what they are truly expected to do. It’s only
fair
to let them know. Example: The sawyer is responsible
for cutting, prepping, and gluing steel rods
into
the sink piece before pieces are machined or
fabricated. As opposed to, “everyone knows this
has to be done, so someone should just do it.”
Step Two: Document who is responsible
for performing the task. Talk is cheap and it’s
easily forgotten, especially when things get
busy. So get it down on paper. Example: Write
a procedure for the sawyer that clearly states
how and when he is to rod the sink piece.
Step Three: Explain the reasoning behind,
and consequence of, not performing the tasks
as they
are written. Explaining the logic behind a decision
will usually decrease the need for the conse-quence.
Example: If the sink piece is not rodded prior
to machining or fabrication the piece might
break,
thereby jeopardizing the sawyer’s job.
Step Four: Get a verbal and written
agreement from the responsible party. It is
crucial that the individual understands and
agrees to perform the tasks as they are written.
Example: Discuss the new responsibility with
the sawyer, ask for his verbal agreement to
execute it then have him sign a written document
that goes into his file as a record.
Your issue may not be rodding under mount sink
pieces, it might be contractors not having under
mount sinks onsite for the tem-plate. Regardless
of what or how many issues exist, these four
steps will work to reduce them. Remember, the
purpose of assigning responsibility isn’t to
assign blame when an issue occurs; it is to
reduce the frequency of the occurrence. Fewer
issues equal less frustration and that equals
more joy, fun, and satisfaction in running a
business. And that’s something every stone shop
owner should strive for and achieve.
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