I had my batteries recharged in Kansas City last week. No, not the electrical kind, but rather the internal batteries that keep you moving and motivated. This phenomenon occurred while attending the annual CFI Convention.
Most of what is written and said about the installation trade these days is neither encouraging nor kind. I have been one of the more vocal observers. As a whole, I feel that the state of the installation trade in our industry is largely a mess. What passes for an installer at many firms today should never be confused with a craftsman. At times, much of what I observe makes me wonder whether anyone even cares about quality work and great customer service anymore.
The answer is yes, some still do. What I saw in KC was inspiring. There were excellent craftsman in attendance who shared a desire to be better tomorrow than they were yesterday. There were product and tool manufacturers’ demonstrating how yesterday’s tools and techniques are not going to work on tomorrow’s products. There were reminders that a good attitude is important and that appearance and behavior do matter.
The most impressive element to me is that each of these men and women took not only the time, but also paid their own expenses to attend. How many of your sales or installation staff would have done this? It can’t be easy to be driven by the pride to do great work, and to possess the desire to be even better, in an industry that seems bent on minimizing the value of their trade with each year that passes. Thanks CFI. My batteries were low. I needed the boost! How long has it been since your installation department’s batteries were charged?
Tom Jennings
