Articles by Les Cunningham
Les Cunningham, CGC, CR, CCR, CGRa, is an international business consultant who works with hundreds of companies on an ongoing basis. He has worked as a teacher, commercial airline pilot and owner/manager of his own remodeling business. His firm, Business Networks, specializes in helping businesses become more profitable through interaction with their industry peers. Les can be reached at 800.525.1009 x 14 or through email at Les@businessnetworks.com.
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If — as is currently the case for remodelers in most areas of the country — you’re finding business slower than usual, you may be asking: What can I, as the owner of my company, do about it?
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An uncertain economy is an excellent time to improve business systems. If you can't answer the following questions with “yes,” here are ideas for improvement.
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The best way to handle project selections — and the price you charge for them — is to have all the products chosen prior to the start of the job.
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Potential clients are always looking for the highest cost-versus-value ratio on their remodeling projects. You need to be sure that your price meets their idea of value. Include questions on your lead sheet that will help you evaluate a potential client's definition of value.
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Review financial statements to prevent embezzlement.
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Job cost reports provide information that can be used both during construction and after the project is completed.
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An estimator anticipates the cost to produce a job, and a carpenter tries to complete that job within the estimate. If owners ask carpenters to turn in timecards on a daily basis, the hours associated with doing specific tasks will be more accurate.
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How much money can a company owner expect to earn from a remodeling business? And how many hours should an owner have to work to earn that amount of money?