Page 18 - The Compass 2017 | Volume 12 | Issue 8

the time so they can
get their hours,” Cara
shared.
“We’ve had quite a
few externs over the
years. We don’t hire
all of them; we’re
very selective,” Dela-
Joey Sanchez Daniel Castillo na added. “We are
very particular about
their quality of work,
Derrick Hammond the work ethic they
ed StraightForward Pricing
®
books and invoices, and they must show, and how they fit in our team environment. They
converted their service con- must meet all of that criteria to be hired.”
tracts, expanding their offer- The A#1 Services interview process follows three steps.
ings and rebranding them as Technicians’ first point of contact is with Cara. She reviews
club memberships. “We used to applications looking for any red flags, namely people who’ve
feel like we had to be competi- bounced around a lot. If they meet her approval, Daniel and
tive with our pricing. AirTime Gonz will meet with an applicant for 15 minutes. If they
made us realize it’s more about don’t like the individuals, they feel homeowners will feel the
setting the price you want and same.
backing it with value,” Cara The final step is the most comprehensive. An applicant
stressed. will meet with Cara and Delana. They ask the prospective
Jack Jablonski The additional value A#1 employee to complete a background check, have a drug test,
Services began offering includ- and complete a personality profile. “We’re obviously looking
ed incorporating all the Air- for the right type of attitude [in using the test],” Cara said.
Time guarantees, including the However, the test proves to be enlightening in other ways,
100 percent satisfaction guar- too.
antee. “We make sure the guys “We give them hardcopies to complete in the office. I like
let the customers know about to see if they can complete the profile without asking me a
them. They don’t help you if bunch of questions. If they can do the test in 10 to 15 min-
you don’t sell them,” Delana utes, it tells me they’re pretty bright. It also shows they can
said. “We assure our custom- follow directions and complete paperwork,” Cara said. “This
ers that we live by those guar- entire hiring process can take two weeks, but it’s necessary.”
antees, too—24 hours a day, 7 “Now, we’re getting more experienced technicians coming
days a week.” in,” Delana said. “Our guys have been the best [advocates]
Shortly after attending Ex- for us. They enjoy the family atmosphere and they tell their
ecutive Perspective, Daniel and friends about it. I mean, we know our guys. We know their
Gonzalo Zapata Jr families. Their families know our kids.”
Gonz attended Success Group
International training for both “Our vendors and the supply houses, they refer techs to us
technicians and sales profes- all the time because they see how happy our guys are,” Cara
sionals. They have also sent other team members. “We were added. “They say to other techs, ‘Check out [A#1 Services].
all about maximizing each call, that was our biggest thing It’s a great company that cares about its people.’”
back then. We had to make sure we knew how to do that,”
Cara explained. We give our CustoMers tHe Best
“We had no money. None of us were taking salaries. There Even when A#1 Services hires experienced technicians, they
wasn’t anyone we could go to for money. We had to make must earn the keys to a service vehicle by completing an
things happen. We had to be efficient,” Cara added. “That’s onboarding process. “We have a mandatory training period
what we did.” so they learn exactly how we expect the job to be done—
quality means everything to us,” Delana steadfastly stated.
seleCtive Hiring A few years ago, every new technician rode along with
proCess either Daniel or Gonz. Today, new hires ride with two of the
Business steadily began picking up for A#1 Services at the company’s most seasoned and trusted techs. They’re respon-
end of 2014 heading into 2015; so much so they needed to sible for showing new technicians how the company expects
start hiring more technicians. Rather than bring aboard sea- repairs to be done and communicate with the customer. The
soned service techs, Daniel and Gonz hired recent graduates experienced techs are in constant contact with Daniel and
from the local technical school and trained them how to de- Gonz on the new techs’ progress.
liver proper service. “We’re actually on the school’s board “When they think they’re ready, [new technicians] must
now. They have an externship program and send us techs all ride with Daniel or Gonz to determine if they’re ready to go

18 THE COMPASS | Issue 8 | 2017