Industry advisor Mark Richardson says many remodeling companies underestimate the impact of training on performance. In an episode of his podcast, Remodeling Mastery, he discusses ten common mistakes companies make with training and offers tips to fix them.
Richardson compares business training to sports and military drills, where consistent practice leads to proficiency. During the 2008 financial crash, he led a group of 14 remodeling companies. Of those, nine that cut training saw sales decline, while five that increased training grew their businesses.
The core issue, Richardson says, is mindset. Firms that view training as an investment, not an expense, treat it with discipline. He recalls a panelist from a chicken restaurant chain who emphasized this point, stating that training should be treated with reverence and importance to expect a return.
Richardson highlights two examples: one company saw results drop after new leadership made training voluntary, and another struggled when veterans skipped sessions, assuming experience was enough.
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He outlines ten mistakes: treating training as optional, leaders doing all the training themselves, mistaking poor training for poor hiring, canceling training for other priorities, training only new hires, failing to measure training’s return, not using top performers as trainers, boring or irrelevant sessions, lack of engagement, and no culture of practice.
To counter these, Richardson suggests starting with a mindset shift, viewing training as mandatory and an investment. He recommends leaders act as choreographers of training, delegating to others and creating a culture where training is integral to success.
Richardson advises treating training like appointments, blocking time in calendars, and seeking feedback. He emphasizes the importance of consistent practice, even if it’s only 30 minutes a day, and suggests using vehicles as “mobile universities” with preloaded learning materials. He also stresses the need for every professional to have a coach for accountability.
Richardson’s formula for success is simple: attitude plus behaviors equals results. He encourages firms to conduct a sales fitness checkup, identify weak areas, and create a practice plan with daily or weekly drills, such as role-playing or recording client interactions for review.
