We are a GAF Certified installer. We love them, work well with them, and are trained in all their products for our Texas roofs. When we visited their factory in Ennis, Texas last week and then attended their roofing contractor conference in Conroe, Texas a couple of days ago (Tuesday, February 13), we sure are glad we went with them.
What Makes a Good Business?
When we talk about “good businesses” there are a few principles you’d want to know about: are they professional and competent? Can they answer technical questions? etc.
But there is ONE METRIC I’m looking for more than any other: HOW LONG HAVE THEIR OWN EMPLOYEES WORKED THERE?
Think about it. If the company is only about the bottom line and chasing short-term dollars at the expense of long-term craftsmanship, then there would low morale, high turnover, and you’d meet a lot of employees who were hired within a few years.
Time after time and in department after department we met people who had worked there for 20, 30, and 40 years. I don’t think anyone in the Petrus Team met a single person who was less than 15 years. THAT’S IMPRESSIVE!
The benefit of working for a smaller the company is that individuals feel more integrated to the overall organization and appreciated by management, because you are seen and known. The bigger the organization (usually around 150+), the harder it is to feel like you belong there and the easier it is to go unseen by management. Big companies have their advantages, but maintaining high employee retention usually isn’t one of them, especially in manufacturing.
GAF was different.
Here is a big company, an old company, an established industry-leading player, that is filled with strong, happy, long-term employees. We loved it.
The factory tour was interesting. I don’t know if you’ve ever been in a high-end factory, but it gives a person the distinct impression that it is alive. Conveyor belts and machines working in symphony with skilled pros to replicate an incredible product (Timeberline UHDZ shingles are the show-stopper) at such speeds it would make your head spin. We got to dive into the science of their shingles, but also the science of the manufacturing processes they have developed in house over the decades.
You Need to Attend a Conference
That was last week. This week the whole Petrus team headed to the GAF conference for South Texas roofers. This was my first conference. Sort of.
I am a traveling speaker as my side job and have talked to audiences of thousands of high school and college students and adults. But to be at an industry show for professional contractors who want to grow their knowledge, skills, and relationships was great.
I was like a kid in a candy store, taking every handout, pamphlet, flyer, button, and sample I could. I’m new to the roofing industry so I’m hungry to learn as much as I can in as short a time as possible. After every talk I ran up to the presenter and peppered him or her with more questions, soaking in the free advice as aggressively as I could manage.
The Petrus team regrouped at lunch to download our various breakout sessions and share what new knowledge we gained. I’m a nerd. Always have been. But to be at a company of people who geek out about things as much as I do is a blessing.
We debated finer points, applications to our customers, and future-of-the-business approaches. Conferences help companies have those “Important, but not Urgent” conversations that get neglected when you’re doing the daily grind. We had a lot of those conversations.
At the end of the conference, I became friends with a GAF representative, got to know a handful of solid roofing contractors in Austin, and learned a heck of a lot about the roof systems, installs, and what Petrus is doing right and what we could be doing better.
