Contributed by: Robert More’ - BYLT Restoration 

People are the greatest asset a company can have. Good people gravitate to good culture which starts at the top.  

Techs want to be managed. They need to be managed; they will leave if they aren’t being managed. Employees coming into the restoration work force are looking for structure and organization. In the book by KnowHow, “ Why Workers Quit” they say that the new employees coming into a company are looking for high levels of structure on their on-boarding. They also say that today's worker isn’t looking to jump ship right away. They are looking to lay down roots and stay. Give them what they want. Be the company they want to be a part of from the beginning.
Become a process driven company.

People and their environment 

A violinist played 45 minutes on the New York subway. 4 people stopped and one clapped and they managed to raise 20 dollars.

The following...

For those NOT involved in the same industry as me, much of this will make zero sense. But read anyway because you likely have insurance of some sort.

Let me start by saying there are scores and scores of really good people in the insurance industry. They are advocates for those the policy of insurance swore to protect. So save me the triggered responses.

I'll also announce that because SO MANY make their living from insurance proceeds, i won't be anyone they choose to stand next to at a party (although they secretly agree and tell me so).

Insurance as we know it, is a valuable and almost required necessity. Most Americans would not financially recover without it.

But there has been a system being built over a long period of time that is sinister and harmful.

Insurance makes money by collecting premiums and paying less in claims. Duh, right?

That's a great business model and many many people have been and still are among the planets richest people. Again, cheers. I love capitalism as...

I don’t expect you to believe everything I say, but you have to know I wouldn’t lie to you. 

I have some unique and great experiences. 

I have been very fortunate to have some amazing mentors and peers bring me into their universe and grant me the opportunity to see things I may have never otherwise seen. 

I have always gone against the grain, like cutting a big juicy Texas brisket. 

Do things others have and certainly do things people say can’t be done. 

One of those is the current trail I have been on the last few years. I have been on a path to showcase what we (in this restoration/ emergency services industry) have come to accept as truth. And that is that somehow, our process and direction is owned by and steered by insurance carriers. 

I am not a fool and recognize how large  they (insurance carriers) are and the power they yield…..but being righteous is a super power.

Education and confidence is the...

 The images below are necessary tools to insure proper isolation and negative pressure for remediation.

The tool on the left is a MANOMETER

• Simple explanation, it's a device to measure pressure differential. 
• Outside a contained area compared to another. 
• Creating measurable pressure and insuring consistent management. 

A lack of or inadequate negative pressure status can cause cross contamination between 2 different impacted zones, which can lead to increasing project size, causing secondary damage and potentially causing health hazards to occupants. 

It is also a standard of care in remediation as provided by the IICRC. 

Without a manometer, you  are not acquiring scientific and verifiable data to adjust and monitor. 

Using manual calculations based on manufacturer "stated" equipment output, are simply not enough. These claims are without any obstructions that include filters, dense air...

Later this month, I will be traveling to do my 250th (ish) Onsite Business Assessment for the restoration industry and I thought this might be a useful time to capture what this has taught me and what it has often created for the restorers I worked with. Not all have the same results, but most are on the voyage. 

First, we should ask WHY I WAS HIRED. Well, that would take dozens of pages…..but I can summarize one major thing. 

Organization. 

An owner or set of managers know they work hard, have acquired all the technical skills, built a good company and brand…..but they just aren’t launching or where they WANT TO BE. 

That’s fair.
It means there is a dream.
Fantastic start. 

If you were to ask me: “Klark, what is THE largest thing you see missing or holding a company back in the restoration industry?”

The #1 is pretty clear and #2 is very closely related. 

It is:
A strong leadership team
and
an operational...

 Trust me when I say,

"You don’t want to find yourself inside Klarks head."

But if you happen to find yourself there, or at least in his presence, this is the kind of shit you’d hear.

This was a random BLURT moment in the office last week. I had to share it.
I know you know him well enough to know that he speaks what he thinks, especially when he thinks it will help someone. 

The analogy was striking. It really speaks to an issue that we hear about every day.

"Imagine being a restaurant owner and going to alll the grilled cheese making classes every year.

That's what a large percentage of the restoration industry does. The owners and leaders LOVE going to drying classes. They LOVE to get certifications. 

The pursuit of being a better technician often supersedes the need for becoming a better business owner/leader.

 Why? 

So they can get a small percentage points more dry in a small fraction of time faster?

How does that help thier BUSINESS?"

...

Nashville taught me something amazing. 

Challenge tradition.

Challenge norms.

NOTHING is sacred in business... or at the table that I sit at to eat!

Did you know that there is such a thing as tacos made with waffles?
#MINDBLOWN

 I met up with 2 childhood friends recently in Nashville.

Jeff the piano man and I met for lunch (at a bougie waffle joint).

Do you like breakfast for lunch or dinner?

Pancakes, Scrambled Eggs, Bacon. Mmmm. Any time of the day is good with me!

Last time I was there we had Nashville's famous hot chicken. Call me sheltered, but I’d never heard of it. 

Dennis told me that hot was really hot. He warned me. 

I got medium. 

It's a good thing. That was a painful meal. 

I cannot fathom what EXTRA hot would have been like. 

Thats insanity!

I used to tell my mom after football… It hurts so good. Because I enjoyed playing football, it was worth the pain.

That medium Nashville Chicken hurt so good. 

I was going to go...

DON'T LOOK DOWN

Superstar: a star (as in sports or the movies) who is considered extremely talented, has great public appeal

Here at Restoration Advisers we get the opportunity to meet some incredible people, and from time to time the people also get to meet each other. 

Disaster Podcaster Season 2 Episode 6 is where 2 superstars meet and share their perspective on the industry, share their journey to leadership, and help the listeners understand and get a perspective that isn’t generally on podcasts! 

One industry

2 superstars

2 different journeys

One works in a family owned business

One has worked at multiple companies

One is a Triple Master

One has a lot of experience in fire restoration (and is a volunteer firefighter)

Both started at the bottom so to speak. 

Both are now in leadership roles

Both are dedicated to the restoration industry

Both are creating more leaders by leading well

Both Robert More, and Dylan Timmel will be on the Disaster Podcaster Season 2...

Everyone is talking about what to do about fuel. 

What are you doing in your company to compensate for the added cost?

Costs are up. 

Adjusters are still resisting invoices. 

So what will you do… what are you doing?

How can you run a profitable business with inflation, and rising fuel prices?

Was 10/10 good enough to cover fuel costs last year? Is it good enough to cover costs now? 

“Add a line item for fuel surcharge.”

That's what everyone is saying you should do. Even the mothership of Xactimate (Verisk) has empowered the contractors to bill for increased fuel cost. (Don't take our word for it.)

So Xactimate says its ok to bill... but we are getting feedback that adjusters are stalling. It seems to have caught a lot of adjusters off guard. They don’t have a copy & paste argument for that one… yet. 

But they will. They got knocked back on their laurels, but they work for massive...