Can’t seem to recruit good plumbers? It’s not about plumbing, it’s about character. Character matters most! In this episode of Potty Talk LIVE, Richard goes over the recruitment process for how to attract and hire quality plumbers for your plumbing business.
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3 Golden Nuggets
- Plumber recruitment ain’t about plumbing. Of course you want to hire plumbers. But it’s a waste of time to run these guys through a whole plumbing test. If they’ve already said they know plumbing, take their word for it that they know plumbing.
- Character matters most when it comes to hiring your plumbing technicians. This includes their attitude and appearance.
- Always be recruiting. Don’t get comfortable with your crew. Make your business one that your competitors’ plumbers will want to come work for
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Show Notes
I hear this all the time, “I can’t find any good plumbing technicians. There just aren’t any good guys out there.” Of course, that’s not true.
So, how do we hire plumbing technicians? What are we looking for?
Plumber Recruitment and Hiring Ain’t About Plumbing
[9:36] It ain’t about plumbing. I’m always going to drive that home. You’ll hear me say it over and over. That’s probably going to be on my tombstone.
Of course you want to hire plumbers (not green guys, not mechanics). But it’s a waste of time to run these guys through a whole plumbing test and ask them all these plumbing questions. If they’ve already said they know plumbing, take their word for it that they know plumbing. If you hire them, and they really don’t know anything about plumbing, that’s going to become pretty apparent pretty soon.
We don’t need to test them on plumbing. We don’t need to talk about plumbing. We don’t need to bring them along on a job. And you have to accept, they are never going to be as good as you. That’s just how it is.
You bring them on, and it works, great. If it doesn’t, you let them go and move on. It ain’t all about plumbing, it’s about the business as you’ll see below.
Character matters most.
It’s mostly about character when it comes to hiring your guys. And this includes their attitude and appearance which can be assessed in the interview.
(15:39) The candidate’s first interview should be with a gatekeeper: ideally someone female. If you’re a Plumbing Power Couple, then have the wife do the first interview.
The first goal is to identify and avoid the creep factor. Women can do this. They evaluate their body language. Women can tell whether they’re being checked out, being hit on, being talked to differently. If a plumber does that in an interview setting, they’ll do that to Mrs. Jones, your customer. Cut that candidate out right away.
Appearance is important too, but it’s not about their tattoos or gauges in their ears. Those guys can be fine. You’re looking for things like if they have clean hands, combed hair, stand up straight, smell appropriate.
(19:00) If they make it past the gatekeeper, they get to talk to you, the owner. The only plumbing question to ask is “What plumbing do you hate to do?” Their answer will speak to their character. Do they give a reasonable, honest response? Or are they just saying what they think you want to hear?
(21:00) Ask questions that get them to think on their feet or let their hair down. For example, “if you could live during a different time period when would that be and what would you do?” Get them talking to see how and who they really are. You’re trying to uncover any character flaws (such as cussing, complaining, bad-mouthing, etc.)
Always be recruiting.
[29:04] Always be recruiting. Recruiting is tough. It takes time, and you’re already busy. But there’s nothing more important.
It never fails that suddenly something happens with your crew. I’ve seen it all the time. Even if it’s family. They will leave you. It’s just the nature of the business.
As a plumbing business owner, you’re going to be checking on two things all the time: your marketing – because that’s where your customers come from. And the other, just as important if not more so, is your recruiting. If you don’t like this, get out of the business right now.
You need interviews happening. You always need applicants coming in. Interview everyone who is interested. You never know who might surprise you. You need a formal recruitment and hiring process: an application, initial interview, second interview.
(31:48) You can even hunt the plumbers from your competitors. You want to get the guys who have proven themselves. Make your business one that your competitors’ plumbers will want to come work for.
Richard’s Call to Action.
If you want to learn more about numbers that matter and how to best run your plumbing business, why not schedule a free 30-min strategy call with us? Let’s talk about your goals and where you want to be this time next year, and we’ll help you create a path to make that happen. Schedule your free strategy call here today!
