East Coast Refrigeration

Owner Name: Jeff Tempone

Jeff Tempone can fix nearly anything – but his particular fascination with refrigeration started when he worked at an ice skating rink where he played hockey as a teenager. He was always curious how the ice was made, and exactly what kept it so cold all the time. He never imagined at the time that he would be running his own growing refrigeration business in a few years. In less than 6 years his company is already serving a number of large contracts, but Jess wants his business to be one of the refrigeration leaders in the entire region.

There is only one problem with Jeff’s plan. (Well, more than one actually.) Jeff has run into some significant snags along the way, and readily confesses that most of these issues are of his own making. Recently, my crew stopped by his location, and Jeff and I got talking about his operation. We uncovered some challenges that -- if left unchecked -- could have made it nearly impossible for his business to continue to succeed and grow.

Jeff has less than ten employees, which certainly categorizes him as a “small business owner.” We asked him about his staff and their roles within his organization. When we inquired exactly what his office manager’s duties were or if she had a job description to fulfill, Jeff was actually not clear on her exact role -- and she has no job description. Well, could she do a good job if she wasn’t entirely sure about what she was really supposed to be doing?
Jeff also did not have a company mission statement that he could use to unite his team. Jeff and his employees did not share the same vision of what the company was, how it was going to grow, and what roles they played within the organization. Jeff knew that he needed to make his staff feel that they could have a career -- not just a job. The people who worked for him considered their jobs to be a 9-5 source of a paycheck — nothing more.

We had conversation with one sales person on staff who, according to Jeff, was incapable of really selling anything. While this person had the required technical experience, he had no ability to communicate product knowledge to a prospective client. When we pressed Jeff about the training process for his sales force, Jeff admitted that it was his own fault that this individual was in the wrong role. He had either hired the wrong person or did not train him properly to gain the sales results he wanted.

Now on to the bigger issue: Jeff also took a hard look at his own traits and tactics, and saw some gaping holes in his own ability to guide his team. Many of these holes came as a result of his leadership and organizational style. It’s not his fault; it’s just that running a company doesn’t merely require being good at one thing.

We suggested that Jeff take a leadership course to help him gain the vital skills he needed to lead his company and rally the troops behind him. He also had to focus more carefully on recruiting, training and devising appropriate job descriptions to make policies and procedures more systematic.
Jeff did not let more than a week go by before he started making big changes. Not only did he write a company mission statement; he also made the enlightened decision to ask each of his staff members to write their own personal mission statements and used them to come up with a final version together. Jeff also hired an outside consultant to write job descriptions as well as an exhaustive employee manual with detailed policies and procedures.

Jeff exudes a new sense of confidence about his business that was not present before; he is becoming the leader his company must have in order to succeed. If Jeff continues his hard work and persists in increasing his knowledge or seeking outside help when he needs it, he will become the regional leader he wants to be.

Summary:

• Be the leader your company needs and seek outside help when needed
• Have a mission statement that everyone understands (and perhaps to which everyone contributes) and can support
• Make sure you have job descriptions and procedures in place
• Maintain a positive attitude so your staff feels you have the confidence necessary to lead them
• Hire smart and train to make people self-sufficient