Making Use of Rain Days

Rain days are a fact of life for a painting contractor, unless you only do interiors. Rain days can wreck a schedule, play havoc with cash flow, and generally make life difficult.

However, there is one way to find a silver lining in those dark clouds. Use rain days for training.

To effectively use rain days for employee training, it is necessary to have a training program. This does not need to be an elaborate program, but you should have topics and materials prepared ahead of time.

One of the most effective topics for training is production management, i.e., methods and procedures for managing a job site. Even if you are “in the bucket” and work along side your crew, training better production management will enable you to delegate some responsibilities.

There are two key components to effective production management:
•Controlling the Job Site—A customer can quickly take control of a job site by being demanding and/ or unreasonable. Controlling the job site begins the moment the crew arrives, by establishing responsibilities and expectations. It also requires that each team member understand how to deal with customers.
•Job Site Administration—Properly managing the job involves good communications between the job supervisor and the customer, and between the supervisor and the crew. It means anticipating potential problems and addressing them early. It means establishing the proper job sequence.

Having the entire crew on board regarding these issues can save time, reduce problems, and create a better experience for the customer.

© BEP Enterprises Incorporated 2008