Sales position
We have found the sales position to be the hardest spot to fill. We look for those who are persuasive and adept at handling all of the details and paperwork that go along with delivering a contract back to the company.
Jay Cipriani, Owner
Cipriani Remodeling Solutions, Woodbury, NJ
Quantity and quality of trades
Because our company has a broad product mix in the specialty lines and have increased sales approximately 20 percent in each of the last three years, finding good, experienced installation crews in various trades has been the most difficult to fill. Bathroom remodeling has seen the biggest volume increase in that period, and finding the necessary quantity and quality of trades to allow us to keep up with our volume has been a challenge.
Rob Levin, President
Statewide Remodeling, DFW, TX
Lead generators and marketing
Unfortunately, the positions that we find most difficult to fill with competent people are the positions that are most critical to our ongoing success. The first two relate to lead procurement and are both telemarketers and door-to-door solicitors. These are high turnover positions so we are constantly recruiting and hiring for these two critical departments. The third position is the position of marketing representative or salesperson. As this position is commission compensated, it can also have significantly higher turnover than other positions in our company.
Nick Cogliani, Owner/President
NEWPRO, Woburn, MA
Design/sales consultant
At Custom Design & Construction, the most difficult position to fill is that of a designer/sales consultant. Our folks in this position must have a balance of many different skills. The role requires not only design skills and sales skills as the job title indicates, but they also have to be creative problem solvers. They must guide the client through our design and remodeling process while carefully balancing the client’s objective with the interests of the company.
Bill Simone, President
Custom Design & Construction, El Segundo, CA
Our PRIME advisory panel includes some of the remodeling industry’s top professionals. This month we asked, “Which positions in your company are you finding the most difficult to fill?”