by Jim Hinshaw
Ron Smith, who has been described as the Godfather of HVAC passed away in December. He touched those in the HVAC industry either as a teacher, investor, coach or mentor, sharing his systems for improving business to anyone who wanted and needed his help. He perfected everything from maintenance agreements to improving the efficiency of the team in all areas, service and installation as well as dispatching and running the office.
He started Modern Air Conditioning in Florida in 1965 with $500 of working capital, growing it to over $15 million in revenue by 1984 (which would be over $40 million today). From 1979 to 1984 the service side of the company grew from $1.5 million to over $5 million a year in volume. He went on the buy, grow and eventually sell three additional companies in Florida and Louisiana. He had the formula for success in our industry.
He founded Service America in 1985, the first HVAC franchise company, which grew to over 100 locations. He sold it to a Swiss company, bought it back 2 years later, and sold again to Roto-Rooter. In 1997 he joined Service Experts as COO, the first consolidator of the HVAC industry and a publicly traded company. When it sold in 2000 they had 116 locations and annual revenue of over $600 million.
By 1991 he had founded a consulting business, Ron Smith and Associates, helping company owners with processes, systems and ways to improve the bottom line. His concepts are still valid today, he wrote the book HVAC Spells Wealth in 2007, and put together the sequel, “More and New” HVAC Spells Wealth in 2016. People still quote him, look to those books for ideas and answers to their questions on how to run a successful contracting business.
So you could see his history a lot of places today, but I want to share how he interacted with people. He had time to listen, and listen intently. When asked a question, he would tell you exactly what needed to happen, and how he went about solving the problem himself. His books are incredibly detailed with templates on how the process worked and what the results would be. He held nothing back, you found out his secret sauce. He actually wanted you to be successful.
He never raised his voice, always respectful of others, he did not try to be the biggest voice in the room. Rather he reflected on the topic at hand and made condensed but impactful summations, that gave value to the conversation. He offered solutions to the problems facing the group, using principles that worked he had set into motion in his own company.
What Ron left us is a legacy of business knowledge combined with a personal commitment to help us get better in all areas of our lives. He was a pioneer in building businesses with Maintenance programs, recognizing employees as a very valuable asset, and rewarding performance at all levels. He promoted spiffs for employees, giving out $40 to anyone in the company that turned in a lead. Not worried if it sold or not, that was the job of the sales team. If you turned in a lead, you got some money, regardless of the results.
It is not exaggeration to say he created millionaires from business owners who followed his advice and applied his principles to their companies. It has been said by a member of a group he spoke to, he shared things I had already heard, but had not implemented yet.
Ron left us feeling better after each interaction, with an awareness of what could be accomplished. Emphasis on could be, if we just stopped doing what we had been doing for years, accepting what we would get in return. He encouraged us to change the game completely, move from 3% net to 20+% net in the residential service and replacement markets, offering value that the consumer will pay for.
My question for you is this: what will your legacy be? What will you be remembered for? I have made it my goal to be an encourager to everyone I meet, I want them to feel good about our time together. I want the interactions with our company to be the same positive experience. How about your employees, do they feel empowered to do what is needed for the customer, are they secure that you will back them and their decisions if an opportunity arises? Do they feel good about their future in the company? Heck, do they feel good about their present position in the company?
My guess is that the people who reported to Ron Smith felt good after each interface with him, they enjoyed their jobs and felt good about what they were doing. Here is my wish for you. That you will be remembered for the value you bring to the relationship for your customers and co-workers. How you make them feel. Do you empower the employees to make good decisions, to help improve business relationships as well as make the cash register ring?
