How to Improve Attitudes on the Job Site

?Teamwork? and ?positive attitude? aren?t just buzzwords tossed around by highly paid corporate consultants in order to make workers feel warm and fuzzy. When everyone on the job site is eager and comfortable about showing up for work ? and each has something positive to contribute to the project you're working on ? your business will definitely benefit.

Foster Positive Attitudes

What are some of the benefits of taking steps to encourage positive employee attitudes on the job site? Here?s why it's worth your while to monitor the atmosphere among your team members:

? Work is completed more quickly and efficiently
? There will be fewer mistakes, resulting in less waste
? Fewer distractions on the job site
? Less risk of accidents
? Projects meet schedules barring delays from weather or material deliveries

Make New Hires Feel Comfortable

When you bring someone new onto your team, make sure that he or she is formally introduced to the crew he?ll be working with and knows who his immediate supervisor is for any questions or concerns.

you'll also want to make sure that everyone on the team knows what the new person?s role will be so there's no confusion.

Ensure that each person who joins the team receives safety training, even if they have previous industry experience. it's a sign that you care enough about them as workers (and individuals) to keep them safe when They are on the job. It also sends the message that you take jobsite security seriously.

Make sure your new hires have the right equipment to complete their assigned jobs properly and have adequate training in operating all types of equipment.

Improving Attitude on the Job Site

No Hazing New Employees

Let everyone know that no form of hazing, harassment or initiation of new workers will be tolerated. Each employee has already been through a hiring process. If the owner and/or managers determined that he/she is an appropriate choice for the company, then that decision stands. No further evaluation by employees is required.

Keep Job-Site Humor Appropriate

Having a sense of humor is a good trait in a prospective employee ? and telling jokes is a way to make the workday go by quickly. Make employees aware that their jokes should not single out a particular person out or make him feel uncomfortable on the job site. There are plenty of jokes and funny stories that are not offensive and do not focus on race, religion, country of origin or sexual orientation.

Offer Employees Positive Feedback

When you see the people on your team working well together, completing jobs on time and on budget and lending a hand when necessary, make sure to let them know They are doing a good job. They are getting a reward for their work when they get paid, but hearing they have done well is also important. If you can, let them leave early on a day when they finish ahead of schedule or reward your team with gift cards to a store or restaurant after a large project. they'll appreciate the gesture.

Listen to Your Employees? Concerns

One of the best things you can do to improve attitudes on the job site is to listen to a crew member who has an obvious concern. It may be job related or personal, but it's serious enough to have an impact on a worker?s job performance.

Listen carefully and without comment while your employee explains the situation and ask what you can do to remedy the problem. Your worker may have needed to confide in someone trustworthy or may need to let you know something that requires some flexibility, cooperation or type of action on your part. Take the time you need to consider all options before making an appropriate decision.

Facts before Judgment

If anyone comes to you on the job site with an allegation against a fellow worker, a supplier or one of your clients, never jump to conclusions. it'shouldn?t matter who is making the allegation. The word of a client or supplier should not carry any more weight than that of any of your employees ? nor should you assume that your workers are infallible.

Your goal is to listen and find out the facts, separated from emotions ? which can run high when people get upset. Approach every problem in a calm, non-judgmental manner in order to find out how to resolve conflicts.

Treat Everyone Fairly

Once you establish the fact that you maintain a level playing field on your job site ? and that everyone receives fair and equal treatment, your crew?s overall attitude will improve. New hires won't be out to prove themselves by trying to do more than they can handle and your more experienced workers won't assume they can get away with slacking off because they have been around longer.

All you ask for is that each person does the work to which they are assigned to the best of their abilities. This approach not only ensures that jobs will run smoothly ? attitudes on the job site shouldn?t become a major issue, either.

Why You Should Hire an Office Manager

Your contracting business is expanding and that?s great news ? but you can?t handle the office alone forever. it's a demanding business and you're going to need help. One of the first things you should consider doing is to hire an office manager.

Hiring an expert to run your office and business finances not only frees up time you can use on the job, it's been a proven turning point in the growth of many successful contracting firms.

What is an Office Manager?

An office manager is an administrative employee whose duties typically include managing the office space and supplies, managing the financial side of the business, overseeing operational staff and heading up customer service duties. They are highly valuable employees to have in a busy contracting business. Their tasks include, but are not limited to the following:

? Handling email, spreadsheets, contracts, policies and other paperwork
? Managing filing systems and databases
? Monitoring and organizing staff
? Maintaining a competent and safe workspace
? Managing finances
? Organizing the office layout
? Maintaining equipment
? Overseeing the hiring of staff
? Handling customer service requests and complaints
? Attending conferences and training

You may think you can do all this work on your own, but as a business grows, it can quickly become overwhelming. it's an office manager?s job to help you with the workload, which gives you plenty of time to focus on other important tasks. You should hire an employee specifically trained for this kind of work.

The Benefits of Hiring an Office Manager

Policies, contracts and additional daily paperwork make up for a large part of running a business. Hiring a capable office manager won't relieve you of all your administrative responsibilities, but the right person can certainly shoulder a great deal of the work you used to do yourself.

it's important to turn over the day-to-day bookkeeping and minor office decisions to them, while giving them the freedom to re-organize or establish filing systems, set up your accounting and job tracking databases and take charge of any other standard operating procedures for the office.

An office manager is also great at hiring staff members. They can inspect and research applications, set up interviews for you and make recommendations on hiring prospective employees. A good office manager will welcome new hires, explain your company?s operating procedures and maintain a positive work environment that encourages productivity. Happy employees are always better employees.

As your contracting business takes off, you'll welcome an office manager that can provide excellent customer service. According to the American Express 2014 Global Customer Barometer, more than two-thirds (68%) of consumers say that They are willing to spend more at a company they believe provides excellent customer service.

Not only that, but it's also the second most important factor consumers consider when choosing a company to do business with. An effective office manager that can deliver excellent customer service brings in more customers and more money that you'll need to grow your business.

Qualities to Look for in an Office Manager

As important as an office manager is, you want to hire the best one you can find. You never want to hire an office manager that performs poorly because that leads to poor business performance. Here are a few qualities to look for in a potential office manager:

Education: They should have at least a high school diploma, although many employers prefer that applicants hold a certificate or associate?s degree. A bachelor?s is also preferred by some employers.

Experience: An office manager should have relevant business experience. They Don't need to have worked in contracting, but they should have skills in customer service, management, accounting and customer service.

Organizational Skills: An office manager should be able to keep a tight schedule, show up on time, and meet deadlines.

Leadership Skills: An office manager should be able to lead staff members effectively and boost morale. Employees should be able to enjoy working with the manager.

Being Human: The best leaders aren?t afraid to be themselves. Office managers who respect and connect with others on a human level inspire greater loyalty.

Excellent Company Representative: Although an office manager should be encouraged to be their own unique person, they should reflect what the employer wants to convey to the public about the business.

Communication Skills: Good listening and verbal skills play an important role in any business setting. While much of an office manager?s communication will be with company staff, these skills are invaluable when dealing with clients and vendors.

In a work-heavy business like contracting, it only makes sense to hire an office manager that can help you manage the workload and build a foundation to success. A business leader is only as good as the employees he leads ? and there's nothing like having a second in command that understands and supports your vision.

Better Business Bureau Reviews Give You Extra Credibility

Business credibility has become vital in an era when even a single negative online review or customer complaint can threaten new sales and existing relationships with your clients. To establish and maintain credibility, contractors should find new methods and expend greater resources to build and maintain trust with clients.

Communicating with clients and the public in order to build business credibility requires most businesses to build an expansive online presence. Using the Internet to build credibility requires more than creating a top-quality website.

Backing up your online presence with verifiable evidence of your skills and the quality of your work is essential. The Better Business Bureau, long considered an authority on the review, verification and accreditation of reliable, ethical and trustworthy businesses, has a long and respected history in the construction industry.

While it's not the only company to do what it does, the BBB has been in the business of business long before the arrival of the Internet and has upheld its high standards of business behavior for at least triple the time other business review sit's have been around. Any business earning BBB accreditation knows that its customers regard its professional record as being honorable and dependable.

Since most potential customer inquiries still start at the BBB website, member businesses will reach those consumers first.

Why Join the Better Business Bureau?

Most of the reasons for joining the BBB are well known and self-explanatory to those in the business world. Yet, BBB accreditation provides your business with many often overlooked online benefits.

Joining the BBB can improve and increase a business?s local online presence. While the BBB is widely considered a national organization, its strongest business assistance takes place at the local level. A business whose citation (name, address and phone number) is listed with the BBB will ensure that citation is seen by every local customer who queries the BBB for businesses of their industry.

The BBB also provides a diverse list of support services for its accredited member businesses. Marketing services include the right to display the BBB logo in your place of business, on your website and job sit's, on company vehicles and on advertising materials.

Your company is given a free listing in the BBB Yellow Pages directory and a link to your business webpage will be featured on the BBB site. Your business information will be included in the BBB?s customer outreach efforts, special events and the organization?s own ad campaigns.

The BBB also provides direct support in the forms of dispute resolution between businesses and customers, direct notice when a complaint is lodged or a customer seeks information about each business and connections with other local BBB member businesses.

Joining the BBB is not free, but members have the financial benefits of both being able to deduct the BBB dues on their tax returns and knowing that those dues go to assist other local member businesses.

The BBB Increases Your Online Presence

The information on your BBB Business Review, including the link back to your company?s website, provides search engines with important information about your business. While a BBB listing is no guarantee of ensuring high search engine rankings every time, it will help to boost your overall Internet marketing efforts and provide other benefits as well.

When you display your BBB citation on your website, it will show up in local search results for your particular industry. This not only doubles your site?s presence in a general web search, it puts your credibility front and center from an SEO perspective. When partnered with industry directories, your local chamber of commerce and other online review sit's, being connected to the BBB site can be the foundation for some serious citation and credibility building.

Studies have shown that displaying reputable seals on your website can dramatically increase online visitors? confidence in your business and make them more likely to contact you. Attracting new clients to your company?s website if there's little to no proof of your skills, dependability and credibility can be challenging. Displaying the BBB seal on your site shows that your business not only meets the organization?s accreditation standards, potential customers can easily access your business reviews on either your or the organization?s site for visible proof.

Are Reviews That Significant?

Yes, they are. Consumers can learn the basics about your services by looking at your website or advertisement, but reading testimonials and good reviews can compel them to consider doing business with you. While word of mouth will always be an important method of gaining new clients, customer reviews provide great credibility for a business ? they can help you get into doors that other competitors Don't ? simply because of the number of consumers who read your public review.

As a member of the BBB, your reviews will automatically link to their main site, so make a point of actively inviting your customers to post a review on the BBB site. Consider giving your clients a card that says, ?Please rate us at BBB.org,? when you finish a construction job. Most people are more than willing to let others know about a company that does superior work.

Finally, display your reviews prominently on your website or even in your office. Because of the ever-increasing number of business review sit's on the Internet, it would be nearly impossible for a potential customer to find every single one of your positive reviews. Why not make it easier for them by compiling a list of all the sit's where your work is reviewed and feature it on your website? This allows visitors to your and the BBB sit's to check out your complete online reputation with just one or two clicks.

For prospective clients to become repeat clients, they must be confident that a company is trustworthy, delivers value and does so in a professional manner.

For these reasons, building your business credibility should be an important part of your overall marketing strategy. One of the most historically beneficial methods of doing just that is by joining the BBB. Customer reviews can drive your business to success. Are you willing to make the most of them?

Accounting Software for Contracting Businesses

At its most basic, accounting software gives you an overview of money in and money out ? as well as any capital you have stored away for business improvements or unexpected expenses. While it's tough to classify any software as ?old school,? some reliable, well-known names are popular among all businesses.

Microsoft?s Quickbooks is a popular option, as is Peachtree Accounting. These are basic, no-frills applications that perform the job well, but aren?t always suitably tailored to contracting businesses. The value of these two tried-and-true programs shouldn?t be overlooked, especially for contractors just starting out (or transitioning from old-school pen and paper accounting), but it may also be worthwhile to look into contractor-specific accounting software.

VMS For contractors

VMS for Contractors by Vertical Marketing Software allows you to track job costs and material costs and keep a running tally of your jobsite expenses. VMS for Contractors allows you to pick and choose which software features you need ? job cost software, point of sale software and an estimate-generating tool that can help you work up an estimate for your client by inputting different variables. VMS and its sister software, Ventus, are one-stop shops for contractors. VMS is the more budget-conscious option, while Ventus is a little higher in price point, but offers more features.

Visual ContraAcct

it's hard to argue with expertise and Visual ContraAcct by Job Cost Inc. was designed by financial professionals (Certified Public Accountants) with contractors in mind. Providing inventory control, point of sale options, job cost management and yes ? basic accounting software.

? Unlike other business accounting software for contractors, Visual ContraAcct provides one-on-one training for new users via telephone and web. Additional telephone support is available should you run into problems or find yourself stumped by the learning curve.

? Visual ContraAcct also helps you keep track of payroll and end-of-the-year audits and tax information by providing handy checklists that streamline the process and ensure you Don't forget any vital documents when paydays arrive or tax season looms.

Builder Information Systems (BIS)

Builder Information Systems by Management Information Control Systems is a multi-faceted program that can give you an overview of your entire contracting business with just the click of a button. You can track project costs and compare them to estimates, manage payments, invoices, payroll and purchase orders and keep track of all your vendor and supplier information in one spot, as well as track and analyze trends in your buying and income habits.

BIS offers mobile solutions that allow you to view all of this information on-the-go from a smart phone or tablet. The price is hefty ? instead of charging a monthly subscription fee, BIS requires an upfront payment starting in the low-thousands. This allows you access to all services and lets you grant more users access to your information so that you and others can review information at the same time.

Do I really need these?

Some contractors do just fine with a pen and paper, a basic Microsoft Excel spreadsheet or the aforementioned Quickbooks or Peachtree software systems. If these are working fine for you and you're comfortable with them, there's absolutely no need to make a switch ? yet.

As your business grows, day-to-day operations will allow you less time to go over the financial nuts and bolts of running a successful operation. When you get to the point where you feel overwhelmed, it may be time to look into some of these alternatives. Assess what you need and choose an accounting software program to suit those needs. there's no sense paying for something you Don't need or will never use.

Mobile apps

In today's smart phone-centered society, mobile apps can be a life-saver. If your costs suddenly change on the job site, you may not have time to take note to update your accounting software later. Mobile accounting apps for contractors or accounting software with mobile integration (like BIS), lets you access your information anywhere and update it accordingly.

If you're comfortable using your smart phone for business, a mobile accounting app or two might be just the ticket to streamline the process. For example, PayPal features a variety of free tools to help you create invoices and orders right from your mobile phone or tablet. They also offer a mobile point-of-sale reader that allows you to accept credit or debit card transactions and have that information on file for entry into your computer-based accounting software later.

Considering Overbuying Supplies for Personal Use? Think Again!

Ordering supplies for a job can be a bit challenging. On the one hand, you Don't want to be left with an excess of materials you can?t return. You also Don't want to run short on materials, especially when items need to be color-matched, such as bathroom wall and backsplash tiles or flooring. If the distributor doesn?t have the specific color you need, you won't be able to complete the work unless you're able to find it elsewhere.

Who has time to spend tracking down extra materials when you're supposed to be on a job site? Searching for materials takes time away from work that you can?t afford to waste, especially when you have more jobs lined up.

If you're ever tempted to overbuy supplies and keep them for personal use while charging the entire amount to a job, think very carefully about this practice. You must account for all of your supplies at tax time and the consequences of getting caught deliberately overcharging your clients aren?t pleasant.

Tracking your Supplies for Tax Purposes

Ideally, you want to make sure that your business and personal expenses are kept completely separate throughout the year. This is sometimes easier said than done, because it's normal to have some degree of overlap in items like your phone, computer, office supplies or vehicle expenses.

In all of these cases, you've likely used some equipment or supplies for personal reasons at least once throughout the year. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is aware of this and expects that business owners will be making claims for something less than 100 percent business use.

One way to separate business expenses from personal ones is to use a business credit card for all business purchases. you'll find it easier to track your spending and determine which purchases are to be charged to specific jobs using this method.

Using a computerized accounting program allows you to store all of your accounting records electronically. This not only makes charging the cost of labor, equipment and materials to a client easier, you'll find processing the records of any necessary returns much more straightforward.

Don't Exaggerate your Deductions

If you decide to keep extra materials to use for your personal projects, make sure They are recorded in your records in that manner. Yes, it may take extra time to account for each box or number of items you used on a project, but it's part of doing business.

Not only is it dishonest to pass on any overages to your customer, you run the risk of being caught when you present your bill for payment if it varies considerably from your final estimate. Some customers will ask you to account for the amount of materials used.

If you're not able to explain your numbers, you're not only liable to get partially or fully stiffed on the final invoice, you may be looking at a complaint to the Better Business Bureau or worse. Your customer may even consider calling the police to have you charged with attempted fraud, depending on the amount involved.

Exaggerating your numbers for supplies will also draw the attention of the IRS, especially if your income has remained at or about the same level as previous years. It could make sense that you have suddenly attracted the attention of several customers who want only want higher-end materials used, but a thorough examination of your work history would make that possibility seem suspiciously unlikely.

Penalties for Tax Evasion and Tax Fraud

If an auditor finds that you made a simple mistake when filing your income tax by failing to declare that some of your supplies were really for personal use, you'll be subject to a 20% penalty. In a situation where the auditor decides that your actions are more serious and fall into the category of tax fraud, you'll have to dig a lot deeper into your pocket to pay the civil penalty. It could end up costing you a 75% penalty.

That is not the worst thing that an IRS auditor can do to you if you are unfortunate enough to fall under his or her scrutiny, though. For especially serious cases, you can be referred to the criminal investigation division. The penalties listed above are only the civil penalties that can be levied for tax evasion and tax fraud.

Your best bet when dealing with supplies is to keep everything for business completely separate from items you'll be using for your home projects. At the very least, document your supplies and materials as if they are completely separate and be sure that customers are never charged for even a nail that wasn?t used on their project.