Vulcan Fire Systems, Inc. is a family owned business that has been serving several states since its inception in 1984. Over the past 10 years we have begun to grow and expand beyond the standard small business culture. With the opening of a branch office out of state, increased sales and doubling the number of employees we needed help ” getting our hands around” the substantial growth. After a few years of keeping the status quo, we decided to have an outside source take a look at the company as a whole. And, what an eye opening exercise it has turned out to be.
We have just completed “phase 1” of our project with Cogent Analytics, LLC. Through the course of the five weeks, we have substantially altered the culture of our company. Many things have been accomplished in this short amount of time and implementation of “work elements” have been continuous throughout the process. There have been so many areas for improvement that may seem basic or understood on the surface, that were not being done from top to bottom, that we have to take a month off just to get everyone up to speed.
The processes have covered every facet of the corporate structure, including, but not limited to, estimating, installation process, servicing accounts, human resources and the basic company hierarchy. All of the items were being implemented in some form or fashion, but without checks and balances to guarantee the continued success of our business. Now we have everything in writing, every employee knows what is expected of him or her, and has a direct person to report to, from installation technicians to myself, the President.
There is no question in my mind that if continued progress is made towards the outlines and functions put in place during Phase I, our company will be substantially better off many years down the road, and that doesn’t even include the gains we will see in the 2nd phase of the project. I believe we will continue to grow and prosper. We were a financially solid profitable company at the beginning of the project, and I can’t wait to see where we stand after a year of implementation. The future is looking brighter……
