Our overall experience with the discovery has been eye-opening. We have learned how little we knew about running a business and that we are going to have to work diligently to implement key changes to meet our objectives. I have compiled feedback from Phyllis and Allen and have included below my synopsis.
My personal experience through this process has been positive from start to finish. From the initial meeting with Dan Rover up to the final week of discovery. There are many things that we have known we needed to fix for years but did not know how to start. Cash Management, Budgeting, SOPs, defining responsibilities, and holding employees and ourselves accountable are issues that I have known needed to be addressed but didn’t really know how to start implementing. The financial tools that Cogent has provided will undoubtedly help streamline our office and make it substantially more proficient. In addition, this will enable us to better track data and eliminate guessing. I look forward to seeing the progress we will make from our investment with Cogent.
Allen’s Notes:
When first meeting with the Cogent Team, it was Dan Rover who introduced us to the service. Then we met Merlin, he scared me with his brutal honesty, but it is exactly what we needed. Though I was apprehensive I agreed, along with my partners, to move forward with the Cogent plan.
Then there was Kris, this person is a total professional. Her knowledge and command of everything is impressive. Her skill set seems to be tailor-made for this. The analysis of our needs and the processes and systems implemented will be beneficial to A & M Mechanical’s success.
Mike is our Cogent business development professional. Mike has provided us with tools to track our bidding success and ideas to drive sales. He has even identified a member of our team that we believe will be able to fill the role of driving more sales. This is something that I thought about, but Mike’s insight into how to implement it will help us move forward.
Phyllis’ Notes:
Billy Hardison was very helpful when our customer payments did not come through in a timely manner and our cash flow bottomed out. I was surprised that the payment could not be strung out differently. When talking to Merlin, he said if we did not have the money, we would be good as long as we paid something each week. This is a huge commitment for A & M and we always struggle this time of year. We were able to have payments pushed back a week, but Kris put a lot of pressure on us to come up with the money. I ended up borrowing money, which pretty much defeats the purpose of finding places to streamline.
The budgeting process and building a strategic plan was excellent.
CMS is a great tool, but it is very complicated. I was pleased when Tawnia was allowed to manually do the imputing. I know this will help her remember how to do this. I am looking forward to actively using this tool.
The structure this training brings to A & M has been needed for a long time. Having someone from outside looking in objectively is eye-opening for us all. We are committed to implementing the tools given to us. Having access to reach out when needed as well and Cogent follow-up is a powerful incentive to keep us on track.
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In closing, nothing easy is worth it and nothing worth it is easy. We know we have work to do, and it will not happen overnight. Cogent has provided us with the insight and tools to help us get to where we want and need to be, and we will persevere.
Matthew T. Price
A&M Mechanical Services, Inc. can handle all your heating service needs in Hermitage, Nashville, TN and the surrounding areas.
Commercial Heating and Air Conditioning Services
https://ammechservices.com/
