National
Clothesline
How to build and maintain quality
By Ron Sarni
A quality product in the drycleaning
business can not be bought and resold. Garment care
professionals must manufacture their product daily.
The results can be mixed. Inconsistent
quality can result in lost customers, negative word of mouth
advertising, stressful situations for CSR’s and managers,
a poor public reputation and loss of employee moral.
On the other hand, when your company
delivers a consistent quality product, it will result in
attracting new business, increased profits, less stressful
situations, great public image, a happier workforce and a much
more pleasant boss.
OK, sounds good. So how is it achieved?
It can not be mandated. It is more than stating to the
public and your workforce, “we are all about
quality.”
Quality is more than a desire to be great
at what you do. A consistent quality product is the result of
the company leader nurturing, educating, providing the proper
tools and setting the performance standards of your team. The
leader must embody a culture of quality performance.
You can hire experienced people who have
track records for producing quality, but there is no guarantee
the quality performance will continue. If you are in a second-
or third-generation family business, you know that quality is
not passed from generation to generation. Each leadership
change must be committed to achieving a quality product, by
building a company culture of quality performance.
In a small package plant, achieving
quality and building a crew that embodies the owner’s
commitment often comes from “putting your nose to the
grindstone” and making sure those around you adhere to
your professional standards.
In medium or large size plants, this gets
more and more difficult to maintain. Creating processes for
your quality standards is critical to maintaining quality. If
you find yourself fighting to get quality from your staff, you
have to look deeper than your staff’s performance.
You have to ask yourself about the
culture within your company. Is it within the culture of your
organization to consistently produce and adhere to high
standards of quality?
I speak with many drycleaners who tell
me, “Yes, as long as I’m there.” They add
that achieving quality is a constant battle, especially in
situations where pressers are on piece-work. There are diligent
owners in the industry who will guard their quality from the
first piece to the last. But the true test is when you’re
not there!
In order to run your business
successfully, achieve growth and maximize profits, you cannot
be chained to the plant. To be successful you must have
consistent quality and continued growth. The way to accomplish
this is to build a culture of quality performance by trained
and dedicated garment care professionals who enjoy their jobs,
are proud of their performance and become loyal and dedicated
employees.
It’s not about being a taskmaster.
In order to build and maintain quality, you must first build a
committed group of team players who value and respect the job
of being “garment care professionals.”
Yes, training is important, but I have
met great, quality-oriented people who have no formal technical
training. Building a team of quality performance players allows
the company to excel in other revenue-building profit centers,
such as building home delivery, increasing wedding gown sales,
drapery, linen or other profit areas.
Yes, product quality is the pathway to
future profits and drycleaning happiness. Successful results
allow for higher prices, less complaints, reduced claims, and
create a happy, well-rewarded staff.
So, what is the problem? The problem is
that it is extremely tough to do. Where do you find these
individuals? What do you have to pay them? How do you get them
to stay? Why would they want to stay for the long run?
Companies in all industries face this
problem daily. The answer lies in the culture of your
organization. As the leader of this organization, it is your
job to create, direct and maintain the company culture that
best suits the needs and the mission of the organization. In
the drycleaning business, the most successful model to be a
profitable, organized, well-run company is to employ a staff of
dedicated and well-trained team of “Garment Care
Professionals.”
If this model is achieved, employees of
high caliber will find you. Your company will be attractive to
people — not just industry professionals, but
people who are looking for entry level positions. People who
are looking for a good, steady job that will meet their needs
to have a rewarding and fulfilling job experience.
In any position, it is not as much about
the money as it is about the environment of where you work. If
you are unhappy in that environment, that will have a huge
impact on how well you do your job. People want to have a work
environment where they fit in, are comfortable, are appreciated
for their work effort, are rewarded when appropriate and
corrected when and where appropriate.
In short, it is the culture of the
organization that people will perform for, not threats or
ultimatums that will backfire. Achieve this culture and you
will find that turnover is reduced and employees want to stay.
The culture will protect itself from others that do not adhere
to its values. The team leaders will expose a person who does
not play by the rules.
Most important, it is the leader’s
job to build the team into a championship team. Team- building
has to be of a major concern. Do not take lightly the fact that
your choice of adding a new team member or replacing one
greatly affects the whole team. You’re dealing with a
living culture. Tread warily.
Professionals want to be in a work
environment where quality is paramount. They want to be proud
of their place of employment. This is what you want to create!
Passion, dedication, the desire to be the best, and the desire
to win have to come from the leader and must be instilled in
the whole organization.
The performance of your staff in all
facets of the company, including the cleanliness of the plant,
the maintenance of the call office, the product standards, and
even the way you personally conduct yourself, determines
quality performance. Adhering to high industry standards,
setting an example, and being committed to leadership is the
way to build and maintain quality.
Ron Sarni is an industry consultant and
the president of Sarni Corporation.
You can reach him by e-mail at ronsarni@mac.com.
You can reach him by e-mail at ronsarni@mac.com.