The Secret to your Success: Keeping Top Technicians

It’s no secret that any pest control business would be up a creek without good technicians. One of the most frustrating parts of operating a pest control business is losing your best ones with little or no warning.

Building a strong team of technicians doesn’t happen by accident. It takes a conscious effort and a commitment to creating a workplace that makes your technicians feel satisfied, supported, and valued.

Your techs work hard for your pest control business doing a job that your clients can’t or won’t take on themselves. The work can be dirty and uncomfortable, which is why it’s doubly important to put as much into your employees as you’re asking of them.

Here are two points to keep in mind as you debate shifting more resources to technician training and retention:

• Extremely low unemployment means your technicians have choices, both inside and outside the industry. Millennial employeeshave made a sport of job-hopping, so it’s important to make sure your workplace is the right fit now and the right fit later.

• Employee turnover is expensive. Think about how much it costs to recruit and train a new employee, not to mention the gap in productivity that occurs as you fill the position and your new technician gets comfortable in the job. Good employees appreciate in value, which directly affects customer satisfaction and the success of your business.

To calculate your turnover cost, a recent Huffington Post article recommends this formula:

(Hiring Cost + Onboarding/Training Cost + Development Cost + Unfilled Role Cost)

X          (Number of Employees X Annual Turnover %)

=          Annual Cost of Turnover

When you’re dealing in actual figures rather than feeling, the urgency for strong technician retention is magnified.

We've created this checklist to help you create a happy and satisfied team of pest control technicians who wouldn't think of leaving you for a competitor.