In any Nascar race, there are several times during the race when full speed racing has been interrupted or slowed down due to an obstruction on the track, usually caused by an accident or track conditions.
A yellow caution flag is presented, requiring slower speeds, no passing, etc. The pace car emerges from pit row and sets the speed for those cars on the track.
During this time, drivers often elect to go to their pits, get fuel, new tires and make adjustments to their car, knowing they are not losing ground by doing so.
As track conditions improve, the cars re-enter the race and continue to move under caution. Each team formulates its strategy for the restart based on how it was performing before the delay, the competitive situation (i.e. who crashed?), when and how quickly the race will restart, and the individual strengths and weaknesses of the team.
While a good restart and effective strategy for fuel and tires are key to taking the lead or even the checkered flag, a bad restart could shatter hopes for a good performance for the day, and perhaps the entire season.
Right now, many remodeling companies are operating under caution, and some, unfortunately, have taken themselves out of the race. Some owners have been able to actively work on their businesses, while others have been limited to taking a break and being left with lots of time to think.
For all, the restart will be critical. It will be different in every state and even in common locations; competing businesses will have different situations, varying strengths and weaknesses and be positioned differently for success.
Now is the time for you, as a remodeling business owner, to assess your own situation; how is the delay in “the race” unfolding and how well-positioned are you and your team to go from yellow to green, once the flag is waved.
Your remodeling company should be looking at:
- Marketing messages, tactics and strategies
- Sales pipeline, processes and closing ratios
- Job scheduling, sales-to-production handoffs and jobsite organization
- Do you have the right people and are they in the right positions?
- Processes, procedures and standards designed to bring work in on-time an on-budget.