“We are so focused on the physical aspects of everything we do in our business and personal lives, we sometimes forget the importance of the emotional connection, a basic human need. We have become transactional and no longer personal. The most successful companies handle problem resolution with a human voice and a can-do attitude to service, while others deal with problem resolution with software and a list of options,” Barry Costa writes.

“We have reached an inflection point,” Andrew Zavodney writes. “We can choose to evolve, carefully striking a balance between innovation and margins, or choose complacency, watching operational costs tick upward and diminish earnings. So for those looking to spark positive change across your organization, here are the headwinds that should be on your radar.”

Remote or third-party estimating companies focus only on estimating. Their specialist teams are made up of estimate writing wizards, geniuses of graphical estimating and magicians of macros. These dedicated estimators may have gravitated away from managing trades and keeping up with client communication, while leaning toward the technical aspects and nuts-and-bolts of how each trade handles tasks. Could remote estimating enhance your business?

“By setting and sticking to your core values, the culture you have built and the standards for the quality of work you have established won't be compromised by changes to company size and makeup. These simple ideas have guided us as we've grown from a small operation into a national leader in disaster recovery,” Jeff Moore writes.

A coach’s immediate strategy is grooming their silver medalists to become the gold standard in future Olympics. The same can be said for finding talent to add to your team. Many times the silver medalists (“B” players) are undervalued and passed over while an organization searches for the gold.

Is there one leadership style that is better than the other? Which specific leadership style is best for creating a culture that retains employees? Can one have multiple styles at once? In this column, Nicole Humber shares her perspective, and those of her employees, on effective leadership styles.

We find thought leaders in every industry — health care, technology, professional cleaning, facility management and, of course, the restoration industry. But have you ever wondered how these people became “thought leaders”? Here, Robert Kravitz shares the importance of thought leadership along with five common steps in the journey to becoming a thought leader.

“Today’s restoration software helps users estimate and manage recovery projects more efficiently than ever. This new technology is awesome, but the most important thing to remember is all software relies on good data entry, as garbage data in will result in garbage data out,” Thomas McGuire writes.

This practice is very common in many industries. Remember when you booked a plane ticket and were kept in the loop with little to no human interaction about everything from gate changes to check-in reminders to delays? What about the time you scheduled the cable guy to come out for an internet outage, and received automated texts and emails with updates?

“We as an industry only know how to check these moisture content levels and have no insight into controlling or evaluating the primary metrics that are determining the length of time it takes to get these materials back to acceptable levels,” Chuck Dewald III writes. “Our industry is drying completely backward!”