- Owned and Operated Weekly Insights
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- From $3M/Year to $3M in ONE Month
What’s up everyone,
The busy summer season (cya later winter) is closing in, and with that, the opportunity to scale is knocking on your door.
From improving workflows to leveraging AI and overseas labor, today’s podcast is all about defining a strategy to help you scale efficiently without skyrocketing overhead costs.
We talk about:
The important of proactive systems, not reactive hiring
Replacing overhead with tools and and talent
Operational alignment
…and that’s just the start!
Special Thanks To Owned and Operated Pro
Are you looking for a serious edge in the home services arena?
If you’re in home services and serious about scaling, OAOPro is where you need to be.
This isn’t a “tips and tricks” group—it’s a vetted network of owners and operators building real businesses in HVAC, plumbing, electrical, and other trades.
Each month, you’ll get access to an open-book retrospective from a $30M+ company, plus insights from members doing anywhere from $1M to $20M+ in revenue.
You’ll also get small group chats, live events, discounts from Pro Partners, and behind-the-scenes case studies on what’s actually working.
If you’re tired of guessing and ready to grow with a peer group that’s in it with you—join OAOPro today.
On The Pod This Week
Growth doesn’t just happen. It’s carefully planned.
In 2019, we did $3 million in total revenue. That was great, but far from where I wanted to be. So I got to work on finding a way to scale efficiently.
The result? A defined growth strategy that will allow us to hit that number—$3 million—in July 2025 alone.
Speaking of growth, listen to our “from plumbing to profits” podcast for a crazy-inspiring story.
Ok, let’s get to it. Here’s how you can set your company up for smart growth.
Hiring late is why most businesses stall out
I used to scramble every summer. Crews overbooked, phones ringing nonstop, and I’d be throwing bodies at the problem—usually too late. That changed when we got serious about forecasting.
We built a staff planning worksheet that shows how many techs we’ll need months in advance.
If a team is booked out more than 4 days, that’s our signal to start hiring—immediately.
Our average time-to-fill is 35 days, so if we need someone in May, we’re recruiting in March.
This is how we avoid panic hiring and bad fits. Growth doesn’t come from working harder in the summer. It comes from building the bench in the winter.
Scale the business, not the overhead
Every time we grew, we used to hire more overhead just to “keep up.” But by fall, I’d realize half of those roles weren’t actually needed—and the profit was gone. So we made a hard rule: growth doesn’t mean bloating.
We now default to offshore or AI support for admin roles. Anything repetitive gets automated or outsourced.
This year, we only approved two in-office hires: a dedicated trainer and a sales coordinator.
Our entire ops team is trained to ask, “What breaks if we double volume?” Then we solve that before it breaks. Simple.
We’re not adding overhead just to feel productive. We’re adding leverage. That’s how we’re aiming for a 30% net month this summer, with the same back office we had in March.
Your vendors should (must) scale with you
When you go from $500K months to $1.3M months in 30 days, inventory becomes your biggest risk. I’ve lived it. Jobs delayed, crews idle, revenue lost. Now we treat our suppliers like partners, and we prep them like one of our teams.
We meet weekly with our HVAC, plumbing, and electrical vendors starting in March to go over summer demand. These types of meetings are the foundation for a strong vendor relationship.
I tell them exactly how many units, water heaters, or generators we’re expecting to move by SKU.
I ask one simple question: “Can you support us at 50% more volume, or not?”
If the answer’s no, we’re going elsewhere. Growth is hard enough without your supplier slowing you down.
This isn’t harsh advice. It’s reality. For more context, listen to the full episode of Owned & Operated ⬇️.
⚡ Shout Out to Quick Staffers ⚡
Jack Carr, my podcast co-host, just launched Quick Staffers, designed to place overseas CSRs who are pre-trained with HVAC and plumbing knowledge.
They’re already running proven SOPs and scripts from both mine and Jack’s call center.
It’s a total game-changer for growing your team without blowing your budget. Right now, he’s offering a soft launch special—$1,000 off per placement!
See you in Friday’s newsletter. 👊
John
Disclosure: This newsletter includes sponsored content. However, all opinions expressed are entirely my own.
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