Peterman Brothers betting on technician development, virtual sales in 2025
On an hour-long Zoom call, CFO Michael Sullivan and COO Andrew Hasty walked me through the company's key bets for next year
As private equity dollars pour into the HVAC industry, many contractors — at least for now — are sticking with the independent path. One of those companies is Indiana-based Peterman Brothers.
In 2025, the company’s making a few key bets that CFO Michael Sullivan and COO Andrew Hasty walked me through on an hour-long Zoom call.
The big picture: The company has two simple goals next year: Open new locations and grow existing ones.
On new locations: Peterman’s strategy is to grow from Indiana outward. Once the team identifies a new location, they’ll hire a branch manager three to four months before launching.
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“We learn the vendors in that area, then we find technicians, an install team, and a sales rep,” Sullivan tells me.
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“To teach them our systems, sales philosophy, and processes, we’ll try to hire all those positions about a month before we launch,” he adds.
Of note: Peterman is piloting a filter delivery program at new locations starting next year. “Is that something we [can] market ahead of time to build out a customer base?” Hasty, the ops wiz, asks.
On existing locations: Hasty outlined three parts to growing existing branches in 2025: Re-committing to the field, reimagining dispatch, and optimizing replacement sales via virtual consultations.
Into the field: The company is launching a “Paths to Progression” program.
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“[It] uses effort and execution KPIs so our field professionals have a clear trajectory for their growth — and there are pay bands assigned to them,” Hasty says.
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“Execution KPIs might be membership sales or conversion, and effort KPIs are how many options you presented, how many reviews you got, or your driver score,” he adds.
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“It’s to say to them, ‘You want to get promoted and advance in your career?’ Here’s what you gotta do.”
Zoom in: Peterman is also revamping its “Top Tech Academy” for green talent. “The classroom model isn’t the way to do it; it needs to be apprenticeship-style,” Hasty notes.
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“I think our first class had 30 students, and I thought that made no sense. The classes have to align with company demand,” he adds.
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“I went to our data guys and asked how many students we needed to launch classes, and found that it was guesswork. A manager was like, ‘I think I need two maintenance techs.’ But all these [other] variables were ignored.”
“We have to get people to fall in love with the trades, and they’re not gonna fall in love working in a lab,” he explains.
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“They’re gonna fall in love by working with people who inspire them. They need to be in customers’ homes; they need to be in our employees’ homes.”
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“If you don’t wanna get in an attic, you’re only gonna know that by getting in an attic.”
On dispatch: The company aims to evolve dispatching into a “sales operations division” that essentially serves as the company’s brain.
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Zoom in: They plan on establishing sub-divisions that own different parts of traditional dispatching, like assigning calls and managing routing.
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On top of that, they’ll be spinning up a dedicated team to focus solely on customer satisfaction — every sub-division will be housed under the parent “sales ops division.”
On replacement sales: Peterman is doubling down on its “virtual sales” process.
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“When we have a replacement opportunity, [customers] can choose to have a virtual comfort advisor give them live replacement quotes. Instant options have really empowered customer choice,” Hasty explains.
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How it works: “The field professional would present repair options in the home, but if the customer is interested in a replacement, our turnover hotline is called.”
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“The field professional conducts a site survey, so the virtual comfort advisor will have studied it already, and within 5-10 minutes, they’ll be connected with the customer, live.”
Editor’s note: If you’re a contractor interested in discussing your company’s strategy and operations, shoot us an email.
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