Talent Search

Today’s “whotailers,” a key link in the kitchen/bath industry’s product supply chain, find themselves faced with more challenges than ever – including a slowdown in the housing sector, competition from “big boxes” and the task of finding and retaining qualified personnel.

Whotailers have always adapted to a changing industry, learning to sell retail as well as wholesale as distribution patterns changed. History has also taught whotailers how to cope with ongoing challenges by becoming more diversified. For example, when the builder business gets soft, whotailers invariably lean on the remodeling and retail sectors to help stay the course. And, when the big boxes start to infringe on their volume, whotailers offer more unique, competitive products to combat the pressure.

However, when it comes to staffing their businesses with qualified people, the challenge becomes even more daunting. Finding the right people to design and sell what they design is no easy task. Whotailers report that they generally find employees who understand the fundamentals of design, but do not have a clue about how to close a sale. Or, they find people with sales experience who could not put the proverbial square peg in a square hole. As a result, the position of sales/designer continues to be an elusive one to fill.

What follows is a look at four major kitchen/bath wholesale/retail firms and how they approach finding and retaining qualified employees.

Markraft Cabinets

Headquartered in Wilmington, NC, Markraft Cabinets is a whotailer that began operations some 22 years ago, and has also been serving the Myrtle Beach, SC market for the past 10 years. The company provides kitchen cabinetry and countertops to the builder and remodeling market segments through four showrooms, with a fifth scheduled to open this month. Markraft employs 110 people.

According to chief operating officer Alan Tew, Markraft has a unique approach to finding new employees. About 18 months ago, it developed and filled a position for a full-time recruiter who relies on the Internet, local publications, supplier referrals and word-of-mouth to find people.

When the process begins, a screening is conducted by telephone to pare a list of some 100 candidates to about 12 – and then, to three or four. Tew notes that using a recruiter to conduct a search has been positive for the company because the recruiter knows the characteristics of the job and is not burdened with other responsibilities.

According to Tew, the most difficult positions to fill are that of the installer and salesperson. The goal in each case, he notes, is to have three people conduct the interviews. The first interview is with the department supervisor; the next is with the store manager; the third is with the division director. All three must agree on a candidate’s strengths and weaknesses before an offer is made.

What makes this process work well is that when Markraft hired the recruiter, it formalized job descriptions in order to clearly define the responsibilities and individual characteristics necessary to meet the demands of each position. This makes it easier for the recruiter to sift through the applications to find qualified candidates. The job description serves another purpose: It clarifies the expectations of the job, so that there is no misconception as to what a person will be doing in that position, eliminating the common defensive statement, “I didn’t know I was supposed to be doing that.”

Training is also key to an employee’s success. Tew says that Markraft has an in-house trainer, and people with no experience receive six weeks of training.

That training, Tew observes, includes going on job sites with installers and learning some of the challenges they face. The training also sees new hires spending time in the warehouse learning the inventory and seeing merchandise received and prepared for job-site deliveries. Major suppliers provide product knowledge, while CAD training is done in house. New employees also learn ordering systems and similar issues. Installers learn on-the-job, he adds.