Build Quality In, Don’t Add It On

The word “quality” suffers from the same problem that “team” does in U.S. business. For the past 25 years, companies insist that they do quality work and that all their employees work as a team. Yet, when forced to put their money where their mouths are, not everyone can back up their claims. In design/build quality, those who actually practice what they preach insist that quality isn’t an add-on, it is part of the culture.

HartmanBaldwin, a design/build firm in Claremont, Calif., does about $10 million in annual business. “We do a lot of marketing and advertising, but referrals and repeat business are our life blood,” says Bill Baldwin, principal. “To get referrals and repeat business, we have had to build a reputation on quality.” He defines three elements to success in this area — management commitment, careful hiring and client interaction.

Regarding management, according to Baldwin, any quality program has to be ingrained into the management culture from the top. “For example, I make a habit of personally walking through projects to make sure we’re maintaining our quality levels,” he says. “Furthermore, everyone in the company knows that we place quality above economics.”

When hiring, the company looks for applicants who make quality a high priority. “A lot of people say they’re carpenters, but they can’t seem to read the small marks on the measuring tape,” he jokes. HartmanBaldwin looks for applicants who demonstrate character and a personal pride in quality.

On the architectural side, he admits, it can be a bit more difficult identifying applicants with quality commitments. “We receive a lot of high-quality résumés,” he explains. “But all that means is that the guy’s wife has a degree in English. What we look for is someone who demonstrates a commitment to quality during the interviews.” The company’s long probationary period helps to determine whether to retain someone as a permanent employee or not.

The company spends a lot of time educating potential clients about quality so it can differentiate itself from the competition. Then, once it gets the business, it conducts frequent client surveys throughout the project to make sure clients are satisfied with the work being done. Quality is a major component of the survey, which utilizes a 1-to-5 scale. Currently, HartmanBaldwin averages a 4.8 rating. “If we get a 3.0 or below from anyone, we figure out why,” he emphasizes. And if a project is rated below 4.6 in total, people don’t get their bonuses.

Christo Design/Build in Lincoln, Neb., with annual revenues of $1 million, hires subcontractors for new home construction, but maintains its own small crew for remodels and additions. “We also use our own employees for specialized new construction work, such as building arches,” explains Jim Christo, president. Like HartmanBaldwin, Christo Design/Build sees success in quality as being the result of management commitment, careful hiring, managing of employees and subs, and surveying clients.

Similar to HartmanBaldwin, Christo depends on referrals and repeat business. The company’s approach to quality is succeeding. “About 80-plus percent of our work comes from referrals and repeat business,” he reports.

A nearby community college’s building construction technology program, for which Christo is an adviser, is used as an employee farm. “In the past eight to 10 years, I haven’t hired anyone who hasn’t been a graduate of that program,” he states. This reduces the likelihood of getting employees who aren’t fully committed to the profession.

When it comes to subcontractors, Christo is aware that everyone who has been in business a few years claims to be a quality contractor. “But how do you define quality?” he wonders. Christo was on a National Association of Home Builders’ committee a few years ago that was involved with rewriting residential construction performance guidelines. “This really helped me to define quality,” he says.