Plan for the Future of Your Business

I asked him what he did about it.

Nothing. He's a few years from retirement and I'm not gonna fire him. This guy isn't gonna change who he is.

This encounter is a lot of things, but two things jump out at me.

Número Uno: It's disrespectful on a fundamentally human level.

Número Dos: It's incredibly poor business sense.

If this manager doesn't change, the customers will. Disrespect customers long enough and they'll find somewhere else to buy. 

Maybe the setting is retail, maybe it's the jobsite or maybe it's the construction trailer - regardless, ask yourself this question: How do we treat those individuals necessary for our success?

You may not like the changing demographic landscape of America. You may not like the changing demographic of the construction industry. But you better respect it.

Bradley Hartmann is el presidente and founder of Red Angle - a Spanish language training firm focused exclusively on the construction industry. He can be reached at bradley@redanglespanish.com and www.redanglespanish.com.