Do the Job Right - The DunnWell Blog
The DunnWell blog is all about service trade work and how to optimize outcomes for BOTH the customer and the vendor. We believe in WIN-WIN solutions. Read on and see if you agree with our philosophy.
PlotWatt? Plot What? Plot Everything!
To improve, you must first measure. And measuring is getting easier with cloud computing. The problem with a lot of software solutions is that the medicine is often more toxic than the disease - implementing and maintaining the system is so ugly that the benefit never emerges. The best applications are those that provide value without much investment in setup and inputs. Witness the SaaS revolution and the market value of Salesforce.com. And even their software requires quite a bit of “out of band” data entry to begin handing back benefits - but the friction for technology set-up is minimal.
Read MoreThe Big Picture - Service Trade Jobs
Smart labor in a connected world - the future of service trade work.
Read MoreWhat's a Picture Worth?
Apparently a whole bunch if DunnWell's experience is an indicator. DunnWell got started as a Kitchen Exhaust Cleaning company with a single differentiating factor – digital photos validating work done in the middle of the night inside of a duct system that is difficult to inspect. Now DunnWell is a very large and growing company specializing in a full range of Fire Protection services and serving over 12,000 locations nationwide. And digital photos on ServiceNET remain a key differentiating factor for the company.
Read MoreDefining Service Trade Technology
Since I have claimed time and again that DunnWell is a service trade technology company, I suppose it is time to define the category of service trade technology. It is also important to outline why I, or anyone else for that matter, should care about service trade technology. Why is it a relevant area of endeavor?
Read MoreIn the Search for Savings, Don’t Fight Inflation
Inflation will ultimately win, and quality will lose. Fight ignorance to discover savings that last. The deflationary experience of the past 3 years may lead some to believe that fighting inflation will continue to yield rewards for those that manage service trade expenses. The rates for skilled labor, quality materials, and fuel have generally declined in the face of higher unemployment and slack demand (fuel being the exception thanks to Chinese consumption). I will argue, however, that fighting inflation is futile over the long haul. Attacking labor rates and material costs, and even, ultimately vendor profits, will prove to be an unsustainable strategy for savings. When demand improves and supply tightens (i.e. unemployment drops), the savings will disappear – replaced by poor service and low quality outcomes.
Read MoreDunnWell is No. 7 in NC Fast 40
The growth awards just keep coming.
Read MoreDunnWell is a Triangle Fast 50 Company
DunnWell was recognized as one of the 50 fastest growing companies in the Research Triangle Park region.
Read MoreMyLowes Was Today's Low
I was sorely disappointed when I cracked open my new MyLowes account today. I am in the facility productivity/technology business at DunnWell. And I was hoping to garner some useful insights into managing a consumer facility (my house) when I initiated a MyLowes account from the home improvement powerhouse - Lowes. Boy, was I disappointed.
Read MoreA Whale(y) of a Software Problem
Beware high risk, onsite service software. Two days ago I read this article in ComputerWorld about Whaley Food Service suing Epicor for a botched ERP software implementation. The budget for the project was about $200K, and the actual cost for a failed implementation exceeded $1M. WOW!
Read MoreHow Much Extra Will Guaranteed Savings Cost You?
The easiest way to guarantee savings is to stop spending money. And any vendor that promises you guaranteed savings is certain to put systems in place that limit the amount of money you spend. But "guaranteed savings" does not necessarily mean a better outcome or higher profits. It just means that you did not spend as much money over some arbitrary period of time relative to some other equally arbitrary period of time. Let's look at the simple example of a personal automobile.
Read MoreWhat's Up with Promoting "Self Performing?"
I am amazed at how many vendors in the facility service industry promote "self performing" as their primary value. Perhaps they consider "self performing" to be some sort of code phrase for "superior management system." But is that really true? I don't think so. In fact, an employer-employee relationship can present challenges that are more easily resolved with a subcontractor relationship.
Read MoreChicken Technology
You can learn a lot about facility services from chickens. DunnWell's CTO, Brian Smithwick, grew up on a chicken farm. He learned a lot about how to innovate to save money. And today we are thankful for those lessons because he does things with technology that are cheap but have a huge impact. Follow Brian's musings on how to deliver great technology for facility services on the cheap at his chickentechnology blog.
Read MoreNews and Views
PlotWatt? Plot What? Plot Everything!
The Big Picture - Service Trade Jobs
What's a Picture Worth?
Apparently a whole bunch if DunnWell's experience is an indicator.
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