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Ride-Alongs and Working Interviews: How to Test a Tech Before You Hire
A candidate can ace an interview and still be a disaster in the field. The only way to really know how a tech works is to watch them work. A ride-along or working interview reveals in a few hours what a résumé and a conversation never will. Here’s how to run one — and do it right.
Build a Tech Career Ladder: Apprentice to Lead in 4 Levels
Techs don’t just leave for more money — they leave when they can’t see a future. A career ladder fixes that by showing every tech exactly how to grow, earn more, and advance without leaving your shop. Here’s how to build one with four clear levels, from apprentice to lead.
The Daily Huddle: A 12-Minute Meeting That Runs Your Whole Day
The most productive shops in the trades almost all share one habit: a short daily huddle. Twelve focused minutes each morning aligns the team, surfaces problems before they blow up, and sets the tone for the whole day. Here’s an agenda template you can run starting tomorrow.
25 Interview Questions for Service Technicians (With Good Answers)
A resume tells you what a tech has done; a good interview tells you whether they’ll succeed at your shop. The trick is asking questions that reveal real skill, judgment, and character — not ones anyone can bluff. Here are 25 interview questions for service technicians, with what a good answer sounds like.
How to Write a Technician Job Ad That Gets 30 Applicants
A great technician job ad is the difference between 3 unqualified applicants and 30 good ones. Most contractor job posts are boring lists of requirements that repel the exact people you want. Here’s how to write a technician job ad that actually gets applicants — with a template.
Technician Pay Plans Compared: Hourly Commission and Hybrid
How you pay your techs shapes how they behave — for better or worse. Straight hourly, commission, or a hybrid each pulls the business in a different direction. Pick the wrong structure and you get either unmotivated techs or ones who oversell and torch your reputation. Here’s how the pay models compare.
The First 30 Days: An Onboarding Plan for New Service Techs
You worked hard to hire a good tech — now the first 30 days decide whether they stay and thrive or quietly check out. A structured onboarding plan turns a nervous new hire into a confident, productive team member fast. Here’s a first-30-days checklist for new service techs.
What Turnover Really Costs You Per Technician (And How to Cut It)
When a good tech quits, you feel the sting — but most owners badly underestimate the real cost. It’s not just the ad to replace them; it’s months of lost productivity, training, and disruption that can total more than the tech’s annual salary. Here’s how to calculate what turnover actually costs you, and how to cut it.
Working With Subcontractors: Agreements Insurance Certs and Payment Terms
Using subcontractors lets you scale up and down without carrying full payroll — but a handshake deal is a lawsuit waiting to happen. A proper subcontractor agreement, plus the right insurance certificates and payment terms, protects you from liability, tax trouble, and disputes. Here’s what you need.
Company Vehicle Policy Template: Driving Fuel Cards and Personal Use
Company trucks are a huge investment and a huge liability — and without a written vehicle policy, you’re one accident or fuel-card abuse away from a mess. A clear policy protects your vehicles, controls costs, and sets expectations. Here’s a template covering driving, fuel cards, and personal use.
Staffing for Peak Season: Temp Hires Overtime and Cross-Training
When your busy season hits, you need more hands — but you don’t want to carry that payroll through the slow months. Staffing for peak demand is a balancing act between temp hires, overtime, and cross-training. Here’s how to cover your peak without overstaffing your valleys.
Building an Apprenticeship Program at a 10-Person Shop
With skilled techs in short supply and getting harder to hire, the best long-term fix is to grow your own. An apprenticeship program lets a small shop develop loyal, skilled techs from scratch — and you don’t need to be a big company to run one. Here’s how to start one at a 10-person shop.
Spiffs and Bonus Structures That Don't Wreck Your Margins
Spiffs and bonuses can supercharge your team’s performance — or quietly destroy your margins and push techs to oversell. The difference is design. Here are bonus and spiff structures that motivate the right behavior without wrecking your profit or your reputation.
Hiring Your First Office Manager or CSR: Role Pay and Scorecard
There’s a moment in every growing service business when the owner realizes they’re drowning in phone calls, scheduling, and paperwork — and none of it is the work that grows the company. That’s when you hire your first office manager or CSR. Here’s how to define the role, what to pay, and how to measure success.
When to Hire a General Manager and Step Out of the Truck
Most service businesses hit a ceiling — the owner is the bottleneck, working in the business so hard there’s no time to work on it. Hiring a general manager is how you break through: someone to run day-to-day operations so you can lead and grow. Here’s how to know when it’s time and how to step out of the truck.
Tech Scorecards: 8 KPIs to Review With Every Technician Monthly
You can’t coach what you don’t measure. A monthly tech scorecard turns vague impressions (“he seems fast,” “she’s good with customers”) into clear numbers you can review, reward, and improve. Here are 8 KPIs to put on every technician’s scorecard.
Where to Actually Find Skilled Techs in 2026 (12 Sources Ranked)
The hardest part of growing a service business in 2026 isn’t finding customers — it’s finding skilled techs. The good ones are already employed, and job boards alone won’t reach them. Here are 12 sources for finding technicians, ranked by how well they actually work.
Background Checks and Drug Testing for Home Service Hires: Legal Basics
Your techs go into customers’ homes — so trust isn’t optional. Background checks (and, where appropriate, drug testing) protect your customers, your reputation, and your business from a bad hire. But screening is legally regulated, and getting it wrong creates its own liability. Here are the legal basics.
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