Business Doldrums ...and finding help

[Joe And Penny Goss]

This is a multi-part message in MIME format.

---------------------- multipart/alternative attachment
Hi TP,
Only if you sign your posts will I ever learn who you are.
TP is as ambiguous as anon.
Pretty please
Joe Goss
imatunr@srvinet.com
www.mothergoosetools.com
  ----- Original Message -----=20
  From: Topperpiano@aol.com=20
  To: pianotech@ptg.org=20
  Sent: Thursday, May 13, 2004 7:29 AM
  Subject: Re: Business Doldrums ...and finding help


  Over the years I have hired people to work in my shop.  I got pretty =
good at training people to do action work.  You just have to break down =
the steps to manageable, understandable elements like polishing capstans =
and front pins, cleaning parts, bushing keys, etc. I left the more =
complicated stuff like drilling a set of hammers or hanging them for =
myself.  I did manage to train one gal who had been a housekeeper at a =
hotel (making minimum wage) to do very basic regulating and paid her =
double what she had been making. Stay at home Moms and retirees like to =
do something and are really flexible with their hours in that they don't =
really want full time jobs.  In my area we have lost several active =
techs for various reasons and I am really covered up.  The dealer that I =
work for two days a week (because he sells very high end pianos and =
gives me total control over what I do to prep them) was making demands =
that exceeded my time so I am training a less experienced tech who had =
not had the chance to train on high end pianos.  The deal that I have =
worked out with the tech and the dealer is that he comes in one day a =
week and I supervise his tuning and regulating work.  He works for free =
and I get paid my usual rate while I supervise/teach him and also work =
on other pianos.  In exchange for the new tech's work the store and I =
give him the lower end work (and take no cut) that I don't want to do.  =
The new tech has had a giant jump in his business, gets trained and I =
don't have to try to beg off on older uprights and spinets. The dealer =
gets more work done for the same money and is also developing a good =
relationship with another tech who can fill in for me when I have other =
obligations.  I expect that this arrangement will stick through the =
summer when things are slow and we'll return to our normal working =
arrangements when things pick up in the fall.  By the way I don't see =
the business slowing down at all.  In fact I think that this particular =
dealer's business has picked up considerably in the last 6 months. TP 
---------------------- multipart/alternative attachment
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: https://www.moypiano.com/ptg/pianotech.php/attachments/68/9e/cf/7c/attachment.htm

---------------------- multipart/alternative attachment--