How Executive Coaching Is Helping a General Contractor Move from Operator to Business Owner
Growing a business often means learning to let go. Through executive coaching, a Triangle-based general contractor is stepping further away from day-to-day operations so he can focus on becoming the business owner he wants to be and building the business he envisions.
Key Takeaways
- A general contractor turned to executive coaching because he wanted to spend less time in operations and more time focusing on the future of his company.
- Planning, accountability, and new perspectives are helping him follow through on what he already knew he needed to do.
- With a stronger team in place, he’s gaining the freedom to build the business the way he wants to build it.
The problem with being an owner who’s still got one foot in the business every day is you’re stuck in the middle and not spending enough time focused on running the business or growing it.
“There’s not enough time to do both,” says Jordan Yelverton, owner of The Restoration House, a general contractor specializing in custom renovations and insurance restoration in the Triangle. “So, you’re either leaning too far to one side or the other, depending on the week.”
Meet The Restoration House
The Restoration House handles higher-end remodels such as full kitchens, master bathrooms, and additions as well as insurance repairs resulting from water, fire, smoke, and tree damage. What sets The Restoration House apart is the small team’s depth of knowledge and expertise in the industry. As the owner, Jordan has remained heavily involved in the day-to-day responsibilities of running the business.
What ends up happening when you’re keeping one foot in ownership and the other in operations is business development typically draws the short end of the stick. You’re busy putting out fires as they come up, and for someone like Jordan who’s a natural problem solver, it’s easy to stay focused on the problems right in front of him.
“The pain point is — even though I know it’s most important — what gets less consideration would be the business development side, and mainly because that doesn’t come naturally for me,” he says. “But if I don’t get to focus the majority of my time in the business development end, we’re going to be on the hamster wheel basically running the same race every day until we can make that leap.”
The Goal: Becoming an Owner Instead of Staying in Operations
Jordan decided to hire Joe Novara of Growth Academy Coaching because he wanted to transition from being a primary operator of the business to truly being a business owner. He’s known Joe for several years. They’re in BNI, a business networking group, together and that made the decision an easy one. With Joe’s help, he’s moving in the direction he wants to go.
“We have a team of Paul, our general manager; Angela and Sean, who are project managers; and Luke, our estimator,” he says. “My job has changed. I used to do all the estimates, and we’ve hired the estimator. So that takes that off my plate.”
Now, Jordan’s day-to-day is helping where it’s needed. “When we have a project manager out, I help on that end,” he says. “I help Luke on estimates. I’ve looked at some remodels because we’ve gotten really busy. I’m doing a lot of operations at the moment, and I’m trying to get myself out of that. Not because I don’t like it, but I need to get out of it so I can focus more on the business development side. I’ve hired Joe to help me get there, and we’re on our way.”
Ultimately, the goal is for Jordan to spend more time growing relationships and bringing in new business. “I want to focus on the larger picture items,” he says. “What I mean by that is really helping make sure our systems and processes are where we’re going to be the most efficient and that we’re running smoothly. We’re not there totally yet, but ultimately, I’m working toward truly being an owner and really building the business and molding it into what I want it to be.”
How Executive Coaching Provides Accountability and Direction
Executive coaching is helping Jordan clarify and reinforce where he needs to focus. “Deep down, I probably already know what I need to be doing,” he says. “But it’s helping me not only clarify those items but also come up with a plan to get there, and it’s holding me accountable to get there. I know I’ve got a call every two weeks with Joe, and he’s going to ask me about what we talked about and what my homework was. And if I don’t do it, then I have those consequences.”
That accountability has been important for Jordan. He knew he needed an additional push because, on his own, he was never going to do the things he needed to do to get where he wants to be.
A Coaching Process Built Around the Business Owner’s Goals
Working with Growth Academy Coaching starts with identifying the business owner’s biggest challenges and developing a plan to address them.
“The initial meetings are figuring out the pain points and issues you’re having, and then helping to come up with a plan,” Jordan says. “Later meetings go over ways to help with those issues. We’re implementing plans each week and implementing homework, if you will.”
“You need to be doing X, Y, and Z, leads to ‘okay we’ve built this step. Now we’ve got to go to the next step,’” he says. “So, each week is — in my mind — building towards the ultimate goal of me being the business owner and not having to be in the operations all the time.”
New Perspectives Without Losing Sight of the Goal
Beyond accountability and planning, coaching has also given Jordan new perspectives on growing the business. “Joe’s definitely providing different viewpoints I’d never thought of,” Jordan says. “And in our coaching sessions, we work well together. We have a good working relationship, which helps me and helps the business grow even more because he’s not always searching for what he needs to help me with. We’re working together on it.”
Those fresh perspectives extend beyond planning sessions and into the day-to-day challenges of running the business. “There are always hurdles in any business, issues with clients or employees,” Jordan says. “He also helps with those. But ultimately, he’s helping me grow the business the way I want to grow, which is very important. He’s not coming to me and saying you have to do X, Y, Z. We’re growing the business the way I want to.”
The Results: Building the Team and Letting Go
The coaching is paying off. The Restoration House has grown from three team members to five and continues planning for further expansion. With each new hire, Jordan has been able to step back from more of the day-to-day responsibilities that once depended on him.
“With each employee, he’s allowed me to release even more of that control that every business owner has when it’s just them originally,” Jordan says. “Releasing control has been the hardest thing to do, but Joe’s made that process easier, which has freed up more time for me to work on getting closer to the goal of being the business owner and getting the business operating like a well-oiled machine.”
While Jordan is still working toward his ultimate goal of becoming the business owner he wants to be, he’s already seeing the benefits of spending less time in day-to-day operations and more time growing the business the way he wants to grow it.
Advice for Business Owners Who Feel Stuck
To other business owners who feel stuck in the day-to-day operations and want to step into the owner role, Jordan says business coaching with Growth Academy is well worth your time, money, and effort.
“You can’t just expect Growth Academy or Joe to do everything for you,” he says. “You have to be accountable, too. You’ve got to have that drive to get there as well. Coaching is not a magic pill. ‘Hey, you talk to them and all of a sudden you went from 5 million to 10 million.’ That’s not it. But if you’re looking to truly move from the day-to-day to an owner role, it’s — hands down — well worth investing the money and effort to do so.”
See How Other Business Owners Are Solving Their Biggest Challenges
Read how another Growth Academy Coaching client used executive coaching to build a successful business that doesn’t depend on him.
Ready to Spend More Time Leading Your Business?
If you’re ready to move from day-to-day operations toward becoming the business owner you want to be, executive coaching with Growth Academy Coaching can help you create a plan, stay accountable, and build your business the way you want to build it. Schedule a conversation today.
