6 Opportunities to Win on the Education Front

By Matt Michel

It’s no secret that the service trades suffer from a shortage of skilled labor

It’s no secret that the service trades suffer from a shortage of skilled labor. It’s expected to get worse before it gets better. Not only that, but HVAC competes with other trades and occupations. Instead of whining about labor, do something about it. Here are six things to try.

 

1. Create a High School Guidance Counselor Summer Fellowship

Too many people attend college when they would be better served learning a trade. One of the reasons is they are steered towards college by their high schools and guidance counselors. Help high school guidance counselors learn more about the benefits of a career in HVAC by offering summer fellowships.

Many guidance counselors have summers off and could benefit from additional income. It would not take a huge investment to offer them compensation in the form of a cash fellowship to learn more about HVAC by riding with your technicians, visiting installations, accompanying sales professionals on replacement calls, attending a service meeting, spending time in the office, reviewing your training program and so on. The time could be compressed into a couple of weeks or spread out by spending one day a week on the fellowship. At the end, the guidance counselor is tasked with writing his observations.

Working with high school guidance counselors is a long-term endeavor to change attitudes. While the experience they receive should help them understand the complexities, challenges and rewards of a career in HVAC, you must also do your part in talking with them about the possibilities.

 

2. Sponsor Science Competitions

Approach the science teachers at a local high school and offer to sponsor a science competition with cash prizes for the best display involving heat transfer, ventilation, filtration or other HVAC related categories. Make sure to maximize the public relations opportunities with local media, the school’s social media and your own social media.

 

3. Join a Trade School’s Curriculum Advisory Board

If you have a local trade school or high school with an HVAC program, get involved. Volunteer to serve on a curriculum advisory board. Solicit suppliers for tools and equipment donations. Make your own donations as well, including financial and equipment (i.e., take a write-off for old equipment that’s still running, but removed from a replacement). Offer to guest lecture about what it’s like to work in the industry. Be willing to mentor some of the students.

Getting involved in local trade schools and high school HVAC programs will give you a first crack at the sharpest students the program is turning out. Hire them.

 

4. Encourage Community Colleges to Offer Associate Degrees in HVAC

If a local community college lacks an HVAC program, meet with them and discuss the need for the community and opportunity for the college. Rally other contractors or your local trade association if it will help. Community colleges want to be responsive and want to offer programs that will increase enrollment. There will be steady demand for HVAC technicians from here on out.

 

5. Offer Trade School/Community College Scholarships

Endow HVAC scholarships for local high school students to local trade schools or community colleges. The cost to endow a two-year scholarship to a community college is surprisingly affordable, especially as a business expense. The scholarship recipients are usually good candidates for joining your company, plus you get good public relations. Every year going forward, you get ongoing credit at both the high school level and the two-year college level. It is newsworthy when the scholarships are announced and newsworthy when they are awarded.

 

6. Start a Summer Internship for High School Students

Talk with local high school guidance counselors about offering a summer internship with your company. Your interns could help with installations, parts running, data entry, cleaning warehouses, inventorying trucks and so on.

If you wonder what the difference is between an intern and an employee, it’s the same as the difference between a gift certificate and a coupon. Both do the same thing, but the former sounds better than the latter. If you like the intern, you can probably bring him or her on board after graduation.

Matt Michel, Service Roundtable

A serial entrepreneur with 40 years of industry experience, Matt Michel is member of the Contracting Business Hall of Fame and a Speaker/Writer/ Rancher with Ranchlands of Texas LLC.

For inspirational contracting business lessons, buy Matt Michel’s book, “Contractor Stories” on Amazon. See Matt speak at the ServiceWorldExpo.com in October where he is a keynote speaker.

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