As time comes and goes so do the national assembly companies.
It’s happening everyday with contractors from the local home improvement store needing a garage door opener installer to the office supply store needing someone to assemble furniture.
This is a HUGE industry and it keeps getting butchered.
Who do you think it is running the assembly industry in to the ground?
Could it be technicians are greedy and have no idea what it really takes to run a business; especially a corporate one?
Do contractors and technicians really think companies like Diamond, Bike Tech, Huffy, Dart and many others; now merged with other companies or out of business all together; created their own demise from of the lack of coverage, because of underpaying technicians?
Well when it comes right down to it...
I think they are all “only” partially responsible; and the real catalyst is the corporate retailer that keeps our industry in disarray. They jump from company to company like a junkie goes from one drug dealer to the next dealer looking for their fix and the corporate retailer always comes full circle, back to the original dealer who in our case is the national assembly company. ..
The funny thing about all this is the corporate retailers think they are getting something new by going with another company and the store finds the “exact” same assemblers walking through their doors to pick up product to deliver and assemble for one of their customers.
This is fact, (think about it) corporate retailers are responsible for every single one of those named national assembly companies no longer in business because of the practice of finding the perfect fix. Every time a corporate store changes service providers it causes many independent contractors (business people themselves) to go out of business (if they don’t transfer to the new company) because they cannot make enough money pay themselves and their own helpers or loose interest and find another career option altogether.
Customers are now finding people showing up at their location with a technician having no more idea of how to assemble something than the customer themselves. There are a lot of people out of jobs now days and the problem is finding the quality contractor for jobs requiring a professional. But that is getting more and more difficult because this industry is getting a bad name and the really good techs are tired of the rotation game.
The infinite wisdom of the people in corporate retail management positions that make and break a national company are also "ultimately" creating their own problems. In the ten years I have worked for a few national assembly companies; I can tell you, the stores drop one service provider and go with another only to find out they have the same problem. COME ON!!! As smart as these corporate managers are don't they know technicians (again) work for more than one company?
A software program is not the Holy Grail! I don't care who has the most advanced technology; they will fail unless they start seeing where the real backbone to this industry is… the technician!
So who is next to close their doors?
And…
Where does that leave the genuinely important people only mentioned once in this equation ... THE CUSTOMER?
Any corporate retailer that wants to find the best national coverage; with the backing of PROFESSIONAL assemblers, who know what they are doing; contact the United Assemblers and find out who they endorse.
MikeM
http://UnitedAssemblers.com
http://The-Savvy-Tech.com
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Categories: Founders Opinions
Tags: corporate retailers national assembly companies assembly technicians
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Very good input on the above posting. In addition to that, this industry has many other issues with constantly using a "national company" Employee turnover also plays a huge factor in the downfall of a company. With the larger companies they face major problems and tasks of finding the right technician to hire for their company. A majority of the techs want just a part time income not realizing that this can be a full time career opportunity. Most of them only want to learn "of' the business rather than "about" the business.
I realized from the get go that this was an untapped market back in 1979 and there was an opportunity for me to grow this into what the retailers really wanted. A very reliable assembly company that professionally knows the industry inside and out and one that can effectively answer all their questions with ease and not one that always goes....ah.....ah...ahh...let me get back to you on that.
National companies will always point the finger at someone else rather than taking the fall for something that they know nothing about. Being able to run a business is a good thing to have but product knowledge is an excellent thing to have as well. Since learning of this website and other networking links in the past 2 years, I've had a chance to speak to many other partners in the group and give them sound advice and a chance to get them to understand that their will always be more room for growth as well as a chance to make a very good living.
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I agree that the majority of problems regarding the availability of assembly jobs (and the quality of work if the customer finds someone or tries it themselves) stem from retailers refusing to advertise professional services. I've made inquiries to store managers, and even to corporate managers, and none of them want to allow even the business card of United Assemblers to be placed in a little stand at the customer service desk.
When I've asked about WHO does the assembly work, or if they recommend anyone at all, the response is either "It's up to the customer at that point; we don't recommend anyone" or a wild-goose chase in which I'm given a false company name and phone number. And yet, on the rare occasions when I do get an assembly gig, the customer tells me they wish the store had mentioned me when they'd asked, and passers-by ask for my business card. Retailers do us, their customers and ultimately themselves a great disservice by stubbornly refusing to allow us to do POP (point-of-purchase) advertising.
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This is a heavy and important subject. Some corporate retailers just don't get it!
I always thought a retailer's focus should be to sell a quality product at a fair price. It’s a pretty basic principal, isn’t it? This what every major retailer should strive for, shouldn’t they?
Then, to attract a variety of potential retail customers, service companies become a valuable part or the game. That’s right I called it a game; because like in a game, the two entities (retailer & service provider) must work together as a team to make it work. We’ll use football in this analogy. The retailer is the Offence… marketing and selling their products and filling their retail store (the stadium) with customers (the fans). There’s the kick-off…(Sale-A-thon!!)
Then a service provider (the Defense) is contracted to "support" their retail sales with a “value-added” service designed to improve the customer experience by providing convenient delivery of there goods and offering “professional” assembly of their RTA (Ready-To-Assemble) products right in their home or office (Defense blocks the run!).
Obviously, to have quality service technicians that represent the retailer in a customer’s home or office the way they would present themselves in their own store, has a value-added price. This is why it is “optional”. However, this is also the retailers’ last line of “defense” to impress the customer and earn their repeat business (First and goal!).
By providing these “optional” services, customers are more willing to buy larger complicated and sometimes more expensive items (defense blocks the pass!) because now they can get a “Ready-To-Use” product that has been professionally assembled; therefore minimizing damage, reducing returns and making happier customers… who return to come back and buy more products. (TOUCH DOWN!)… Simple, isn’t it?
Then, I continue to hear over the years that some of these retailers are sold on getting a “bigger” piece of the pie from a national service provider who promises they can do it all. What they don’t usually tell the retailer is that this is done usually by cutting into the money the technicians in the field are making (WHO ARE ACTUALLY DOING THE HARD WORK) and are expected to still make a decent living, work long ours and represent the retailer with a smile. Or maybe they just don’t care?
By allowing this practice, it reduces the service provider’s ability to higher quality technicians at a fair wage. Now, that guy without a clue, who may not know much more of how to assemble something then the customer themselves, shows up at your door. Do you see something wrong with this too!?
"Money is like manure; the higher you pile it the more it stinks, but if you spread it around, it grows things" - Dennis Weaver.
Without experienced, professional & quality service technicians in the field that can make a decent living providing this invaluable service, nobody wins the game… especially the customer.
http://www.assemblymasters.net
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I recently was a victim of the national takeover of the The Sports Authority and Dicks Sporting Goods accounts by GoConfigure. The changeover took place so fast that we barely had time to react, we were all blindsided but still needed to work to put food on the table and pay the rent. The new company instantly initiated a 10-15% pay cut across the board with a multi-million dollar computer software program in place that monitored every move you make which in turn demands much more of your time and resources.
So far these "control freak" policies that reach deep into our daily operations have left a very bad taste in all of our mouths and its something most of us will never get used to or peacefully tolerate. These policies were all part of the deal and the "sales package" that won over TSA and DSG to GoConfigure. This is THEIR version of putting the "customer first" and catering to the needs of the retailers. These moves pushed us lowly techs to the bottom of the food chain, handcuffed with duct tape over our mouth. But we still have two legs left where we still have the power to WALK freely out the exit door! And the shrewd ones will save that move until the day before Black Friday. Anyone want to join my conspiracy? Ha Ha .
I've been around this industry long enough to know that I've got news for them - the field techs are the backbone of this industry and are the key to success - NOT the computer software programs, not the national customer service reps that sit with a headset in front of a computer screen, and not the corporate decision makers that determine which direction their $10+ mill. investment will go in. You treat your techs right and everything else will fall in place. When will these retailers ever learn?
They will eventually lose their best techs in the nation at the cost of lower commissions, putting the "customer first", and squeezing profit $$$ out of us to make them look good in time to renew their contract for another year. Delivery/assembly service technicians is a skilled position and it takes a special individual to excel at it consistently, day-in and day-out. I dare GoConfigure to hire green newbies off the street and get them ready in time for peak Christmas season. Many of them will fall flat on their face and the rest of them will pay a costly price in exorbitant hours, massive expenses and much aggravation just to live up to the demands and the new promised expectations.
United Assemblers to the rescue! >>>>> we are the true standard-bearers for the national assembly industry.
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This is an unfortunate story, however I can see it was written from the heart! Tell all assembly professionals you know to come here to this blog and post their own experiences they are having in our industry right now... bad AND good, when dealing with national companies, the retailers they work for or unique issues with end customers that may help the next tech!
We all need to share what is going on out there in our industry with each other. If you do not want to post your real name, then post your comments and experiences anonymously! Even better, if you identify yourself, even with a made up "user-name", you will probably get more feedback. just get involved!
We all want to be able to identify who we are blogging with.
Keep up the great posts!
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There seems to be quite a bit of concern about national companies on this blog and as well as there should be. I want to give everybody the "Heads-Up" on yet another group that is maybe considered regional, but is making strides by leaps and bounds on becoming a national outfit, this would be Assemblers Inc.
Many of you have heard of this group and the ones that have not, will soon. Assemblers Inc was not built with better service, better prices, better this, better that. It has been built the same way that the previously mentioned groups on this blog were built. Corporate Contacts! Politics, it seems as if it always get in the way of a job done right.
A big concern of mine with Assemblers Inc is, in the past 2 yeas they have put several smaller assembly companies out of business through politics as I mentioned earlier. There have been "Used Car Salesmen" masquerading as businessmen for a long time, its just part of the business landscape. But this is where Assemblers Inc's moral compass comes in to play. Assemblers Inc has a page on their website soliciting small assembly outfits to join their "network".
Am I missing something? Why would any outfit join a company that has a reputation of putting other companies out of business
By the way, this "network" is unpublished. I assume that customers have to call in and Assemblers Inc will dispatch the job, for a slice of your pie of course. And they will help themselves to it.
In closing, I am not sure how this "network" that Assemblers Inc is building is going to "shake-out", although I do have some ideas. None of them are beneficial to anyone on the network. In my opinion its just ploy to continue to load the coffers of Mike Giaccone.
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I have just started to learn about this outfit through searching the net recently. They had never pop'd up before that I can remember when doing a search for California, so it looks like they are looking to take on jobs nationally and then just shop them out to the smaller outfits where they can find someone to take a pre-determined piece (cut) and just shop out the work. Their screening process is also quite detailed and involved. I wonder what corporate contracts they have, if any yet, or maybe they are just targeting online end-customer business Hmmm?
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Todd, its a little bit more complicated than that.
Regionally, Assemblers Inc has Home Depot and Academy Sports "in-store" service, plus most on-line dealers and manufacturers are in their system. I am sure that there are others that I do not know about.
Excuse me for being skeptical, but In the grand scam err, scheme of things I do not see Assemblers Inc not walking away with the lions share of the take.
They have a "network", yet they are putting smaller assembly companies out of business. Think about it?
I can think of many scenarios and they are all detrimental to smaller outfits. Anyone who would like to know more please call me 850-512-7647.
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