First of all, they arrived about 30 minutes early and began getting organized. Each of the four workers appeared to have their own role to play and they wasted no time in executing their role. One worker laid out the different size of boxes across our driveway; another worker placed all the tape and cutters in another specific area; the third worker began lining out all of the blankets and cloth wraps that would be used; and the fourth worker, the supervisor, asked to come in and review the house layout and compare what he saw against what was on paper. This took about 20-30 minutes but man when they started to execute they got going with a lot of clarity and energy.

The demonstration by a bunch of movers, not exactly known as the smartest workers in the world, demonstrated just powerful planning and preparation is to getting good work accomplished. If a crew of movers can demonstrate such excellence in preparation certainly we can move our crews in this same direction.

When you prepare your crews for daily work consider a few of the following techniques.

1. Give your crews the "big" picture. This normally involves a print, diagram, and pictures of the job site.
2. Create a list of all the tools, equipment, safety items, etc. that will be needed to complete the job right the first time.
3. At the end of each day perform a short but specific maintenance check to identify any used item that needs repaired or replaced.
4. Be sure that the crew has directions to the job-site; contact information; and all the critical information about any odd portion of the work that will require a bit more attention.
5. Clarify the roles of each crew member so that they each understand what to do.
6. Give the crew the clear job expectations covering quality, productivity, safety, and the time allowance for the job.

Preparing your crew is not just driving to the job site and then sort of rolling into the job. A crew that is prepared waste less time. They hit the job-site running, get moving at a faster clip, and usually maintain a better pace of work throughout the day.

Spend the time up front to prepare your crews for completing a job and watch your productivity and profitability begin to climb!