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HBA HOME BUILDING NEWS
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BUILDING YOUR BUSINESS
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March, 2013
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HBApdx.org
The 2013 Ultimate Open House
New Home Tour presented by
NW Natural
and
Standard TV
and Appliance
is poised to be
one of the most exciting in years.
The annual event, which runs two
weekends, April 27-28 & May 4-5,
is free to the public and brings
hundreds of savvy homebuyers
though newly area.
“It’s an easy equation: lower
rates, an improved housing mar-
ket and a tight inventory all equal
hungry homebuyers,” said Hallie
Gentry, Home Builders Associa-
tion of Metro Portland’s Director
of Shows. “We recommend those
builders interested in showcas-
ing their homes to buyers take
advantage of this opportunity to
show and sell their work.”
Over the past decade the world
of home shoppers has become
increasingly digital. Smart build-
ers know that their consumers
are uber-connected and well
informed. Nine out of ten home
shoppers today rely on the in-
ternet as one of their primary
research sources and 52 percent
turn to the web as their first step.
More frequently than ever, real
estate related searches are hap-
ping on mobile devices.
The Ultimate Open House pro-
vides you with the crucial tools
you need to reach today’s home
shoppers. Year after year the tour
has proven to be effective at fa-
cilitating sales for participating
builders and realtors.
The Ultimate Open House pro-
vides you with the top five online
and offline tools home shoppers
are using to find their next home:
Mobi le Phone Appl ica-
tion:
iPhone and Android smart
phones can access the UOH tour
and your home from a smart
phone.
Guidebook:
A half page home
listing in the show guidebook
with photo, address of home, di-
rections, price, and builder con-
tact information.
Website:
A website listing on
the show website ultimateopen-
house.net with up to eight pho-
tos/renderings/plat map/floor
plans, address of home, direc-
tions, price, link to builder’s web-
site and contact information.
AdvertisingCampaign:
Tele-
vision, radio, newspaper and out-
door advertising.
Marketing and Public Rela-
tions:
Special stories, calendar
listings, news features and ex-
tensive public relations using the
HBA’s strong media relationships.
Signage:
Each entry receives
a house sign and six directional
signs to raise awareness and drive
foot traffic.
Builders who have already en-
tered the show include: JT Smith
Companies, Gertz Fine Homes,
Monza Homes, Renaissance
Homes, and Legend Homes.
Thank you to our sponsors: NW
Nat ural, Standard TV & Appli-
ance, Cobalt Mortgage and En-
ergy Trust of Oregon.
Enter today or learn more at
www.UltimateOpenHouse.net
or by calling Hallie Gentry at the
HBA, (503) 684-1880.
Ethics are moral guidelines
which govern good behavior, and
are reflected in values such as
honesty, responsibility, respect,
trustworthiness, confidentiality,
fair treatment, and integrity.
Ethical principles play a key
role in business success. Doing
the right thing is more impor-
tant than doing the most profit-
able thing. This is true not just
for owners or top executives, but
for every member of staff. Your
clients have a choice and most
often they will choose the or-
ganization, company or service
provider that is guided by solid
ethical principles.
I want to share a real-life ex-
ample of how ethics play a role
in business.
Recently a client
called to tell me how one of their
managers had lied about how a
job was completed. This manager
had cut corners on a job, skipped
a step in the process, and when
the worked “failed” as a result,
he denied having done so. The
employee had not only cost the
business its profit but had bro-
ken the company Code of Ethics.
He did not act responsibly with
his client, and he was likewise
dishonest with his employer. All
were lapses in judgment that cost
the employee (employer’s trust,
docked wages, and promotion)
and the business (profit, reputa-
tion and repeat business from
that client). The situation created
a distraction that set the compa-
ny back days and, in terms of the
overall year’s performance, may
have also cost them the produc-
tion goal they were striving for.
Now it was the owner’s respon-
sibility to confront the manager
and address his behavior.
So, how do business owners
ensure that employees, manag-
ers, directors, and officers act in
ways that reflect the ethics and
integrity of the company? I’ll
share with you the same set of
guidelines I offered the business
owner above:
Recognize integrity as the
key ethical ingredient and hire
accordingly.
Integrity is the act
of adhering firmly to an ethi-
cal set of behavioral guidelines.
Those with integrity know what
is right and act accordingly, even
when no one is watching.
In traditional hiring practices
we tend to focus on skill, experi-
ence, and education, without ad-
equately screening candidates for
the indicators of integrity. While I
don’t know of an assessment tool
to measure integrity, there are
reliable ways to test for this qual-
ity. For example, by taking the
time to carefully and thoroughly
checking references for your can-
didate, you’ll undoubtedly learn
something about the candidate’s
ethical tendencies. Listen care-
fully for the candidate’s response
to ethical questions during the
interview process. Finally, pay
careful attention to your own in-
tuition. We all have a sixth sense
about integrity.
Create a clear Code of Ethics
for your business.
Every busi-
ness, no matter how large or
small, should have clearly articu-
lated ethical policies that include
specific guidelines for:
• Individual responsibility
• Social responsibility
• Dealings with customers, ven-
dors and others
• Business environment policies
• Behaviors and actions
• Rules for personal and corpo-
rate integrity
Set expectations for adher-
ence to the code.
The code is
not effective until it is fully im-
plemented. As in the case noted
above where I described my cli-
ent’s employee, there must be
consequences when the ethical
code of the company is not up-
held.
Model the behavior you ex-
pect.
A company’s code of ethics
provides the guidelines by which
everyone – from the owners to
the manager to the employee –
is bound. Employees naturally
model the behavior of their lead-
er; therefore, the ethical value of
a company begins at the top. If a
“little white lie” or cutting corners
is acceptable for the business
owner, employees will naturally
reflect the same tendency. As the
business owner, your actions –
and your ethics – are always on
display for your employees and
your clients to see.
Living in integrity is, of course,
its own reward. When ethics be-
comes your business focus, you
will enjoy a host of other benefits,
such as:
• More satisfied clients
• Fewer complaints from clients
and employees
• Better client retention
• Fewer work (performance) is-
sues
• Lower operational costs
• A happier workplace
• Lower employee turnover
At the end of the day, your
reputation in business is a clear
reflection of your own ethical
values as a person. Be the kind of
person you want to attract.
Coaches Challenge:
1) Exam-
ine your moral compass and be
sure that it is in alignment with
the ethical code you have for your
company. 2) Be sure your compa-
ny Code of Ethics is in writing and
each member of your team has
been given a copy. 3) Make ethi-
cal behavior one of the key mea-
surements in your performance
management program.
To read more from Sherry go to:
www.entrepreneurexecutive.com
Sherry Jordan,
The Northwest Coaching Group, Inc.
COACHES
CORNER
51.030113 HBA News
Business ethics drive success, reputation reflects values
“Festool Junkie” brings certain
images to ones mind. To some its
dollar signs heading for the door.
To me it describes the user of a
specific line of power tools from
Germany that emphasizes de-
sign, quality and versatility. For
several years whenever my wife
asks what I would like for Christ-
mas, I give her “the look.” She
sighs and heads for the phone to
call my co-workers to ask which
Festool tool I have been drooling
over now.
My number one tool is the
TS 55 REQ plunge saw. This saw
looks like many other circular
saws but it comes with a 55”
guide rail that turns it into a pre-
cision tool. It works beautifully
for breaking down finish grade
plywoods on the job site without
splintering – including endgrain
cuts. There is no need to head
for the shop to do a few cuts on
the table saw as it does miters
too. The TS 55 REQ is great for
doing plunge cuts into flooring
to install a new floor vent. It also
hooks into a dust vac for almost
dustless cutting. This tool is ver-
satile, precise, clean and safe.
We recently made a 9’ x 9’ hard
maple kitchen island for a local
builder. The table was too big for
the panel saw, too heavy to push
thru the table saw and too ex-
pensive to mess up. I was able to
slap a long guide rail on one edge
and make a clean cut. Then using
the old 3-4-5 triangle method I
was able to square up the ends
and move around the island top.
Cutting in our warehouse and
plugged into a Festool shop vac
there was almost no dust so I had
minimal clean up making both
me, our warehouseman and the
homeowner much happier. This
tool is designed from the start to
be a carpenter’s friend.
Festool Junkie you say? Yes, I
am one and proud to say it.
COOL TOOL
NEW AND USEFUL COOL TOOLS & APPS
RECOMMENDED BY MEMBERS OF THE HBA
By Carl Paasche, Woodcrafters Lumber Sales
Proud to be a FestoOl “junkie”
Get in on the seventh annual Ultimate Open House
Hurry! Deadline for
entry is March 8
By popular demand, we are now
offering substantially reduced pric-
ing on affiliate memberships. Is there
another person in your company who
should be receiving member commu-
nications, discount offers and other member perks? Add
them now for only $19 per year! Contact Sarah today at
(503) 684-1880 and make sure all your key employees are
members.
New Affiliate
Member Pricing
HBA