Protection 1 Prospers by Making People Priority One
SSI’s 2014 Installer of the Year (Large Company) is obsessed with taking care of customers. Protection 1 accomplishes this mission by aligning the entire organization around the customer experience and gby investing in its employees.
Telling numbers from 2013 are a 22% drop in absenteeism and a 30% decline in turnover. In recent years, P1 has instituted several progressive personnel programs:
- Management training program that places external and internal candidates in a six- to 12-month track where they are partnered with a senior level mentor, spend weeks in nearly every department and position, and provide regular readouts to executive leaders. Upon completion, candidates are guaranteed a supervisory or managerial position with P1.
- Leadership development program centered on frontline call center employees who have displayed leadership ability. They spend four months in assorted roles with various responsibilities and undergo readouts and performance reviews to launch them into supervising a floor team.
- Branch integration program that pairs call center employees with specific job functions in the field (e.g. service calls with a technician) to provide a ‘day in the life’ perspective.
- Mentoring program in which representatives can qualify to mentor other new hire reps for three-month periods. They receive mentorship training and participate in readouts with the mentor leadership team. This encourages leadership development and creates a support network for new employees outside their immediate supervisor for feedback, coaching and insights.
“We want people to have careers here at Protection 1 and we offer plenty of opportunities for personal growth and company advancement,” says Whall. “I think our management trainee programs highlight that best, but even in our call centers, we have some great stories of our upper management working through the ranks.”
RELATED: P1 Grooms Cream of Crop Into Personnel Dream Team
As a fitness buff, Whall understands the link between sound body and mind, and how encouraging and facilitating healthy habits among employees enhances their performance both personally and professionally. P1’s wellness initiative, Every 1 Counts, fully launched in 2013 and generated significant participation. For example, last September employees received a pedometer and were challenged to walk 10,000 steps a day for 25 days in order to win prizes, with 1,100+ taking part. Earlier this year, P1 was named one of the “Healthiest Employers” in the Wichita, Kan., area where it employs 600+ workers.
Lending Many Helping Hands
Protection 1’s active company culture is further exemplified by the engagement so many of its associates exhibit through community service and charitable pursuits. Again, it emanates and is supported from the top down as P1 endorses and contributes to a multitude of meaningful humanitarian causes.
“We contribute to our communities through our 1 For All philanthropic program,” says Haenggi. “Instead of selecting one organization at a national level, we support and encourage our local teams to focus on what they are passionate about in their communities in a way that truly makes a difference. Our employees have worked with local food banks, back to school supply programs, relief efforts, Habitat for Humanity and Project Joy & Hope, just to name a few.”
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About the Author
Scott Goldfine
Scott Goldfine is the marketing director for Elite Interactive Solutions. He is the former editor-in-chief and associate publisher of Security Sales & Integration. He can be reached at [email protected].
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