By: Beth Geraci, Questex Media Group LLC
Everything was fine until I noticed the landscaping truck parked in the driveway. I opened the front door and called out to the two workers in our yard. “Can you move your truck? I have to go to work.”
“Too bad,” the one joked. “No work for you today.”
I laughed, but his quip held a little too much truth. A few minutes later, when I was ready to leave, the landscaping truck was still parked there.
“Could you please move?” I asked. “I really do have to go.”
“We can’t find the keys,” the guys said.
“Can’t find the keys?” I echoed.
And so the hunt began. For 15 minutes, I waited as the guys searched their pockets, the car seats, the ground and anywhere else they could think of.
The landscapers finally found the keys on the floor of the truck; I finally went on my merry way — 15 minutes later than usual.
A quarter hour really makes a difference. The traffic is substantially more congested than it is when I leave on time. Although I left my house 15 minutes late, I arrived to work 30 minutes late.
In the whole scheme of life, 15 minutes isn’t much time. But the old adage still rings true: Time is money. I can’t help but wonder what impact those lost 15 minutes had on our landscapers’ day. Were they late for other jobs because they put in an extra 15 minutes on our yard? Or did they simply skimp on the time they worked on our yard?
For business owners and clients, is there a good excuse for either one of those things? Parking in a driveway seems like such a small thing. And in light of all the world’s problems, it is. But in today’s competitive work environment, the devil is in the details.
For all I know, the landscaping company we use forbids its workers to park in customers’ driveways. It would surprise me if the company didn’t have such a policy. But that begs many questions, including “Why aren’t the company’s workers abiding by its rules?” and “How can a company better enforce its policies?”
For landscaping companies that don’t have a parking policy implemented, it’s definitely something to consider. Having the foresight to prevent even the smallest of problems will enable a company to go far — and its clients to go to work.
