Maximizing daily billable hours

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Mule

Senior Member
Location
Oklahoma
How do you guys deal with trying to schedule appointment times with the customer not knowing really how long the previous call will actually take? My wife works the office and we've tried her scheduling, and we've tried me scheduling and the schedule is always a train wreck no matter what. You can estimate all day, but seems like there's always variables and/or the customer adds stuff to their list. And secondly,...... when you wind up done with a typical short job at 2:30-3:30 or so and your out of 1 hour service call work orders to fill out the day, do you start another job knowing you can't finish it that day? Our work although varies, is probably 50% commercial light construction/remods and 50% residential service work and it seems like we chase our tails to get around 5-6 billable hours and struggle to fill out the day. We always roll with a jman (me) and apprentice (helper) in a truck. I have 2 part time apprentice's. Any comments would be appreciated...Thank you
 

Daja7

Senior Member
How do you guys deal with trying to schedule appointment times with the customer not knowing really how long the previous call will actually take? My wife works the office and we've tried her scheduling, and we've tried me scheduling and the schedule is always a train wreck no matter what. You can estimate all day, but seems like there's always variables and/or the customer adds stuff to their list. And secondly,...... when you wind up done with a typical short job at 2:30-3:30 or so and your out of 1 hour service call work orders to fill out the day, do you start another job knowing you can't finish it that day? Our work although varies, is probably 50% commercial light construction/remods and 50% residential service work and it seems like we chase our tails to get around 5-6 billable hours and struggle to fill out the day. We always roll with a jman (me) and apprentice (helper) in a truck. I have 2 part time apprentice's. Any comments would be appreciated...Thank you

You figure your billable rates based on an efficiency rate. Service work it is hard to crack more than 50% efficiency. Also we tell the customer we can only gauranty the first call of the day they will be called when we determin when the tch is on his way to your property. customers usually undestand if told upfront.
 
Being a "1 man show" definitely has it's plusses and minuses!

I don't advertise, so ALL my work is through word of mouth and referrals. I think this helps as far as customers cutting me some slack.

I have found the most important thing for me has been communication.

I try desperately to not make promises I can't keep.

I will NOT tell you I will be there later or tomorrow just to get the job (If I know there is no way I can fit you in).
 

Mule

Senior Member
Location
Oklahoma
Haha.......you can work 24/7 if you want :) But that's nonsense to me......lol I guess averaging 5.5 or 6.5 hours is probably in truth pretty good. Any more than that is just luck of the draw. Today, we billed out 7.5 and my helper cost me 8.5 so I guess that was good day
 

petersonra

Senior Member
Location
Northern illinois
Occupation
engineer
Haha.......you can work 24/7 if you want :) But that's nonsense to me......lol I guess averaging 5.5 or 6.5 hours is probably in truth pretty good. Any more than that is just luck of the draw. Today, we billed out 7.5 and my helper cost me 8.5 so I guess that was good day

where I used to work they figured engineers would get in about 1600 billable hours per year on 40 hours/week.
 

JDBrown

Senior Member
Location
California
Occupation
Electrical Engineer
the way to maximize daily billable hours is to work 24/7. :)
The only guy I've known to actually be on the clock 24 hours a day was a farm hand I worked with when I was in highschool, and that was only when we were baling hay. He'd catch a few winks on the tractor, get up and check the moisture, and if it wasn't right, go back and catch a few more winks. When the moisture content was right, sleepy time was over.

Of all the guys I've known who came to California to make a bunch of money and then go back to Mexico, he's the only one I've seen actually pull it off. He worked as a farmhand for a few years, learned everything he possibly could, saved his money like nobody's business, and then went back to Mexico and bought his own farm. The boss man was very sad to see him go.
 

Mule

Senior Member
Location
Oklahoma
I just think all of us want a fair and honest living working hard......So the second part of my question was, do you start a job in the mid, to late afternoon knowing you cant finish it that day?, or do you wait until the next day? Leaving a customer without power is a obvious no, but I was curious how everyone handles those situations.......
 

readydave8

re member
Location
Clarkesville, Georgia
Occupation
electrician
Usually have back-log at shop if done by 3:30, stuff to put away etc., and prepare truck for following day. Back when I did a lot of new work I would often stop by job for an hour if there was anything that could be done, it'd be hard to do that on occupied houses.
 
I just think all of us want a fair and honest living working hard......So the second part of my question was, do you start a job in the mid, to late afternoon knowing you cant finish it that day?, or do you wait until the next day? Leaving a customer without power is a obvious no, but I was curious how everyone handles those situations.......

I will occasionally....depends on the relationship with the customer and the drive time involved.

Sometimes it's as simple as calling and asking if they have a spot (maybe in the garage) where I can drop off materials. Then I'll leave materials, drop cloth, one of my ladders, and maybe a few tools. Chat with customer for a few minutes. Gives me a jump start on the following morning.


I never ever leave my basic tools at a customers house over night......that only guarantees I'll get a "sparks were flying" or "I saw flames" type of emergency call from some other customer!!
 

Fulthrotl

~Autocorrect is My Worst Enema.~
Doesn't seem like there's as much activity on this forum as there used to be.........

there isn't..... we are operating without a frunk slammer.... 3 months, 2,000 posts..... batshit crazy.
there is ample participation over on the other side of the internet.... :happyyes:

Join Date08-31-2013
Total Posts2,090




however..... as far as billable hours, your best bet is to move towards flat rate pricing.

let's see... you want a 30 amp 480 volt disconnect on the wall, feeding a compressor.... ummm.... $1,310.
material was $388... so $900 or so for the work..... took all of three and a half hours.....

did i get 8 billable hours? dunno. do i care? no.
 

Mule

Senior Member
Location
Oklahoma
there isn't..... we are operating without a frunk slammer.... 3 months, 2,000 posts..... batshit crazy.
there is ample participation over on the other side of the internet.... :happyyes:

Join Date08-31-2013
Total Posts2,090




however..... as far as billable hours, your best bet is to move towards flat rate pricing.

let's see... you want a 30 amp 480 volt disconnect on the wall, feeding a compressor.... ummm.... $1,310.
material was $388... so $900 or so for the work..... took all of three and a half hours.....

did i get 8 billable hours? dunno. do i care? no.


I guess I get caught up with the ease of T/M......I've read some on here about flat rate pricing, and we use that some I guess for building new services and panel upgrades, ceiling fans and repetitive items.
 

Daja7

Senior Member
I guess I get caught up with the ease of T/M......I've read some on here about flat rate pricing, and we use that some I guess for building new services and panel upgrades, ceiling fans and repetitive items.

Flat rate is the way to go. We call it upfront pricing. Customers feel better about it for some reason. Falt rate overall works very well. It takes some work to get what your rate should be but plenty of info out there on it. The problem with T&M is when do you start charging, when do you stop, are you uncomfortable telling the custome ryour rate and do you under charge because of it. Does the customer think you are working fast enough. do they think it should have taken less time. The perception is the slower you work the more you make. I only have a half hour left in the day, i will stay and get that half. Flat rate the faster you work the more you make. Remember, the customer is paying for a job to be done not time. If the agree on the price before it starts there is no question of price after. Some times you can get your days dollars in half a day.
 

Mule

Senior Member
Location
Oklahoma
Flat rate is the way to go. We call it upfront pricing. Customers feel better about it for some reason. Falt rate overall works very well. It takes some work to get what your rate should be but plenty of info out there on it. The problem with T&M is when do you start charging, when do you stop, are you uncomfortable telling the custome ryour rate and do you under charge because of it. Does the customer think you are working fast enough. do they think it should have taken less time. The perception is the slower you work the more you make. I only have a half hour left in the day, i will stay and get that half. Flat rate the faster you work the more you make. Remember, the customer is paying for a job to be done not time. If the agree on the price before it starts there is no question of price after. Some times you can get your days dollars in half a day.

I agree that the customer feels much more secure with a fixed price, but I might add that in climate where 80% of your customers are repeat customers and never ask for a price, its because they understand that your honest, and the contractor is mindful of the value that the customer is receiving. If we leave them with a taste in their mouth that you milked them dry, we would find ourselves bidding on everything we do.

We price our labor and material mark up rates right at, or very slightly below our local market. For me, I'd rather hit myself with a hammer than sit and figure jobs each day. Unlike the multitudes, we are not in the electrical business, we are in the blessing people business, and they in return, bless us. Call me weird, its ok :)
 

Fulthrotl

~Autocorrect is My Worst Enema.~
I agree that the customer feels much more secure with a fixed price, but I might add that in climate where 80% of your customers are repeat customers and never ask for a price, its because they understand that your honest, and the contractor is mindful of the value that the customer is receiving. If we leave them with a taste in their mouth that you milked them dry, we would find ourselves bidding on everything we do.

We price our labor and material mark up rates right at, or very slightly below our local market. For me, I'd rather hit myself with a hammer than sit and figure jobs each day. Unlike the multitudes, we are not in the electrical business, we are in the blessing people business, and they in return, bless us. Call me weird, its ok :)

well, it sounds like you have a plan that suits you, and your marketplace.... if you want to see what your
hourly rate needs to be to actually make a living, i'd suggest the bare bones business plan. it takes a
weekend, and you find out with a written inventory exactly where you are at.

and you approach it from the other end. you figure out what you want to make per year, and go back to find
out what your hourly rate needs to be to accomplish that goal.

for most small service oriented people, it's usually between $125 and $260 per hour. that's not a typo. honest.

http://www.barebonesbiz.com/

if you are brave, go there and do what she says.

you might also want to take a peek at this:

http://www.electricalflatrate.com/
 

Daja7

Senior Member
Exactly right Fulthrotl, Change is hard and sometimes scary and if you are happy and it works for you great but one comment has me a little concerned, " i try to keep it at or just below market rate" Market rate has nothing to do with what you need to keep your business running and make a living. You must Know your cost of doing business. Only then can you set your rate. Even past customers will embrace new ideas if they think it will be easier on them and this method does that. Once you get it implemented it is much easier than T&M. Go through the motions, it is worth at least a look. The standard comment is " it won't work in my area". It has and it does, as long as you know how to implemnt. Show value and they customer will be happy to pay your price. Even though you may think the rate is too high, when you sugar it all out and understand how it works you wil find the is not much difference in price, except you get what you need to make a living. You can still make a profit and do the right thing for your customers. People in your area are doing it right now.
 
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