Central California Cleaning Supply hosts CRA's WRT course

This week's WRT course (May 4-6, 2011) is being held at Central California Cleaning Supply in North Highlands, CA. The course is being taught by Jim Holland.

The WRT course (Water Damage Restoration Technician with Drying Contaminated Buildings) is a unique three-day program that concentrates on drying structures without spreading contaminants. This course incorporates all the information from the IICRC Water Restoration Technician (WRT) exam with an adaptation for contamination. This training provides restorers with valuable decision making skills when deciding to proceed with a job that has limited or no mold insurance coverage. Being able to continue on a water-loss without delays limits microbial growth which in turn reduces the cost of remediation, ALE and business interruption. Insurance companies will be more likely to hire restorers that can provide prompt cost-saving services which give your company a marketing advantage.

Visit the CRA website for upcoming training & events.

So-Cal Regional Meeting - Speaker: "The Restoration Lawyer" Ed Cross

Southern California Regional Meeting
May 26th 2011
Location: Abatix Corp., 10051 Painter Ave
Santa Fe Springs, CA 90670
10:30am-2:00pm
*CRA Members & Non-Members Welcome*

The Cleaning and Restoration Association would like to invite you to our Southern California Regional Meeting on Thursday May 26th for a 2.5 hour presentation by Ed Cross, the "Restoration Lawyer." Lunch will be provided.

CUTTING EDGE LEGAL STRATEGIES FOR THE RESTORATION PROFESSIONAL

By Edward H. Cross, Esq.

A lively, interactive look into new legal issues that have arisen in the restoration industry and innovative strategies to avoid them, including:

*Aggressive collevtion strategies
*How to turn up the heat on a customer who pockets insurance proceeds
*Strategies for getting mortgage companies to release insurance drafts
*Contract drafting to help you get paid and keep you out of court
*Mold Litigation: alive, dormant or dead?
*New regulations for Mechanic's Lien procedures
*Risk Management in the New Age of Restoration

...and much more!

Upcoming WRT Course - May 4th-6th 2011

Join us May 4th-6th for the Water Damage Restoration Technician course - we are holding this course at a NEW location!!

Register Here

The WRT Course is a unique three-day program that concentrates on drying structures without spreading contaminants. This course incorporates all the information from the IICRC Water Restoration Technician (WRT) exam with an adaptation for contamination. This training provides restorers with valuable decision making skills when deciding to proceed with a job that has limited or no mold insurance converge. Being able to continue on a water-loss without delays limits its microbial growth which in turn reduces the cost of remediation, ALE and business interruption. Insurance companies will be more likely to hire restorers that can provide prompt cost-saving services which give your company a marketing advantage.

Regular Registration:....................................................$445/person
Early Registration (14 days prior):............................ $395/person
CRA Member Regular Registration:.......................... $395/person
CRA Member Early Registration (14 days prior).....$345/person

Continuing Education Credits: AmlAQC 21 CE Credits; IICRC Either 2 Cleaning/Restoration or 1 Mold CEC

Course being held at a NEW LOCATION:
Central California Cleaning Supply
3487 Orange Grove, Unit D
North Highlands, CA 95660

CRA's Northern California Regional Meeting - MARCH 25th!

CRA's Northern California Regional Meeting
Date: March 25th
Time: 8:30am - 1:00pm
Location: 3284 Ramos Circle
Sacramento, CA 95827

**Lunch Included**

The Cleaning and Restoration Association is putting on a Regional Meeting as a half-day workshop. At this workshop you will learn valuable marketing and business development skills and tips to improve your company's profits.

Learn how to:

-Turn your staff into a Championship Team
-Take your business from invisible to Successful
-Blast through any sales objection with ease and confidence
-Change a negative perspective in 30 seconds or less

PRICING:
CRA Members $20 per person
NON-Members $35 per person

Click Below to Register:

http://www.crassociation.org/pdf/RegionalMeeting2011.pdf

CRA's Trauma Scene Clean-Up Course - FULL!

Trauma Scene Clean-Up - Class FULL!!

Instructor: Kent Berg

Location: Santa Fe Springs, CA

Date: January 24th-26th 2011

CRA's Newest Member Update!

CRA would like to introduce our newest members:

Shawn Abhababian with Coit Services, Inc.
Sharon Brady with Construction 911, Inc.
Tiffany and Brett Lawton with Lawton Construction.
Aleshia Chambers with Servpro of Napa County.
Ivo Eduardo Villegas with Bio-Hazard Techs.
Jacqueline Sutton with Orly's Draperies & Interiors, Inc.
Phil Roberts with Bartwood Construction.
Rudy Benavidez with Air Clean Environmental, Inc.
Rick Walker with Water Damage Recovery.
Edward Riley with Tahoe Mold & Water.
Meladee Gardells with Kern Special Services, Inc.

Thank you to all of our Members. We are happy to have you as a part of our team!

Business Plans vs. Strategic Plans

Business Plans vs. Strategic Plans - by Karen Wells

The first thing a business owner usually says to me is "I need a business plan." Most often, this is not actually the case. The business owner generally has a misunderstanding of what a business plan will do for them. A business plan is usually a beginning point in requesting capital from government grants, bank loans or private investors. If your business is in need start up capital or expansion capital, then you will definitely need a business plan. However, if the business is self-funded, then creating a business plan is a daunting task which is generally a waste of time.

What these business owners actually need is a strategic plan. Business plans are concept-based wherein strategic plans are activity-based. The strategic planning process we use at Success in Sneakers is called Business Success Mapping. After examining the process used in a multitude of business, we suggest using a one-page strategic plan that covers a span of 5 years. Anything more than 5 years is difficult for the business owner and core team to mentally digest and set with clarity. The idea is to gain clarity and determine exactly the activities that need to be done on a yearly, quarterly and daily basis.

Business Success Mapping is like a GPS system for your business. To best explain this concept, think about using a GPS systems in your car. When you get in the car, you turn on the GPS device, which bounces a signal to a satellite and pinpoints your exact location. You then enter your destination into the device. The device calculates the best route to get you from where you are to where you want to be. In driving, we also know the shortest route in mileage is not always the shortest route in travel time. A Business Success Map will allow you to pinpoint where you are in your business, where you want to be, and the exact activities that will need to be done on a daily basis to ensure you will reach your 5 year goal.

Each activity is assigned to a person, with the resources and timeline for completion. Accountability is then held by way of daily huddles and weekly team meeting. The meetings and generally facilitated by a business mentor or manager. They serve as the "GPS lady" to get you back on track when you've missed a turn, turned the wrong direction, or just simply need to step on the gas in order to reach your destination on time.

White business plans are not necessary for every business, operating your business without a solid Business Success Map can be the equivalent of playing Russian roulette. As business owners, we invest too much time, money and energy into being successful. We have a responsibility to our employees, vendors, family and community to ensure we are doing the right things in our businesses. A business without an action plan is a business that actively plans to fail.

Stay tuned for upcoming webinar and workshop information!

By Karen Wells
Success In Sneakers