The 5 Traps of a Service Manager

Service Managers have an amazingly important position.  A service manager serves as a resource and advocate to the technician.  In addition, the service manager is the implementer of strategy for the business owner.  With all of the demands on the average service manager, it can be very easy to get caught in the trap of unproductive action.

In an effort to be everything to everyone, most service managers fail miserably at their primary responsibilities.

Terry Barrett, Thomas Dougherty, and I have written a Principle Based Approach to Management called the PRESS PLAY – Management Series.

In this post, you are going to discover The 5 Traps of a Service Manager

The 5 Traps of a Service Manager

How you built your prison

#1 – You decided to be the superhero.

The Superhero saves the day!  He swoops in, and makes everything all better….kind of.  There is a big problem with the the service manager being the superhero in a service company.  Let’s highlight those problems:

• You are limited.  As a service manager you can only be the hero to one person at a time.
• Techs should be the hero, not you.  You need to be Charles Xavier.
• Time is your kryptonite, and you are running out of time!

#2 – You turned your service technician into a mindless zombie.

Zombification goes hand-in-hand with your need to be the superhero.  Your techs have come to depend on you like an answer hotline.

“Brains, brains, brains.”  

You are not helping them!  If you really want to help your techs, get their butts into a training seminar and teach them!

#3 – You made your technician a slave to the business.

The #1 way to turn a technician into a slave to the business is to loan him money.  Don’t do it!  I understand the need to be nice.  I understand the need to help out a team member in a tight spot, but listen to what God says on the subject,

“The borrower is slave to the lender.” – God

Do slaves ever feel good about their freedom being stolen?  NO!   Your desire to be nice is going to create long term problems.

If a guy really needs more money, then take the following advice to heart:

• Teach him to be more productive.  (See a theme here?)  RELATED – 7 training program mistakes and how to fix them
• Point him in the direction of a bank.
  • God’s words are still true.  However, if the guy needs a big loan, let the experts handle those needs.
• Give him the money.  Yes, give.  Don’t borrow, give.  I don’t mean give him the company’s money, or ask the owner for the money.  I mean, reach in your own pocket, and give the guy the money.

#4 – You decided to be an accountant, marketing guru, or whatever you needed to be.

This isn’t superhero syndrome, this is much much worse!  This is doing work that doesn’t even serve your primary role.  This may be one of the biggest traps for small companies.

If your title is service manager, you should be aiding service techs to be better producers!  The only “accounting” you should ever do is the kind that has you reviewing tickets for opportunities.

#5 – You believe you need to be doing the things that keep you in prison.

A person becomes institutionalized when he grows to love his prison.

A prisoner becomes accustomed to his clearly defined life of unproductive actions.  He may be trapped, but at least he knows what to expect.

It is not at all uncommon for a service manager to stay in his prison, even when the door is opened.

Before a service manager will excel, he must know how to excel.

Teaching service managers to excel is at the heart of the Manager Series Program. RELATED – PRESS PLAY Training Series

Use this training handout in-house to review the 5 Traps with your Service Manager.