Jeff Miller engages employees at Dawson Resources to have an ownership mentality

Jeff Miller, president and CFO, Dawson Resources

When Jeff Miller became president and CFO of Dawson Resources five years ago, he found a phenomenal service organization, but it wasn’t as outbound as it needed to be to grow.
To be more outbound, he wanted to see more “push” marketing, rather than “pull.” There needed to be more marketing such as commercials, print advertisements, cold calling, tradeshows and e-mail blasts. In short, the staff needed to think more like a salesperson.
“Ask for the business,” Miller says. “Talk about the company. Spread the word.”
At nearly the same time, he could see that the economy was heading toward recession, and it necessitated reducing nine offices down to two, with the money saved being reinvested on the sales and service side of the business.
The reorganization allowed him to focus on developing a management strategy that would motivate the employees to excel toward being more outbound. The approach was to educate employees, to treat them — and get them thinking — like business owners. Initially, it involved finding out what was on employees’ minds.
“The first thing you have to do is ask and listen,” he says. “It seems simple but they often never do get asked. I was in on every meeting, asking and listening, caring about what they thought.”
Putting employees in hypothetical situations allowed them to wear bosses’ hats. Miller posed questions that would exercise their analytical and decision-making processes.
“What would you do to improve your own division?” he says. “Where would you spend money? If I had $5,000 to improve your division, where would you spend it? Put together a plan for me.”
Along with making those types of executive decisions, employees have to learn that business owners largely can set their own hours but have to decide what is the most effective use of their time.
“There used to be a distinction between home and work,” Miller says. “Today, it is blended. Sometimes it is hard to see the difference. You have to kind of embrace that now.”
While many companies may frown on employees taking time off for doctors’ appointments, Miller’s plan gives it merit because it requires the employee to decide how a business owner would make a decision.
“If it makes sense for you to go there and sacrifice two hours of work, then do it because that’s what you need to do,” he says.
In addition, many of the younger workers have grown up being connected 24 hours a day and have no problem working at home, especially if it means getting paid for results rather than by the number of hours put in.
“If it’s eight o’clock at night and something pops up, you check your e-mails or voice mails ― and address them,” Miller says. “You know that time is now and if somebody took the time to send you something at eight o’clock at night it seems they want to hear from you.
“It’s like we kind of expect you to have the same mentality when it crosses into your personal life,” he says.
You don’t have to send an elaborate reply but at least send an acknowledgement.
Getting paid for results involves a salary-plus-incentives arrangement. While not exclusive to business owners, it still offers the opportunity for self-direction.
“Show the employees what the return on investment is, how much money they are making the company and what percentage they’re getting,” Miller says. “Keep your fixed costs down by keeping salaries and other areas set.”
Then if employees want to earn more, it’s based on sales results, and they control that.
“So you give them that good culture but also tie it to their W-2s,” he says. “Make them produce.”
The result of Miller’s approach is an engaged work force that tries to create a partnership with clients.
“We’re trying to make their business better,” he says. “That’s something we all strive to do.”
How to reach: Dawson Resources, (614) 255-1400 or www.dawsoncareers.com
‘I got this’
As Jeff Miller was wondering whether his strategy was working to increase employee engagement through a method of treating them as if they were business owners, he came upon a valuable method to determine the buy-in.
He didn’t take a survey or wait for employees to e-mail him about their appreciation for the opportunity for personal growth.
Miller could tell from the one-on-one conversations with employees about a client if his message was hitting home.
“They will come in if they complain about a client or what not, and say, ‘I will get this thing handled because this is my account,’” says Miller, president and CFO of Dawson Resources, a 55-employee company with annual revenue of $26 million.
“You see the ownership of it,” he says. “‘I’m just letting you know so you are aware of this, but I got this.’ There is a lot of ‘I got this.’ I always use the term ‘punt.’ I don’t like it when people just punt ― ‘I don’t know what I’m going to do; I’ll just punt. I’ll just send it somewhere else.’
“We don’t have a lot of punters here, which is a good thing,” he says. “On fourth and long, you go for it.”

How to reach: Dawson Resources, (614) 255-1400 or www.dawsoncareers.com