TEN YEARS AGO, Dennis Bryant's downtown Toronto-based design/build company was cooking along nicely, tackling everything from Rosedale mansions to 600-sq.-ft. condos.  During our interview at that time, Dennis's stated goal for the years ahead was as much a spiritual one as a business one:  'The pinnacle of my career will come when I am as authentic and transparent as I can be," he said. 54 years-old at the time, Dennis had been a renovator for just over 25 years and was doing about $400,000 in annual sales.

TODAY, Dennis says he's happy with his company's openness and integrity.  His website (www.bryantrenovations.com) leads off with the company motto, "We Listen. We're Honest. We Get it Right."  That approach has paid dividends.  Dennis says he already has about $1.5-million in booked business for 2010, four times his revenue from a decade ago when the economy was, obviously, a lot hotter than it is now.

WHAT HE'S LEARNED:  It’s Critical to Delegate What You Don't Do Well.

Dennis's four-fold revenue increase didn't happen overnight.  In fact, even though Bryant Renovations is now well into its fourth decade in business, Dennis's great leap forward occurred in the last few years when he finally realized that he didn't know enough about running a business and decided to do something about it.  Three years ago, he signed up for group and individual sessions with Growth Advisors (www.growthadvisors.ca), an Oakville, ON small business consulting firm.

"At first I went every other week for a half a day," Dennis says.  "lt was a class of eight or 10 people, most of them in the renovation and construction businesses.  The challenges we were all dealing with were surprisingly similar."  What Dennis discovered was that most renovators fail to delegate or get help with the things they don't do well-or didn't enjoy (usually the same tasks).  "Don't hit your head against the wall; get help," Dennis's advisor told him during the one-on-one sessions.

What Dennis didn't particularly enjoy was selling and estimating, although his people skills were (and are) excellent.  "Sales is a very, very difficult job-and few people do it really well," he says.  Taking the advice he had been given to heart, Dennis embarked on a search for an experienced, full-time salesperson.  He finally has one-the fourth salesperson he has hired in his career, and by far the best." He's a very experienced businessperson," Dennis says. "He's run his own businesses in the past, including a window-washing business and a painting business." 

Dennis says he learned a lot more at Growth Advisors, but nothing he learned beat that simple advice: "Do what you are good at and delegate what you aren't good at."  Growth Advisors cost Dennis about $800 a month-not chump change.  But then there's always that famous old expression: "lf you think education is expensive, try ignorance."  Dennis has 1.5 million reasons, in a down economy, to be glad he invested in both the training and the salesperson.

Stephen Payne

Canadian Contractor  - February/March 2010