Partner Article

Wayne Richardson shares his journey at Revolution Power

What key challenges has your company recently faced?

We had our sales team poached by a competitor at the beginning of the year, which initially looked like a disaster we would struggle to recover from. It forced me to focus on our sales process and identify where we were not delivering the best service. I managed to turn things around very quickly and to date we have doubled our sales on this time last year, reduced our quotation turnaround time and we deliver on customer expectations.

What is your biggest achievement over the past 12 months?

Finishing a design for a very large PV (Photo Voltaic) project on Treasham College after my designer moved on. The final design turned out to be a better solution than I could have imagined and I am immensely proud of the look and installation quality - so much so that i have a photograph of it on my wall. Also during the design phase we made several contacts which have already paid off.

What is your biggest focus for the coming year?

Managing the increased volume of sales efficiently and effectively, whilst maintaining quality. Also delivering on customer expectations and not letting people down on service.

If you had to choose one top piece of advice for someone just starting out in business, or is currently operating within your industry sector, what would it be?

I’ve got many, but the one I will live by is: If you see a part of your business which is not performing as you would like or expect, don’t ignore it in the vain hope it will sort its self out. Take the bull by the horns and make the tough decisions ASAP, even if you see the non-performing person as a friend, which often happens in small businesses. A small team can be brought down by one individual.

Can you share with us your view of the current landscape of business, in this region or generally and where your organisation sits within it?

I have seen a big shift in the renewable energy sector since we started in 2006 before it was fashionable, from engineering-focused businesses looking to provide a robust engineered solution to more sales-targeted businesses which purely focus on getting a sale, sometimes to the detriment of an engineered-based solution. Don’t get me wrong, the growth in the industry is good for everyone, but let’s not forget we are selling and installing systems people have paid a lot of money for and which they need to work well in order to reduce their carbon footprint and provide a good return on investment.

I think that the industry needs to bare this in mind, otherwise we stand the chance of getting a bad reputation like the double-glazing industry did in its infancy. We stand by our founding princables of: Innovation, Morals and Service, which is why we get a lot of business through word-of mouth (even if we are not the cheapest), as people are starting to realise that Renewable Energy is a long-term investment. Especially PV, which has to last 25 years on your roof. There is also a direct relationship between cost and quality.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .