We caught up with the brilliant and insightful John Akhoian a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi John, thanks for joining us today. What do you think it takes to be successful?

Successful people have to have a purpose, a vision and be willing to take action to achieve their goals.

But, the truth is that most people never really sit down and consider what their purpose is so they wander around, going nowhere and have no idea what steps to take next in order to accomplish what they want in life. Making sure that you know exactly what you want out of life is the first step on your journey to success.

After that, you need to plan that journey. Write down your vision and the steps you believe you’ll need to take to get there. You have to be specific to be dynamic. For example, you wouldn’t get in a car and begin driving if you didn’t have a clear destination.

In my case, after working in the plumbing industry for about a year, I quickly discovered that in order to grow, I needed to hire the right people and develop the right processes to help me achieve the success I wanted. I built a plan to learn how to implement a franchise business, to understand financial statements, to build a network with other successful entrepreneurs and to create a business plan that not only helps me achieve my goals but also empowers my staff to achieve their goals, as well.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I got started in the plumbing industry in my teens as a means to support my family after the death of my father. And, while I quickly learned the trade, it wasn’t until I had been working for about a year before I realized that in order to be successful, I needed to grow.

That is when I decided I needed to strike out on my own and built a small commercial plumbing business. I became familiar with all aspects of my business and quickly discovered that investing in a franchise was the fastest way to grow. I soon had multiple locations and understood the model of operating in multiple markets.

At a certain point, I decided to leave the franchise and opened Rooter Hero in 2011. Although Rooter Hero has multiple locations, it isn’t technically a franchise but is organized like one. Each location has an independent management structure even though they are all run through the company’s corporate office. Most locations are green fielded, however, there are times when Rooter Hero purchases an established business from the local owner and, in many cases, the former owner stays on as the general manager with some equity in the business.

At Rooter Hero, we have developed a process that includes putting a strong management team in place, providing our employees with a good training program and investing in my workforce so that we could achieve our financial goals together. I am most proud of our commitment to our employees. We want to ensure that they are paid well and trained well.

Rooter Hero has been committed to providing the best in plumbing and drain services. With more than 100 years of plumbing heritage, our team provides solutions for both residential and commercial needs and offers 24/7 emergency service. We have recently extended our services to include HVAC service and installation in select areas. We now have 12 Rooter Hero locations throughout California and Arizona.

I have been doing this for 30 years now and really love the industry. It’s my calling. I go to work every day and get to do what I was put on this earth to do.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

My father died of a heart attack when I was 17 and at a time when I needed him most. I was on a downward spiral. I was hanging out on the streets, running with gang members and facing poverty. But, because my family needed my support to pay the bills, I decided to turn away from that life through the help of a family friend who hired me as an apprentice plumber. I had never thought of being a plumber but, because of my circumstances, it was a decision that would pay the bills and keep me off of the street.

From that point, I took my earnings and bought my own business. I learned how to operate that business successfully and parlayed it into a series of home service franchises. I haven’t looked back since.

How do you keep your team’s morale high?

Your employees are the backbone of your business and you should offer them the tools they need to be personally successful. It’s not my goal to build my personal wealth on the backs of my employees – I want to aid in their success.

Rooter Hero’s success is a result of finding and encouraging the right people to join the company and putting them in the position to succeed. That’s especially true of our location managers. Some of them used to be plumbers and others have come from other industries. But the one thing they have in common is that they have leadership skills and are given the right training for their position.

Giving employees the tools they need in the form of ongoing training and development helps keep morale high because the employees knows you are investing in them. In addition to teaching our employees how to diagnose and fix problems, we also teach them to ask questions, listen to the responses, educate the customer and be “Way Above Wonderful (W.A.W.).

Happy employees make for happy customers and that’s a win-win situation for both the business and for the customer.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.rooterhero.com
• Instagram: johnakhoian
• Facebook: John Akhoian
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-akhoian/
• Twitter: johnakhoian72
• Youtube: John Akhoian