Ken and Anne-Marie Poulin, Co-Owners
First Response Disaster Team
Ken Poulin remembers “manning” a hammer for his dad when he was a small child. After graduating from high school, Ken enlisted in the navy and discovered he was a natural leader. When he returned home, Ken graduated in finance, worked as a financial advisor, but soon became a general contractor like his dad. The night Ken and his wife Anne-Marie celebrated their move into a new home, its garage caught fire. That disaster inspired the couple to start the First Response Disaster Team (First Response). A few years later Bright House named First Response the Small Business of the Year in Central Florida.
SWOT Analysis
Opportunities/Mission
The mission of their company is to help people recover from disasters due to hurricanes, fires, floods, mold, and mildew. Its slogan is “We help people through difficult times.”
Threats/Target Market
The target market of First Response is the owners of properties that are damaged by a disaster.
Strengths/Specialty
Ken is a visionary and specializes in sales and project management, whereas Anne-Marie handles contracts and implements decisions. Since she is the majority owner, First Response is a minority supplier to the government.
Weaknesses/Suppliers
After quickly responding to a disaster, First Response rebuilds properties so its customers can return to them. Afterwards, some customers hire local general contractors for long-term improvements to their properties.
Marketing Mix Decisions
Products and Services
Within five minutes, First Response is mobilized, sending emergency vehicles, equipment, and a disaster team to the site of the disaster. When the team arrives, they quickly get to work, following corporate procedures and check lists. Between disasters, First Response resolves problems with mold and mildew and works on its commercial real estate properties.
Distributors
When a disaster strikes, Ken notifies nearby BNI members that relief is on its way to the site of the disaster.
Promotion
Ken and his Director of Business Development build trusted relationships with property managers and insurance adjustors. First Response wraps its trucks with its branding message. When a disaster strikes, First Response uses local media to convey its quick response to the disaster.
Pricing
First Response uses a competitive pricing strategy.
Taking Action
Prospecting
Its prospects are property owners or managers of properties that have suffered from a disaster. These include home owner associations, condominiums, commercial developments, hotels, restaurants, and government agencies.
Customer Service
Employees of First Response develop deep empathy for disaster victims by participating in extensive empathy training.
Budgeting
Currently First Response has offices in Edgewater and Orlando, Florida. The company seeks to establish locations throughout the United States and budgets about $50,000 to establish each new location.
Action Plan
Consistently, First Response focuses on the inputs that generate the greatest profits. Every Friday morning Ken, Anne-Marie, and two other members of the leadership team identify two or three problems and decide how to solve them. An hour later, the leadership team meets with other managers to implement their decisions that week.
How can First Response find and train managers for its new locations?