for even his competition, all in the name of professionalism. “I think it’s important to bring my competition up to speed on the codes and regulations so that we’re all play- ing by the same rules because those guys are also doing themselves a disservice,” Serbeck says. “They’re not getting enough fair value for what they’re charging because they’re not putting the right hardware in place.” Indeed, a conversation with Serbeck quickly turns to regulations and codes, subjects in which he is well versed. “The technology and hardware has changed since I started in the business, but so have the regulations,” he says. “You’d be surprised at how many guys don’t understand the codes out there. I’m certified to drill a fire door and yet I still go behind guys putting hardware on fire-rated doors in a field they are not certified to do and voiding the la- bels on them. “I really believe the biggest challenge is the lack of training and knowledge of codes. It’s just a big obstacle to overcome because you are doing the customer a disservice. Once an opportunity is lost, it’s lost.” A Hands-On Approach Given the company motto that Serbeck constantly puts into action, suffice to say he refuses to lose customers. “I stress to all my employees that if a customer has an issue and is not satisfied, they give out my direct line,” he says. “I will talk to any customer person- ally. I still do a lot of sales and manage a lot of customers, but no customer is too small or too big to ever talk to me.” While Serbeck cites a lack of overall knowledge of codes and regulations as a challenge and obstacle, and believes tech- nology and hardware have greatly improved over time, he counts the installation of ac- cess controls as the biggest change he has witnessed, particularly at the university level where he does a lot of work. “When I got involved heavily in access controls about 20 years ago, it was not un- WWW.ALOA.ORG common to ask a (university) customer how many doors they would put access on, and the answer would usually come back at no more than five,” Ser- beck says. “Some of the same sites now are anywhere from 75 to 150. We have some uni- versities with 300 to 400 doors with access controls.” Serbeck understands that he works in an industry that is constantly evolving and re- alizes the importance of being ahead of the curve, especially when it comes to education. He has been an ALOA member for a couple of years and has attended training classes con- ducted by the association when it recently came to Baltimore. He says his dad was good friends with “I built a mobile showroom about five years ago that includes mock-up doors with access and a working access control system with a command station,” says Chris Serbeck, president and owner. “When it is not on the road, it parks inside our showroom.” and everything,” Serbeck says. “A lot of guys bid out a job but don’t really take in all the incidental costs. “Even my own technicians might think industry legend Hank Spicer, who authored numerous trade books and was known to travel the country to put on shows to help fellow locksmiths. The younger Serbeck ac- celerated his learning curve by tapping into some of Spicer’s teachings, which he says covered “impressioning cars and really just about everything.” Serbeck offers one last tip that he believes many of his competitors as well as some of his own staff fail to follow: Track incidental true costs on the job. “I’m adamant about tracking my true costs for each tech on the job and what he is making versus travel time “People today think they can take a quick locksmith course and then go out and open a business and compete, but they are going to be shocked.” APRIL 2014 KEYNOTES 21 a job takes only 15 or 20 minutes, but I ask them if they consider the time to drive there, get the tools out of the truck, go over training with the customer, clean up and get the truck in order for the next job. That’s my true cost. You’re not really being fair to yourself because the cost of the job should also include having your truck ready to go to the next job.” Serbeck is clearly always teaching and always learning and doing his part to en- sure his own business and the industry are professionally represented and providing customers with value and knowledge for their unique needs. It’s also a good reason the mobile showroom is found on the streets in the community just as oſten as it is parked in the showroom, a valuable teaching and learning tool on wheels. R.V. Baugus is a freelance writer based in Grand Prairie, Texas.
