When I hire someone at Davis Painting, I’m not just looking for someone to hold a brush. I’m looking for someone who wants to build a future. That’s why we’ve put so much effort into creating real career paths inside the company.
A new hire might start on a crew doing prep work and learning the basics. If they show up consistently, take feedback well, and care about quality, we start giving them more responsibility. Maybe they start leading smaller projects or training newer team members. From there, they might move into estimating, project management, or even operations if that’s where their strengths are.
The key is that none of this is a mystery. We document what it takes to move up. We track performance. We have regular check-ins where people know exactly where they stand and what they need to work on. It’s not about favoritism or luck. It’s about showing up, improving, and demonstrating that you can handle the next level.
This approach has completely changed the quality of our team. Instead of constant turnover and people who just want a quick paycheck, we attract people who are serious about their future. They show up differently for customers because they know this job is a stepping stone to something bigger, not a dead end.
It also makes my job easier. When I have a bench of trained, capable people who understand our standards and systems, I can scale without sacrificing quality. I’m not dependent on any one person, including myself. That’s how you build something that can grow beyond the founder.