BROADVIEW, Ill. — HVAC professionals from around the country attended the Service Management Forum, three days of networking and learning, at the Hilton Austin in January. The conference was organized by the Unified Group, an association of independent commercial HVAC contractors.

“Sitting next to the best of the best, sharing our successes and failures, is powerful,” said Chris DeMers, director of operations at CMC Corporate Solutions in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

The forum kicked off with a presentation on leadership by Craig Woodall, a senior consultant at Grinnell Leadership. Woodall spoke on the importance of open communication, maintaining a positive culture, and more.

“He did a really good job with providing actionable steps instead of just highlighting general issues,” said Andy Gura, HVAC service supervisor at Blauch Brothers Inc. of Harrisonburg, Virginia.

Day two was full of panel discussions. A panel on recruiting and retaining employees, led by Derren Saucier, senior vice president of Temperature Inc. in Memphis, Tennessee, covered characteristics to look for in new hires, successful retention programs, team bonding experiences, and more.

Other panelists included CMC Corporate Solutions service manager Daniel Gauthier, Cox-Powell Corp. vice president of operations Mike Kerner, Dean E. Norris Inc. director of service operations Erick Wheeler, B&I Contractors southwest service manager Jason Walker, and Blauch Brothers’ Gura. Members ended the night with a competitive ping-pong tournament.

On the final day, members had opportunities to ask each other for advice on dealing with challenges.

“If I hadn’t attended the meeting, I would have missed valuable experiences and strategies,” said Steve Adams, general services manager at Johnson & Jordan Inc. in Scarborough, Maine. “These interactions are crucial for gaining new insights and perspectives, which can be instrumental in shaping and improving my own management practices and decision-making processes.”