Meet an Owner - Donn Kramer

Donn Kramer spent nearly forty years working in various roles for Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. By the end of his tenure there, he had years of senior management experience under his belt in marketing, logistics, and technology. After retiring, Donn felt like he had three options: go back into private industry working for another company, become a consultant, or start his own business.

Donn chose the latter, eventually becoming the proud owner of two Right at Home territories in Southwest Cleveland in January 2016.

“My wife had experienced two different bouts of cancer over the years, and both of my daughters ended up going into the medical field,” said Donn. “It made perfect sense for me to get into health care–it’s very heart-driven, and it allows me to give back to the community.”

Choosing Right at Home

Donn had a very pragmatic approach to figuring out which business would be best for him to pursue and ultimately chose Right at Home for four core reasons.?

The first reason was because of the training. Knowing how much he didn’t know, Donn wanted to land with a franchise that would fill in any gaps in terms of his skills and abilities. And for Donn, once he went through the actual training, it did not disappoint.

“It was a true learning hands-on experience,” he said. “We had two weeks, the first of which involved interactive sales and marketing lessons where we prepared presentations for referral? sources.”

Donn explained that the presentations were videotaped and reviewed by both peers and the corporate staff. The whole experience felt incredibly valuable to him–better than just sitting in a room listening to presentations.

“The second reason was the strong corporate profitability of Right at Home,” Donn said. “Knowing that they put their profits back into the franchise system made me feel confident that I’d have plenty of support when I needed it. The third reason was the personnel. Everyone I had met had experience in the health care industry.”

The final reason that convinced Donn that Right at Home was the best franchise opportunity for him was their operating system. From CRM capabilities and invoicing to payroll and receivables, Donn loved that you could manage all of it from one system.

“You can easily pay employees and take a look at where you are from a profitability standpoint, and at any minute of the day you can determine your break-even point and know how many hours necessary to reach it.”

Figuring Out How to Build the Business

When Donn first opened his doors in 2016, he spent a lot of time figuring out the careful balance he needed to achieve between the right number of caregivers and the right number of clients.

“That’s probably one of the biggest challenges–you can get caregivers on board but then you might not have enough business to take care of them, and you end up losing them because they need more reliable work,” said Donn. “And then you’re back to square one.”

He also had a steep learning curve when it came to digital marketing and found the added support from Right at Home’s corporate office to be particularly helpful when he was first starting out.

“About 95 percent of our referrals come through various social media activities, and they’ve been so good to help us in that regard,” Donn said. “Whether collecting online reviews or making sure our website has the core elements that are needed to attract both caregivers and clients, they’ve been a big piece of our marketing success.”

If there were ever roadblocks in his way, Donn turned to his Business Performance Coach, a service that every franchisee has available to them.

“A Business Performance Coach is there to guide you and provide you with alternatives to ultimately make your own decision,” explained Donn. “They’re not there to tell you what to do–or don’t do–they share their experience in the industry to give you more perspective, and you can choose what works for you.”

The Key Elements of Success

With almost a decade of experience under his belt as a Right at Home business owner, Donn can look back and recognize how important it is to have patience and persistence in the way you approach the business.

“It takes hands-on management, where you’re really engaged in order to understand that every decision you make affects multiple disciplines and people, and you need to understand where those tentacles are going and what the impact will be.”

He also encourages new owners to perfect their hiring methodology early in the process. For Donn, intra-personal skills are an integral component of how he hires.

“Skill sets like communication, problem-solving, decision-making, and teamwork are more important in this business because of the one-on-one nature of the work,” said Donn. “You need to look beyond the resume to understand what this person is really bringing to the table.”

Donn has found that when you are clear about the qualities you’re looking for in employees early on, they’ll be more likely to not only do a great job but also to stay with you for longer.

“Everyone we hire has to have compassion, a strong work ethic, great communication with our office staff, and compatibility with our clients. You can’t overlook how important these skills are because it’s a relationship-driven business.”

ABOUT RIGHT AT HOME

Founded in 1995, Right at Home offers in-home care to seniors and adults with disabilities who want to live independently. Most Right at Home offices are independently owned and operated and directly employ and supervise all caregiving staff. Each caregiver is thoroughly screened, trained, and bonded/insured before entering a client’s home. Right at Home’s global office is based in Omaha, Nebraska, with more than 700 franchise locations in the U.S. and five other countries.

If you're interested in taking the next step in making a difference in your community as a Right at Home franchisee, visit https://rightathomefranchise.com.

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