In this candid conversation recorded live at the NCI Summit in Austin, Bryan Orr sits down with Chad Simpson, owner of Simpson Solutions, for an unexpectedly revealing discussion about the reality of building a successful HVAC business. What makes this episode particularly compelling is Simpson's refreshing honesty about his struggles, failures, and the gradual transformation from a struggling contractor making $8 an hour to running a $28.5 million operation with healthy profit margins.

Simpson's journey began unusually early—he wrote a paper in his freshman year of high school (1996) declaring his intention to own an HVAC company. After graduating from trade school and working for a residential replacement contractor, he started his own business with his father, who had just retired from building interstates and bridges. For the first eight years, Simpson made virtually no money despite working 12-hour days, falling into the common trap of thinking he could "outrun" financial problems by simply working harder and hiring more people. The turning point came around 2008 when mentor Brad Hohn discovered Simpson calling receivables on a golf course to make payroll—and offered to help departmentalize his finances with the promise of a Vegas golf trip once Simpson hit 10% net profit.

The most striking aspect of Simpson's story is his emphasis on process documentation and his willingness to admit what he didn't know. After finally achieving profitability, he hired a business coach who refused to write processes for him, insisting Simpson had to "own" them himself. This led to the creation of Simpson's now-famous process book, which started with simple one-page job descriptions and grew to encompass every aspect of the business. Simpson's approach to callbacks changed dramatically after 2021, when his company's callback rate hit 23% following rapid growth. Working with Jim Bergmann and implementing Measure Quick transformed his operation from quick-fix service calls to thorough 2.5-3 hour diagnostics that actually prevent future problems rather than creating false urgency.

Perhaps most impressive is Simpson's Fast Track training lab, which he built initially just to train his own technicians but has evolved into a resource for competitors, universities, and the entire industry. His philosophy centers on finding real problems through proper diagnostics rather than making up issues or pushing unnecessary replacements. Simpson emphasizes that service technicians should educate, not sell—and that when you deploy the right tools and probes, you'll find plenty of legitimate problems without resorting to dishonest tactics. Today, Simpson's company maintains a 2% service callback rate and 3% install callback rate while continuing to grow and expand into plumbing services.

Topics Covered:

• Starting an HVAC business straight out of high school with minimal capital and business knowledge
• The reality of struggling financially for the first eight years despite long hours and hard work
• The critical importance of understanding financial KPIs and departmentalized accounting
• How mentorship from Brad Hohn transformed Simpson's approach to business financials
• Building comprehensive process documentation and job descriptions for every role
• The difference between being teachable versus being controlling as a business owner
• Transitioning from quick-fix service calls to thorough diagnostic work using Measure Quick and True Flow tools
• Reducing callback rates from 23% to 2-3% through proper commissioning and diagnostics
• Creating the Fast Track training lab and training competitors at no cost
• The philosophy of finding real problems versus creating false urgency with customers
• Why service technicians should focus on education rather than sales tactics
• Scaling from $3.5 million to $28.5 million while maintaining healthy profit margins
• Expanding into plumbing services using the same process-driven approach developed for HVAC
• The importance of celebrating wins as a team and taking responsibility for losses as a leader

 

News for next year's High-Performance HVAC Summit will be available at gotosummit.com. 

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