Our company values
Dear all,
Over time we have become much more acutely (and necessarily!) attuned to what is a good fit for us. We are not a good fit for everyone, and vice versa. For us, business ownership means the revelations keep coming. It's a living process with no "end" goal. So we, just like all people really, are constantly evolving and adjusting.
We recently decided to change our company values to reflect where we are currently at as an entity. It seemed like a good time to share them and lock these in:
Responsiveness: This is huge. Do you respond to emails, phone calls and texts? We do! For subs: Do you respond to us when we ask you to fix an issue? Do you respond to us at all? It seems so basic, but it's not a quality that everyone has. Clients: are you responding to items in your court for decisions to be made, timelines to be met etc? Do you respond to requests for meetings and site walks? Are you an active part of the process when you need to be? Or do you ghost? Employees do you respond to improvements we have communicated to you that we need to see? Responding and responsiveness is a core value. And it works for us and people who work with us.
Professionalism: Construction is often seen as casual. In our experience, craftspeople seem to be given the latitude to lack the etiquette of other industries with higher barriers of entry. We do not treat the construction process casually or lightly. We are conscientious. We constantly strive to be more efficient in all we do, by owning and learning from our mistakes. This company-wide commitment to growth is expressed in our clean and organized job sites, accurate and attentive communication style, and our unwavering attention to following through with commitments. This level of professionalism truly separates the wheat from the chafe, and we are drawn to professional partners and subs who share this value. It helps our clients relax knowing that we are on it. We are pros, we do this at a pro level, and this standard is at the heart of Kellow Construction.
Honesty: This one is the simplest to explain: being honest and credible. There are a lot of people in this world that do not have this value. Sadly this isn't news to anyone who is reading this I'm sure. We make room for people who deeply value honesty, and have no place in our company, or on our client roster, for anyone who is dishonest. We welcome those honest people who want to deal in good faith with other, good honest people. We are here for you!
Excellence: This one felt really cliche, but made the list because we value things being done at a truly excellent level. No matter what it is, if it comes from our company, the bar is excellence. Mediocrity and average bear standards make for a meaningless life in our opinion. Why do something if we are not doing it at the highest and best level that we possible can? Excellence, for us, makes life worth living and things worth doing.
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We are an authentic company and group of people. Our values guide us every step of the way and keep our team and business healthy. Strict adherence to our values helps us serve our clients and community in the best possible way we can.
On the other side of the coin, we are also willing to face the pain that adhering to our values can inevitably bring. Whether it is letting an employee go, or passing on a "dream project," we are ready to say no when we need to. No amount of money is worth compromising our core values over, period.
Always grateful that you read this. Thank you for sending us your people and thank you to the good people of Santa Barbara who keep us in this and keep it going.
