Structural Group: Brick and Mortar Streaming

While Comprehensus makes a wealth of information available at relatively low cost — which is clearly beneficial to the company — it still must justify itself with positive, demonstrable ROI. Structural sees positive returns on investment in a number of areas, including recruiting, training and decision support. But ROI is perhaps most clearly evident through increased sales.

Emmons believes that Comprehensus drives sales in a number of ways. "When we have a video in front of a customer, the credibility is immense. We’re not just talking [about] it. We’re showing them that we’ve been there and done it." He adds, "We minimize competition because we are differentiating ourselves from our competitors."

Emmons also believes that videos help educate customers about their own structures’ problems, and illustrate how Structural Group’s repair techniques can help. "When we can show them different solutions to their problem on video, it portrays us as a solution builder, which is really what they are paying us for," he says.

Through experience, Emmons has learned the impact that Structural’s extensive knowledge base can have when it is streamed to customers’ desktops. "The most impressive thing we can do [is let customers] go right into our Comprehensus Web site and call up this information," he says. "They are just blown away when they realize how committed we are to developing our company’s quality and efficiency for them." And while it may be difficult to clearly establish which influences have caused a customer to choose Structural, the anecdotal evidence in support of Comprehensus is compelling. Emmons notes, "We’ve identified certain sales that have happened because of Comprehensus, based on salesmen coming back and saying that this tool got us out in front of the customer and made the difference."

Tool for Recruitment

Comprehensus realizes additional ROI through its impact on employee retention and recruitment. For example, engineering construction management classes at a number of major universities use Peter Emmons’ "Concrete Repair Maintenance Illustrated" as a textbook. Professors and students in these classes receive password access to Comprehensus, and use its streaming videos to bring the textbook material to life. Structural also demonstrates the Comprehensus system at up to 30 job fairs put on by college engineering and construction management programs each year. These initiatives have helped to establish Structural’s reputation as a forward-thinking company that cares about and invests in its people.

"[Comprehensus] showcases us as a progressive company with all this knowledge that will help [our employees grow]," says Emmons. "We get better candidates and we get less turnover. What more could you ask for?"Structural operates a physical training center in Baltimore, where classes are videotaped for subsequent streaming through the Comprehensus distance-learning portal. Subjects include new employee orientation, as well as administrative, field operation, sales, management and safety procedures. Class lectures and case studies from the field are combined to create online courses. Successful completion of some courses — verified through testing — is required for advancement within the company. Test results become part of annual reviews and employee records.

In addition to a reduction in the cost of travel to and from the Baltimore training center, distance learning ROIs are realized through shortened employee learning curves. "It creates an operational efficiency," notes Brian Gallagher, director of marketing at Structural. "People are better trained. They better understand what they need to do and how to do it."