Where People Want to Work

Every pool company has that technician.

They know the equipment inside and out, can diagnose a stubborn heater before the panel is even open and somehow make difficult jobs look routine. When they’re on the schedule, managers breathe easier. Customers ask for them by name. New technicians look up to them. 

Business owners hope they never leave because replacing them means not only hiring expenses but also disruption.

High employee turnover has become one of the biggest challenges facing today’s pool service companies. Every resignation means recruiting, onboarding and weeks, sometimes months, of training before a new hire is fully productive. Veteran technicians burn out. Customers notice the inconsistency. Managers feel the strain.

The seemingly obvious answer is money, and while compensation does matter, it’s what employers do for their workers that makes the difference.

People historically viewed pool service as, ‘I’ll just clean pools for the summer until I figure out what I really want to do’. We really want to change that mindset.”

Dave Hobaica, CEO of Easton Select Group

Frame their future

For decades, the pool industry has battled the perception that service work isn’t a “real” job. 

“People historically viewed pool service as, ‘I’ll just clean pools for the summer until I figure out what I really want to do,’ ” says Dave Hobaica, CEO of Easton Select Group. “We really want to change that mindset.”

Easton Select Group has developed a clear career track for its service pros. “If you start out as an apprentice or a maintenance specialist, there is a path for you to be lead tech,” Hobaica says.

But upward mobility looks different for everyone. “There are a lot of directions you can go in this industry,” says Javier Payan, founder of Payan Pools. “Our repair dispatcher started as a pool tech, and now he’s running our repair department.”

At Landmark Aquatic, which recently earned Energage’s Top Workplace Award for Professional Development, one of the chemical drivers became vice president of strategic partnerships. And at Hines Pool & Spa in Austin, Texas, the person at the helm started at the bottom.

“I went from being the delivery driver and warehouse guy to a pool cleaner, a pool tech, then managed the cleaning department,” says Jeb Foster, general manager of Hines Pool & Spa. “I just kept taking on more responsibility and ended up running the whole place.”

Train them to stay

Companies that champion education tend to keep employees long after the season ends. Most already require some amount of instruction: CPO classes, manufacturer-led training sessions or ride-alongs with experienced technicians. 

“The more training employees have, the more confidence they have,” Hobaica says. “Hopefully, that means they stick around longer.”

Whether it’s a structured system or not, training sets the tone for companies that want to encourage employees to stay. 

“We’ve invested a lot of time, resources and money into developing a robust training program,” Hobaica says. Employees receive formal classroom education through Easton Select University, along with in-field apprenticeships. “You need a certain amount of classroom time and in-field time to go to the next level.”

Payan, who’s part of the Pool & Spa Apprenticeship and Training Committee — a one-year apprentice program— built a working automation wall inside his office where employees can practice programming systems, troubleshooting equipment and making mistakes without consequence.

“We’ve got everyone’s system,” Payan says. “When we hire someone, we can just walk to the wall and say, ‘Go ahead. You’re not going to break anything.’ ”

Hines doesn’t have an official program. Instead, training takes place every day in the field. “They start to do small repairs and ask questions,” Foster says. “You don’t get in trouble here if you make a mistake trying.”

Employees who aren’t afraid of making mistakes are far more willing to ask questions and continue learning. When employees can picture themselves growing, they stop viewing today’s position as a temporary stop and begin to see a career.

Loyalty built on leadership

Company culture has become a buzzword, but culture isn’t created by posters in the break room or values written on a wall. It shows up in everyday interactions.

For Payan, it begins with a simple belief: “Everybody cares.” Those words are the foundation of nearly four decades in business. “When you care, you build loyalty and you build trust,” he says.

Originally, Payan’s company adopted the phrase “Caring for Your California Dream” to describe the families trusting them to maintain the pools where memories unfold. Eventually, that philosophy expanded. “Every employee shows up to work with their own hopes and dreams,” Payan says. “My responsibility is taking care of theirs, too.”

Hobaica says one lesson has stayed with him since early in his career: “You don’t demand respect; you earn respect.” 

He says employees respond to leaders who consistently demonstrate empathy, listen well and earn trust through their actions rather than their title.

Instead of asking, “How do I get more from my employees?” The question becomes: “What do my employees need from me?”

“We really focus on great leadership,” says Nick Han, director of marketing at Landmark Aquatic. “Our goals are to remove obstacles as much as we can and not create them.”

At Hines, removing obstacles can look like flexibility. If someone has a school event or they’re needed at home, there’s no shame for choosing family. “We make sure all employees understand their family comes before their job,” Foster says. 

Create a sense of belonging

Communication plays an equally important role. Not just shop talk — actual conversations. Managers who are invested in their employees take time to listen, even when the workday gets busy.

Payan admits that wasn’t always easy.

As his company grew, he found himself juggling insurance renewals, scheduling, customer issues, sales, warranties and dozens of other responsibilities. By the end of the day, technicians would stop by wanting to share stories from the field, but he felt he simply didn’t have the bandwidth to give them the attention they deserved.

“I realized that I didn’t have the patience to deal with anyone,” he says.

Rather than expecting himself to become more available, Payan changed the structure of the business.

He created a support position dedicated to helping field technicians. Beyond answering phones, that person keeps parts moving, coordinates field support, solves day-to-day problems and gives technicians a reliable point of contact whenever they need help.

Just as important, that person is there to listen.

“When you’re out in the field, it’s a lonely job,” Payan says. That’s why giving technicians someone to talk to provides “a sense of belonging. Their job is to listen to stories, say, ‘Oh, that’s pretty cool. Show me pictures.’ ”

But when employees begin disengaging, Payan doesn’t wait; he asks people, “What is going on?” because burnout is common.

Foster reads the visual cues. “When the guy that shows up at 6:30 every morning starts showing up at 7:15, … you need to see what the problem is.”

Hobaica believes many of those conversations happen naturally when leaders spend time with employees instead of waiting for scheduled meetings.

He describes the approach as “management by walking around.”

Rather than calling technicians into the office, he makes a point to visit warehouses, jobsites and partner companies, asking questions and listening.

“You’re going to get more out of them if you just walk around and talk,” Hobaica says.

Sometimes that’s all it takes to uncover an issue before it becomes a resignation letter.

Listen with intention

“Communication is the key,” Han, of Landmark Aquatic, says. “You have to listen continuously.”

Foster says too many conversations fail because people focus on what they’re going to say next instead of truly listening.

“The biggest problem is everybody waits to talk,” Foster says. “They don’t hear what’s being said. You’ve got one mouth and two ears — use your two ears before you open your mouth.”

Hobaica recently created a culture committee made up of field technicians to gather employee feedback, even if it’s negative. “We’re going to ask questions; we need to be ready for answers,” he says.

Landmark Aquatic takes a more formal approach. Han says the company combines employee surveys, town halls, annual reviews and regular check-ins to gather feedback across its organization.

Employees can choose whether to attach their names to survey responses. Honest, two-way communication helps employees feel connected to something bigger than their individual route. 

The people doing the work usually know exactly what needs to be done to improve not only the business, but their day-to-day. When they see their ideas turned into action, they know their voice matters.”

Nick Han, Landmark Aquatic

“The people doing the work usually know exactly what needs to be done to improve not only the business, but their day-to-day,” Han says. “When they see their ideas turned into action, they know their voice matters.”

Appreciation isn’t just an event

At Payan Pools, winter training mornings often start with pancakes on the griddle. Before holiday weekends, the grill comes out for burgers. The office refrigerator is stocked with cold drinks for technicians coming in from a long day in the heat. 

Those gestures may be small, but they’re genuine.  

Sometimes it’s as simple as making sure good work doesn’t go unnoticed. Pool service can be physically demanding, fast-paced and thankless. A technician leaves a pool pristine; meanwhile, the homeowner never realizes the expertise it took to get it there.

Hobaica explains that managers make a point to share positive customer feedback with technicians. “Don’t bury that,” he says. “Celebrate that.”

And while all those things are good, the companies with the strongest retention still do more. Appreciation isn’t something they schedule once a year. It’s woven into the workweek and built into the business model.

Both Hines and Easton Select reinforce long-term commitment by giving employees an ownership stake in the company.

“We call it the Easton Share program,” Hobaica says. “Our teams are in the field working with customers every day, building value in the company — this is our way to make sure they know they’re valued.”

At Hines, employees own 70% of the company. “We’re an ESOP,” Foster says. “Every employee has ownership.”

Another benefit that helps is additional paid vacation after years of service. Foster explains at Hines, “You get an additional two weeks after 10 years, then at 20 years, you get a month added on. And at 30 years, a month paid vacation added on to that.”

Perhaps one of the most overlooked forms of appreciation is making sure employees have what they need to succeed.

“People know when they come here, they’re going to be supported,” Payan says. “They’re going to be trained, they’re going to be invested in, they’re going to have all the resources they need to do the job and be successful.”

There isn’t one right way

The pool industry will probably always face recruiting challenges. The work is demanding. The days are long. The busy season tests even the strongest teams. The question isn’t why employees leave.

It’s why they stay.

The answer has less to do with ping-pong tables, pizza parties or even pay. It has everything to do with creating a workplace where people feel respected, appreciated and genuinely excited to come to work.

“It’s less about convincing people to stay,” Han says. “It’s more about creating an environment they don’t want to leave.”