Your BottomLine Text Version
SeaComm Business Newsletter
1st Edition 2023
BUSINESS SPOTLIGHT: The Honey Do Team
When you need to have work done on your home, it’s important to have a reliable crew that will do a great job. Look no further than The Honey Do Team and owners Bill and Eric Jost of Plattsburgh, NY. Their extensive knowledge in business and construction make them and their company an ideal partner for your home projects. Their story is one of adapting to the times and using quality skills to provide a great service to the community.
Bill and Eric Jost founded B & E Development, LLC in 2000. The business originally began as a real estate company that was flipping houses until 2009, when the volatile housing market became a challenge. The company transitioned to a contractor for hire business, since they had perfected their craft for fixing up houses. Deciding to switch to construction allowed for bigger projects and even building houses from the ground up. In 2018, Bill and Eric decided to make another change. “We wanted to focus on smaller projects,” said Bill. Instead of large scale construction, they would look to do more residential jobs, and in 2019, The Honey Do Team was born.
Today, the quality of work that The Honey Do Team produces is very important to the owners. Bill is proud of the level of skill his team has, “Everyone on the team is talented, experienced, and a well-rounded craftsman.” The team consists of roughly one dozen employees, and they routinely hire more laborers if the project warrants it. “We put a lot of effort in hiring good people,” said Bill. In 2023, hiring skilled laborers can be a challenge with all of the competition. The Honey Do Team prides themselves in not only the quality of the craftsmanship they produce, but also the dedication of their crew.
When it comes to the services they provide, Bill said, “98% of our focus has to do with your house. We’re a residential contractor that will give your small project the attention it deserves.” Whether it’s building an addition, or remodeling a kitchen or bathroom, The Honey Do Team has the experience to get the project done. Focusing on both interior and exterior projects, they provide a level of professionalism that has their clients raving, and their service area growing. For years they have served the Plattsburgh area, and have recently expanded out to Massena, Potsdam, Canton, and surrounding areas.
No matter the field you work in, it’s important to enjoy what you do. There is no shortage of passion for the projects The Honey Do Team takes part in. “We really enjoy new construction,” Bill said, “new decks, new bathrooms, building something new for the client that they love and we can be proud of.” Bill also mentioned that the physical part of the job isn’t their only passion. “Knowing that we solve people’s problems” gives The Honey Do team a great feeling. The amount of positive feedback and appreciation from their clients has been overwhelming. Cleland M. said, “I highly recommend The Honey Do Team! They showed up on time, and the price was very reasonable. I will definitely call them again.” Lynn H. said, “Great communication, outstanding and hardworking construction team, and amazing results.”
The Honey Do Team has been working with SeaComm since 2021. The relationship started because Bill was looking to invest in a property. He said, “Its great working with business lending. We’ve had fabulous transactions with Christina Smutz.” Bill feels that there needs to be a level trust with those you do business with. “SeaComm has met my expectations very nicely, which is how everyone prefers to do business.”
To learn more, visit their website: TheHoneyDoTeam.com or find them on Facebook @TheHoneyDoTeam. If you are located in the Plattsburgh area, you can reach them at 518-570-4616 and for Potsdam/Canton/Massena at 315-323-2160.
Manager's Notebook
Quiet Hiring Versus Quiet Firing
In a tight labor market, not only is it hard to find employees, it's also difficult to keep them engaged. Gallup has found that at least half of employees are emotionally disconnected from their jobs. Many of these folks are doing the bare minimum amount of work, and at least 18 percent of workers are actively disengaged, meaning they are proactively undermining their company.
Disengaged employees can be a major drag on companies and their bottom line. That's why some companies are pursuing quiet firing. This means the company makes the work environment a bit unpleasant in an effort to encourage disengaged workers to quit. Don't like it here? Then go find a new employer -- or so the thinking goes.
Getting employees to quit, instead of flat-out firing them, may reduce costs. Severance packages, for example, can be rather expensive. Further, many companies aren't exactly sure who the underperformers or disengaged folks are. Quiet firing could spur underperformers to self-identify.
Now, companies are upping the ante with quiet hiring. Instead of just encouraging some folks to quit, businesses are proactively identifying certain employees and then showering them with favoritism. Selecting and rewarding high performers is a business mainstay. However, with quiet hiring, the favoritism is also part of an effort to push low performing employees out. Often, these favored employees are shifted from position to position, working to address an organization's most acute needs.
Companies aren't the only stakeholders using "quiet" methods either. Many employees have also been quiet quitting. Essentially, they stop doing their job, perhaps expecting to get fired in the future, but instead of quitting, they continue cashing checks. Gallup believes that disengagement in general could be costing the global economy more than $8 trillion.
"Success is not final; failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts." - Winston Churchill
Prepaid Cards Can Teach Children Money Rules
Cash is no longer king. For decades, Americans have gradually shifted towards cards, and the Fed now reports that less than 20 percent of transactions are completed with cash. Debit and credit cards combined, meanwhile, make up more than 50 percent of payments. The rise of online shopping, fees for getting cash back at stores, and even coin shortages help explain why cash has fallen to the wayside.
These days, a cash allowance can be a hassle for parents, who themselves may simply not have as much cash on hand. Prepaid cards, however, are a great option for teaching children financial literacy. And with nearly 75 percent of teens reporting that they're not confident with their financial education, some lessons now could go a long way throughout life.
If you start your child with a traditional debit card linked to a savings account, a swipe here and a swipe there can quickly turn into swipes everywhere. Next thing you know, your child's savings account could be running on empty. Prepaid cards set spending limits and will encourage kids to spend within their budget.
The Federal Deposit Insurance Company (FDIC) found that over 8 percent of households were using prepaid cards in 2019. Infosys reports that the global prepaid card market topped $3 trillion in 2022. Besides parents, unbanked individuals are turning to prepaid cards.
Governments are using cards as well. If you are someone who uses public transportation, there's a good chance that you've used one.
Quick Tip:
Scheduling tasks in advance, silencing social media, and taking regular breaks are all great ways to help you be more productive.
Find more financial tips at seacommblog.com
Is it Time to Break Up with Barcodes?
Barcodes have worked well since they were first invented in 1952, but turns out that they don't play nice with bots.
The average person can't read barcodes, but we have developed plenty of handy devices that can. And crucially, we excel at getting barcodes in front of those devices. But as robots gradually replace human hands, the time to move on from barcodes may be approaching.
Barcodes are tough for robots because they can be hard to find, especially on irregular objects. If you have used a self-checkout lane or worked in retail, you have probably struggled to find a barcode at some point. Worse yet, if the barcode is crinkled, scanning it can turn into a huge chore.
Since robots lack sentience, they are all but blind. Cameras attached to robots can collect images, but bots lack the brains to process those visuals. That crinkled label that must be scanned again and again? Good luck getting the bot to recognize the problem, let alone solve it.
Fortunately, humans have big brains and if the barcode is not working, we can manually plug in the code or devise another workaround (paging aisle six!). These days, Amazon aims to teach robots to recognize products visually. If bots and AI can visually identify a product by examining its profile or reading the text on the package, they won't have to rely on barcodes.
Amazon is currently referring to this system as multi-modal identification, and it is being slowly developed, rolled out and tested. "Multi" is currently the keyword, as the system relies on multiple methods to identify products, but developers at Amazon hope that they can make barcodes all but obsolete.
Locations
Main Office
30 Stearns Street
Massena, NY 13662
Malone Branch
3349 Route 11
Malone, NY 12953
Potsdam Branch
6 Sisson Street
Potsdam, NY 13676
Canton Branch
101 East Main Street
Canton, NY 13617
Ogdensburg Branch
3001 Ford Street Extension
Ogdensburg, NY 13669
Plattsburgh Branch
139 Smithfield Blvd
Plattsburgh, NY 12901
South Burlington Branch
1680 Shelburne Rd
So. Burlington, VT 05401
Essex Branch
125 Carmichael Street
Essex, VT 05452
Watertown Branch
20565 State Route 3
Watertown, NY 13601
Branch Managers
Joanne Langdon
30 Stearns St. Branch Manager
Christine Marshall
Malone Branch Manager
Barbara Bessette
Canton Branch Manager
Elizabeth LeValley
Ogdensburg Branch Manager
Ashley Allen
Potsdam Branch Manager
Melissa Comer
Plattsburgh Branch Manager
Jess Roach
Watertown Branch Manager
Joseph Feltz
Essex Branch Manager
Larry Bridglal
South Burlington Branch Manager
Business Development
Jerry Manor
Business Development Manager
Craig Chevalier
Member Business Loan Manager
Christina Smutz
Member Business Loan Officer
315-764-0566 / 800-764-0566
www.seacomm.org
Let us Spotlight your business!
We are proud of our business members and want to share your story! Contact Jerry Manor for more information. Call (315) 764-0566 or toll-free (800) 764-0566 or email jmanor@seacomm.org
SeaComm
30 Stearns St
Massena, NY 13662
*This publication does not constitute legal, accounting or other profesional advice. Although it is intended to be accurate, neither the publisher nor any other party assumes liability for loss or damage due to reliance on this material.