Month 10- March 2014

     March definitely flew by and I’m almost nearing a year in the MDP program! It has been such a fun and incredible journey; blogging about it has sort of been a reminder of all the cool things I’ve experienced. I started this month working with our operations assistant who primarily handles the Accounts Payable functions of our profit center. I learned how to bill customer invoices, pay our monthly bills, research purchase order discrepancies, and utilize our accounts payable system. I also learned how to resolve issues with freight and pricing errors that can occur on vendor invoices. This portion of our business is crucial to our bottom line and daily functions.

                Our profit center here in Orlando is in the heart of the commercial market. Our biggest customers are plumbing and mechanical contractors. We’re fortunate enough to have a commercial quotations team whose primary function is to create bids for commercial jobs. Our quotations team is responsible for every phase of winning commercial jobs. They have to coordinate with our vendor representatives, outside salespeople, and customers; not an easy job at all! I have a ton of respect for these guys and each of their 30+ years of experience in this industry. I learned how we create job bids, compile submittals, obtain competitive pricing for jobs, order product, and complete a buyout. I realized that having a specialized quotations team is just another way we’re able to service our customers here in Orlando and differentiate ourselves from the competition!

                Towards the end of this month I was able to be an observer for an inventory in Ocala, FL. An observer is a neutral person from outside of the profit center who participates in an inventory and ensures that calculations/counts are honest and according to Hajoca’s standard policies. I’ve been a part of several inventories, but this was the first one in which I took on a leadership role. I was able to work with the inventory lead and complete calculations, checklists, verify count sheet accuracy, etc. This was a smooth and successful inventory and a great learning experience for me.