Why We Walked Away From a Big Job
One of our core philosophies at Oklahoma Foundation Solutions (OFS) is that empowered homeowners make the best decisions for their homes. That’s why we send inspectors, not salesmen, to meet with potential customers. Providing homeowners with education, value, and insight into foundation-related issues is what we’re all about here. That applies even if we don’t get the work. For us, it’s about more than just short-term profit. It’s about upholding our reputation as a foundation repair company that hard-working Oklahomans can rely on and trust for years to come.
Related Article: How OFS Saved Two Edmond Homeowners over $50,000.00
This philosophy was put into practice during a recent evaluation and a potentially large project.
We were contacted by a homeowner on the east side of Edmond who had concerns about her house’s foundation. She had already hired a structural engineer and requested that we provide a quote for the recommended repairs included in his report. Our inspector, an OFS co-owner, met with the homeowner at her property and thoroughly reviewed the report with her. While walking the property together, our owner carefully explained the service needed to address each area identified by the engineer.
One particular area of the home was experiencing quite a bit of settling. The structural engineer provided two different options for remedying the issue. One option was for a service we provide while the second option was for a service that we do not offer. The circumstances surrounding the issue were unique and required further analysis.
After evaluating the area and taking all of the factors into consideration, our owner reflected on the situation. He stated that, in his opinion, it would be best to move forward with the service we do not offer. In this rare instance, the alternative method was more cost-effective and would still likely achieve the desired result. The homeowner was very appreciative of our honesty and agreed that the other service was probably the best fit given the very unique situation.
OFS Serves the Other 50% Just as Much
Although we did not get any work from the evaluation, we were pleased that we were able to point the homeowner in the right direction. That is what mattered above all else. At OFS, a key tenet guiding our mission is to go beyond foundation repair.
Providing the community with what they need matters. It could mean extensive information at the time of inspection (or in one of our evaluation reports). It could mean prescriptive scopes of work without upselling. And it could mean a referral to a different company or engineer. No matter the case, it is critical to the lasting health and success of OFS and our customers. Whether it’s the fact that we conduct OREC-certified classes on foundation repair or that our chief technician has over three decades of experience leading the industry, we have the information and expertise to know what is truly needed and what is fair.
We know that fair treatment is paramount, and we approach every situation with transparency and integrity. That’s why 50% of our evaluations in a recent month resulted in us telling the customer that, in our opinion, foundation repair is not needed at this time. We only recommend what is needed. At OFS, we never sacrifice goodwill or reputation for profit.
We walked away from the project. But we gave the homeowner something more helpful and tangible: the right advice and a cost-effective pathway to a secure home. It calls back to the words of famous American educator, author, businessman, and speaker Stephen Covey, who once said the following: “Contrary to what most people believe, trust is not some soft, illusive quality that you either have or you don’t; rather, trust is a pragmatic, tangible, actionable asset that you can create.”
Conclusions
At Oklahoma Foundation Solutions, trust is at the core of everything we do. We don’t just provide foundation repair; we build trust with every action, every commitment kept, and every home we stabilize. We believe that trust is earned and not given. The value of trust is the foundation of any meaningful relationship, including the ones with our customers.
