As we complete another week in the land of COVID-19, I can say that it was a roller coaster ride of highs and lows coming daily and many times hourly from peak to trough. The days are very long and working from home is no fun. I miss seeing everyone. I am inspired daily by our front-line Partners who soldier on each day to safely keep our customer commitments and enable TD to keep billing for our work. I have started to end each day by calling two front-line Partners to listen deeply, so keep an eye out for Harold on your caller ID if your cell phone is current in Ultipro or on the TDPipeline. 😊
Our #1 focus is Partner safety and keeping all our Partners working safely. Thank you for following all the safe working guidelines for personal hygiene and a safe social distance of 6 feet. You have the power to use Stop Work Authority if this is not being followed. Do not lose our discipline and take chances with your health and the health of others.
I can report that as of Friday we had no confirmed COVID-19 Partner cases. We are up to 44 in self-quarantine due to symptoms or possible exposure. Some of these Partners will be back to work soon after meeting the CDC requirements. It is very important that no one goes to work with symptoms or after a known exposure.
TDCares was formed many years ago by Partners wanting to help Partners in times of need. Its source of funding is payroll deductions and elected donations of unused PPT hours. Your top 30 Senior Leaders have all elected to take salary reductions of 10-20% for the foreseeable future to increase the funding of TDCares. This will enable us to better help our Partners of greatest need during this pandemic or fall in a crack in our benefit plans due to being new at TD. It has helped past Partners through hurricanes, fires, death of a family member, and much more. If you feel that you can donate time or money to help your Partners, every dollar or PPT hour will help. Thank you for your support.
Our #2 focus is finding the replacement projects that we need in construction and maintaining demand to grow our non-construction businesses for the future. Our entire business development team is hyper focused and feels the weight of this responsibility. We are still seeing good prospects in all markets. All of us can help ensure great sales results by exceeding our customers’ expectations at every opportunity. We can break every tie-on price when we are their first choice based on your great performance. I want to highlight one significant new contract---20 TDPartners will be providing facility services and maintenance for the next 5 years at CPS Energy in San Antonio! It is a big win!
We also continue to work behind the scenes with city, county, and state government via our trade associations to keep commercial construction and service classified as vital and essential so that we can keep doing our part – continuing to work and support the fight. The work that we do is important, and it simply must continue as long as we can do it safely.
Stay informed, but please try not to watch the news too much. Remember to “Live by Faith and Not by Fear” and look for ways to help others wherever and whenever you can. I start each day and replace worry with prayer. I also list the top 3 things that I am grateful for each morning to center myself with a grateful heart.
I know that we will come through this pandemic test even stronger as a company.
Thank you for your trust, your commitment, your hard work, and your support. Hang in there!
Sincerely, Harold
