Onboarding: the first 30 days

Most pool-tech turnover happens in the first 60 days. The cause is almost always inadequate onboarding, they were thrown in the truck and expected to figure it out.

Days 1–3. Ride with you (or your lead tech) on the route. Goal: see every kind of pool, every customer interaction, every problem you handle. They are observing only. Do not make them touch chemicals on day 1.

Days 4–10. They drive, you ride. They run the visit while you watch. Coach in real-time on technique, chemistry, communication, time management. Expect every visit to take 50% longer than usual.

Days 11–20. They run small portions of the route solo (5–8 stops), you do the rest. Daily debrief at end of day: what went well, what was hard. Review every photo and report they submitted.

Days 21–30. Full route days alone, with you available by phone. Twice-weekly check-ins on Monday and Friday.

Day 30 review. Honest assessment together: are they on track? What's still hard? Set a 60-day target with specific behaviors. If you have serious doubts, don't slow-walk firing, every week of "hoping they'll improve" is worse for them and the customers.

Tools they need on day 1. Truck access, fuel card, app login, polo or company shirt, water and sunscreen, full tool kit, copy of the route schedule, emergency contact list, your cell number.

The single biggest onboarding mistake. Owners who over-communicate during week 1 and then disappear in week 3. New techs need *more* support, not less, as the difficulty increases.