Home/Building Inspection Specialist - Birdwatch

Home/Building Inspection Specialist
The team

Birdwatch is a homeowner's best friend: your own personal home manager and service team for repairs, maintenance, enhancements and much more. No longer do busy homeowners need to stress about finding one-off fixes and managing work: we do all of that on their behalf. We are committed to taking exceptional care of our clients, their properties, our community, and most importantly, our team members.

The role

One of the key roles at Birdwatch are our home evaluation experts. These team members are broadly versed in all of the systems of the modern home – think home inspectors, past general contractor's, super handy-persons. They go on-site with our members to document the property, the systems, and deferred maintenance issues. But beyond these basics, it's about what is holding our members back from being in a home they love, what's working and what's not – it's equal parts technical knowledge and relationship-building. This role is key not only for the reasons stated above – but also because in most cases you are the first face of the company that an owner interacts with and first impressions truly do matter! 

The opportunity

Our membership is growing fast, and we need to add more of these team members for part-time work in both the DC and Philadelphia metro areas. Schedules are flexible, and career opportunities are available. 

We are fanatical about customer service and building a terrific place to work. We're eager to meet highly talented candidates who want to make a difference in our members' lives, who want to be valued in doing valuable work, and who want to be part of expanding our company culture. Our team is our greatest resource and we do everything we can to take great care of them, the same way we do our customers' homes.  

Salary: $50-60 per hour

Work Hours: Part-time as needed Monday to Friday 8:30 - 5:30 (option to negotiate schedule)
85 - 90% in the field

Requirements: Legally authorized to work in the US, Proof of Covid vaccine or approved testing protocol 

Are you excited? Then please read on for more details…

Work Description + Responsibilities

We want and need amazing customer experiences. So what is success in this role?

Client People Skills: Technical knowledge is the baseline, but as a great candidate you would have strong communication skills (verbal and written), easy-going confidence, and the ability to build rapport. The ability to “read the room” is key, so EQ is a must.

Contracting Specialization: Many great candidates are past/current home inspectors or general contractors, but the fundamental need is a broad-based understanding of residential housing.   Having a wide breadth of experience in the trades gives our evaluation experts the ability to speak generally and confidently about the many parts of a home. For actual home inspectors, the challenge is often limiting the traditional home inspection scope significantly: this isn't designed to be a 100 page risk assessment, but a practical assessment of the property as an on-going home.. 

A Perfect Flight Route for Birdwatch: As we always say in interviews, this team is great. Servant leadership from the top along with an empathetic group of technicians (while the work is always challenging) keeps everyone motivated to be their best selves. 

Examples of a successful Home Evaluation specialist would include::

• Curiosity
• Being a good listener and being patient especially when the work gets difficult and busy.
• The specialist will immediately break the ice connecting in on any relevant info from the onboarding conversation that adds personalization to the client experience (displaying we are aware of the property and how/what to look for). 
• Detail-oriented, clear in communicating expectations and needs.
• Empathy towards one's colleagues and always going the extra mile to see if folks need support especially when there is time in the calendar. 
• Over-communicating and always asking questions. A step further, identifying an issue and offering a solution for the team to consider. 
• Ability to multitask, taking down property information while engaging the member(s)
• Ability to identify major safety concerns that a client should be aware of (gas issue, smoke/co detector concern), handrail issues, etc
• Identify routine preventive maintenance options that apply to each individual property. 

Qualifications Education and Experience

• Broad property and maintenance knowledge a must
• Experience in home evaluation/inspection a strong indicator (2+ years)
• Experience with training and mentoring is a plus!
• Trade certifications are a plus!

Required Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

• Superior customer service skills, including the ability to manage challenging clients
• Strong attention to detail
• Superior organization, time management, and problem-solving skills
• Ability to work independently, is self-directive and detail-oriented
• Ability to work with challenging personalities with grace
• Ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously
• Ability to recognize systemic problems and offer solutions to enhance and improve current systems
• Ability to work a flexible schedule occasionally to include weekends, evenings, and holidays if needed
• Ability to work indoors and outdoors, able to lift 75lbs+
• Enjoys working on a team and developing talent
• Willing to use technology in the field (training will be provided)
• Knowledge of geographic area (either Philly or DMV) required and ability to navigate the city
• Transportation
• Strong interpersonal skills