Page 27 - BusinessWest March 2, 2026

Window >>Continued from page 24
much every job, or at least I try to be.
And if not me, one of our other project
managers is,” he explained. “We decide
how we’re going to handle a job, and
we make sure that we’re there with the
customer at the beginning, throughout
the job, and at the end — that there’s
always someone there for the customer
to talk to and make sure that they have
the exact experience that we promised
them at the sale.”
That requires plenty of continuing
education and staying up to date with
changing codes and new technology,
meaning training at the company
goes far beyond its apprenticeship
programs.
“We need to be able to look at the
whole building envelope and the sci-
ence behind it and understand the
effects of what we’re doing on the
house,” Nick said. “We’re doing train-
ing for energy and to understand even
things like HVAC systems, things
we don’t install ourselves, so we can
understand what’s going on in the
building, why is this happening, how
we can help the customer on every
front, not just saying, ‘OK, we can put
this window in, and that’s the only
thing we’re worried about.’ We want
to help the customer in every aspect
of it.”
Meanwhile, Anna Drost runs the
kitchen business and also focuses on
internal processes to ensure a better
experience for customers, as well as
technology initiatives, worker safety,
and training.
The emphasis on apprenticeship
and training programs helps ensure
that this company — now 120 employ-
ees strong — can continue to grow
from within, at a time when recruit-
ment and retention are challenges
across all building trades.
“There’s zero turnover,” Tim said.
“Our family’s been in the trades for
generations, so we’re passionate
about that, and the apprentice pro-
gram has been fuel for our growth
for sure. People love working for a
company that’s passionate about what
they do.”
Nick agreed. “One reason why I
feel like our retention is so good is,
at the end of the day, people want to
work somewhere they can grow and
get better and have something new
to learn, and continue evolving,” he
said, adding that manufacturers often
come out to participate in trainings on
codes, technology, and the like, and
the company partners with Milwau-
kee to make sure teams are using the
latest tools.
And the passion of the workforce
gets relayed to customers through
constant communication, Tim added.
“There’s not different companies
converging on one project. It’s our
employees. We have the same mes-
saging, the same communication, and
everybody’s on the same page.
Business W est “That’s why most of us live in the
field — because that’s where our busi-
ness is. We’re not a sales organization;
we’re an installation organization. So
how we communicate and how we
develop our teams is part of that com-
munication piece for our customers.”
View to the Future
Another priority at Window World
of Western Massachusetts is constant
growth from within, Tim explained.
“I’ve been working with some of our
project managers for 30-plus years, but
everybody in this company has started
in the field,” he told BusinessWest.
“The apprentices are working with
skilled guys who have been there and
worked their way up. All our foremen
started off at the bottom and were very
focused on constant education. We
work both locally, where we see oppor-
tunities to develop our guys, and then
with national programs to bring all
those pieces in.”
And, as noted earlier, Drost and his
team aren’t done evolving.
“We think building performance
and that envelope piece are huge for
our customers, and that is the future,
whether it’s in remodeling or home
building. So we’ll continue to add piec-
es,” he said.
“We really want to be a great ser-
vice for our customers,” he added. “And
the great thing for me is, even though
I’m an old guy, the next generation is
already in the business. So I think the
businesses are in good hands, and our
customers are in good hands.” BW
71
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