Straight Outta the Pandemic

GASTONIA, NC — Running the nearly 100-year-old HVAC company GSM Services with his brother Steven, Joel Long receives the distinguished honor of becoming the next president of the Plumbing-Heating-Cooling Contractors Association-National Association (PHCC). “I am honored to have this opportunity to serve our industry and association after they have given so much to our company and to me personally. I am thrilled for such a big opportunity to continue the work of those who have served before me, and continue to make progress for our members and partners,” says Long.

Long is in a unique position to understand the depth of caring from the PHCC family. As many may know, tragedy befell GSM Services in April of this year with the murder of two of its coworkers. “It was devastating to say the least, but PHCC members supported these two families on a massive scale and proved once again there is more good in the world than evil,” says Long.

 Gaining Experience

Starting to work for the family business during high school summer breaks, Long fell in love with the business by witnessing the progress being made for homeowners and business alike. After high school, Long attended North Carolina State University and graduated with a Bachelor of Science (BS) degree in Civil Engineering and Construction and started working for the family business upon graduation. He recalls those North Carolina Saturday mornings fishing with his father, unwinding and reflecting about the business.

“There is nothing quite like the experience you gain while growing up in a business like ours and then growing into a leadership position in that same business. If you are paying attention, you learn at every level and gain an appreciation for what matters to help the coworkers and the company thrive,” says Long.

Long believes this holds true for what lies ahead as PHCC president. “I have spent a lot of time at the state and national levels seeing what works, what causes issues, and what is broken. I am going to use that experience to hopefully move us forward,” says Long.

Next Level Stuff

Moreover, according to Long, PHCC is a federation of state and local associations and works best when each level is openly communicating and helping each other reach their individual and combined goals. “Communication and collaboration are key to our mutual success. There are so many different opportunities across the country, and we must be very nimble and targeted in our approach to help our partners,” says Long.

PHCC will be operating that same way in Long’s year as president like it has since its founding. “We are here to serve our contractor members and affiliated chapters first and foremost. Strengthening those relationships and building on small successes is how we will take PHCC to the next level,” says Long.

That nimbleness also means guiding us out of the pandemic in a healthy way. Long says he has heard from contractors all over the country that are concerned about how they have struggled to get back to work through all the roadblocks they have faced over the past 18 months. “We will obviously continue to see the pandemic make us adapt our businesses going forward, but there are also opportunities for growth all around if we continue to search for them. I encourage our members to use PHCC as resources to help find new growth opportunities and information to help their businesses thrive,” says Long.

The Path Forward

Long says that PHCC has been busy lately with the transition to new CEO Mark Ingrao. And, “former CEO Michael Copp has put us in position for success through relationship building, and we will be expanding this baseline of success moving forward,” says Long. And speaking of success, Long and the PHCC Board of Directors in January 2022 will begin developing and putting the finishing touches on a new five-year strategic plan. “This is a golden opportunity to capture a way forward coming out of the pandemic that will ensure a strong future for our members and association,” says Long. 

Another concern for Long is how to inspire the next generation of workers. Before the pandemic, says Long, PHCC had developed its online apprenticeship program and was already having good success in giving students a pathway for a career. As the pandemic grew, PHCC members really started using this as a recruiting tool to convince high school students and their parents that a career in the industry made a ton of sense without the college debt. “I believe today’s youth is looking for a career that helps them grow intellectually, gain financial independence, give opportunities to improve the world, and give opportunities for career advancement. We must continue to get the word out about how our industry can help them achieve their goals,” says Long.

Long fell in love with the trades “because the people in it—at all levels—are just the best of America.” He has loved the can-do attitude, the focus on families and on doing what is right. “I believe our members are the vision of what it means to be American. If you study our history, our founding fathers were not royalty from Europe. We were the troublemakers and adventurers who decided to go out in the wilderness and make it on their own. Our members go out each day into that ‘wilderness’ and make it happen. No matter the challenges they face, they keep going to make sure they provide high-quality products and services for their clients, while providing a positive work environment. I love them for that,” says Long.

One thing is for sure, the time is now. Long firmly believes that is time to get back out on the road and live without fear. “We are going to lead by example and get our association moving back in a pre-pandemic mode, and we must be as safe as possible and respect the concerns of the public, but at the same time we must get back to work on a full-size scale. It’s time to go!” emphasizes Long.