2008 Commercial Technician of the Year:Mr.Dependable

Looking through a stack of commendation letters about Gilbert Balart Jr., one soon notices the same phrases being used repeatedly: very conscientious, very polite and cooperative, a pleasure to work with and extremely helpful.

Whether from his first pest control industry job, working for the Housing Authority in New York City, to his current position as a commercial technician for Arrow Exterminators in Evans, Ga., one truth outshines all others: His customers have come to depend on his dependability.

Joel Chambers, branch manager, stresses that Balart epitomizes Arrow’s philosophy of going beyond the call. “He has an excellent relationship with our customers, has been a true asset to the company by selling extra services, demonstrating strong leadership skills and (being) willing to help others,” he said.

FREEDOM FLIGHT. Gilbert Balart Jr. was born in Santiago de Cuba. In 1963, his family’s cattle and dairy farm was seized by the Communist party.

When President Lyndon Johnson instituted humanitarian efforts called “freedom flights,” which transported Cuban immigrants to the United States, his family moved to New York City, hosted by a sister already living there.
After two or three years, the family moved to Miami. Balart spent the rest of his adolescence there, attending college and studying commercial and design art and psychology. By his early twenties, he had moved back to New York City.

INTRODUCTION TO PEST CONTROL. “I was working for the Housing Authority as a caretaker, a janitor, for the buildings. A friend of mine was going through a course on pest control sponsored by the Teamsters and I got interested,” he said.

His training was conducted by Dr. Austin Fishman, the 1993 PCT Professional of the Year. Not only was Balart learning about pest control, but he was receiving training in English, because “we had to read and understand college-level coursework for the exam license.”

Balart still recalls his first day as a pest control operator for the Housing Authority. “I opened the door of an apartment and the smell of German cockroaches hit my nose,” he said. Apparently, the tenant kept all his windows closed and the heat had built up, leading to an unbearable stench. When Balart’s supervisor checked on him, the smell forced him to turn around and leave.

Now, with more than 20 years of experience in the pest control industry, Balart can appreciate the changes in the business. “Back then we sprayed the baseboards and inside cabinets,” he states. “Now IPM, consisting of inspection, targeting pests, monitoring, treating areas only where there’s a problem, baiting and looking at areas where pests are coming in, is the norm.”

COMMERCIAL ROUTE. After leaving the Housing Authority in 1995, Balart switched focus and concentrated on commercial customers at three other pest control companies before joining Arrow in 2004. By his estimation, his current route encompasses 100 clients; a food processing facility and corrugated packaging plant are his two largest clients.

The essence of Balart’s success lies in the details. His routine does not waver, especially in the largest facility he services. “I have 130 interior traps and I start with those. I service and clean them and put the dates on the punch cards that are attached,” he said. He then moves on to fly light inspection and cleaning, and general inspection of the warehouse and plant. “I take notes about any sanitation, or structural or harborage issues,” he added.

Moving outside, he inspects stations for rats. “I’ve learned to kick the stations first, because once I opened one and there was a water moccasin inside. I’m not afraid of rats, but I respect snakes,” he said.

Balart communicates any findings to the company verbally and also writes the information on the invoice. “I find that the proper people are called in to correct the problems immediately, because even a small crack can let pests in,” he said, “and birds can come in through voids, and in a food processing facility, it has to be shut down until the situation is corrected, and that costs the company money.”

Chambers knows the customers respect Balart’s expertise. “He constantly receives excellent reviews from vendors,” Chambers said, “and his best attributes are his customer service, quality of work, and his relationship with vendors. There are no complaints on his route, and he works in a timely manner.”

MOTIVATION. Balart enjoys the troubleshooting aspect of his job, finding solutions to customers’ calls for help. “I understand that only one roach means a lot. I want to make the customer feel happy, especially in restaurants or food processing facilities,” he said.

Even though Balart is the only commercial technician in the office, he feels camaraderie with the other technicians. “We help each other. We’re like a family. One of the techs had open-heart surgery, and the rest of us helped out with his route,” he explained.

Working extra hours or juggling his work schedule is normal for Balart. His customers respect his willingness to be there when called. But Balart also gives freely of his time away from the job. On weekends, he volunteers at his church to help people learn to read and write.

Balart’s supervisor at the Housing Authority included these words in his letter of recommendation when Balart left in 1995: “Mr. Balart has been employed with the Authority for eight years…within that time he has been praised for his hard work, kindness and cooperation…. He will be missed by all of us and he has our blessing and good wishes.”

Dependability: You can count on it with Gilbert Balart.

Accomplishments
2003: Technician of the Year, Gregory Pest Solutions
2008: Chairman’s Club, Arrow Exterminators

Personal
Wife, Margarita, married 20 years
Daughter, Daisy, 19; and son, David, 11

The Customer Is Always Right
Following is text from a commendation letter from Castleberry’s, a food processing facility, sent to Arrow Exterminators, extolling Gilbert Balart’s performance:

“Another successful year has passed with new business and responsibilities. Everyone here at Castleberry’s Food Company is exceptionally busy with added duties and expectations. This includes your technician, Gilbert Balart.

“This year, we have had several regulatory and customer audits, as well as two Silliker audits and the addition of a three-day Cook and Thurber audit. In each of these, the area of pest control has always maintained a superior rating. We know that this is a section of the audits that will be well monitored and taken care of by Gilbert. His attention to detail, ability to communicate with both auditors and co-workers here leaves us free to concentrate on other areas with the confidence that this will be an area that will excel.

“Gilbert is always dedicated and willing to put time in wherever needed to accomplish his goal of superiority. I wanted to communicate to you just how pleased we are with Gilbert’s performance and look forward to a successful 2007 and continued business relationship with Arrow Exterminators.

Sincerely,
William Conley
Q.A. Manager

The author is a frequent contributor to PCT magazine.