Mold Remediation Blog

We Hire Based On Attitude, Intelligence & Personality… Regardless Of Experience Level.

Mold May Not Be Able To Grow In Dry Areas Of Your Home…
But Mold Itself Isn’t What You Should Worry About.

BY DAVID MYRICK, OWNER

You can train just about anyone to be a great mold-removal technician. 

But you can’t train everyone to be a great person. 

That’s why my hiring process is a little different than other mold remediators in Northern VA, Southern MD, and Washington DC.

And by “a little different,” I mean fly-in-the-face-of-conventional-wisdom opposite. 

Why?

I Hire Mold Techs Based On Character… Not Experience.

Given the choice between a wet-behind-the-ears novice with a great attitude and a crotchety 20-year industry vet? I’ll hire the newbie 100 times out of 100. 

I’ve developed the training processes to turn even the greenest of greenhorns into highly skilled mold technicians. But I can’t teach a world-class jerk how to turn his frown upside down.

So whenever I need to bring a new mold technician on board, I throw industry experience out the window. It has ZERO influence on my hiring decision. 

In fact…

Often, The Less Industry Experience A Candidate Has, The Better!

Experience is only a good thing if it’s QUALITY experience.

Forced to choose between a newbie with a bad attitude and an industry veteran with a bad attitude, I’d still take the newbie. And I’ll explain why.

The mold industry is roughly as regulated as the 1870s Wild West. Due to the lack of industry oversight, many companies have developed a lot of bad practices relating to workmanship, procedures, and customer service. These companies train their techs in these practices, which the techs then utilize on jobs. 

If you’ve ever owned dogs, you know it’s easier to train a puppy than to teach an old pooch new tricks. 

It’s the same with mold remediation technicians. It’s easy to train someone new to the industry in the right way. Yet it’s practically impossible to break an experienced tech of the bad habits ingrained in his brain. 

This isn’t to say I never hire mold techs who have industry experience. Some experienced mold techs are genuinely talented and concerned with doing things the right way. But, not coincidentally, these are also the individuals that have moxie, intelligence, and a positive attitude. 

You know, the right kind of personality… and the exact thing I hire for.

Our Techs Are Highly Experienced… In Our Kind Of Experience.

Don’t take all this to mean I’ll stick rookies on your job. 

I may avoid hiring grizzled industry veterans with their dyed-in-the-wool bad habits. But rest assured that my techs working on your project are meticulously trained, taught, and experienced in the Valor way.

I’m extremely serious about ensuring my techs have the proper skill and education before I let them in a client’s home. Here are a few examples…

  • All of our new techs get introductory training on how to utilize their PPE gear, set up a containment barrier, and create negative air pressure in contained areas. 
  • After that, we give the tech on-the-job training to see if they have enough potential for us to invest in formal, in-person classroom training for them.
  • To be a lead tech at Valor, you have to have a minimum of 6 months’ experience at the company and an A+ performance review. (Some companies promote their guys to Lead Tech after just 2 jobs!)
  • I personally hold monthly ongoing training that all of our technicians must attend, regardless of experience level. During these sessions, we review the IICRC S520 Standards For Professional Mold Remediation.


You can find out more details about this on our Top-Notch Techs page. But here’s the bottom line: Every single Valor Mold Removal technician is highly experienced… with the kind of QUALITY experience to do your job right.

Personality Trumps All—Period.

Make me choose between a cranky mold tech with 20 years of experience and a novice with a great attitude, I’m taking the novice. 

Every. Single. Time.

This is why I’m confident in saying we have the friendliest mold technicians in Northern VA, Southern MD, and Washington DC. 

I look for candidates who are “people” people. The kind of individuals who are passionate about helping others, bend-over-backward polite, and unwaveringly respectful.

For more info about our mold techs’ passion and personality, check out this article: Our Mold Techs Are Stubborn… In A Good Way. And if you want to experience the friendliness and professionalism of our techs in person, reach out for a free estimate. It would be an honor to hear from you.

Why Choose Us

We remove mold the right way… and it would be an honor to hear from you.

96% Success Rate

96% Success Rate

Your home is in the best hands—our chemical-free remediation has the highest success rate in the industry.

Instant Mold Testing

Instant Mold Testing

You get the answers you need—our special mold testing provides 99% accurate results on the spot.

300+ Happy Clients

300+ Happy Clients

You can trust our process—we’ve performed over 300 successful projects since we opened in 2006.

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