Investing in People, First

At Service Professionals in Union, New Jersey, a simple idea drives the business forward: Treat workers like the future depends on them, because it does.

From plumbing and HVAC to electrical work, these trades can’t be automated or outsourced. “AI’s not messing with us,” said president Richard Bogda, who founded Service Professionals in 1994 and currently employs 117 workers and technicians. “Private equity’s not messing with us. Our guys have a better shot at a secure future than most college grads.”

The Labor Shortage Is Real  

Job openings in home services are increasing with a promise of stability, but the industry faces a deep talent shortage. In the Garden State alone, for every six plumbing licenses that expire, only two new graduates emerge from vocational schools to enter the field. It’s hard work. People stepping into roles as plumbers or electricians face arduous tasks — crawling through ducts, braving the elements — and yet, there aren’t enough people out there who are willing or know how to do it.

Rather than compete in a broken hiring market, Bogda built his own in-house trade school to recruit, educate and retain new talent. “We actually prefer to take somebody who doesn’t have any experience,” Bogda explained. “Put them through school, mentor ’em, and then, whether some guys get in a truck in six to eight months — or some it takes two years on the electrical and plumbing side — that’s where our success is.”

Thinking Beyond Pay

Investing in training programs and mentorship was a start, but Service Professionals knew that long-term loyalty had to be earned. When workers feel genuinely invested in, well, their work, they stay. They grow. It’s about hearts and minds, not hands and feet. 

Wages in the trades hover around $60K, but there's a ceiling. Raising pay can often squeeze already-tight margins, and Service Professionals realized that to truly stand out, they needed to offer more than a paycheck.

So they started rethinking benefits, including retirement.  

Modernizing the 401(k) With Basic Capital

Casey Timorason, head of growth and a former tech recruiter, stumbled across Basic Capital while scrolling Reddit. “I made a lot of bonehead mistakes with my 401(k) and was looking for a way to catch up,” he said. “A lightbulb just hit. Like, Hey, the world kind of needs something like this. The average, everyday person in my situation should be able to play catchup, or set themselves up better.”   

The impact was felt right away. Employees were energized by the product: 

• Participation in 401(k) plans jumped from 30% to 50%

• 7% average paycheck contribution

• Higher engagement with their retirement benefit

A Blueprint for the Trades

The concept also resonated with COO Evin Bogda, who returned to the family business after working in commercial real estate. He was struck by the chance to modernize how his tradesmen could build wealth.  

“Our industry as a whole, is kind of like a lagging indicator behind a lot of the stuff we’ve been exposed to in our lives,” Evin said, “which would be, like, bigger tech companies. Like, how do we bring the benefit packages that they have to the everyday Americans that we employ? Whether it be a new 401(k) or after-hours babysitting, a way to make the experience at Service Professionals completely different than any other trade company. It was in that initial search that we found Basic Capital.”

Attracting the Next Generation of Talent

As Evin and Timorason continue to make the experience at Service Professionals completely different than any other trade company, at the heart of it all they’re also building on one of Richard’s founding beliefs: to invest in the right people, and give them a reason to stay.

“When I hire somebody, my job is to give you the resources and the opportunity to be successful,” he said. “What you do with those is totally up to you. So, our job is to pick the right person who’s going to take that education, that opportunity, and run with it.”