Starting today — in fact, beginning with this very blog post — we here at O’Grady Plumbing are undertaking a mission to let our customers and potential customers know a little bit more about our operations. Specifically, we want to give you some exposure to the human element at this, San Francisco’s premier multi-generational residential and commercial plumbing company.
So what we’ll be doing on a regular basis — again starting today — is introduce you to one of our employees so you’ll have an in-depth mental photograph of our company’s soul. OK, that maybe sounded a little too deep and mystical. Let’s try again: We want to introduce our employees so you have a better idea of the kind of business we’re running here.
To start things off, we thought we’d go to the top of the heap and spotlight Matteo Rizzolo, our service manager. He’s got the primary responsibility of providing professional tech answers for our plumbers in the field. That means if our team is stumped by a problem, Matteo will provide a solution over the phone or even drive on out to the residence or business in question to take a first-hand look.
But let’s allow Matteo to fill us in on the details:
O’Grady Plumbing: What did you do prior to coming to work for O’Grady Plumbing?
Matteo: I’ve had a few jobs. I had been working on the large underground plumbing system for fire safety and water supply at Kirkwood. It was a nice job, and certainly gave me a good idea of how pipes worked and how to work with what I had when there was little to improvise. Shortly after arriving back in my hometown in the Bay Area, I found a job as a lifeguard at a local pool while figuring out my future life and career. A very close family friend suggested that I talk to Paul O’Grady to consider the possibility of coming to work with the team at O’Grady Plumbing.
O’Grady Plumbing: What attracted you to O’Grady Plumbing?
Matteo: Paul runs a tight shop and the company has tons of technical experience and the machinery to go with it. Having had some experience while working on the mountain, I knew plumbing had many challenges. These guys were not into just replacing toilet chains. Instead, they deal with the stuff other plumbers can’t handle, and their work is super clean. I also liked the idea of being part of a company that had good problem solvers and thinkers.
O’Grady Plumbing: What do you like to do in your spare time — you know, when you’re not working?
Matteo: Nothing too exciting most days. I often take my work home with me to make the next day easier and offer solutions that may be harder to manage when my phone is buzzing the next day. A cold beer and NPR is a good way to wind the day down, if you ask me! When I have the opportunity, I like to take snowboard or go camping in the summer up in the Lake Tahoe area.
O’Grady Plumbing: What reality TV should you be on and why would you win or be kicked off?
Matteo: Ha ha! I haven’t spent enough time watching reality shows to know what’s what. Depending on what’s to win, I might want to be thrown off. There’s no end to the unique challenging things we come across in plumbing and, being in the emergency service business, tensions can run high when you’re under fire. I could actually see a reality show featuring plumbing as good viewing! At the end of the day, you win a customer’s respect and the confidence of the viewer in your abilities as an ace plumber. I can’t tolerate incompetence and would likely be the one throwing people off the show for being ninnies.
O’Grady Plumbing: What is your all-time favorite O’Grady Plumbing success story?
Matteo: That would have to be a place on Sansome Street when a pipe broke inside the wall very close to a large original Diego Rivera fresco. To make matters worse, the security guard didn’t have a key and was unsure as to whether it would be a good idea to kick the door in versus waiting for the fire department to arrive. list of domains . There were probably seconds left before the saturation made it over to the Diego Rivera.
O’Grady Plumbing: What did you do?
Matteo: I kicked the door in and turned the water off from the sub-basement. Then I proceeded to remove the affected wall and abate the moisture. In this case it was a really big deal. Had I been tied up at one more red light the fresco would have been irreversibly damaged by water.
O’Grady Plumbing: What’s one thing that not many people know about you?
Matteo: Well, after a lifetime of falls and breaking my butt I have been on the skateboard far less but still play around. I like to skate and do big airs in the pipe. The boys were surprised and did not believe me when they heard, but it’s true. I’m killer on a skateboard.
O’Grady Plumbing: On a scale of 1 to 10 how weird are you?
Matteo: I’ve never thought to rate myself. I tend to look at other people as a little off, so I’d have to give myself a 1.
O’Grady Plumbing: Do you have any skills other than plumbing and skateboarding?
Matteo: I have been learning how to weld and have mostly rebuilt an automatic 1985 Ford Mustang into a stick shift with heaps of other goodies under the hood.
O’Grady Plumbing: What’s your goal in the near future both in and out of O’Grady Plumbing?
Matteo: The economy seems to be roaring back making our phone ring more, particularly on older repairs people have been holding off. We need to train the next generation of field workers. There can be some challenges there. Outside of work, I look forward to spending more time with my family and forgetting about work. It’s healthy to have balance.