A plumbing general manager runs a residential plumbing shop day to day and leads its service, install, call center and office teams. The GM watches revenue per technician hour, callbacks, reviews and gross margin, and settles the problems that cross from one team to another.
By the HireBus team · Updated · Pay data: BLS, May 2025
Median pay, plumbing and HVAC contractors · BLS, May 2025
The General Manager - Plumbing is a key leadership role responsible for overseeing daily operations, leading teams, managing performance metrics, and ensuring profitability. This role is integral to driving growth, meeting customer expectations, and maintaining high standards of service quality in the plumbing division.
2. Essential Duties and Responsibilities
Oversee all operational aspects of the plumbing division to ensure efficient service delivery and client satisfaction.
Lead, mentor, and motivate teams to achieve performance targets and uphold company standards.
Monitor and analyze performance metrics to identify areas for improvement and streamline operations.
Develop and implement strategic plans to ensure profitability and long-term business growth.
3. Key Tasks / Daily Activities
Conduct daily briefings with team leaders to review targets and discuss any operational challenges.
Review performance data and generate reports to track service efficiency and customer satisfaction.
Engage with key clients to address concerns and promote customer loyalty.
Coordinate with other departments to align operational processes and ensure a seamless service experience.
4. Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
Revenue per technician: $150 per hour.
Callback rate: less than 5%.
Customer Satisfaction Rating: greater than 4.8 stars.
Gross margin: Maintain at or above 40%.
5. Required Qualifications and Skills
Bachelor’s degree in Business Management, Engineering, or a related field.
Minimum of 7 years of experience in a managerial role within the home services industry.
Strong leadership skills with a proven ability to mentor and develop teams.
Excellent analytical, problem-solving, and communication skills.
6. Preferred Experience
Experience in plumbing or related home services industry.
Previous exposure to managing cross-functional teams in an operational role.
Background in developing strategic plans and implementing process improvements.
Familiarity with industry-specific software and performance management systems.
7. Physical Requirements
Ability to conduct site visits which may require standing, walking, and occasional lifting up to 25 lbs.
Capacity to work in varied environments including active job sites and office settings.
Occasional exposure to outdoor weather conditions during on-site visits.
Comfortable with travel between multiple locations as needed.
8. Work Environment and Schedule
Standard work hours are Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM.
Occasional extended hours during peak periods or emergencies.
Periodic travel between job sites and the head office.
On-call duties when required to address urgent operational issues.
9. Compensation and Benefits
Salary range: $80,000 - $110,000 per year.
Performance-based bonus structure in line with departmental targets.
Comprehensive health, dental, and vision insurance.
401k with company match and additional fringe benefits.
10. Company Culture and Overview
Our company is dedicated to fostering a culture of excellence, growth, and collaboration. We believe in empowering our employees through continuous professional development and a supportive work environment. Our commitment to customer satisfaction and quality service sets us apart, and we are enthusiastic about welcoming dynamic leaders who share our vision for success.
11. How to Apply
If you meet the above criteria and want to be part of a growth-oriented company focused on customer satisfaction, please send your resume to [INSERT EMAIL HERE] or apply online at [INSERT WEBSITE LINK HERE].
Need help filling this role? HireBus posts the ad, Iris interviews every applicant by phone before you do, and you decide who to hire. Start hiring now
A plumbing shop's results come from three very different kinds of work: short service calls, long install jobs and a phone that can ring all night. The GM keeps all three profitable.
Billable hours start with the phone
A plumber's billable hours depend on what the call center books and how far the plumber drives between jobs. The GM listens in on calls, watches how many callers book, and works with dispatch to keep each plumber in one part of town. Weak spots there show up as empty hours on the board.
Commission can push the wrong sale
Many shops pay service plumbers a commission or bonus on what they sell. That can lift revenue per hour, but it can also tempt a plumber to pitch a repipe the home doesn't need, or skip a small fix that pays less. The GM spot-checks big recommendations against photos and camera footage, and weighs each plumber's sales against callbacks and complaints.
Discounts quietly eat margin
A flat-rate price book sets most service prices before the plumber arrives. Margin leaks when plumbers discount to close a job, forget to bill parts they used, or run long on jobs the book prices tight. The GM reads margin by job type and by plumber each month, decides who may approve a discount, and coaches the plumbers whose jobs keep running over.
When a repair leaks into the house
A fitting that lets go after the plumber leaves can soak a ceiling or a floor. The homeowner often calls the GM first. From there, the GM decides how fast someone goes back, who documents the damage, and when the insurer hears about it, plus what the company offers while the claim is sorted out. How that week goes decides whether the customer ever calls again.
Unsold estimates go cold fast
Quotes for water heater replacements, whole-house repipes and sewer lines often don't close on the first visit. The GM sets how fast the plumber or a rehash specialist follows up, which options get offered, and when a manager steps in. Without a set process, those estimates sit in the software until the homeowner hires someone else.
Residential vs. commercial plumbing general manager
Both run a plumbing business and answer for its profit. The work they run is different.
Topic
Residential
Commercial
Customers
Homeowners, often in an emergency
Contractors, developers and commercial landlords
How work is won
Calls, web bookings, membership visits and estimate follow-up
Bids, negotiated projects and repeat contractors
Typical jobs
Clogs, leaks, repipes, sewer lines and water heaters
New buildings, tenant improvements, and water heater, piping and fixture replacements
Who reports to the GM
Service and install leads, plus call center and office staff
Project managers, field supervisors and the office
Numbers watched most
Revenue per technician hour, callbacks, ratings and gross margin
Project margin, backlog and on-time completion
How much plumbing general managers make
The closest BLS group for plumbing general managers is general and operations managers. General and operations managers who work for plumbing, heating, and air-conditioning contractors earned a median of $105,740 a year ($50.84 an hour) in May 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That’s about the same as the $105,770 median for general and operations managers in all industries. About 40,250 of the 3,503,020 general and operations managers in that survey work for plumbing and HVAC contractors.
Usually salaried. The bonus tracks the shop's own scorecard, such as gross margin, callbacks and ratings.
Plumbing and HVAC contractors
$105,740$105,740 median Middle half $79,040–$158,540 10th–90th $57,570–$214,590
All industries
$105,770$105,770 median Middle half $72,320–$167,280 10th–90th $50,090–$253,390
$0k$50k$100k$150k$200k$250k$300k
10th–90th percentileMiddle halfMedianAnnual pay, May 2025. Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics.
Annual pay by percentile
Group
10th
25th
Median
75th
90th
Plumbing and HVAC contractors
$57,570
$79,040
$105,740
$158,540
$214,590
All industries
$50,090
$72,320
$105,770
$167,280
$253,390
BLS reports plumbing and HVAC contractors together. Post a real range for your market in the ad.
The pay line in the template above is an example from our Role Blueprint. Set yours from these figures and what local companies pay.
Skills to hire for, and what you can teach
Hire for these
Has run a home service location or department with its own profit and loss
Coaches plumbers, installers and CSRs with numbers, not just opinions
Stays calm and fair with a homeowner whose floor is under water
Catches a drop in revenue per hour, callbacks or margin before month-end
Holds managers to a daily huddle and follows up on what was promised
Teach these on the job
Plumbing job types and the usual causes of callbacks
How your flat-rate prices are built and who can approve discounts
Where each number lives in your field service system
Your call center scripts and booking reports
Your membership perks and how CSRs offer them
The GM's day runs on field service software like Successware, ServiceTitan or Housecall Pro: the dispatch board, revenue per hour by plumber, callback reports and the price book. Add call reports from the phone system. In interviews, ask which reports a candidate would open first each morning; the answer shows whether they have really run a shop.
Plumbing general manager interview questions
They have their own page: 6 questions that test this job, what strong and weak answers sound like, and a work exercise to run with your finalists.
Treat the template's numbers as placeholders. Set this shop's targets from its own last twelve months, and check each one weekly with the manager who owns it.
Revenue per technician
Revenue each plumber brings in divided by the hours they're paid, from field service software and timecards each week. Compare service and install plumbers separately, since their days run differently.
Callback rate
Count jobs that needed a free return visit for the same issue during your warranty period, then divide by completed jobs. Note the cause and the plumber on each one.
Customer Satisfaction Rating
Star ratings from review sites and your own post-job survey, broken out by plumber each week. Send the review request after every job, good or bad, and read each review under four stars.
Gross margin
Take revenue, subtract what the jobs cost directly (field labor, parts, equipment, permits, dump fees), and divide by revenue. Check it by job type each month, and watch water heaters and repipes, where parts prices move.
What does a general manager do at a plumbing company?
Most mornings open with the leads around the dispatch board: overnight emergency calls, open installs and yesterday's numbers. The rest goes to coaching managers, calling back upset homeowners, approving overtime, and checking callbacks and margin. Any decision that touches more than one team, such as moving an install crew to service calls, lands with the GM.
How much does a plumbing general manager make?
General and operations managers who work for plumbing, heating, and air-conditioning contractors earned a median of $105,740 a year ($50.84 an hour) in May 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The middle half earned between $79,040 and $158,540 a year. Pay also depends on your local market, experience and bonus terms.
Who should report to a plumbing general manager?
Usually a handful of leads, not every plumber. A common setup has a service manager or field supervisor, a production manager for installs, a call center lead, an office manager and sometimes a sales manager. Each of them owns a number the GM checks weekly. If plumbers go straight to the GM with every problem, the leads aren't leading yet.
Does a plumbing general manager need a plumbing license?
Usually not for the GM seat. The license belongs to the plumbers. BLS says most states license plumbers, as do some local governments, and some states require master status before a company can get a contractor license. A GM without a license should know which plumbers hold which license, who the state treats as responsible for the company's work, and how many licensed plumbers are on each day to work with apprentices.
What does a good first 90 days look like for a plumbing GM?
Ride with service plumbers and an install crew, sit with the call center, and read every callback and bad review from the past few months. Then pick the two numbers furthest from target and fix the process behind them. A GM who changes everything in the first month usually loses the crews.
What should a plumbing general manager job ad include?
Describe the shop: how many plumbers, trucks and CSRs, which service lines, and whether it's one of two shops. Name the GM's boss, explain the bonus math, and be clear about on-call nights. The template lists a bachelor's degree as required. Many strong GMs came up as plumbers or service managers without one, so consider listing the degree as preferred.
