Zephyr optimizes the home services experience with an AI-driven continuous learning platform
Zephyr’s AI-driven platform empowers home service technicians, homeowners, and local HVAC brands with improved insights
About
Zephyr is a North American leader in the home services industry, specializing in HVAC (heating, ventilation, air conditioning), electrical, and plumbing services. Zephyr, working with local partners, is transforming the way technology improves home services to better meet the needs of the digital generation.
In the home services industry, the quality of field personnel is paramount. Zephyr invests in its technicians across all its local brands by identifying best practices, updating its processes and standards, and then propagating this hard-earned know-how to the next generation of technicians. The result: a sophisticated network of operating companies that are continuously improving, giving them a competitive edge for talent and market share in their regions.
Zephyr’s strategy is a standout, enabling consistent customer satisfaction and earnings improvements. Combined, local brands report earning an average Google Review score of 4.9 out of 5.0 stars while growing residential HVAC revenue by more than 30% year over year.
Challenge
The home services industry faces a critical juncture, caught between rapidly evolving customer expectations and the realities of low technology adoption. Zephyr identified several challenges:
- Technological divide: Though many consumers and enterprises have benefited from cloud-based apps with intuitive, human-centered user interfaces and AI-powered insights, field technicians in the home services trades have been underserved by these technological advances.
- Expertise exodus and new talent shortage: Each year, approximately 20,000 experienced technicians leave the industry, taking with them invaluable knowledge and skills. This brain drain jeopardizes the quality and efficiency of home services.
- Rising customer expectations: Modern homeowners, accustomed to tech-enabled services in other aspects of their lives, increasingly demand the same level of convenience, transparency, and efficiency from home services.
- Diagnostic difficulties: Junior HVAC technicians often grapple with quickly diagnosing intermittent problems, miscalibrations, leaks, or cracks, leading to inefficiencies and customer frustration.
- Training and compliance gaps: Internal operations teams are hampered by the absence of customizable, trackable training programs to ensure technician compliance and continuous improvement.
- Inefficient customer interface: Homeowners wish to research options, resolve issues and book appointments around the clock–like they’ve become accustomed to in other consumer industries.
- Operational inefficiencies: General managers require more sophisticated tools to identify and address areas needing attention to meet daily and monthly goals, directly impacting revenue and EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortization) targets.
By addressing these challenges head-on through the fusion of best-in-class people, process and technology, Zephyr is bridging the gap between evolving customer expectations and the current capabilities of service providers, without losing vital knowledge from retiring master technicians
“In some trades, such as HVAC, there are two primary seasons—heating and cooling. So, real-time feedback on what’s going right or wrong is critical. Any lag in the feedback loop loses precious time during a peak season and creates dissatisfaction and inefficiencies. Equipping managers with real-time, precise information that intersects multiple sources is crucial in maximizing both the value for the homeowner and business success for Zephyr and its local brands.”
- Kevin McDunn, Chief Product and Technology Officer.
- Kevin McDunn, Chief Product and Technology Officer.
Solution
To bring this vision to life, Zephyr and Lumenalta built a comprehensive web app and data platform leveraging novel third-party integrations, digital intelligence, automation, and human-centered design. This platform codifies best practices from across Zephyr’s local operating units and helps optimize customer acquisition and labor costs, close rates, customer satisfaction, revenue, and profit.
Zephyr’s hub-and-spoke website platform enables AI-driven SEO optimization, A/B testing, and centralized monitoring and alerting to maximize traffic, uptime, performance, and conversion rates—without adding costly marketing FTEs that sit outside the core competency of the HVAC repair shop. As experiments are conducted in one market, patterns and insights are derived for use by the broader portfolio of operating units.
The web app and data platform is extensible and can integrate with a commercial learning management system (LMS) to efficiently capture and propagate technical skills and institutional knowledge.
Zephyr’s comprehensive platform incorporates a scalable data lake for ingesting dozens of data sources from across the organization. This powers analysis and actionable insights for maximizing customer delight, value creation, and business results.
“The platform’s ability to pull system information and tap into the aggregated knowledge of other experienced technicians has been a game changer. Our team can now access detailed insights and proven solutions on the spot, which not only helps us fix homeowners’ issues faster but also ensures that we’re delivering the most reliable service possible. This has dramatically improved our efficiency and customer satisfaction, making our data engine an invaluable part of our toolkit.”
- Kevin McDunn, Chief Product and Technology Officer
Results
Zephyr's AI-powered platform is revolutionizing the home services industry, enhancing efficiency, customer experience, and workforce expertise.
- Its streamlined onboarding process accelerates local partner integration, while global-to-local marketing strategies drive a lift in organic traffic to optimize customer acquisition costs.
- Tailored equipment recommendations and transparent pricing foster customer trust and loyalty.
- AI-driven tools empower field technicians with faster diagnostics, improved scheduling, and fewer emergency calls, enhancing job satisfaction and retention.
- Continuous learning bridges expertise gaps, while data-driven insights optimize resource allocation and workforce planning.
- With this platform, Zephyr is able to create more value for its homeowner customers and generate increased revenue while ensuring seamless integration and process standardization across acquisitions.
As the portfolio grows, the platform’s scalability and learning capabilities drive a virtuous cycle of innovation, benefiting customers, employees, and local businesses. Amid evolving expectations and workforce challenges, Zephyr’s blend of AI, analytics, and human expertise sets a new industry benchmark, creating sustainable value for all stakeholders.
“Partnering with Lumenalta has made a significant difference for us. Their team blends top-tier talent with a practical, action-oriented approach. They don’t just plan—they execute, adjusting swiftly to meet our immediate needs. Whether it’s scaling up quickly or leveraging deep expertise, they consistently delivered. Their ability to stay agile while aligning with our goals has made them an essential partner in advancing our projects.”
- Kevin McDunn, Chief Product and Technology Officer
- Kevin McDunn, Chief Product and Technology Officer
