April 2018
CED
Construction Equipment Distribution Published by AED: Business Fuel for a More Profitable Dealership
Reach, Train & Retain Discover the secrets and challenges of those individuals who make up the workforce n Journey to the Top Rockland Manufacturing
Company president shares fond memories growing up in the industry
n ELD Mandate A closer look into Canada’s new regulations
n Ritchie Bros. on Top
Ritchie Bros.’ focus on customers, employees and multi-channel solutions helps keep them on top
MASSIVE POWER.
ULTRASAFE LITHIUM JUMP STARTER. ®
GB500 12V/24V
20,000
PEAK AMPS
For Petrol & Diesel Engines Class 8+/CE High-Displacement Vehicles, Equipment and More. The NOCO Genius BOOST MAX is the most powerful, yet compact lithium jump starter in its class. With over 20,000 peak amps of power, it can safely jump start semi-trucks, construction equipment and much more. And at just under 9-kilograms, it’s the ultimate portable jump starter for any fleet manager or maintenance center.
no.co Ad_template.indd 2
3/19/2018 11:16:30 AM
RISH COUNTS ON e-EMPHASYS
Ad_template.indd 2
3/19/2018 10:55:55 AM
DO YOUR TECHNICIANS MAKE THE GRADE? “The AED Foundation Technician Certification Program helps evaluate our technicians and helps us get them the specific training they need to improve their individual capabilities. With a lean workforce, you have to be very effective. Having AED-Certified technicians will help us be more efficient and effective.� David Hyland Vice President, Equipment Corporation of America (ECA)
Not all technicians are created the same. Certify your technicians today, the proof is in their results. Learn more about The AED Foundation and its Certified Technician program by visiting www.aedfoundation.org or call 800-388-0650. TECHAD6.indd Ad_template.indd1 2
3/21/2018 10:27:13 9:58:52 AM 3/21/2018
contents CED Magazine | April 2018
vol. 84 no. 4
www.cedmag.com
>> FEATURES
20
ELD Mandate Canada has approved new regulations requiring that the number of hours truck drivers spend behind the wheel be tabulated electronically. According to Ottawa, the change, known as the electronic logging devices (ELD) mandate, will reduce driver fatigue, make the country’s roads safer, and cut the amount of paperwork that trucking companies have to process.
18
Journey to the Top People find themselves in the heavy equipment industry for a number of reasons. Some people actively pursue careers in the industry and some end up working in it by chance. Others are born into it and grow to love everything about it. Bo Pratt, president of Rockland Manufacturing Company – a Bedford, Pennsylvania-based construction equipment manufacturer – is the latter type of person.
41
Ritchie Bros On Top Ritchie Bros., a Canadian-head-quartered global asset management and disposition company, is the world’s largest heavy equipment auctioneer and endto-end services provider, known for their live, unreserved public auctions hosted at more than 40 permanent auction sites and temporary locations worldwide.
30-39
CED Special Section: Human Resources Dive into this CED Special section to discover the top HR secrets geared towards the construction equipment industry. April 2018 | Construction Equipment Distribution | www.cedmag.com | 3
contents CED Magazine | April 2018
>> EDITORIAL Editor in Chief SARA SMITH ssmith@aednet.org Design and Layout KRIS JENSEN-VAN HESTE kjvanheste@gmail.com
vol. 84 no. 4
>>INSIDE
14 >> The AED Foundation Donor Profile
Norris Sales Company focuses on next generation and the bigger
picture.
15 >> Re-Accredited
>> WRITERS
Illinois Central College’s Caterpillar dealer service technology program
Heidi Bitsoli CED Reporter Raphael Brass Bluesky Strategy Group Christine Corelli Christine Corelli and Associates Clifford Dewitt Black III CED Reporter
re-accredited by The AED Foundation.
Maximize the value of your AED membership.
Kinloch Equipment & Supply looks forward to AED education and
networking opportunities.
A look at Canada’s approach to the skilled labor shortage.
Michael Murray AED
22 >> 2018 Ottawa Briefing Recap
>> ADVERTISING
On Feb. 28 and March 1, AED members from across Canada joined
AED’s executive team for the most successful briefings in Canada to
Brian M. Fraley Steve Johnson The AED Foundation Megan Mattingly-Arthur CED Reporter
Vice President JON CRUTHERS 800-388-0650 ext. 5127 jcruthers@aednet.org Production Manager MARTIN CABRAL 800-388-0650 ext. 5118 mcabral@aednet.org Business Development Specialist DENNIS BUDZ 800-388-0650 ext. 5119 Business Development Specialist MICHAEL WOLF 800-388-0650 ext. 5121
16 >> Regional Report
17 >> New AED Member
21 >> Skilled Labor Shortage
date.
24 >> ECA Celebrates 100 Years
Equipment Corporation of America, a prominent distributor of
specialty foundation construction equipment, celebrates 100 years
as a third-generation family-owned business.
Are leaders born? Or are they made?
Make room for new goals by cleaning out what’s unnecessary
and outdated.
44 >> Leadership
46 >> Don’t Juggle It All
Since 1920 Official Publication of
650 E. Algonquin Road, Suite 305 Schaumburg, IL 60173 630-574-0650 fax 630-457-0132 4 | www.cedmag.com | Construction Equipment Distribution | April 2018
As the official magazine of Associated Equipment Distributors, this publication carries authoritative notices and articles in regard to the activities of the association. In all other respects, the association cannot be responsible for the contents thereof or the opinions of contributors. Copyright © 2018 by Associated Equipment Distributors. Construction Equipment Distribution (ISSN0010-6755) is published monthly as the official journal of Associated Equipment Distributors. Subscription rate – $39 per year for members; $79 per year for nonmembers. Office of publication: 650 E. Algonquin Road, Suite 305, Schaumburg, Ill. 60173 Phone: 630-574-0650. Periodicals postage at Schaumburg, Ill. 60173 and other post offices. Additional entry, Pontiac, Ill. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Construction Equipment Distribution, 650 E. Algonquin Road, Suite 305, Schaumburg, Ill. 60173.
CED Magazine’s
DigitalTransformation has arrived
Introducing the new...
CEDMAG.COM CEDMag5.indd 1
3/27/2018 3:07:44 PM
your aed membership provides solutions and options AED’s membership services and benefits are designed to enhance and develop the profitability and continuity of construction equipment dealers by providing tools and resources.
aed legal call counsel AED’s call cousel is a FREE legal hotline for AED members provided by Kopon Airdo, LLC — AED’s general counsel. Take advantage of this member benefit today, call 312-506-4480 or visit www.koponairdo.com.
Ad_template.indd Legal Counsel.indd 21
3/15/2018 3/21/2018 11:13:47 9:30:16 AM
>> FROM THE PRESIDENT BRIAN P. McGUIRE
New AED Foundation Program Helps Raise The Bar For Technicians, Dealerships Using our popular technical assessments, we have created a program that can help you determine the knowledge levels of your technicians and provide them with an industry certification to prove that knowledge.
At AED, we know how much the skills gap is affecting most of our members and how important it is for them to recruit and keep technically skilled workers. The association wants to provide our dealers a program that will make it easier to keep technicians in their dealerships. Using our popular technical assessments, we have created a program that can help you determine the knowledge levels of your technicians and provide them with an industry certification to prove that knowledge. The AED Foundation’s new Certified Technician Program is the first of its kind for the construction equipment distribution industry. This program uses assessments to measure the knowledge of your technicians, while giving them a certification of this knowledge that you can market to your customers. The technical assessment is aligned with The AED Foundation’s national technical standards for diesel equipment core technical knowledge. These assessments also give you a way to benchmark your technicians, not only against those in your dealership who have completed the same assessment, but against others in the industry who have taken the test. You will receive a breakdown of how your technician performed on each topic, so you can determine areas where additional education might be needed in the future.
We know how important it is to keep knowledgeable technicians in your dealership once you find them. This program gives you a way to recognize these technicians and show them how vital they are to your dealership. Use this program as a way to demonstrate that you value your technicians’ contributions. Save time and money by using this program as a tool when hiring technicians. Using the technical assessment as an objective measurement will help you determine if a potential hire has the technical knowledge that will benefit your dealership. We are confident this program will help you to better meet your customers’ needs. Knowing your technicians have the correct core technical knowledge will give you peace of mind, since fast and efficient repairs can be made, leading to increased revenue and profitability. Satisfied customers mean repeat business. Make your customers aware of this certification that differentiates you from the competition. We want to continue to provide programs that improve your bottom line, and we want to continue to support this career path through the industry. If you are looking for more information or have any questions, The AED Foundation team is here to help. Please reach out to them at 630-574-0650.
BRIAN P. McGUIRE is president and CEO of Associated Equipment Distributors. He can be reached at bmcguire@aednet.org. BRIAN P. MCGUIRE AED President & CEO
ROBERT K. HENDERSON AED Executive Vice President & COO
JASON K. BLAKE AED Senior Vice President & CFO
>> OFFICERS
>> AT-LARGE DIRECTORS
>> REGIONAL DIRECTORS
DIANE BENCK Chairwoman West Side Tractor Sales Co.
PAUL FARRELL Modern Group Ltd. GAYLE HUMPHRIES JCB of Georgia STEVE MEADOWS Berry Companies, Inc. JAMES A. NELSON Heavy Machines, Inc. MATT DI IORIO Ditch Witch Mid-States DAN STRACENER Tractor & Equipment Co.
MICHAEL LALONDE West Reg.
MICHAEL D. BRENNAN Vice Chairman Bramco, LLC RON BARLET Senior Vice President Bejac Corporation MICHAEL VAZQUEZ VP Membership MECO MIAMI Inc. DAVID PRIMROSE VP Canada Finning Ltd. JOHN C. KIMBALL VP of Finance Kimball Equipment Company WES STOWERS Past Chairman Stowers Machinery Corporation WHIT PERRYMAN Foundation Chairman Vermeer Texas-Louisiana
Westrax Machinery, Inc. MATTHEW ROLAND Midwest Reg. Roland Machinery Co. JOHN SHEARER Rocky Mountain Reg. 4 Rivers Equipment, LLC KAREN ZAJICK Northeast Reg. Norris Sales Co. DAVID PRIMROSE Western Canada Reg. Finning Ltd. COREY VANDER MOLEN South Central Reg. Vermeer MidSouth, Inc. MIKE PARIC Eastern Canada Reg. Joe Johnson Equipment Inc.
April 2018 | Construction Equipment Distribution | www.cedmag.com | 7
Get INVOLVED AED 20 Group About Us The AED 20 Group is a diverse group of dealer principals who meet twice a year to share best practices and new ideas. It also gives members access to financial benchmarking tools to improve business performance and profitability. The AED 20 Group is the ultimate dealer to dealer networking experience.
For More Information For more information, contact Liz McCabe at lmccabe@aednet.org or 630-468-5132.
Why Join The AED 20 Group? When you join the AED 20 group, you will receive… • Access to a personalized reporting system used for benchmarking the industry and AED 20 Group members • Monthly comparison statements for review • Specific “C-Level” focus for each meeting • Professional executive development
Share New Techniques Share new techniques and best practices that can be utilized in your dealership
Associated Equipment Distributors 650 E. Algonquin Rd. STE 305, Schaumburg IL, 60173 800-388-0650 info@aednet.org
Ad_template.indd 2 AED20Group2018.indd 1
Network and Tours Network with your peers and have access to facility tours
Benchmark Benchmark your dealership against the group, as well as average and high-performing AED dealers
3/21/2018 9:20:42 AM 3/15/2018 11:25:54 AM
>> AED INSIDER AED Alert: Trump Signs Steel and Aluminum Tariff Proclamations On March 8, President Trump signed two proclamations imposing steel (25 percent) and aluminum (10 percent) tariffs. AED is concerned about the impact these actions could have on equipment distributors, manufacturers and their customers and the effect on the cost of future infrastructure projects. The Association will closely monitor implementation of the tariffs and will work with Congress, the administration and other industry organizations to limit its impact on construction equipment dealers. However, AED was pleased that certain countries were exempted, particularly Canada, and that the administration has indicated a willingness to be flexible in excluding more countries.
Following the White House announcement, AED’s President and CEO Brian P. McGuire said,“The United States operates in a global economy, and when a country takes protectionist measures it will always raise concerns about negative impacts. However, as in legislative and regulatory actions, the details matter and implementation is crucial. “The coming weeks will be an important time in which to assess the Trump administration’s commitment to accommodating the concerns of our key trading partners and allies and the impact it will have on ongoing trade agreement negotiations, such as NAFTA. Accessible and efficient international trade is critical to continued economic growth and international competitiveness.”
Women in Construction Equipment Distribution Roundtable Thursday, May 17, 2017 | 1:00 pm – 5:00 pm | Chicago, Ill. | Chicago Hilton Suites You have been invited to participate in AED’s Women in Construction Equipment Distribution Roundtable. This halfday event provides women professionals in the construction equipment industry an opportunity to enhance their leadership skills and discuss the unique challenges they face. Join your peers in Chicago to participate and gain the knowledge and skills needed for today’s ever-changing workforce. Dealerships need to leverage the diversity of leadership to improve the quality of decision-making, fuel growth and inspire the next generation. Whether you are focused on building your career or business, or are simply looking to strengthen your community, this unique event brings together women in the
workforce to share similar life stories, experiences and struggles that go along with balancing work and life. AED’s Women in Construction Equipment Distribution Roundtable will focus on helping women leaders to: • Understand their unique strengths as well as barriers to success • Grow their leadership skills • Expand their network by interacting with other women professionals from allied industries• Increase the visibility of women in the industry For more information, contact your regional manager at 800388-0650. April 2018 | Construction Equipment Distribution | www.cedmag.com | 9
>> AED INSIDER Calling Marketing / Communications Students Looking To Gain Experience! Associated Equipment Distributors’ (AED’s) Marketing and Communications department is looking for an intern to join their team. The successful candidate must be enrolled full-time in a major university or college, studying marketing or communications. We’re looking for a driven, ambitious individual who wants to create a career in social media and content marketing, as well as to have experience with design programs. AED will be offering a flexible schedule, so candidates can continue to take classes and/or pursue other opportunities simultaneously. AED will provide extensive training, guidance and support, as well as the opportunity to gain valuable work experience.
Marketing Intern’s Role:
AED’s marketing intern will be responsible for assisting the Association in the development and implementation of
its marketing, business development, and public relations plans. The intern will report to the marketing director and will assist with any additional necessary projects.
Marketing Intern Program:
• Take over content creation for all AED social media accounts, including organization of cross-platform content strategies • Develop new social media campaigns from the ground up, considering our members’ needs • Monitor social channels for trending news, ideas and memes, then capitalize on those trends through our social media accounts • Perform research into our industry and provide actionable tips and advice for expanding AED’s reach in the digital space • Assist with capturing and analyzing social media metrics
Requirements:
• Enrollment in a bachelor’s degree program (required) • Junior or senior status • Ability to multitask and take initiative • Ability to take direction and absorb information quickly • Experience with content creation
Desired Schedule:
Monday, Wednesday, Friday from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm Compensation: This is an uncompensated six- to eightweek internship program, which will prove useful for gaining valuable experience and recommendations. Do you know a qualified candidate that fits this description? Send their resume to AED’s Director of Marketing and Communications, Sara Smith, at ssmith@ aednet.org.
Do You Have An Eye For Design? Associated Equipment Distributors’ (AED’s) Marketing and Communications department is looking for an intern to join their team. The successful candidate must be enrolled full-time in a major university or college, studying graphic design. We’re looking for a driven, ambitious individual who wants to create a career in the design industry and has experience with various design programs. AED will be offering a flexible schedule, so candidates can continue to take classes and/or pursue other opportunities simultaneously. AED will provide extensive training, guidance and support, as well as the opportunity to gain valuable work experience.
Design Intern’s Role:
The graphic design intern will be responsible for providing support for the marketing department through a variety of channels: print, digital, web, video and others as assigned. The intern will report to the marketing director and will assist with the development and design of core AED graphics, logos, collateral, event materials and a variety of other creative tasks as assigned.
Design Intern Program:
• Assist with the production and design of printed and digital marketing materials, including fliers, direct mail pieces, brochures, web banners, advertisements, email blasts and social media campaigns • Assist with website and blog updates via WordPress • Create logos for various events • Assist with video production (shooting, editing, etc.) • Possess excellent computer knowledge for both MAC and PC environments 10 | www.cedmag.com | Construction Equipment Distribution | April 2018
Requirements:
• Enrollment in a bachelor’s degree program (required) • Junior or senior status • Proficiency in basic design programs (including Adobe Creative Suite) and knowledge of video editing software • Ability to multitask and take initiative • Ability to take direction and absorb information quickly • Experience with content creation
Desired Schedule:
Tuesday and Wednesday from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm
Compensation:
This is an uncompensated six- to eight-week internship program, which will be useful for gaining valuable experience and recommendations. Do you know a qualified candidate that fits this description? Send their resume to AED’s Director of Marketing and Communications, Sara Smith, at ssmith@aednet.org.
>> INDUSTRY NEWS Compact Construction Equipment Inc. Acquires Bobcat Distribution Rights in West Texas Compact Construction Equipment Inc. (CCE), an authorized distributor of Bobcat equipment, has acquired the distribution rights from ASCO Equipment to sell Bobcat products in West Texas. CCE has assumed immediate distribution and support for Bobcat equipment in Amarillo, Lubbock and Midland-Odessa. The branches will be co-located with the Vermeer TexasLouisiana facilities in these three markets. Each location will offer dedicated sales, rental, parts and service support for Bobcat customers. Bobcat of Amarillo, Bobcat of Lubbock and Bobcat of Midland-Odessa join six existing CCE branch locations in Alamo, Austin, Corpus Christi, Kerrville, San Antonio and Waco. • Bobcat of Amarillo is located at 12270 Interstate 27 and can be reached at 806-622-9593. • Bobcat of Lubbock is located at 3415 East Slaton Highway and can be reached at 806-745-1322. • Bobcat of Midland-Odessa is located at 6117 East Interstate 20 in Midland and can be reached at 432-685-9298. “The CCE team is very excited about the opportunity to expand our Bobcat business into West Texas. With existing facilities in each of these markets, it was a great fit for us, and
we look forward to providing Bobcat customers with the same quality support they’ve received from ASCO for the last five decades,” said Whit Perryman, CEO of Compact Construction Equipment Inc. ASCO President Steve Wright said, “Prior to the sale, we had been the longest-standing Bobcat dealership in the world, and we look forward to continuing to support the construction and material-handling industry selling the Volvo and Case brands. We thank our Bobcat customers for their support and wish the CCE team success.” For more information about Compact Construction Equipment Inc., please log on to www.bobcatcce.com . Compact Construction Equipment Inc. is an authorized dealer for Bobcat equipment in Texas, with nine full-service branch locations across the region. CCE provides dedicated sales, rental, parts and service to customers in the construction industry. For more information on Compact Construction Equipment, log on to www.bobcatcce.com. CCE Inc. is owned and operated by Employee-Owned Companies Inc., which also owns and operates Vermeer Texas-Louisiana. For more information, please contact Kelli Meyer at kmeyer@ eocinc.com or 972-255-3500.
Talbert Manufacturing: 80 Years in Heavy-Haul Trailer Industry Talbert Manufacturing, a North American leader in specialized heavy-haul solutions, marks its 80th year in business. Austin Talbert started the company in 1938 as a heavy-haul, crane rental and construction equipment business in Lyons, Illinois. He quickly became known as a pioneer in heavy-haul trailer safety with his invention of the industry’s first gooseneck model with removable rear suspension. Since then, the Talbert name has become synonymous with multiple other industry innovations, including removable goosenecks and beam deck units. “We’ve been in this business for a long time,” said Andrew Tanner, Talbert Manufacturing president. “But we’ve always stayed true to that same mission Austin Talbert had in 1938
when he set out to change the heavy-haul industry: to design and build safety, quality and durability into every last detail of our trailers.” Talbert offers a comprehensive approach to trailer design, bringing in representatives from each department during client consultations. This allows the entire organization to understand each customer’s
needs and how every part of the design and manufacturing process will contribute to solving clients’ challenges, including bridge laws and overheight and overweight issues. Talbert offers a wide variety of base model trailers, such as 10to 30-ton tag-a-longs, hydraulic tails, oilfields, heavy hauls and traveling axles. The company has also built thousands of custom units and prides itself not only on the relationships that it has nurtured along the way, but also on the trailers’ durability and longevity; 92 percent of the Talbert Trailers built since 1985 are still on the road today. “We have never been a take-
it-or-leave-it manufacturer,” Tanner said. “If our customers have a need, we listen and then we fulfill it. It’s how Austin Talbert made Talbert Manufacturing what it is today.” Talbert designs and builds its trailers at its facility in Rensselaer, Indiana – the same facility Austin Talbert purchased in 1957 when he sold his crane rental and heavyhaul divisions to focus solely on trailer manufacturing. This is when Talbert Construction Equipment Company became Talbert Manufacturing. Austin Talbert passed away in 2010 at the age of 97.
April 2018 | Construction Equipment Distribution | www.cedmag.com | 11
>> INDUSTRY NEWS
The Manufacturing Institute Honors Volvo Penta’s Harriell The Manufacturing Institute has announced that Valerie Harriell, vice president of human resources for Volvo Penta of the Americas, has been named one of the top women in U.S. manufacturing for 2018. Harriell and the other honorees will be recognized at the sixth annual Women in Manufacturing STEP (Science, Technology, Engineering and Production) Ahead Award at a gala dinner in Washington, D.C., on April 10. The STEP Ahead Awards celebrate those women who have demonstrated excellence and leadership in their careers at all levels of the manufacturing industry, from the factory floor to the C-suite. “Companies across the U.S. agree there is a Harriell talent shortage in manufacturing,” said Carolyn Lee, executive director of The Manufacturing Institute. “Through the STEP Ahead Awards, we hope to take another step toward closing the gap by highlighting the stories of successful women in manufacturing and giving them a platform to encourage other women to join the
industry and be role models for the next generation. The 130 women being honored demonstrate what modern manufacturing careers are all about: making an impact in their communities with meaningful careers that offer significant opportunities for growth.” With primary responsibility for recruiting, retaining and supporting employees, Harriell, who has been with Volvo Penta for 10 years, has been instrumental in branding Volvo Penta to attract top talent. She has recruited and retained more than 30 percent of the company’s 250 employees in the U.S. and extended her outreach efforts to find highly skilled internal employees in Sweden and Brazil who were interested in working abroad. By doing so, she enhanced Volvo Penta’s diversity footprint and brought talented workers to new environments. “Valerie has a keen eye for attracting top talent. Once they are hired, she provides them with the support and continuing education skills they need to thrive and grow in their jobs,” said Ron Huibers, president of Volvo Penta of the Americas. In addition to helping Volvo Penta build a strong and successful team, Harriell has championed diversity in the workforce.
Komatsu America Signs Agreement To Purchase Pine Bush Equipment Komatsu America Corp., a leading global heavy equipment manufacturer, has announced that, through its subsidiary F and M Equipment Ltd., it has entered into a purchase agreement with PBE Group, consisting of Pine Bush Equipment Co. Inc. and East PBE Inc., to purchase the assets of PBE Group, subject to a period of due diligence and final approval of Komatsu Ltd. (with the exception of the Kubota line of equipment and parts). The planned closing date for the sale is April 1, 2018. The new entity, to be named later, will assume PBE Group’s trade territory, which ranges from all of Connecticut (excluding Fairfield County) to select counties in southeastern New York State. This includes all Komatsu construction, mining and utility equipment sales and rentals, parts, service and customer support activities. The Boniface family, who launched the Pine Bush Equipment Company in 1956, will continue with the new operating company, providing continuity and support as Komatsu continues to strengthen the company’s reputation as a trusted equipment partner in the region. “We’ve said in the past that Komatsu
Takeuchi’s Shebetka Promoted
America is committed to excellence in the Northeast region of the U.S. Investments in Midlantic Machinery, Edward Ehrbar, Komatsu Northeast and now Pine Bush demonstrate the company’s determination to walk our talk,” said Rod Schrader, CEO, Komatsu America. The new unit will support Komatsu’s longterm strategic plans to grow and strengthen the distribution channel. Once the sale is complete, the new entity will be part of a much larger group of premiere distributors, which, for customers, will mean more equipment and parts inventory availability and greater service and support resources.
12 | www.cedmag.com | Construction Equipment Distribution | April 2018
Takeuchi-US, an innovative global leader in compact equipment, has promoted Michael Shebetka to the position of field product manager, effective immediately. His previous position was product and training manager. As field product manager, Shebetka will be Shebetka responsible for working with dealers and customers on the retail and application level. He is a subject matter expert on all Takeuchi and competitive machines, bringing a wealth of knowledge and experience in selling and supporting Takeuchi equipment. Other responsibilities will include sales and product training, customer visits, product demonstrations and building customer relationships. Hired in April of 2016, Shebetka has over 20 years of experience in the construction and rental industries. He joins three other field product managers at Takeuchi.
>> PRODUCT PREVIEW
Epiroc SB Hydraulic Breakers Feature Industry’s Only Integrated Water Port For Dust Suppression Epiroc AB, the subsidiary of Atlas Copco Group that is planned to be listed on the stock exchange in 2018, announces that its premium SB series hydraulic breaker attachments are the industry’s only breakers to come standard with an internal water port for dust suppression, a feature that can assist in compliance with Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) final silica rule dust regulations. With an integrated water channel, operators can spray water at the source of dust creation to keep dust levels down. This improves the working environment, enhances visibility and prevents dust from seeping into the bushings. SB breakers are also designed to protect operators and equipment by reducing noise and vibration. Epiroc SB series breakers are designed for the 0.7- to 24-ton carrier class and are used in a wide range of applications that include demolition and renovation work, construction projects, tunneling, dredging and pile driving. Mining and quarrying applications range from overburden removal and scaling to primary, selective rock breaking. SB series breakers combine superior efficiency and performance with high
durability in a compact design. The range includes models to match any micro or mini excavator, backhoe, skid steer loader or demolition robot, with service weights ranging from 120 pounds for the SB 52, the smallest breaker of the SB series, to 2,350 pounds for the SB 1102. Oil requirements range from just 3.2 gpm at 1,450 to 2,175 psi, to 35 gpm at 1,185 to 2,610 psi.
Epiroc EnergyRecovery technology absorbs recoil energy, mitigating anvil effect and increasing overall performance. The result is a higher impact rate from the same hydraulic input with less vibration. The slim, compact design makes SB breakers easier to handle and improves operator visibility. All SB breakers come prepared for compressed air supplies. No modification or additional installations are required. The multifunctional design of the wellprotected connection ports assures trouble-free operation, ease of service, and quick access. Side-positioned ports reduce risk to hoses and provide easy access for connecting compressor, water connection or ContiLube™ II micro lubrication supply lines or for monitoring operating pressure. No special tools or adapter fittings are required for servicing SB series breakers. The SB SolidBody concept utilizes a patented internal, integrated component design, integrating the impact mechanism and the guide system into a single piece. This eliminates the weakest components of traditional breakers: damping and guiding elements, tie rods, parting lines and stud bolts.
Solesbee’s Thumbs Enhance Any Size or Model Excavator Solesbee’s, a premier equipment and attachment manufacturer, offers its series of manual and hydraulic excavator thumbs for excavators of any size or model. The thumbs allow operators to move from one application to another, such as moving dirt or material, without changing attachments. This versatility significantly increases efficiency for a variety of applications, including land clearing, site preparation, demolition and recycling. “There are many contractors who need to increase the efficiency of their machine on the jobsite,” said David Jenkins, president of Solesbee’s Equipment & Attachments
LLC. “We design thumbs to be paired with any size and model excavator, and back them with our industry-leading two-year warranty.” Solesbee’s engineers its thumbs with efficiency and safety in mind. The company works closely with customers to ensure each model is optimized for the excavator bucket and/or coupler to provide a perfect fit, enhancing versatility and extending the longevity of the thumbs. The thumbs’ strength enables operators to easily grip materials of all sizes that a bucket cannot handle alone. Contractors can quickly and easily grab and place materials, including trees, pipes, rocks and scrap materials, then
fold the thumb down to use the bucket. The attachment can also remain on the carrier during other operations. A skilled welder can attach the thumb to the bucket and book arm or bucket and coupler in
roughly two hours. The series is compatible with 32- to 78-inchtip-radius buckets. Solesbee’s manufactures the thumbs with high-quality alloy steel to withstand the demanding conditions of jobsites.
April 2018 | Construction Equipment Distribution | www.cedmag.com | 13
▶ THE AED FOUNDATION DONOR PROFILE
Norris Sales Company, Inc. Focuses on Next Generation and
THE BIGGER PICTURE By Heidi Bitsoli “It helps us think about the bigger picture.” That’s what Karen Zajick, president of Norris Sales Co. Inc., cites as one of the benefits of supporting The AED Foundation. Norris Sales, based in Conshohocken, Pennsylvania, first opened its doors in 1956 as a boiler business. In the decades that followed, it grew into a top supplier of construction equipment and services in its region, and now has more than 90 employees and two full-service locations. Norris prides itself on being able to guide their clients’ projects from inception to completion – think initial site preparation all the way through landscape detailing. Norris’ efforts to sustain its success and foster growth can be credited at least in part to its involvement in many aspects of the industry, including being a long-term member of AED and The AED Foundation. Zajick also sits on the AED board, as regional director for the Northeast region. In addition to consistently donating to The AED Foundation, Norris team members regularly attend Summit as well as taking part in various AED Foundation educational conferences and seminars, including the AED/EDA Washington Fly-In and financial/HR symposiums. As a source of information, The AED Foundation is invaluable. “We stay up-to-date on the industry, and partake in various committees, much like the Public Policy Council (PPC),” Zajick says. “We have the ear of politicians through Daniel B. Fisher, AED’s vice president of government affairs. The association ensures that construction equipment distributor’s voices are being heard.” The AED Foundation offers webinars, online classes, testing, conferences and more, all designed to help businesses both large and small to succeed. Zajick cites a shortage of schooled talent, which is where The AED Foundation really shines. “There is always a need, but especially when times are good there’s a struggle to find qualified technicians. It’s a process, as there’s not a readily available talent pool,” she explains. Membership means “being part of a group of many,” she adds. Norris itself lends its voice and expertise to help local colleges shape two-year accredited programs and to spread the word about the industry. “We try to get the younger generation to understand that these jobs are careers, with really good earning and income potential. But you need to be tech savvy,” – knowing the software as well as the mechanical aspects. The work can be tough, but for those who love a challenge and enjoy the fact that it’s not exactly rote work, it’s good for the checkbook and for the mind. No matter what, she says, “we still need sharp, bright kids who want a good career.” Last year, Zajick says, her company worked with national and the Delaware Valley AED local groups to host an onsite meeting with 14 | www.cedmag.com | Construction Equipment Distribution | April 2018
Your contribution fuels the work that allows The AED Foundation to develop a dealer model for success. The future of dealerships depend on how we come together to build our industry's workforce. Thank you, Norris Sales, for investing in the future of our industry! To contribute to The AED Foundation annual campaign, visit bit.ly/2018aedfcampaign. several area high schools, where attendees had the opportunity to network and learn about equipment and career options. She calls it a ground-level grassroots effort, to try to get these kids while they’re young, to let them know that if pursuing a four-year degree isn’t the most enticing career path for them, they do have other options. One of Norris’ goals is to help design and offer the first high-school-accredited program in the area. “We’re trying to find other ways to find qualified candidates and get them interested,” Zajick adds. “It (probably even) needs to be done at grade school level.” Besides educating today’s and tomorrow’s heavy equipment operators, Zajick finds other value in The AED Foundation’s industry efforts. “You’ll see where industry is heading … it’s a worthwhile effort to be involved with The AED Foundation if you’re in our industry.” There is value in the resources and the ability to get information (through CED Magazine). It’s a great organization, and the leadership has been developing solid plans and helping us be viable. “Have a seat at the table,” Zajick says. “It’s really helpful, and AED and The AED Foundation will help your company and employees excel.”
Illinois Central College’s Caterpillar Dealer Service Technology Program Re-Accredited by The AED Foundation By Steve Johnson First accredited by The AED Foundation in March 2003, the Caterpillar Dealer Service Technology program at Illinois Central College (ICC) has just achieved their third re-accreditation. Program re-accreditation is required every five years. The AED Foundation congratulates Program Coordinator Mark Matthews and Program Instructor Ron Albertsen for their success in making this one of the top-flight programs in the country. The ICC Caterpillar Dealer Service Technology program, also known as Caterpillar ThinkBIG, began in May 1998 as a joint venture between Caterpillar Inc. and Illinois Central College to develop a new pilot program to meet the growing need for technicians in the heavy equipment industry. The primary focus of this new program was to train young men and women on a Caterpillar product line that would provide the program’s partner dealers with high-quality technicians. In 1998, ICC partnered with Altorfer Inc., with dealer locations in Illinois, Iowa, and Missouri; and with Patten Industries Inc. located in Illinois and Indiana. Since that time, the program has added Whayne CAT, with locations in Kentucky, Indiana, West Virginia, and Ohio. Said Mr. Albertsen, “The AED Foundation accreditation is something we value, as it adds additional credibility and accountability to our program. Having The AED Foundation onboard as a partner opens a vast array of additional resources, such as training, certification programs, and professional networking for both our instructors and students. The AED Foundation accreditation also opens additional scholarships to students both through AED and their members.” Caterpillar Dealer Service Technology is a two-year technician training program designed to prepare students to become entry-level Caterpillar dealer service technicians for the dealerships that buy, sell, and repair Caterpillar equipment. In this program, students learn how to work on many types of machines and equipment, including agricultural, construction, and earthmoving equipment, to name a few. The program combines classroom work and state-of-the-art labs with real-world experience through internships.
Since the first class of 11 students in 1999, the program has graduated over 330 students. Its success is underscored by the strong support it receives from partner dealers, ICC, and Caterpillar. This support ensures that faculty and staff have the resources to be able to provide students with the highest quality education available and partner dealers with quality technicians that help meet their ever-increasing needs. The AED Foundation is proud of its affiliation with this outstanding diesel equipment technology program at Illinois Central College. If you are wondering
where your next generation of qualified equipment technicians will come from and are interested in working with your local technical college, contact Steve Johnson at The AED Foundation for more information. Program contact: Mr. Mark Matthews, Program Coordinator Caterpillar Dealer Service Technology Agriculture and Industrial Technologies One College Drive East Peoria, IL 61635 (309) 694-8521; mrmatthews@icc.edu Website: www.icc.edu
April 2018 | Construction Equipment Distribution | www.cedmag.com | 15
Northeast: Maximize the Value of Your AED Membership You may have noticed that over the past few years your association has transformed into a stronger, more member-centric organization. Specifically, AED added a whole host of educational content, workforce development projects, and member benefits that serve one ultimate purpose, to offer our dealer members opportunities to increase employee efficiency, maximize dealer profitability and enhance the success of their business and the equipment industry. Central to these efforts is the regional manager program and increased engagement of dealer members in Association activities.
REGIONAL REPORT
Michael Murray The regional manager program has one very simple goal: to provide AED members with a point of contact whose sole purpose is to help members understand the full range of opportunities offered through AED. Your dealership receives hundreds of sales calls, and probably even more email solicitations, each month from salespeople who are trying to sell you everything from business services to coffee filters for the break room. Given this reality, it is not surprising that one of the hardest parts of a regional manager’s job (especially when they are new to the region) is getting in touch with a dealer principal to discuss upcoming AED opportunities. As a regional manager, my sole purpose is to help you increase your bottom line so that the value of your AED membership far outweighs the cost of your annual dues. To be fair, part of my job is indeed to reach out and make sure you know about the benefits of attending AED events and to assist you with registering for those events. But there are a few key differences between a sales call and a call regarding an upcoming AED event. Regional managers will not pressure you to attend an AED event that you are not interested in. We take no for an answer, and better yet, we take note of your interests for future use to better serve you. The goal of AED’s events is to help educate our dealers, allow them to network and share best practices, and promote policies beneficial 16 | www.cedmag.com | Construction Equipment Distribution | April 2018
to their dealerships and the equipment distribution industry. To maximize the value of your AED membership, you need to be in direct contact with your regional manager. Did you know that AED has four main facets through which we advance the interests of your dealership and the industry? 1) Government affairs and public policy advocacy, 2) Professional development and education for your employees, 3) Member services to help your dealership increase its bottom line, and 4) The AED Foundation and workforce development. Dealer principals should discuss each of these four facets with their regional manager to do the following: establish an understanding of how these four areas impact their dealership, identify how engagement in each of these four areas will help advance the goals of their dealership, and assign a primary point of contact for each of the four areas, who will coordinate with their regional manager. Additionally, they should establish the best way for their regional manager to reach out to them with time-sensitive requests or information. Some of my members, for example, prefer that I send them a text message as opposed to calling their cell phone, because of how often they are unable to answer their phone during the day. Your regional manager works for you and should be the first person your dealership contacts with questions or issues where AED can help. I challenge you to have a conversation with your regional manager about the areas of AED that interest you and how your dealership is going to engage with AED to accomplish your business goals. Then assign a point of contact from within your dealership for your regional manager to coordinate with on each of these areas of engagement. If you don’t have their cell phone number stored in your cell phone, then you haven’t maximized the value of your AED membership.
New AED Member: Kinloch Equipment & Supply Looks Forward to AED Education and Networking Opportunities By Megan Mattingly-Arthur For nearly 23 years, Kinloch Equipment & Supply has worked hard to make itself a one-stop shop for environmental equipment customers in the Lone Star State. The company offers new and used heavy equipment, parts, service and rentals at its headquarters in Pasadena, Texas, and branch locations in Arlington and Fort Worth. As a distributor for Vactor Manufacturing, Elgin Sweeper, IBAK, Petersen Industries, New Way Trucks and Pacific Tek, Kinloch Equipment & Supply sells sewer cleaning equipment, sewer inspection equipment, street sweeping equipment and street sweeping supplies, as well as lighting products, accessories and nozzles. Though the company also serves the needs of private citizens and businesses, its primary customer base is made up of municipalities, school districts and government agencies. Considering its focus on sewer equipment, street cleaning and lighting products, one might say that Kinloch Equipment & Supply sells the kinds of products that keep society running smoothly. Founded in 1995, Kinloch Equipment & Supply has enjoyed great success throughout its more than two decades in business. That success is due, in large part, to the company’s exceptional group of employees, according to Founder and President Todd Kinloch. “When we talk about what sets Kinloch Equipment & Supply apart, it’s our
employees,” he said. “Our employees are our greatest asset. We have terrific people in all areas of our organization. We have three different service centers with parts and service guys at each center who are well trained and know what they’re doing. We have great outside salespeople and a really great inside staff, too. And all of our employees are committed to giving outstanding, friendly customer service. We’re really fortunate to have such a great group of employees.” After decades of working as a heavy equipment distributor, Kinloch is still extremely passionate about what he does. The competitive aspect of the business and industry is what keeps him going, and he credits some of Kinloch Equipment & Supply’s success to his love of competition and drive to win deals. “I’ve played sports all my life, so I’m really competitive,” Kinloch said. “I like to compete and, actually, that’s my favorite thing about the business and this industry. It’s really fun to go out and compete with other products – and win. The financial gains that come with owning a dealership are great, but I like to win deals. If we’re successful at winning, the money will follow.” Kinloch Equipment & Supply recently became an AED member, after years of interest in the Association. Kinloch and his employees look forward to exploring AED’s education courses and attending networking events.
“We joined to take advantage of the educational materials and seminars,” Kinloch said. “I know some fellow dealers who belong to AED and I’ve talked to them about the Association over the years. I’ve always been interested and curious, but with my daughter, Morgan, having recently joined Kinloch Equipment & Supply, I thought it was finally a good time to join. My daughter is being groomed to take over the business, and through conversations with other AED members, I felt the education she would get through the organization would be invaluable. We’re all looking forward to the educational and networking opportunities AED offers. We want to learn from people and get some new ideas, because you always need to be improving and learning.” While professional education has always been a hallmark of AED’s member benefits, the Association’s educational offerings have become even more impressive in recent years. In 2016, AED not only moved all of its self-study courses online to increase access and convenience, they also updated the course material to reflect current trends in the heavy equipment industry. For more information on Kinloch Equipment & Supply, visit www. kinlochequip.com or follow the company on Twitter. To learn more about AED’s training and professional education programs, visit http://aednet.org.
April 2018 | Construction Equipment Distribution | www.cedmag.com | 17
18 | www.cedmag.com | Construction Equipment Distribution | April 2018
J
OURNEY to the
TOP
Rockland Manufacturing Company President Shares Fond Memories of Growing Up in the Construction Equipment Industry
By Megan Mattingly-Arthur eople find themselves in the heavy equipment industry for a number of reasons. Some people actively pursue careers in the industry and some end up working in it by chance. Others are born into it and grow to love everything about it. Bo Pratt, president of Rockland Manufacturing Company – a Bedford, Pennsylvania-based construction equipment manufacturer – is the latter type of person. As a family business, Rockland Manufacturing Company has been a big part of Pratt’s life for as long as he can remember. “When I was very young, my brother and I would spend the weekends in the engineering department and the factory while our father worked,” he said. “We’d make huge paper airplanes out of the E-size engineering drawings, play with the cranes in the factory – definitely not something we allow today – and play hide-and-seek around all the buckets and other products.” Despite growing up in an equipment manufacturing family, Pratt said he felt no pressure to join the family business. He ultimately decided to do so because of his love of building things and working with customers. “Growing up, we were never discouraged or encouraged to work for the company,” he said. “I think my father was very serious about making sure we made up our own mind about what our careers would be. Ultimately there were two things that made me decide to join the industry: When I started working in the factory, I loved working with the guys and building things; I enjoyed the metal, sparks, grease, noise and dirtiness of it all, as well as the quest to endlessly improve and work together so that everything would come out correctly. It’s very satisfying to work all day and then look at what’s been improved or created as a result. The other thing that made me decide to join the industry was meeting our customers. After that, I knew it was for me.”
P
Pratt took over the reins at Rockland Manufacturing four years ago. In his almost 20 years with the company, he’s worked in nearly every area and department – from doing odd jobs in the factory to marketing, sales, engineering, purchasing and operations. Still, he both does and does not consider himself someone who’s worked his way up from the bottom. “Being the boss’s kid certainly can’t be called starting at the bottom, whatever your first job is,” Pratt said. “With that in mind, I would say my first job was at the bottom. I spent my first years cleaning and repainting lathes, changing cutting fluid reservoirs, performing shot blast maintenance, etc. Those were great days. I learned a tremendous amount doing that job by listening to the guys, asking them questions and watching how things came together in the plant.” For people interested in working their way up through the heavy equipment industry, Pratt has this advice: Keep challenging yourself and saying yes to new opportunities – even if it means going outside your comfort zone. Also, if you want to move up in the company, just ask. “It sounds silly, but ... a lot of the time I find managers don’t know people are interested in moving up or want to try their hand at something new,” Pratt said. “Tell them you’d like to do different things and you’ll take whatever training or advice they have to offer.” Pratt also recommends that those hoping to advance in the industry make an effort to learn about the jobs of those around them, put themselves in a position to come up with great ideas and solve problems, and share their knowledge with others. Work keeps Pratt busy, but he also enjoys spending time with his wife and young daughter, working on classic cars, reading, working out and playing the guitar. To learn more about Rockland Manufacturing Company, visit www.rocklandmfg.com. April 2018 | Construction Equipment Distribution | www.cedmag.com | 19
A Look At Canada’s New ELD Mandate
Canada has approved new regulations requiring that the number of hours truck drivers spend behind the wheel be tabulated electronically. According to Ottawa, the change, known as the electronic logging devices (ELD) mandate, will reduce driver fatigue, make the country’s roads safer, and cut the amount By Lawrence of paperwork that Ramer trucking companies have to process. By 2020, all of the country’s truck drivers must adopt the new technology, which is already mandated for U.S. truck drivers and for Canadian truck drivers who drive on American roads. Craig Drury, Eastern Canada VP of operations for equipment manufacturer Vermeer, told CED Magazine that the new regulations do not change the main problems that Canada’s trucking hours-of-service rules create for the country’s equipment makers. In an email, Drury explained that the current hours-of-service regulations “limit the time in a 24-hour period that one can drive AND be on duty” (all-caps added by Drury). As a result, Vermeer’s technicians who drive trucks and support the company’s
customers can’t work for more than 12 hours in a 24-hour period, he stated. According to Drury, if the technicians “leave home at six in the morning, arrive home at six at night and don’t take a legitimate lunch,” they can’t open their computers in the evening because doing so would be illegal. Stating that the current hours of service regulations “are not in the spirit of running sales pick-up trucks and our service trucks,” Drury said he had been involved in discussions about looking to alter the regulations before Canada imposed the ELD mandate. The executive does, however, believe that there is “strong evidence” that the hours-of-service regulations prevent those who drive trucks for a living from becoming overly fatigued. Meanwhile, “ten trade associations representing approximately 6,000 farm, industrial and outdoor power equipment dealers in North America” in September 2017 “requested a five-year renewable exemption” from America’s ELD mandate, according to a press release. The ELD rule “does not account for the unique circumstances equipment dealers and their customers face in agricultural production,” said Eric Wareham, VP of government affairs, Western Equipment
Dealers Association, according to the press release. Judging by the statements of Canadian officials, the ELD mandate and hours-ofservice regulations do seem to be targeted primarily at professional truck drivers, raising questions about the appropriateness of applying them to employees of equipment makers and distributors. For example, Canadian Minister of Transport Marc Garneau said that the ELD mandate would make truck drivers less prone to fatigue” (emphasis added), while Stephen Laskowski, the president of the Canadian Trucking Alliance, which represents Canadian truckers, said that “electronic logging devices are going to ensure optimum compliance with hours-of-service regulation for truck drivers” (emphasis added). By using the term “truck drivers” instead of a phrase like “employees who drive trucks,” Garneau and Laskowski appear to be indicating that the ELD mandate is targeted primarily at those who drive trucks for a living. It’s uncertain whether the efforts of equipment dealers and manufacturers to change Canadian hours-of-service rules and the ELD mandate will bear any fruit, but CED Magazine will keep you informed about new developments on this issue.
LAWRENCE RAMER has over 15 years of experience in business journalism. He has worked for Globes, Israel’s most widely read business newspaper, as well as The Jerusalem Post and theflyonthewall.com. He holds an MBA from Rutgers University. 20 | www.cedmag.com | Construction Equipment Distribution | April 2018
Canada’s Approach to the
Skilled Laborer Shortage By Clifford Dewitt Black III AED members are faced with the dual threat of an aging workforce and a shortage of skilled laborers. The heavy equipment industry is in a continuous technological upshift, with increased complexity of systems, onboard computers, remote controls and sensors. The skills shortage in this sector has translated into lost economic opportunity. A major theme of the 2017 federal budget was recognition that Canada needs to train or retrain workers at various stages of their careers in the skilled trades so that they can be part of today’s economy and the economy of the future. Here is a look at the 2017 budget, which outlines Canada’s response to the shortage of skilled laborers in our sector.
less. The Global Skills Strategy also introduces a new work permit exemption for temporary work terms. The short-term work permit exemption will apply for work terms of less than 30 days in a year and will be used for inter-company work exchanges and entrance for temporary expertise.
Crafting employment insurance to spark growth
Proposed changes to existing employment insurance (EI) policies were made by the 2017 budget to address certain shortcomings. For example, unemployed workers currently receiving EI benefits lose their eligibility for those benefits if they return to school or undertake training for a new job. The 2017 budget changes
Investing in the future
The 2017 budget takes a multifaceted approach to equipping the unemployed, underemployed, and historically underrepresented populations by creating incentives and removing roadblocks to well-paying jobs. The budget recognizes that the fate of the middle class depends on fostering a skilled workforce that can evolve to meet the challenges of tomorrow’s workplace. Canada currently spends roughly $3 billion annually through Labour Market Transfer Agreements designed to administer skills training and employment support to provinces and territories. The 2017 budget proposes an increase to this amount by $2.7 billion over six years, to expand these agreements and help more Canadians access training and employment assistance.
Canada’s aging population
Canada’s 2017 federal budget sets the foundation for a culture of lifetime learning that will equip aging Canadians with the skills they need to be competitive in our ever-evolving industry. Canada’s population now has more people age 65 and over than there are people under the age of 15. The budget calls for the country to tap into the wisdom and experience of these seniors by better supporting their participation in the workforce. The government intends to expand eligibility for Canada Student Grants for students attending school part-time to encourage adult workers to upgrade their skills.
Shaping the workforce to reflect Canada’s diverse population
In addressing Canada’s shortage of skilled workers, the government is turning to historically underrepresented populations to fill the demand for talent. The indigenous people of Canada will see a $50 million increase in the Aboriginal Skills and Employment Training Strategy (ASETS) and will be able to access the Canada Student Loans Program without Canadian citizenship. Canada’s women struggling to balance work and family life will find some relief in the 2017 budget, as federally regulated employees will gain the right to request flexible work arrangements, including flexible start and finish times and the ability to work from home. To attract international talent, the 2017 budget dedicates $279.8 million over five years to support the implementation of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program. Under the Global Skills Strategy, visas and work permits will be processed in two weeks or
this policy and provides $132 million over four years to allow unemployed Canadians to pursue self-funded training while receiving EI benefits. Additional EI modifications include the distribution of EI benefits to those caring for seriously ill family members, allowing women to claim EI maternity benefits up to 12 weeks before their due date, and making EI parental benefits more flexible. AED supports the Canadian government’s enhancement of training opportunities to aid Canadian businesses. It is our responsibility to make sure such social programs and funding reach the heavy equipment industry. You can count on CED Magazine to cover the skilled laborer shortage and the innovative solutions being offered to remedy this problem. April 2018 | Construction Equipment Distribution | www.cedmag.com | 21
2018 OTTAWA BRIEFING RECAP
Members of Parliament Join AED Members for the Most Successful Ottawa Briefing To Date! By Raphael Brass n February 28 and March 1, Associated Equipment Distributors (AED) members from across Canada joined AED’s executive team for the most successful briefings in Canada to date. A reception on Parliament Hill sponsored by the Association of Equipment Manufacturers was followed by a full day of informative panel discussions on issues affecting the dayto-day operations of our equipment distributors. There is no doubt that the momentum from our sustained government engagement is paying off, and this visit cemented that fact. This year’s reception was attended by the largest number of Members of Parliament ever to join us. We are proud that our engagement transcends partisan lines, as evidenced by the crosssection of Liberal and Conservative MPs stopping in to chat with AED members. We were especially pleased to hear from Marc Miller, the Parliamentary Secretary (Junior Minister) to the Minister of Infrastructure and Communities, who spoke on the continued investment the federal government is making in infrastructure spending. Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Transport Karen McCrimmon joined us as well and learned about concerns facing our industry. The next day kicked off with AED President and CEO Brian P. McGuire and Bluesky Strategy Group’s Senior Vice President Stuart
O
22 | www.cedmag.com | Construction Equipment Distribution | April 2018
McCarthy updating members on the state of affairs regarding AED’s key areas of focus in Canada. This included our successful advocacy for changes to electronic logging device regulations, which will see greater harmonization with American standards. Members also learned about other advocacy efforts AED is making in Canada, including meetings held on the previous day with senior officials from the prime minister’s office and the departments of Innovation, Science and Economic Development, Natural Resources, Global Affairs, Finance, Employment and Social Development, and Transport Canada. (These will be detailed in a separate Canadian Legislative Update.)We then launched four panels, taking a deeper dive into concerns raised by our Canadian members. The first panel featured two representatives from Transport Canada who went into detail on the status of the trucking regulations. Canadian Trucking Alliance’s Geoffrey Wood and Barrie Kirk, cofounder and executive director of the Canadian Automated Vehicles Centre of Excellence, informed members about how they view the industry today and how it will evolve. Following that, we had a fascinating conversation on the state of infrastructure spending in Canada. Although the discussion was positive, including Ontario Road Builders Association’s COO David Caplan emphasizing that Canada has among the highest completion rates of approved infrastructure projects, the panel
came days after Budget 2018 showed that over $4 billion of pledged infrastructure spending has lapsed. Infrastructure Canada’s Director General Tushara Williams explained the delay in funding and reiterated the government’s commitment that all the lapsed funding will be spent. At lunch, Senator Dennis Dawson’s lighthearted speech regarding the state of the transportation sector and its future entertained our attendees. Following that, the workforce development panel confronted us with the fact that the industry will be facing 24,000 vacant positions, largely technicians, within a few years. Representatives from Centennial and Conestoga colleges spoke of the challenges they have in attracting and training new technicians and the steps they are taking to address this growing shortage. Bob Collins from BuildForce Canada expressed his concerns as well, but highlighted that the government is taking this issue seriously, investing heavily in skills-training initiatives, specifically to better
integrate Indigenous Canadians and women in the skilled trades. The last panel, on the state of international trade talks, was extremely timely, as President Trump had announced, just hours before, his intention to impose tariffs on steel and aluminum imports. Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs Andrew Leslie, Director General of Trade Negotiations David Usher, and President of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce Perrin Beatty shared their insights on the direction in which trade talks are progressing and how groups like AED can be effective in countering protectionist moves that will hurt our sector. This was the most successful Ottawa Briefing yet. From the humble roots of five distributors attending our first meeting, we have now reached the point where we need to find larger rooms to hold our receptions and briefings. We will keep you informed of all government engagement efforts, and we look forward to seeing you next year! April 2018 | Construction Equipment Distribution | www.cedmag.com | 23
Equipment Corporation of America:
100 YEARS
By Brian M. Fraley Fraley Construction Marketing Equipment Corporation of America (ECA), a prominent distributor of specialty foundation construction equipment, will celebrate 100 years as a third-generation family-owned business in March 2018. During that time, it has morphed from a small purveyor of World War I surplus equipment to a large international dealer for the most advanced foundation equipment in the world. The ECA story is one of weathering poor economic conditions, adapting 24 | www.cedmag.com | Construction Equipment Distribution | April 2018
to changing trends, acquiring the best in foundation equipment, treating customers with respect, and giving employees the freedom to excel within a flat organizational structure.
The Early Days
ECA was formed in 1918 through the consolidation of three Chicago-based companies that had come together to remanufacture post-World War I surplus equipment. They assembled a fleet of construction, material handling, and industrial equipment under the identity of Equipment Corporation of America.
Len Kern was hired as a secretary in the typing pool at the Pittsburgh location in 1921. As he climbed through the ranks, the firm increased its focus on pile-driving equipment. By 1959, Len had strategically bought out 54 shareholders since being hired and took control of operations, marking the start of ECA’s reign as a family-owned business. During Len’s tenure, ECA specialized in repairing and refurbishing used equipment and then renting and selling it. His son, Al, changed course. Al had studied civil engineering at the University of Pittsburgh and applied that knowledge to the construction and maintenance of cellular piers in Florida and Hawaii just after the Korean War. He came to ECA in 1962 and took the helm when Len died in 1965. Under his leadership, ECA built relationships with manufacturers and began distributing new equipment. Al also focused on customer service and expanding the firm’s locations. Al’s son Roy would take things to a new level, transforming ECA into a global distributor. Roy and his brother Dennis had gotten a taste of the equipment business working as mechanics’ helpers during high school. Although Roy at first asserted his independence by working as a financial analyst at Chicago’s Container Corporation of America, he returned to ECA in 1986 to sell equipment. Armed with an MBA, a bachelor of science in mechanical engineering, handson financial experience, and an outgoing personality, he was positioned to take ECA to the next level as CEO in 2000.
Empowering Employees in a Flat Organization
While ECA’s success has unfolded under the leadership of the Kern family, Roy defers the credit to his team. “I’m more of a consensus builder than a top-down leader,” he said. “They (employees) all have skill sets
Roy Kern, left, and Al Kern.
and talents, and it’s important to let that shine, prosper from it, and allow people to do their thing.” Roy’s father had a similar leadership style. ECA President Ben Dutton experienced this mindset when Al gave him the reins of the Philadelphia branch as a “29-year-old kid.” His counterparts in Pittsburgh and Washington, D.C., Bill Rose and Pete Schell, were afforded the same level of authority. Ben said, “I think that philosophy still exists. People come here and stay because they know they are respected at all levels, not just at the top management.” ECA’s branch managers to this day help shape personnel, organizational, and marketing decisions. A common theme among the ECA team is a recognition and appreciation that the foundation construction business allows them to be part of something bigger. Roy ticks off a seemingly never-ending list of projects for which ECA supplied foundation equipment: World Trade Center, Vietnam Memorial, Jefferson Memorial, Hoover Dam, Washington Metro System, the Big Dig, Toronto subway system, and nearly every stadium east of the Mississippi. He said, “We’ve been all over the place, and it’s very gratifying to look at that finished
product and realize that we provided the equipment.” ECA goes well beyond the standard safety committee meeting to keep its people safe. “Safety has always been really important to us,” Roy explained, “but we doubled our efforts in recent years and hired a safety consultant. We put our money where our mouth is.” The safety consultant conducted an indepth assessment of ECA’s nine facilities. The results were turned into a comprehensive safety plan and a manual for all employees. ECA’s investment in safety has not gone unnoticed. The firm earned the coveted BAUER Manufacturing Regional Service Center Certification and Sales Partner of the Year Awards in 2017. The latter was presented as a token of appreciation for outstanding sales performance and in recognition of the enduring partnership between ECA and BAUER. Also in 2017, both ECA and ECA Canada were recognized with the prestigious ADSC-IAFD Safety Award.
Evolving into a Global Drilling Equipment Leader
“What has helped the company over the last 100 years is our ability to evolve,” said
April 2018 | Construction Equipment Distribution | www.cedmag.com | 25
Roy. ECA spent the first part of the century providing and rebuilding World War I surplus equipment such as boilers, steam locomotives, steam hammers, hoists and derricks. As electric and diesel supplanted steam, ECA shifted its equipment lines to stay current. ECA earned a reputation for strategic expansion by opening new locations in the Eastern U.S. and Canada and by partnering with leading manufacturers of foundation equipment around the world. Its lineup reads like a Who’s Who in global foundation equipment: BAUER Maschinen, KLEMM Bohrtechnik, Gilbert Products, ALLU, BAUER-Pileco, Betek, HPSI, Dawson, MAT, WORD International, Berminghammer and Prakla. The firm has amassed nine locations including Pittsburgh; Philadelphia; Washington, D.C.; New York / New Jersey; Boston, Massachusetts; Greensboro, North Carolina; Milwaukee, Wisconsin; Jacksonville, Florida; and Toronto. This diversification has, in part, helped ECA to thrive by allowing the shuttling of equipment between locations to meet changing regional market demands. ECA expects all employees to stay on top of industry trends. “One of the things we look for in our employees, especially outside salespeople, is to keep a pulse on the industry and keep management informed,” Kern said. “That’s actually written into their job descriptions.” ECA’s drilling equipment specialty was born under Al Kern. “I give my dad credit for getting us involved in the drilling industry in the 1980s before it was popular,” Roy said. “He got a head start, especially with smalldiameter drilling.” Roy tapped then-Vice President of Sales and Marketing Ben Dutton prior to 2000 to discuss a deeper move into the international drilling market, and the two spearheaded a strategy. Ben summarized: “The first thing was to change the vision and the second thing was to really get out and build our identity in the new industry we were going to develop. We then filled it with key products and strong manufacturers.” Roy then faced a trial-by-fire scenario after becoming CEO in 2000. Air pile hammer demand in the Northeast U.S. dried up unexpectedly and ECA was stuck with over 200 pieces of obsolete rental equipment. The trend had shifted rapidly toward diesel and hydraulic hammers and drilling. ECA took a hit, but managed to step up investment in drilling equipment and sell off its air
ECA Canada received a safety award from ADSCIAFD in 2016 for Achieving a Total Incidence Rate of Zero. Pictured at the Safety Awards Breakfast in Montreal are: (from left): Mike Moore, ADSC-IAFD CEO; Lance Kitchens, ADSC-IAFD President; Roy Kern, ECA CEO; and Greg Lewis, Moretrench Corporate Safety Director.
hammers over time. Roy and his team recognized that the highest quality foundation equipment was being manufactured in Europe. Today ECA carries foundation equipment from several BAUER Group subsidiaries, including KLEMM Bohrtechnik, RTG, BAUER-Pileco, MAT, and Prakla. That relationship started with a five-million-dollar check written by Roy to Professor Thomas Bauer in 2004. It was a fun memory for him and a pivotal moment for ECA as a firm. ECA’s annual trips to Germany during Oktoberfest have become coveted among the firm’s loyal customers. Each year, it funds and organizes the trip, which includes BAUER and KLEMM factory tours, jobsite visits, and an authentic Oktoberfest experience in Munich for up to 20 customers. The ECA team relishes the camaraderie with customers and enjoys giving them a frontrow seat to watch its manufacturers in action.
Crawling North into Canada
ECA was on the leading edge of the Canadian expansion by acquiring Special Construction Machines of Toronto, Ontario, in 1999. The firm immediately sold several large-diameter drilling rigs, but really got traction in 2004 when picking up the BAUER line. ECA retained Special’s 16-year veteran Ray Kemppainen and named him branch manager, a position he holds to this day.
26 | www.cedmag.com | Construction Equipment Distribution | April 2018
ECA knew Canadian soils were often noncohesive and required cased holes. “BAUER manufactures a product that revolutionized the use of segmental casing and that’s how we picked up the huge market share we have in Eastern Canada,” Roy said. “It was a natural fit to bring this technology to the Canadian market and the timing was perfect.” ECA Canada covers a huge territory, distributing some product lines only in Eastern Canada and others across the entire country. Its most popular products are BAUER BG drilling rigs and accessories, BAUER tooling and casings, KLEMM anchor drill rigs and accessories, KLEMM
tooling and casings, HSPI vibratory pile drivers, and Dawson excavator-mounted vibratory pile drivers and ground release shackles. Population surges fueling demand for high-rise condominiums have recently turned Toronto and Quebec into hotbeds of activity for ECA’s BAUER BG drilling rigs. ECA deepened its commitment to the Canadian market in 2012 by building a new facility stocked with its full line of equipment to house 16 employees and more than $4 million in parts. It has supplied many highprofile projects, the most recent of which is the Eglinton Crosstown Light Rail Transit (LRT) project in Midtown Toronto, where Deep Foundations Contractors is running several BAUER and KLEMM drilling rigs. Other projects of note have included Toronto-York Spadina Subway Extension, Toronto Subway Expansion, Muskrat Falls Hydroelectric Dam, Burgoyne Bridge Replacement, and Montreal’s Champlain Bridge Replacement. ECA plans to maintain a steadfast commitment to Canada. The only expected change will be to eventually increase its presence in Quebec.
Selling with Integrity and Giving Back to the Industry
When asked about the three keys to ECA’s success, Roy has three words: 1) people, 2) integrity, and 3) service. His fondest memories involve good times and friendships with customers and employees. ECA has an assertive sales team of 26 employees constantly on the move pursuing new business, but they’re known by customers for taking a subtle, helpful approach to selling equipment. ECA views customers as partners. Ben explained, “Our approach isn’t to make money on the sale. It’s to help our customers make money.” Roy added that ECA sells high-end products to a very specific customer. “We deal with more sophisticated buyers who understand the advantages of quality,” he explained. “You have to believe in the quality that’s there, and we’ve proven that time and again, so most of our sales are repeat business.” This philosophy carries over to how ECA services equipment. Roy said, “We’ve always had a policy: we fix equipment first and then
we worry about the money. In other words, we focus on getting the customer up and running regardless of who is responsible for the machinery being down.” Staying current with evolving technologies on the market’s most sophisticated foundation equipment is ECA’s biggest challenge. It requires highly competent employees, close manufacturer relationships, and ongoing training. ECA’s in-house trainers in the areas of drilling, pile driving, and small-diameter drilling are coached by its manufacturers. They, in turn, conduct training for fellow employees and customers. At a time when many trade associations lament over declining participation, ECA has multiple employees giving back to the industry. You can find them serving in virtually every capacity in associations such as the ADSC-IAFD, Deep Foundations Institute, Pile Driving Contractors Association, and Associated Equipment Distributors. “One of our values,” Roy explained, “is to promote and enhance the industry, and we work hard at doing that. Our main avenues are providing customer feedback to our manufacturers to keep them at the cutting
edge of technology, and also being active members in the trade organizations that affect our industry.”
The Future of ECA
Kern is not so bold as to make predictions about ECA’s future, but he has a pragmatic understanding of why the firm is rocketing past the 100-year mark. ECA has evolved into a large and complex enterprise over the past century, but Roy has not lost sight of its greatest achievements: long-term employees, relationships with customers and manufacturers, and the ability to adapt and survive. He also recognizes the importance of succession planning, from the corporate office to the branches. As he thinks back to 1921 when his grandfather worked in ECA’s typing pool, Roy believes Len would be enamored by the quality and quantity of his employees, business savvy, technical advances, and financial position. “I would hope that the company continues to take care of its customers and employees and to adapt in any way it needs to,” he said. “I’d like to believe we would be at the cutting edge of technology and remain very serviceand customer-oriented.” Based on the past 100 years of ECA’s history, the odds are high that he will be right.
April 2018 | Construction Equipment Distribution | www.cedmag.com | 27
THE AED FOUNDATION
CERTIFIED TECHNICIAN PROGRAM NOT ALL TECHNICIANS ARE CREATED EQUAL
“
For dealers, the certification program provides an objective measure of technicians’ qualifications – that’s something that’s marketable to customers and it can help raise the technical bar at dealerships.
“
- Jim McCann
AED Foundation Technician Certification is the first of its kind for the construction equipment industry. The program offers dealers the opportunity to measure the expertise of their technicians, as well as market that expertise to their customers. Well-qualified and committed technicians add tremendous value to their dealerships contributing to both profitability and customer satisfaction.
Certification is a vehicle to identify and recognize qualifying technicians as the critically important segment of the dealer workforce they are. To qualify for AED Foundation Technician Certification, applicants must pass a technical assessment that evaluates diesel-equipment core technology and is fully aligned with The AED Foundation’s national technical standards.
BENEFITS
Benchmark
Improve
Reward & Retention
Save Time & Money
Compare your results with broader industry results.
Focus on technicians’ continuous improvement.
Demonstrate that you value technicians’ significant contribution toward dealer success.
Avoid hiring a technician that doesn’t have the technical knowledge to meet customer needs.
Ask an AED Foundation Representative how to get your technicians enrolled in the Certified Technician Program today, 800-388-0650. CertifiedTechProgram_Dealerships_v3.indd 1 Ad_template.indd 2
3/27/2018 9:40:36 AM 3/27/2018 12:53:37 PM
CertifiedTechProgram_Dealerships_v3.indd Ad_template.indd 2 2
3/21/2018 3/15/20189:25:37 11:19:17 AMAM
S AT I S FA C T I O N
CUSTOMER
THE DEALER PATHWAY TO
Recruit qualified technicians from The AED Foundation Accredited colleges
Hire Qualified Technicians
Differentiate your dealership from others in your market
Grow Your Market Share
Identify areas where additional technical education is needed using AED Foundation Technical Assessments
Continuous Technical Education
Use AED Foundation Technical Assessment and Technician Certification as tools to plan for greater service department efficiency, profitability and customer satisfaction
Satisfied Customer Repeat Business
Demonstrate and market your technicians’ expertise to customers with The AED Foundation Certified Technician Program
Fast Efficient Repairs & Increased Revenue & Profitability
Recruit qualified technicians from The AED Foundation Accredited college
Hire Qualified Technicians
HUMAN RESOURCES
5 Tips to Help You
Reach, Train and Retain the Next Generation of
Construction Equipment Technicians By William Gaskill The skills gap facing the heavy equipment distribution industry has the potential to affect sectors such as construction, resource extraction, and a range of others. In fact, according to The AED Foundation, the industry is currently facing a $2.4 billion loss in revenue owing to this skills gap. A 2015 report commissioned by AED noted that this gap, between the skills that job seekers have and those that companies are looking for, can hinder the ability of a business to hire new talent, to grow, and to meet existing client demands. There are several issues contributing to the skills gap: the retirement of baby boomers, social perceptions regarding employment in manufacturing, a misalignment between education systems and projected needs in the future labor market, and a stagnation of wages in the equipment industry. In addition to all of the above, employers also face retention issues with the skilled workforce they currently have. If you would like more information about the skills gap facing the heavy equipment industry, you can find it on The AED Foundation’s website. Addressing this skills gap is important, not just to the overarching industry, but to the small and medium-sized businesses that are propelled by the technical expertise of their crews. Participation with and outreach to institutions regarding closing this gap can support the industry and can help your business to identify and recruit young and emerging talent. However, beyond recruitment, the training and retention policies of your business can go a long way in supporting a sustainable and highly competent workforce. Here are five tips that proactive businesses in the heavy equipment distribution industry can use to reach, train, and retain the next generation of construction equipment technicians:
to the needs of your business, if they see you as a potential employer of their student body. Create a pipeline between your business and the local education scene!
1. Partner with local secondary and postsecondary institutions
Veteran employees may consider leaving your company or the wider industry for a variety of reasons, never considering there could be a solution right in front of them. Consider creative options such as flexible schedules and opportunities for uptraining on an individual basis. These are the kinds of value-added policies that can convince skilled and talented employees to stay with your company for the long haul.
Many students are hungry for real-world experience and are looking for opportunities to bridge their education to the workforce. Schools are aware of this and are often willing to work with you on such things as co-op programs and work placements – even extending or modifying their curriculum to be more tailored 30 | www.cedmag.com | Construction Equipment Distribution | April 2018
2. Reach out
Perhaps you don’t have enough people or organization to form an association; maybe the enthusiasm for a full partnership isn’t quite there. But you still have you! Sign up to speak about your job at a local elementary or high school. This will help raise awareness about the heavy equipment industry, the benefits of the technician profession, and the types of careers available to young people – careers they may not yet know about. If a student, or a group of students, shows interest or aptitude, invite them on a tour of your business. This could translate into a trained technician down the line.
3. Support the growth of new hires
Once you have a new hire, discuss your support of their career track. Be a practical sounding board, and find opportunities for uptraining and special projects to expand the skill set and competencies of your workforce.
4. Have competitive retention policies
Competitive wages are certainly a cornerstone of any corporate retention policy. However, benefits packages, including health coverage, can be major incentives. More tailored or unique benefits such as allowances for tools, reimbursement for training, or microscholarships can support not only your workers, but also your business, via new and upgraded skills.
5. Tailor your employment policies
HUMAN RESOURCES Ways to
Recruit
Despite the Workforce
Crisis
The country is currently facing a workforce crisis that costs us $2.4 billion per year in lost revenue for not having properly trained workers to employ. Qualified employees are especially important in the construction equipment industry, due to the strict training and safety standards required to operate safely and efficiently. In a 2015 report from the College of William & Mary, researchers found that 67 percent of manufacturer executives reported that their employees lack proper training and that businesses miss out on 9 percent of potential revenue due to the lack of a qualified labor force. When there aren’t enough trained workers to go around, companies lack the resources to expand their business and ultimately lose out on revenue. But just because there are fewer skilled workers doesn’t mean you can’t expand your business. There are effective ways to attract new employees and build your workforce to ensure you succeed despite the shortage of skilled labor, and finding those employees doesn’t involve the traditional hiring process of posting on the company website and distributing fliers around town. Before starting your search for the ideal candidate, you have to determine whether you’re willing to put in the work to train an individual or if you want a more experienced worker. Either one is fine, but
you have to be realistic in your expectations. Experienced workers won’t require as much training, but they will expect a higher salary and be harder to come by, while a less experienced worker will be more of a blank slate and require training.
candidates. People spend hours a week on social media. Posting weekly updates about company news and job openings will keep the public aware and interested in your brand, and in turn, attract the ideal skilled worker.
Industry-specific job boards
Trade schools
Modern methods of job recruitment are a double-edged sword – on one hand, online applications allow for a greater number of applicants to find your job opening and apply for your position. But on the other hand, the pool of candidates is so vast it can be hard for you to narrow your search to those with a very specific skill set, like the requirement to have training in certain equipment. Fortunately, job boards can categorize into specific industries, like the Construction Job Board Network, which caters to specific skill sets.
Social media
Social media isn’t just for keeping up with friends and family anymore. Facebook, Instagram and Twitter are ideal places to advertise your brand and recruit potential
Trade schools and associations are great places to recruit fresh new workers that are blank slates, and for employers to introduce their companies. Although students don’t have the most experience, there are programs that give them the chance to intern for companies and learn the ropes firsthand; for instance, Associated Builders and Contractors of Alabama, who has partnered with the state to create the Academy of Craft Training. The program has been hailed as an example of the public and private sectors working together to combat the workforce crisis, with programs in masonry, building construction, electrical, welding and plumbing. As long as you don’t mind investing a bit of training into fresh workers, trade schools are an ideal recruitment resource.
April 2018 | Construction Equipment Distribution | www.cedmag.com | 31
HUMAN RESOURCES
Building a
Diverse Workforce: The Challenges and Rewards
By Joseph Kay Workplace diversity is an evergreen topic, but as the workplace continues to evolve, conversations and action will become even more important – not just to your organization, but to the equipment distribution industry overall. It’s a complex and ever-evolving challenge. There is no shortage of focus groups, interest groups, development opportunities, and research articles. With so much noise, it can be difficult to know where to start. A truly vibrant and healthy workforce, though, is more than worth the trouble. The first distinction is that a “diverse workforce” might be an achievable state, but “workplace diversity” is an ongoing cultural process. It’s tempting to think of ratios. Instead, think about practices, habits, and goals. For instance, a company might commit to a diversity initiative, but a little difficulty at any stage might tempt them to revert to comfortable habits. Imagine that an employee has to leave with little warning, and their position is vital and urgent. Leadership and associates may want to fill that position quickly, but doing so in the most familiar way will produce familiar results. Resist the temptation to postpone intentional changes for a “better time” down the line – in a fast-paced, global industry, the less-urgent time may never come. Luke Lonergan, owner and CEO at New York’s Empire Crane Company, explains how his company recruits and retains. “We find individuals by word-of-mouth, social media, and online recruiting sites such as Indeed or LinkedIn,” he says. “For retention, we offer employee benefits such as 401(k), paid holidays, et cetera.” 32 | www.cedmag.com | Construction Equipment Distribution | April 2018
Indeed, referrals are a popular and effective tool across the industry. For an organization to transform its workforce toward the future, though, it may be necessary to go outside the usual channels. That means building new relationships with the places that can connect employers to talent. Local institutions like libraries, churches, and advocacy nonprofits can be great places to start. Employers don’t need to wait for openings to start making connections in the community – proactiveness is part of the growing, ongoing practice. Culture is to an organization what lifestyle is to an individual. A person who has made meaningful, lasting change in their life – diet and exercise, for example, or quitting an addictive vice – can testify that temptations to relapse are everywhere. Those are the moments that truly challenge resolve. But habits are made, so they can be remade. And a focused organization can make diversity a habit and not merely a buzzword. Yami Gonzalez, veteran recruiter at California’s Sonsray, suggests that recruiters and managers build their workforces around the cultural elements that make their teams successful. “To us, what’s really big is personality. If you have the right personality – outgoing, excellent service, above-and-beyond – we’re willing to train,” she says. This approach produces a vibrant workplace culture with strong retention and not-infrequent rehires.
HUMAN RESOURCES
“To us, what’s really big is personality. If you have the right personality – outgoing, excellent service, above-andbeyond – we’re willing to train.”
— Yami Gonzalez Recruiter at Sonsray
In this industry, though, there are specific obstacles to a richly representative workforce across the organization. “The challenge is finding good experienced technicians,” says Gonzalez. “There’s so much demand. The business has increased, so we can’t afford to have too many green mechanics, but those are going to be the future technicians.” Lonergan adds, “One of the major obstacles is that it’s mostly men coming from the trade schools.” Toward that end, organizations like Chicago Women in Trades and the National Association of Women in Construction build connections and offer sponsorship opportunities. A proactive approach is key, though – the right candidates won’t always find you, especially when competition for that talent is intense.
In the course of researching this story, I heard most frequently that companies aren’t holding targeted, institutional conversations regarding diversity. Instead, they’re relying on an intuitive principle: hire the best people for the job. It’s a noble sentiment, but it’s also the legal minimum. These conversations might be difficult, but the consequences for intentional blindness might be worse: legal action, labor action, or, most inevitable, most insidious of all, the simple failure to attract and retain the best talent. Diverse perspectives are already driving innovation; going forward, the most successful companies will be the ones with the most complete workforces. April 2018 | Construction Equipment Distribution | www.cedmag.com | 33
HUMAN RESOURCES
1 in 5 Highly Engaged Employees Is at
Risk of Burnout By Emma Seppala and Julia Moeller © 2018 Harvard Business School Publishing Corp. Figuring out how to increase employee engagement has been a burning question for companies and consultants across the board. The many positive outcomes of engagement include greater productivity and quality of work, increased safety and employee retention. But while having an engaged workforce certainly has its benefits, most of us will have noticed that, when we are highly engaged in working toward a goal we can also experience something less than positive: high levels of stress. Here’s where things get more nuanced and complicated. A recent study conducted by the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence in collaboration with the Faas Foundation has cast doubts on the idea of engagement as a purely beneficial experience. This survey examined the levels of engagement and burnout in over 1,000 U.S. employees. For some of the people we examined, engagement was indeed a purely positive experience; 2 out of 5 employees in our survey reported high engagement and low burnout. We’ll call these the optimally engaged group. However, the data also showed that 1 out of 5 employees reported both high engagement and high burnout. We’ll call this group the engaged-exhausted group. While engaged-exhausted workers showed desirable behaviors such as high skill acquisition, they also reported the highest turnover intentions in our sample — even higher than the
unengaged group. That means that companies may be at risk of losing some of their most motivated and hardworking employees not for a lack of engagement, but because of their simultaneous experiences of high stress and burnout symptoms. To avoid that, we really need to start taking a more nuanced approach and ask how to promote engagement while avoiding burning out employees in the process. It is crucial to provide employees with the resources they need to do their job well, feel good about their work and recover from stressors experienced through work. Human resources should work with managers to monitor the level of demands they’re placing on people, as well as the balance between demands and resources. The higher the work demands, the higher employees’ need for support, acknowledgement or opportunities for recovery. Managers and HR can help employees by dialing down the demands they’re placing on people — ensuring that employee goals are realistic and rebalancing the workloads of employees who have been saddled with too much. They can also try to increase the resources available to employees; this includes not only material resources such as time and money, but intangible resources such as empathy and friendship in the workplace. The data is clear: Engagement is key, and it’s what we should strive for as leaders and employees. But what we want is smart engagement — the kind that leads to enthusiasm, motivation and productivity, without the burnout.
EMMA SEPPALA is the science director of Stanford University’s Center for Compassion and Altruism Research and Education. JULIA MOELLER is an assistant professor at the University of Leipzig and consultant for the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence. 34 | www.cedmag.com | Construction Equipment Distribution | April 2018
HUMAN RESOURCES
The
Art
of Strategy is About Knowing When to Say By Brian Halligan © 2018 Harvard Business School Publishing Corp. When HubSpot, the company I co-founded, was in its earliest stages, I used to say yes to almost anything: new features, new initiatives, new ideas. It empowered my team to move fast and get things done. I prided myself on being a “yes” man. I said “yes” to a highly fun and creative video series. I said “yes” to a HubSpot All Star Leaderboard that measured customer engagement with our product. By the time we’d grown to a couple hundred employees, however, all that dissipated energy had begun to yield diminishing returns. To put balance into my yes-no diet, I adopted three practices:
Let your ‘no’ mean ‘no’
Put it in writing
The other parts of that MSPOT are for what constituents we will Serve, and what Plays we will do — with conviction, and no looking back. In startup mode, we could make decisions quickly, and it didn’t necessarily matter if it was the right decision. We could examine the results, and if we didn’t see early promise, we were agile enough to adjust, change course or, if necessary, cut our losses and kill it. That entrepreneurial mindset and willingness to say “yes” was instrumental in finding product-market fit. However, in scaleup mode, the virtue of keeping our options open, and changing gears based on new information, is disruptive and expensive. Over the past few years HubSpot has grown from a startup to a scale-up. The discipline of saying “no” has paid big dividends for us.
The single best tool I have found to help unlearn the yes-man ways of a startup CEO is a single-page document we call our MSPOT. With it, we articulate our Mission, the constituencies we Serve, the Plays we’re going to run this year, the plays we are going to Omit and how we will Track our progress. The most painful portion of that document are the Omissions. Painful, because they are usually excellent ideas with high potential — but necessarily omitted because we are better off doing a few things very well. One of the most agonizing Omissions I had to make, for example, was deferring the opening of our first international office by a year.
We’re a reasonably flat organization, and we give the floor to all sorts of competing opinions. Usually, we’re pretty good at coming to a conclusion, and everyone involved heads off to act on it. Sometimes, though, ardent advocates on the short end of the decision would return to me and renew their case, perhaps with additional data or a more effective spokesperson. And, too often, in the absence of the full team, I’d see the sense in their augmented argument, and give them half a green light as well. Inevitably, that led to a reconvening of all parties, which frequently enough would lead to uninspired compromises.
And let your ‘yes’ mean ‘yes!’
BRIAN HALLIGAN is the co-founder and CEO of HubSpot, a marketing and sales software company. April 2018 | Construction Equipment Distribution | www.cedmag.com | 35
HUMAN RESOURCES
How to Build
Trust with Colleagues You Rarely See
By Tsedal Neeley © 2018 Harvard Business School Publishing Corp. Face-to-face meetings, office parties and opportunities to socialize together after working hours can all contribute to the feeling that your fellow employees will be reliable in what they say and do: You believe they are trustworthy because you’ve developed this feeling over time. But how do you trust a co-worker you barely see in person, especially when you work in a global team? There are two types of trust that are useful to understand for people who work in global organizations: Swift Trust: Swift trust is the notion that co-workers can learn to trust one another from their very first interaction. People decide to trust one another immediately until proven otherwise — often because they have no other choice. Swift trust can be crucial for global teams, whose members are likely to originate from diverse cultures and countries. It can develop early when managers endorse virtual team members during introductions by highlighting relevant or important experiences, or when team leaders explicitly set rules requiring frequent communication. Passable Trust: Passable trust is a category that my colleague Paul Leonardi and I identified by looking at how employees behave online, especially on social media at work. For example, we might develop passable trust in a colleague when we examine his interactions on social media and deduce that he is helpful, polite and trustworthy. In contrast to swift trust, which is quickly established and may just as quickly evaporate when the job is done, passable trust can exist as
a permanent state without anyone expecting that it must deepen or develop. For global teams who communicate largely via electronic technology, passable trust is especially useful. Both types of trust have their limits, however. For global teams, factors like cultural stereotypes can complicate the process of building trust with co-workers. To counter those tendencies, two additional means for building trust are especially relevant for global teams: Direct Knowledge: Direct knowledge is defined as learning about the personal characteristics and behavioral norms of distant colleagues. Learning that your teammate in France prefers to work uninterrupted when under pressure is an example of direct knowledge. One way to uncover this information is by allowing for unstructured structured time at the beginning or end of conference calls to encourage casual conversation. Reflected Knowledge: Less obvious, but equally important for building trust among global teams is reflected knowledge, which is achieved by seeing one’s own norms and behaviors through the lens of distant collaborators. This can be achieved by encouraging your employees to travel to a different site of your company for a period of time. Trust is paramount for global teams, but it’s something you can’t force on people. Understanding how different types of trust and knowledge can serve as the essential glue for global teams is of essence: It will improve teamwork and morale, while delivering better results for organizations.
TSEDAL NEELEY is an associate professor in the organizational behavior unit at the Harvard Business School. 36 | www.cedmag.com | Construction Equipment Distribution | April 2018
HUMAN RESOURCES
How and Where Diversity Drives
Financial Performance By Rocio Lorenzo and Martin Reeves © 2018 Harvard Business School Publishing Corp. Diversity is both an issue of fairness and, some say, a driver of innovation and performance. To assess the latter claim, we undertook a large, cross-country study into the relationship between multiple aspects of managerial diversity, the presence of enabling conditions such as leadership support for diversity and innovation outcomes. We surveyed more than 1,700 companies across eight countries (the U.S., France, Germany, China, Brazil, India, Switzerland and Austria) and a variety of industries and company sizes, examining diversity in management positions, measured with respect to gender, age, national origin, career path, industry background and education. We found that indeed there was a statistically significant relationship between diversity and innovation outcomes in all countries examined. Furthermore, the more dimensions of diversity were represented, the stronger the relationship was. We also found that diversity had gained momentum as a topic in more than 70% of the enterprises surveyed, especially in developing economies. Most important, we found that the most diverse enterprises were also the most innovative. When we looked at the enabling conditions for diversity, including fair employment practices (such as equal pay), participative leadership, top management support for diversity and open communication practices, less than 40% of firms employed them. And not surprisingly, firms that had such practices in place had better diversity scores, and as a result better innovation performance. This strongly suggests that diversity represents a tangible missed opportunity and significant potential upside for most companies. In total, the presence of these enabling factors is worth up to 12.9% points of innovation revenue. Given the importance of globalization and technology as drivers of performance, we also looked at the impact of these two factors on the relationship between diversity and performance.
We found that the diversity impact was highest for companies that had a high emphasis on digital innovation, as measured by their digital investments as a proportion of operating expenses. We also discovered that the relationship between diversity and innovation was stronger for companies with significant operations and interests in multiple countries. Diversity has sometimes been critiqued as a culturally normative
concept. Our results show that diversity can drive innovation performance in countries as different as Germany and India, however. Moreover, they imply that it can so do in a variety of ways. The secret of making diversity work appears to be to apply the concept at multiple levels — to address diverse dimensions of diversity, and to be open to diverse routes to achieving success. Of course, the correlations we observed are not guarantees that human diversity will drive innovation. The power of diversity still needs to be unlocked with enabling practices, like a nonhostile work environment, an inclusive culture, and a culture where diverse ideas resulting from a diversity of backgrounds are free to compete.
ROCIO LORENZO is a partner in The Boston Consulting Group’s Munich office. Martin Reeves is a senior partner and managing director in the Boston Consulting Group’s New York office. April 2018 | Construction Equipment Distribution | www.cedmag.com | 37
HUMAN RESOURCES
4 Habits of People Who Are Always
Learning New Skills By Mike Kehoe © 2018 Harvard Business School Publishing Corp. Every year around this time there’s a burst of online learning sign-ups from workers seeking new skills. Unfortunately, the initial commitment all too often fizzles out. Studies have found that 40% to 80% of students drop out of online classes. Those who give up miss out. In one survey of more than 50,000 learners who completed massive open online courses on Coursera, 72% reported career benefits such as doing their current job more effectively, finding a new job or receiving a raise. Having worked in human resources, I’ve seen the effects of learning and development on career mobility — and what allows people to stay on track. In particular, four habits can make a tremendous difference:
similar learning goals — and make a pact to do online learning together weekly.
Implement learning immediately
Research shows that performing the tasks you’ve learned is crucial and that enactment enhances memory. Whatever field you’re studying, find opportunities to use your new skills. Depending on the skill, you might participate in a collaborative project at work,
Focus on emerging skills
To ensure relevance, you need to focus on learning the latest emerging skills. You could track what skills the leaders in your industry are hiring for, looking at recent job postings from the top companies, or reach out to people in your network who have the job you want. Ask them what they’re having to learn to keep succeeding at their work: Most of the time, people are happy to share information.
Get synchronous
Online learning tools have their benefits, including freedom, convenience and digestible content. But there’s also a downside. These asynchronous experiences are often solitary. And without at least some real-time interaction, many students lose motivation. In fact, interaction and collaboration are critical factors in fruitful learning. In my work, I’ve consistently seen that when online students sign up for a live course, in which they interact with a professor and one another at a set time at least once a week, they stick with it longer and learn more. The camaraderie can serve as a huge motivator, as can the desire not to fall behind the group. When a live course isn’t available, I encourage learners to find a “synchronous cohort” — a friend or acquaintance with MIKE KEHOE is a co-founder of BitTiger. 38 | www.cedmag.com | Construction Equipment Distribution | April 2018
for instance, or set up your own project on a small scale at home. Or you could find an online simulation that is similar to the real experience.
Set a golden benchmark
Just like runners in a marathon, online learners need to have a clear goal in order to stay focused. Those who persevere generally have their eye on a larger prize — a new job, a promotion or the chance to lead a project. Of course, that bench mark will change as you develop. Learning is a career-long process. After you achieve one big goal, set your sights on the next one.
HUMAN RESOURCES
Mentoring Women
Is Not About Trying to ‘Rescue’ Them By W. Brad Johnson and David G. Smith © 2018 Harvard Business School Publishing Corp. Male mentors and sponsors are essential for helping talented women get ahead. When women are mentored by men, they make more money, receive more promotions and report greater satisfaction with their career trajectories. Mentoring is particularly helpful to women for addressing the myriad barriers to career advancement. But in the wake of the #MeToo movement there are growing whispers among some men that it just isn’t safe to mentor women. We’ve also heard from some men who are having the opposite reaction, embracing mentoring as an opportunity to “save” women. Taking a save-the-day approach won’t work very well. The standard approach already positions the male mentor as a champion, hero and rescuer of women. In this model, the mentor shares wisdom, throws down challenges and, when necessary, protects his protégé from all malignant forces in the organization. As Jennifer de Vries has observed, painting male allies and mentors as heroic rescuers actually strengthens the gendered status quo, inadvertently reinforcing male positional power while framing women as ill-prepared for serious leadership roles. So what’s a decent guy to do? Happily, there is a promising alternative to the traditional, hierarchical, unidirectional mentoring model. We call it reciprocal mentoring. In her research on reciprocal mentorship, Belle Rose Ragins discovered that mentorships with the greatest impact are mutual. In these relationships, there is greater fluidity in expertise between members. Although mentors, by definition, have more experience in the profession, mentees bring their own insights, life experiences and talents to the table. High-impact reciprocal mentorships have some distinctive elements. Here are some:
Mutual listening and affirmation
In high-quality mentoring, men keep an open mind, maintain a learning orientation and recognize that expertise may shift depending on the specific phase of the mentorship. Generous listening, avoiding assumptions and patiently drawing out the other person’s authentic self and genuine aspirations are hallmarks of reciprocal mentorships.
Humility
Transformational mentors are humble. They recognize that their own vulnerability and imperfection serves as an empowering model, levels the playing field and opens the door to building their own empathy and wisdom.
Shared power
Acutely aware of privilege conferred by gender and race, men in reciprocal mentorships are deliberate about sharing social capital, including influence, information, knowledge and support with mentees.
An extended range of mentoring outcomes
Reciprocal mentorship partners are interested in helping one another find success beyond mere career advancement and compensation. Less tangible but equally salient mentoring conversations may center on concerns such as professional identity, work-family integration and personal confidence. Unless mentors target the workplace status quo, biases and stereotypes will continue to reinforce gender inequities. Promoting a mentoring culture where talented men and women engage in reciprocal developmental connections may finally create change agents and allies capable of truly moving the dial on gender inclusion.
W. BRAD JOHNSON is a professor of psychology at the United States Naval Academy and a faculty associate at Johns Hopkins University. DAVID G. SMITH is a professor of sociology at the United States Naval War College. April 2018 | Construction Equipment Distribution | www.cedmag.com | 39
Focus on Customers, Employees and Multi-Channel Solutions Helps
on Top By Megan Mattingly-Arthur Ritchie Bros., a Canadian-headquartered global asset management and disposition company, is the world’s largest heavy equipment auctioneer and end-to-end services provider, known for their live, unreserved public auctions hosted at more than 40 permanent auction sites and temporary locations worldwide. In 2017, Ritchie Bros. acquired online-only auction company IronPlanet, allowing them to offer customers even more options for buying, selling and listing equipment Ritchie Bros. CEO and Director of the Board Ravi Saligram said the acquisition is part of their effort to transform the company into a heavy equipment multi-channel solutions powerhouse. “The company’s future is really about multi-channels,” he said. “Since buying
IronPlanet, we’ve added weekly online auctions, so there are multiple auction models. With IronPlanet’s Marketplace E, there are even ‘Buy It Now’ and ‘Make an Offer’ options. It’s a very different format for us, so it’s very exciting.” Ritchie Bros.’ new IronPlanet online weekly auctions and Marketplace E formats also allow sellers to set a reserve price for their equipment and sell items without transporting them to a centralized location. Buyers can purchase items with the same confidence they would at any Ritchie Bros. live auction, thanks to IronPlanet’s world-class inspection service. Though it was already the largest seller of used equipment in the world, Ritchie Bros. was facing a bit of stagnation when Saligram, an executive with an impressive resume – and experience with turnarounds
40 | www.cedmag.com | Construction Equipment Distribution | April 2018
– was recruited to join the company in July 2014. Three and a half years later, business is booming. “Our team has done a great job of satisfying shareholders,” Saligram said. “Providing value to stakeholders is what allows you to provide shareholder value. As a public company CEO, you have several considerations: customers, employees and shareholders that make up a triangle of people you’re trying to represent. The job of a CEO is to harmonize things and make sure there’s balance and all are satisfied, driving shareholder and stakeholder value.” According to Saligram, employees play a big role in Ritchie Bros.’ success. “Seeing our employees develop, grow and flourish – as a CEO, that’s the greatest satisfaction. Our employees are the greatest assets in this company.”
Saligram isn’t wrong. After all, first-class customer service is part of what keeps Ritchie Bros. customers coming back again and again. “Why do customers prefer Ritchie Bros.? We’re in the business of connecting buyers and sellers, and we have probably the biggest connections for buyers and sellers around the world,” Saligram said. “We also leverage customer-friendly technology and, since I’ve joined the company, we’ve had an emphasis on data analytics. There’s our global reach and sales, but, ultimately, it’s our relationship with customers. They’re our anchor, and wanting to serve them is what makes us tick. We’re passionate about delighting our customers and building great relationships with them because we believe in the old saying, ‘Make a customer a friend and they’ll be a customer for life.’” Ritchie Bros. is a longtime AED member and sponsors the live auction at the annual AED Foundation Fundraising Gala that takes place at Summit. “Ritchie Bros. has been an AED member for at least 30 years and we’ve done the annual live fundraising auction for them for many years,” Saligram said. “We’re very proud of our association with AED. They’ve been a great vehicle for us and they provide great chances to network with customers.” When he’s not busy serving as Ritchie Bros. CEO and Director of the Board, Saligram enjoys spending time with his family and traveling. His next globe-trotting adventure will be a New Zealand wine tour for collectors of unique wines. “It’s important to be grounded and recharge your batteries,” he said. “I enjoy spending time with my wife and daughters. I also love music, traveling, and am an audiophile and videophile.” For more information on Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers, visit www.rbauction.com or connect with the company on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram and Google+.
“Seeing our employees develop, grow and flourish – as a CEO, that’s the greatest satisfaction. Our employees are the greatest assets in this company.” — Ravi Saligram CEO and Director of the Board
April 2018 | Construction Equipment Distribution | www.cedmag.com | 41
Ritchie Bros. Auction Tops List of Successes R
itchie Bros.’ Orlando auction, held February 19-24, became the most lucrative auction in the company’s 60 year history. Over the six days of the event, over 12,500 equipment items were sold, generating more than $278 million in sales. That represented a 24% jump over last year’s combined gross transactional value for Ritchie, which specializes in facilitating the purchase and sale of used heavy equipment and trucks, and IronPlanet, which was acquired by Ritchie Bros. in 2017. In a statement, Ritchie Bros. CEO Ravi Saligram called the auction “a monumental event for the used heavy equipment and transportation sectors,” adding that “we consider this to be a barometer of both end user demand as well as superb execution of our sales, marketing and operations team.” 42 | www.cedmag.com | Construction Equipment Distribution | April 2018
Jeff Jeter, Ritchie Bros.’ President of U.S. Sales, says the prices of most types of equipment sold during the auction were “strong.” The price per lot rose 11% versus the “combined Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers and IronPlanet Orlando auctions last February,” he reported. Online bidders bought more than $123 million of equipment at the auction, representing about 44% of the auction’s total gross transactional value. During the event, Ritchie Bros. allowed buyers and sellers to utilize a virtual consignment option. Under this system, sellers did not have to bring their items to the auction, and buyers were able to view pictures of the products that were not present at the site. Additionally, buyers were able to obtain information about those pieces of equipment online, and Ritchie Bros offered its IronClad Assurance guarantee on items that were not actually at the auction. The IronClad Assurance Policy states that one of Ritchie’s inspectors has examined the equipment, and that the equipment will conform to the pictures and descriptions outlined in the inspector’s report. “(Heavy equipment) contractors are busy and equipment supply is tight,” Jeter
explained, adding that Ritchie Bros expects those trends to persist going forward. In the wake of these supply/demand dynamics, Ritchie Bros. is “just not seeing as much quantity as we have seen in past years because OEM production is fighting to catch up with demand, due to the amount of work available for contractors,” Jeter reported. Ritchie Bros. is trying to boost its supply by having its sales team constantly calling on customers and by diversifying into different industries that are less supply
constrained, said Jeter. Despite the tight supply, Ritchie Bros. was able to sell more than 382,500 items last year, he noted, adding that the strong demand and tight supply is resulting in “strong” prices for “good quality used equipment.” Moreover, at the Orlando auction, the selection included 760+ excavators, 525 compactors, 470+ skid steers, 455+ truck tractors, 380+ loaders, 365+ boom & scissor lifts, 295+ dozers, 165+ articulated dump trucks, 155+ cranes, and 125+ loader backhoes, Jeter said.
April 2018 | Construction Equipment Distribution | www.cedmag.com | 43
LEADERS Are They
Born or Made?
44 | www.cedmag.com | Construction Equipment Distribution | April 2018
T
oday’s equipment manufacturers and dealers are facing tough customers, fierce competition, and complex organizational challenges that require not only dynamic leadership in every department, but also the development of emerging leaders who will be ready to take on these challenges in the future. How can you spot the individuals who will become dynamic leaders in your company? Where to Focus Start by focusing not on performance but on individuals with high leadership potential. The reason is simple: some people perform exceptionally well in their job role and are By Christine Corelli technically proficient, but still don’t have what it takes to be a great leader. Investing in this type of person must be avoided as it causes a loss of productivity, can dampen morale, and may even be a waste of money. A perfect example is when the best technician is given the job of service department manager, but the individual lacks the ability to manage people and influence a team. Then someone has to be the bad guy and remove them from the position and give it to someone else. The result is a top tech who is disgruntled and has a damaged ego, and a new service manager who is nervous. Then there is the individual who excels in their job role but has no desire to be a leader. They are content with being a follower. It’s important to select the right people – individuals with leadership potential and desire.
What to Look For
Who demonstrates initiative beyond their job position? Who proactively comes forth with ideas and potential solutions to problems and thus shows an interest in the company’s success? Who demonstrates accountability and takes responsibility for a positive result? Who has interpersonal skills and works well with others? Who seems to “make things happen” and does not wait to see what happens? Who bends over backwards to help customers and their team members? Who can you always count on no matter what? Who would make the same decisions you would when in charge? Who seems to have the ability to motivate and influence others? Who might evolve into a strategic leader? Who wants to obtain training in leadership and management skills or improve upon management skills? Who wants to take on more responsibility? Most important: Who can deliver clear, concise communication? Select individuals who are most likely to deliver results. As you go about your selection process, keep in mind that emerging leaders do not have to be young employees. Definitely look for millennial employees with leadership potential, but don’t forget the older employees or seasoned managers who are capable of taking on a bigger role. They are well-versed in your processes, procedures, structure, and culture. They may even know your customers. Equal opportunity and diversity should be considered. We are
now a multicultural, multiethnic society and workforce. Take this into consideration, and be sure to give female employees the opportunity as well. Women can bring unique qualities to their leadership roles. Women and individuals from different cultures can bring new perspectives to your company. Develop your own criteria for whom you might consider as an emerging leader. There are ten next steps but they are simple. 1. Bring your emerging leaders together. Invite them to learn from one another and explore new ways of doing business and methods to improve operations. Discuss ways to develop stronger management/employee relationships and provide the highest level of service to you, your customers and their team. Direct them to find ways everyone in the company can better support your sales team. 2. Don’t think the “one and done” leadership training program will cut it. Ongoing repetitious training is the mother of learning. Train them on competencies the most successful leaders have mastered to deliver results: ▶ Strategic thinking ▶ Effective decision-making ▶ Product support roles ▶ Managing and motivating ▶ Branch management ▶ Implementing change ▶ Accountability ▶ Culture transformation ▶ Customer service excellence ▶ Conflict management Provide training applicable to their day-to-day activities. Make sure they possess basic business acumen as well. 3. Send them to The AED Foundation leadership events. Bring them to the Summit. 4. Send female emerging leaders to a women’s leadership event or training program, or follow the lead of several equipment manufacturers that have implemented a women’s leadership development program in their companies. 5. Allow an emerging leader to sit in on executive meetings. 6. Involve their manager and HR in monitoring their progress. 7. Direct emerging leaders to share their challenges and help each other. 8. Assign them to come up with solutions to your most pressing problem. 9. Have them shadow an executive for a day, or a sales manager, parts manager, and/or salesperson. This way, they can understand your business and how it operates. 10. Have them sit in on your Monday morning meetings to talk about the week before – the hits, runs, and misses. If someone in your family is your emerging leader, be sure to have a succession plan, and take the ten steps with them as well. Ensure they are ready, willing, and able to take the lead, or your business can suffer. Most importantly, direct them to strive to develop strong relationships with your employees and your customers. Some say leaders are born, not made. I disagree. Make your leaders the best in the industry.
CHRISTINE CORELLI is a conference speaker, columnist, and author of five business books, including the best-selling Wake Up and Smell the Competition and Capture Your Competitors’ Customers and KEEP Them. Visit www.christinespeaks.com, or call 847-581-9968. April 2018 | Construction Equipment Distribution | www.cedmag.com | 45
Don’t Juggle It All: Make Room For New Goals By Clearing Out What’s Unnecessary, Outdated By Elizabeth Grace Saunders Harvard Business School Publishing Corp. emember your New Year’s resolutions? Are you still sticking to them? If the answer is “no,” most likely you fell into the trap that stops most individuals from accomplishing theirs: not consciously taking old activities out of their schedule to make room for the new. Pausing to consider what needs to be removed from your schedule takes time. But it makes all the difference between being busy and being effective. Here are a few strategies that can help you streamline your schedule: Question all of your work commitments: Start by reviewing your current projects and ask yourself a few questions: Does completing this project still make sense? Am I the correct person to work on this project? Would it be more realistic to move this project to a different quarter? Depending on your position, you may or may not have the ability to make unilateral decisions. But if you’ve taken the time to step back and consider the big picture, you at least have the opportunity to discuss the possibilities with your boss and your team. Reassess your work style: After assessing the “what,” turn your attention toward “how” you accomplish work. Reducing meetings can be a powerful force to create space for focused work. Question whether you need meetings for certain projects as well as their length and frequency. On the other hand, if you find yourself interrupted throughout the day by drive-by questions, consider setting office hours or standing one-on-one sessions during which you make yourself intentionally available. Then define other times during which you shut your door. This lessens the time you spend dealing with interruptions and transitioning back to the task at hand. Finally, consider decreasing the amount of time spent on email, social media, or other communication channels: It can dramatically increase the amount of time you have to get work done as well as the speed at which you can complete it. Add new goals strategically: Once you intentionally create space, you can strategically add in the activities that you want in your life. Sometimes that means simply having the ability to take a break during the day and not work at a frenetic pace, or it may mean moving ahead on an important project you’ve neglected for months. Or it may mean being able to reduce your hours so instead of working the second shift at night, you’re spending time with family. To say “yes” to the new, you must say “no” to some of the old. By eliminating some of the activities in your calendar that are no longer the best use of your time, you can finally move ahead on your resolutions.
R
ELIZABETH GRACE SAUNDERS is the founder of Real Life E Time Coaching & Speaking. 46 | www.cedmag.com | Construction Equipment Distribution | April 2018
CED
October 2017
September 2017
January 2018
CED CED
Construction Equipment Distribution
Construction Equipment Distribution
Construction Equipment Distribution
Published by AED: Business Fuel for a More Profitable Dealership
Published by AED: Business Fuel for a More Profitable Dealership
Published by AED: Business Fuel for a More Profitable Dealership
ICUEE Show Preview
Rental Connection
Blast From the Past
Discover how growth and profitability are tied directly to rental
The International Construction & Utility Equipment Exposition opens its doors from Oct.3-5 as the largest ICUEE ever
AED Gears Up To Celebrate 100 Years
n Good Company
Hvidtved Larsen's Sewer Cleaning Tankers Are Sold Worldwide
CED 0118.indd 1
n Closer Look
n Canadian Concerns n A Closer Look The Top Five Factors Impacting AED's Canadian Members
Learn More About AED Member e-Emphasys Technologies
12/20/17 11:00 AM
n Journey To The Top n Chairman’s Club
CED AmTrust Speciality Equipment wants to ensure customer loyalty to dealers and manufacturers
Working in the heavy equipment industry is a natural fit for Terramac’s CEO, Mike Crimaldi
Former AED Chairman Michael Quirk Shares His Experiences in the Industry and with AED
n Good Company
FTG Equipment Solutions brings it all to the table
n New AED Member Moore JCB is a new company with an old soul and passion for customer satisfaction
n Journey to the Top Takeuchi’s U.S. president went from sweeping floors to holding the company’s top office
Construction Equipment Distribution
Published by AED: Business Fuel for a More Profitable Dealership
As the monthly flagship publication of AED, we take pride in covering the industry in a unique and insightful way! CED gives our membership what they want to read: business information, statistics and industry-related news, plus fresh, original content that fuels a more profitable dealership. Over the past year or so, you might have noticed a few changes that began taking place within the magazine, from a color update here and there to a complete revamp of content within each issue. Our goal is to continuously make these improvements to provide a resource that is designed to enhance day-to-day activities within the dealership, and that begins with you, our reader. CED welcomes letters on any subjects that are raised in the magazine. Your opinion and observations matter. If you have a story or topic that you think should be covered in an upcoming issue, we encourage you to send a short summary to CED Editor in Chief Sara Smith at ssmith@aednet.org. Whenever your company appears in CED, a highquality, custom reprint can be purchased as a promotional tool for your sales team. All CED reprints are produced in full color on 100 lb. gloss paper for a sophisticated handout for your customers and prospects. For more information and pricing, please contact Jon Cruthers at jcruthers@aednet.org.
Questions? Comments? Ideas? Send them to
CED Editor in Chief Sara Smith
ssmith@aednet.org or call 630-468-5143
How to Submit to CED Submitting your story to CED is easy! First, it is best if you submit your fullycompleted story for our publishing team to review. You should include any high-resolution photos that are 150 dpi or higher, a brief bio of 1-3 sentences and any necessary contact information. If you are pitching an unwritten story idea, simply submit it as a formal email that includes your story outline, proposed length and direction. Please note that it is the contributor’s responsibility to provide accurate, factual and correct information; this includes spelling of proper names, places, address and foreign spelling, including accents. All submissions should be sent to CED’s Editor in Chief Sara Smith at ssmith@aednet.org.
advertisers’ index CDK Global................................... Outside Back Cover cdkglobal.com/faster e-Emphasys Technologies Inc.....................................1 www.e-Emphasys.com Sentry Insurance Company.......................... BellyBand www.sentry.com The NOCO Company....................... Inside Front Cover no.co Visibility Software....................................................48 bit.ly/VS_AED
48 | www.cedmag.com | Construction Equipment Distribution | April 2018
January 2016
CED
Ad
Construction Equipment Distribution Published by AED: Business Fuel for a More Profitable Dealership
Succession Planning Determine how to identify realistic options for the next level of leadership
CED
n New Member Spotlight
n Get Social
Top benefits of incorporating social media
Tejas Equipment and its transformation
n Rebalance Your Business
Examine behavioral assets and liabilities
12 month subscription for only
$39*
Construction Equipment Distribution Published by AED: Business Fuel for a More Profitable Dealership
invest in your employees Provide your employees with their own beneficial learning tool they can keep all year. Subscribe online at bit.ly/cedsubscribe
CED CED April 2016
March 2017
* $39 is U.S. AED Member price only / U.S. nonmember price is $79
Construction Equipment Distribution
Construction Equipment Distribution
Published by AED: Business Fuel for a More Profitable Dealership
Train Like A Pro
Tips and Tools To Become An Effective Trainer n Emerging Leaders
n A Closer Look
Jamie Carson’s unique path to the construction industry OBC July ad 061417.indd
EPG Insurance caters to the industry’s many unique needs
2
n Content Marketing 2016 is all about the customer
Published by AED: Business Fuel for a More Profitable Dealership
The Road To The Future Is
Paved with Telematics n First-Time Attendees
New dealer and manufacturer members take advantage of opportunities available at Summit
n Specialized Services
DIS Corporation is driven by technology, focused on people
n A Closer Look
Bobcat knows good things come in small packages
6/14/2017 8:57:06 AM
ever wish you could react faster?
The CDK IntelliDealer™ 4.0 Dealer Management System uses the latest technology to integrate your phone system, CRM and OEM interfaces—as well as your Parts, Service and Accounting functions. So when you need to make quick decisions, you can act fast—and stay profitable.
react faster. Call 519.474.5212 or visit cdkglobal.com/faster
© 2018 CDK Global, LLC / CDK Global is a registered trademark of CDK Global, LLC. 17-5494
Ad_template.indd 2
1/25/2018 3:20:52 PM