Mike McRoberts, senior vice president and chief operating officer for Rush Enterprises, will tell you that while his company uses its annual rodeo skills competition as a recruiting and retention tool for technicians with all levels of experience, other tools are needed as well 鈥� especially technology and the ability to learn and growth in technician trade.
鈥淸The rodeo] is one tool in our toolbox; we work on multiple fronts,鈥� he explained to Fleet Owner here during the 2016 Rush Technician Skills Rodeo event. 鈥淥ur philosophy is that service sells trucks, but it can lose trucks, too. The number one issue our customers focus on today is [truck] dwell time in the shop. So in addition to hiring and keeping the best technicians, it鈥檚 about using technology and systems 鈥� along with good internal processes 鈥� in real time to meet that [customer] demand.鈥� Examples of that technological piece of truck service puzzle include the company鈥檚 RushCare Service Connect system, introduced earlier this year.
W.M. “Rusty” Rush, chairman, CEO, and president of Rush Enterprises, boiled that philosophy down in an interview during the company鈥檚 rodeo event three years ago. 鈥淟ook, consistency is what people want, in life as well as in business,鈥� he explained.
鈥淚n three or four years, selling trucks won鈥檛 be about sticker prices; it will be about business pressure points and how we help the customer maximize uptime,鈥� Rush noted. 鈥淚f we can keep a truck up and running 29.2 days out of month versus a competitor鈥檚 28.5 days per month, that 7/10ths of a day per month makes a huge difference in life cycle cost and will be what sets us apart.
Yet Charlie Wileman, director of service for Rush鈥檚 Navistar division, stressed that the technician remains at the heart of the service equation, and that events such as the company鈥檚 skills rodeo 鈥� which is now 鈥渁 seven figure event; we don鈥檛 spare any expense,鈥� he stressed 鈥� are critical to building both the morale and the culture of Rush鈥檚 technician corps.
鈥淢y favorite part is the camaraderie,鈥� he told Fleet Owner. 鈥淚t gets everyone involved; it puts out executives, our sponsors and technicians together to rub elbows. It also speaks volumes as to what our message is in terms of the important role of [truck] service in our company.鈥�
Ron Crisp, Rush鈥檚 service support specialist for medium-duty, noted that the company鈥檚 annual rodeo is also becoming a key recruiting and retention tool for younger technicians 鈥� the Level 1 and 2 techs that industry needs to bring into the business to replace those retiring.
To read the full story, visit .