IS RENTING OR BUYING THE RIGHT CHOICE?
ExpertsWeigh In
You just got the call — your team is being contracted for the big construction project down the road. The only problem? You don’t have the right excavator for the job. So do you rent or buy one? Like a pair of jeans, there’s no “one size fits all” of construction equipment. Both options pose potential upsides and drawbacks, and it’s possible you’ll choose to do both at one time or another. Determining your needs for a specific upcoming project and evaluating your company’s long-term trends in equipment use can help you decide what’s best for your team. HOW OFTEN DO YOU USE IT? To gauge whether purchasing is a smart investment, you’ll want to have a good idea of how often you use that piece of equipment. “The general rule of thumb most folks agree with regarding aerial equipment is one should consider purchasing equipment they use more than 65 percent of the time,” says BigRentz CTO Liam Stannard. WHAT DO YOU NEED FOR THE JOB AT HAND? When purchasing a piece of equipment, you get to choose the model that’s a perfect fit for the job at hand. In addition, you get to know the equipment. “One of the things that contractors give up when they rent is the intelligence that can be gained when you own a machine and are tracking it through telematics,” says Matt McLean, product manager for Volvo Construction Equipment. At the same time, renting gives you the flexibility to not commit to one size or model. McLean points out the efficiency that can come from renting. “When renting, you’re able to select the exact size necessary, which can then allow you to control some costs because you’re not putting more power or fuel into a job that could be tackled by a smaller machine,” McLean explains. IS THE EQUIPMENT KEEPING UP WITH YOUR TEAM? With things moving fast in the tech world, it’s a challenge to keep up with the latest improvements in construction equipment, and renting can be an opportunity to test drive new technology. This could even help you decide which piece of equipment is eventually the right fit for purchase. Derek Betcher, rental marketing manager at Hitachi and John Deere, says, “A contractor who is renting gets exposure to new tech on a new piece of equipment. Excavators with telematics are one example. Several players are figuring out how to utilize the tech when renting out the equipment.” Whether you decide to rent or buy, both options have benefits. As long as the equipment is helping your company provide excellent service to clients and efficiency and ease to your team, it’s probably a good fit.
Communication Made Crystal Clear HOW TRANSPARENCY MAKES YOU A BETTER LEADER Are great leaders born, or are they made? According to Chip Bergh, business leader and chief executive of Levi Strauss & Co., what we should really examine is how someone in leadership communicates. Bergh’s leadership style is all about straightforward and transparent communication from the top down, and considering his success with it, it might be worth learning more about. Here are a few lessons that have taught him the importance of getting straight to the point. BUILD TRUST OVER TIME “You’ve got to be really transparent and straight with people,” Bergh says. He shares a story about one of his early leadership roles at Proctor and Gamble, when he struggled with letting go of a smart but underperforming hire. Bergh carried him through to a promotion, but about four months later, the employee was let go for poor performance. Bergh learned a valuable lesson in the process: “Hold the bar up high, and if it’s not a good fit, call it,” says Bergh. CREATE CULTURE When Bergh started with Levi, he interviewed 60 people from the company’s leadership team and asked them a series of insightful questions, including “What are three things that we have to keep?” and “What are you most afraid I might do?” Bergh gave the leaders a chance to give him feedback and be honest about negative feelings they might’ve had. By being clear about how he operates, he made his expectations known for how employees needed to perform to be part of the team. QUELL TOXICITY When everyone is upfront, there’s no room for backstabbing, and Bergh is quick to quell any signs of toxicity in a work environment. “If you see it, you’ve got to squash it like a bug as soon as it happens and not tolerate it.” By addressing issues head-on and not letting them fester, the whole environment benefits, and morale gets a boost. Instead of focusing on problem areas, you can put more energy toward developing cohesion. “When I’ve led
teams, it’s always been about howwe work together to get the best results,” Bergh says.
2 www.cornejocorp.com
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