Mark Klein has worked more than 6,000 days in the parts department at Vanderloop Equipment (VE), and he is still learning new things every day. That’s what has kept him going for more than 25 years.
“Your day never starts the same and it never ends the same,” Klein says. “Every single day here is something fresh.”
Klein found his way into the ag world by accident after his friend Robb Vanderloop told him he would be a good fit for an open parts department role.
He agreed to hear about the job opening despite not having any previous background in agriculture. A few weeks later, Klein was hired, and he hasn’t left the parts department since.
MARK KLEIN
Years with Organization: 25
Role: “My role is lead parts person for all 3 locations across Wisconsin. I didn’t previously have a background in agriculture, but I have learned a lot over the course of my 25 year career. What keeps me coming back is the satisfaction of helping customers and the fact that no two days are the same.”
Quotable: “People in the ag industry are crafty, handy and smart. They will always find a way to get the job done. There needs to be more of that in the world — finding a way to get it done.”
Klein works with the parts department across all 3 locations in Beaver Dam, Brillion and Lena, Wis., focusing on solutions for any customer who needs help — a core value that lies at the heart of the company’s mission as a whole.
Day-to-day tasks vary quite a bit, but Klein says they always come back to that mission statement.
“I take phone calls from customers, I help walk-in customers, and I will get on the phone with any customer from any of the 3 locations and help troubleshoot a problem if someone over there needs my help,” he says.
“Every single day here is something fresh…”
Klein also manages parts transfers between the 3 locations and processes daily, weekly and seasonal bulk stock orders for parts.
Timing is everything in the world of ag and for the parts department at any dealership. Klein has his ordering habits down to a science to make sure parts arrive when they are needed and to help avoid lengthy wait times for customers.
“Up time is critical in our business,” Klein says. “Most of our customers are custom operators, so they cannot afford to be down. When their forage harvester is down and they have 5 trucks sitting there idle with all their employees, it costs a lot of money for each hour they aren’t up and running.”
Klein says that a loss of $1,000 per hour for some of his customers is not a stretch. As a result, he wants to make sure VE has the right parts on the shelves at all times and at as many locations as possible.
Expect the Unexpected
While Klein might be able to use sales history to make educated predictions about what parts to order and when, there are many aspects of the job that are unpredictable.
“You might walk in one morning and get bombarded with calls for 2 hours that you didn’t expect to get, but guess what — they’re coming and you have to sit down and take the time to deal with them,” Klein says. “But the unpredictability keeps me on my toes and keeps me coming back.”
Seasonality is also a key part of the job.
Flying the Extra Mile for the Customer Experience
Vanderloop Equipment (VE) owns 2 company planes that are used both for internal travel and to enhance the customer experience. From an internal standpoint, the planes are used to transport staff to training and meetings. For customers, the planes are used for parts pick up and delivery and to maximize the customer experience, says co-owner Mark Vanderloop.
VE deploys its own planes to fly customers to events like the Precision Planting’s Precision Technology Institute farm in Illinois and to shows like Farm Progress and MAGIE farm show. VE has one pilot on staff who splits his time between flying (30%) and design and engineering (70%).
“If it rains all of a sudden that totally changes the course of the day,” Klein says. “Maybe your local customers were planning on cutting hay that day but now it’s raining and instead, every customer is rushing into the dealership to get parts. You’ve got to be ready to adapt to their schedules and you’ve got to pay attention to the weather and seasonal trends.”
Because farmers also have unpredictable schedules and are known to take few days off, Klein says he and his coworkers have to be prepared to help customers at strange hours. From the beginning of May until September or early October, Klein says somebody must be on call after hours in case a customer needs to troubleshoot something.
“We are also typically here on Saturdays from 8 a.m. to noon,” Klein says. “It can easily turn into a 50- or 55-hour work week.”
Hard Work Pays Off
For anyone to stick around at the same job for 25 years, there must be rewards. For Klein, he finds satisfaction in many aspects of his role.
“I like helping customers,” Klein says. “I like it when they call for a part or they come in for a part and they’re panicking because they might be broke down and they know there’s a lot of money on the line. When I have that part, I get to hand it to them and see their worries wash away. Seeing how thankful they are in those situations is a good feeling. It’s rewarding to know you kept them up and going.”
Klein also enjoys some of the more mundane tasks that others might find less exciting.
“I enjoy putting in stock orders and doing parts orders too,” Klein says. “It makes me feel good seeing that we’re down to one of something, and then with a few clicks I can have the confidence that we have 5 more coming in and we’ll be good for another week or two.”
Embracing Change
Over the course of 25 years, Klein has developed lots of relationships with many customers who have been coming into the shop for decades. But as the years go on, many farmers retire and pass their farm responsibilities off to the younger generations. As a result, Klein has had to adapt to different tendencies between different generations of customers.
“A lot of the customers I’ve known for 25 years,” Klein says “But now a lot of them have their sons and daughters taking over. There’s another generation coming up and you must recognize different customer patterns and preferences.”
“I love to get away and listen to a trout stream instead of listening to phones ringing for a change…”
Klein uses the example of a 60-plus-year-old farmer wanting to have a physical receipt or a hard copy of parts orders or service, whereas the 25-year-old son or daughter can have totally different preferences.
“These younger customers are much more tech-savvy,” Klein says. “It’s good because I need to be more tech-savvy too, and I’m learning with them and from them. There’s a lot of, ‘just text me, just email me, just send me a picture,’ where the older customer might’ve wanted to drive in here and hold that piece of paper. Now we often hear ‘No, no, no. Send me a picture. I don’t have time for that.’ So it has changed in that way for sure.”
It’s not just Klein who is learning to be more tech-savvy on the fly. VE as a whole is embracing change and embracing the future as they begin to work with Sabanto, an ag company with its sights set on autonomous tractors and other technologically advanced ag implements.
“Like anything, I am sure there’ll be bugs to work out,” Klein says. “But autonomy is coming and I’m looking forward to it. It will be cool to see it implemented into our dealership.”
From Phone Calls to Fish Hooks
Klein has also learned that it is important to find ways to decompress outside of work and get away from the business so he can come back fresh the following week. A lifelong resident of Wisconsin, he says he has never been bothered by the rough winters. Instead, he embraces all seasons as a true fan of the outdoors.
“I love hunting and fishing and the outdoors,” Klein says. “There is nothing like good peace and quiet in the great outdoors. I love to get away and listen to a trout stream instead of listening to phones ringing for a change. Everyone needs to find their outlet because Monday is always coming.”
Dealership Minds: Vanderloop Equipment Introduction
Dealership Minds: CFO & Co-Owner: Cashflow Rules The Day
Dealership Minds: Sales Manager & Co-Owner: Guiding Sales, Finding New Markets
Dealership Minds: Technology Sales & Co-Owner: Learning from the Past to Move Forward
Dealership Minds: Lena Store Lead: The Power of Personalization
Dealership Minds: Parts Department Lead: Customer Communication Key to Success in Parts
Dealership Minds: Beaver Dam Sales: Techs are ‘Game-Changer’ in New Wholegoods Sales
Dealership Minds: Service Department Manager: A True Passion for Customer Service
Dealership Minds: Service Department Lead: Service: Beyond Just Repairs
Dealership Minds: Parts Lead: Parts Department Brings New Challenges Every Day
Dealership Minds: Brillion Sales Reps: Building Relationships Beyond the Sale
