February 2011

Special Dealership Minds Edition 2011

PLUS: How to Sell Tracked Equipment, Average Resale Value of Farm Machinery, Strong Store Managers vs Centralized Structure and more.

Dealership Minds

Majority Rules with Minority Stockholders

By Frank Lessiter posted on February 7, 2011 | Posted in Department Management

Birkey’s Farm Stores’ ownership structure is a big positive, says CEO Ron Birkey. Not only does each of the 6 stockholders have considerable experience in the farm equipment field, but historically, the owners also serve as high-level managers in day-to-day operations.

Stuck in the Muck Contest Goes Viral

By Chad Elmore posted on February 8, 2011 | Posted in Dealers on the Move

Stuck in the Muck Contest Goes Viral

The Business of Selling

Record Farm Income and Impending Dealership Failure

By Dr. Jim Weber posted on February 8, 2011 | Posted in Data & Forecasts

When the final count for 2010 is complete, the amount of harvested corn could be an all time record; and at a minimum, the recent harvest should rank in the top five years of harvested corn with the other top five years coming from the preceding four years. With five years of record production, one would expect supplies to be high, and demand to be slowing. But just the opposite is occurring.

Trade Values & Trends: Average Resale Values of Farm Machinery: 2008-2010

February 8, 2011 | Posted in Data & Forecasts

This installment of Trade Values & Trends takes a look at resale values of various types of farm machinery over a 3-year period. The data includes several machinery types, ranging from mower conditioners at the low end to high-clearance sprayers in the upper price range. The resale values for 7 tractor sizes have also been given a close look.

Ahead of the Curve: 'Autonomous' Tractors are on the Horizon

February 8, 2011 | Posted in Product Innovations & Introductions

So what’s next? Autonomous tractors? In short, “yes,” the next step will be toward an autonomous, or “self-governing,” system.

Planning for Profits

Strong Store Managers or Centralized Structure

By George Keen and George Russell posted on February 8, 2011 | Posted in Manufacturer News

How you organize your dealership is fundamental to your success. Whether your dealership has one store, a few or several locations, the choice of how you organize your company has a direct bearing on your performance.

How To Sell: Making Tracks Work for Your Dealership

With high commodity prices and smaller weather windows, tracked equipment is an investment that more farmers are willing to make.

By Chad Elmore posted on February 8, 2011 | Posted in Niche Equipment Markets

With high commodity prices and smaller weather windows, tracked equipment is an investment that more farmers are willing to make.

2011 Ag Connect Expo Illustrated

February 8, 2011 | Posted in Manufacturer News

With 382 exhibitors, 174,500 square feet of displays and a myriad of educational sessions, the 2011 Ag Connect Expo, January 7-11 in Atlanta, Ga., offered enough to keep four Farm Equipment editors more than a little busy. This year’s show attracted some 12,000 visitors, which was a major step up from last year’s 7,700 attendees. Ag Connect Expo will now go to a 2-year cycle with the next show scheduled for Orlando, Fla., in 2013.

Dealership Minds

Developing the Next Generation of Service Techs

February 8, 2011 | Posted in Best Practices

Craig Greenwood, service manager for the Hoopeston, Ill., store, believes Birkey’s commitment to education also sets it apart from its competition.

Dealership Minds

Establishing 'Long-Term' Market Value

February 8, 2011 | Posted in Dealers on the Move

When customers see a dealer as a source of information, the perceived value of the dealer increases. Customers want a great price on equipment, but they also want the knowledge to support and stand behind that equipment.

Dealership Minds

What to Do When Losing Billable Time

February 8, 2011 | Posted in Best Practices, Operations & Finance

Every manager usually has some headaches waiting for them when they get to the office. Not Craig Greenwood, service manager at Birkey’s Farm Store’s Hoopeston, Ill., location.

Dealership Minds

What Makes a Good CFO

February 8, 2011 | Posted in Dealers on the Move

Farm Equipment asked Mike Hedge, CFO & Treasurer, the traits he would seek in his successor. Here’s what he told us:

Dealership Minds

How Incentives Should Work

February 8, 2011 | Posted in Dealers on the Move

Birkey’s Farm Stores believes that rewarding performance should go beyond the sales department and should also go beyond being just another way to get paid. At least that’s the way Mark Foster, Ag Division manager sees it.

Dealership Minds

Delegating — But Staying Involved

February 8, 2011 | Posted in Best Practices

While Mike Carley is comfortable delegating day-to-day decisions to his key managers, he also realizes that at the end of the day, he holds ultimate responsibility for the store’s performance. He needs to stay involved.

Dealership Minds

Sales Aren't a One-Time Thing

February 8, 2011 | Posted in Best Practices

Mike Carley gets involved in every wholegoods sale to make sure the deal makes sense for the company.

Dealership Minds

Creative Thinking Fills Up the Shop

February 8, 2011 | Posted in Best Practices

Mike Carley, general manager of the company’s Gibson City store, explains that in 2009, a drawn-out harvest season helped keep the service department busy through December.

Dealership Minds

It Takes the ‘Right Stuff'

February 8, 2011 | Posted in Best Practices

Mike Carley says one of the keys to the success at the Gibson City Birkey’s Farm Store is having the right people in place in key positions. But what makes those people the right people?

Birkey's Farm Stores: 2007 Dealership of the Year

February 9, 2011

It sounds cliché, but spend time with the team at Birkey’s Farm Store, and it’s clear that pulling in the same direction, checking the egos at the door and subordinating individual or site-specific interests to the larger entity are root factors in this dealership’s success. Teamwork, as it’s spoken about in downstate Illinois and the various locations, does not appear to be lip service. Birkey’s, it seems, is “walking its talk.”

Dealership Minds

The Essentials of Birkey's Success [Photo Album]

February 9, 2011 | Posted in Best Practices

A photo album of Birkey's Farm Stores.

Dealership Minds

An Aftermarket Business Running on All Cylinders

By John Dobberstein posted on February 7, 2011 | Posted in Dealers on the Move

It may not be everyone’s dream job, but bring up numbers, spreadsheets, reports and benchmarks in a conversation and you’re squarely in Phil Fayhee’s wheelhouse. It’s well established that the real money in any farm equipment dealership is made in the aftermarket department, and Birkey’s is no different with a nearly 20% and 35% contribution margin in parts and service, respectively.

Dealership Minds

Fixing Machinery, Managing Personalities

By Jeremy McGovern posted on February 7, 2011 | Posted in Manufacturer & Dealer Issues

To be a successful service manager today requires more skill than yesteryear, when dealerships elevated their best wrench-turners or resident gearheads. Mechanical inclination helps, but a top service manager today must possess other skills as well. Like an air traffic controller, they must direct the technicians to the customers who truly deserve the priority. And as a psychologist, the service manager must listen and respond to what the customers and technicians alike are — and are not — saying.

Dealership Minds

Beating the Drum, Balancing the Image

By Paul Markgraff posted on February 7, 2011 | Posted in Data & Forecasts

Beat the drum. Birkey's Marketing Manager Quint Campbell understands the concept well.

Dealership Minds

Communication Counts in HR

By Michael Ellis posted on February 7, 2011 | Posted in Department Management

There’s a card on Jaime Smith’s desk that reads, “With appreciation for everything you do to help people reach important goals. HR is about maintaining a healthy working atmosphere, but most of all it’s about helping people succeed, good times and bad.” These words summarize the daily mantra of Birkey’s Farm Store’s human resources manager.

Dealership Minds

Keeping All the Moving Parts Moving

By Dave Kanicki posted on February 7, 2011 | Posted in Operations & Finance

Mike Robling’s responsibilities as the company’s parts assets manager appear straightforward enough: order the parts the stores need in a timely manner so they have ‘em when they need ‘em. Make sure they’re not carrying too much in parts inventory, but enough so that Birkey’s takes full advantage of the discounts and terms offered by Case IH.

Dealership Minds

Demonstrating the Dealership's Support

By Darrell Bruggink posted on February 7, 2011 | Posted in Dealers on the Move

While GPS and other precision technologies have made farming a lot easier, it’s also made farming a lot more difficult. It’s great when it’s working. But when it isn’t, it leads to a whole lot of frustration for the farmers that Darin Kennelly is trying to help.

Dealership Minds

Navigating the Numbers for Growth

By Mike Lessiter posted on February 7, 2011 | Posted in Best Practices, Operations & Finance

Spend time with Mike Hedge at his office in Rantoul, Ill., and terms like number cruncher, prognosticator, teacher, purser, and analyst all come to mind. And when it comes to the subject of balance sheet management, “evangelist” is also a fitting word. As CFO & Treasurer of a $240 million company, Hedge must manage all the details yet remain at a 50,000-foot view to pilot the finances of a growing company.

Dealership Minds

On the Run to Keep Things Running

February 7, 2011 | Posted in Dealers on the Move, Best Practices, Department Management

For all but 3 or 4 days a month, Mark Foster is on the road tending to the business of the 11 ag dealership operations. Each of the managers report directly to him.

Dealership Minds

What Keeps the Birkey's Farm Store Team Up at Night?

February 7, 2011 | Posted in Operations & Finance

If your business causes you to toss and turn on occasion, you're no different than the Birkey's Farm Store managers. Here are their biggest causes of insomnia.

Dealership Minds

Probing Questions Solves Parts Department Mysteries

By Mike Lessiter posted on February 7, 2011 | Posted in Department Management

An effective parts department, says Todd Lippens, can pinpoint a customer’s needs even when they’re too hurried to provide good information. “With cell phones today, farmers pick up and call immediately, even before thinking,” he says. At the Polo store, more than half of his store’s part transactions are handled by phone.

Dealership Minds

More to Manage than Numbers

By Pat Tearney posted on February 7, 2011 | Posted in Product Innovations & Introductions

As general manager of the Gibson City store, Mike Carley (who is also an owner) is responsible for coming up with the right blend of product, salesmanship, market knowledge, customer service and leadership that will produce profitability for the dealership. When he arrives early each morning, in the unlikely event that the bottom line isn’t already on his mind, he’ll quickly be reminded of it.

Dealership Minds

A Construction Dealership, Too

February 7, 2011 | Posted in Manufacturer News

In the mid-1980s, the Case Construction Equipment division was losing a dealer in Champaign, Ill. To fill the gap, Case asked Birkey’s Farm Store to pick up the region’s sales contract. The timing was right, as the collapse of the farm market had the dealership interested in finding ways to diversify its business.