By
Adam Keane, NTEA
President
Executive
Vice-President, Allied
Body Works Inc. (Seattle, Washington)
This article was published in the April 2017 edition of NTEA News.
I recently transitioned into my role as Association
president during the President’s Breakfast at The Work Truck Show® 2017 (March 14–17 in Indianapolis,
Indiana). The week-long Show experience was truly incredible, exceeding my
expectations. I hope the event proved equally valuable to you.
This year, my goal is to advocate for the membership and
prioritize matters important to companies in the work truck industry. As my
term gets underway, I want to share my perspective and give some context to the
issues I consider most important. I was recently interviewed by NTEA, and my
responses are summarized below.
When
did you first connect with NTEA, and how has your involvement with the
Association contributed to your professional growth?
My first exposure to NTEA was going through the Truck
Equipment 101 course when I first started in the industry (I believe my
certificate is still around the office somewhere!). The course was a great
tool, and I’m excited for the new version to come out later this year. My more
in-depth involvement came when I began serving on the Young Executives Network
(YEN) Steering Committee — now known as Generation Next Board of Governors. As the Steering
Committee began looking at enrollment, we talked about ways to get more
involved and benefit NTEA as a whole. Shortly thereafter, I was asked to fill a
position on NTEA’s Board of Trustees. I have greatly benefited from serving in
both capacities and being more actively engaged with the Association in
general.
First and foremost, the Board connections I’ve made have
been invaluable. The Board is comprised of representatives from different
company types in our industry. Each member brings a fresh perspective, and I’ve
thrived from this interaction. In addition to Board connections, I’ve learned a
lot from the professionalism of NTEA staff and the constant progress being made
to enhance Board dynamics. On multiple occasions, I’ve used elements from
planning meetings, adapting them to fit my company.
How do
you envision NTEA serving the industry in the future?
Our industry is changing more rapidly now than in previous
years. We’ll continue seeing consolidation of industry companies, vehicle
platforms becoming more global, and regulations evolving given the technology
increases and safety emphasis. NTEA will keep striving toward its vision of
being globally recognized as the undisputed resource and advocate for the North
American work truck industry. This means continuing efforts in Washington,
D.C., and Ottawa, Ontario, to advance industry interests, and providing members
with resources to help them stay up-to-date on regulations and technical
complexities. In addition, I see NTEA pushing forward with enhanced data
collection and analysis, sharing important information with the membership in a
way that helps industry companies forecast with greater precision.
What
do you find most valuable about NTEA events?
Similar to my Board involvement, I think networking is a
valuable part of any in-person event NTEA produces. Getting leaders together
from each sector of our industry allows for amazing ideas, friendships and
business relationships. This is only one of many benefits gained from attending
NTEA events.
I encourage distributor members (like myself), my local
truck dealers, fleet management companies and fleet managers to attend The Work Truck Show. Apart from years of hands-on
experience, I believe this event is one of the best ways to immerse yourself in
everything related to commercial vehicles. The educational sessions cover so
many different aspects of the industry; there’s always something relevant. The
exhibit hall showcases all components involved in building a work truck.
The Executive Leadership Summit
differs from The Work Truck Show by focusing less on product displays and more
on education. This event is geared toward industry leaders. Personally, I use
the Summit to help with forecasting; the sessions focusing on the economy and
how it relates to our industry are highly valuable to me. With this more
specific attendee group, I find networking different from The Work Truck Show
but equally amazing.
What
are the three industry issues of greatest interest to you?
NTEA’s Board of Trustees has an intense strategic planning
session every few years where we identify the most important industry issues.
From my perspective, the topics considered in the last meeting are still at the
forefront. Industry competition and structure is one of the major issues. There
are many facets to this subject, including investment in member companies by
sources outside the industry and increased harmonization of the global chassis
market.
The next most interesting topic to me is employee
recruitment and retention. As a Board, we identified this as a key issue and
have empowered a Workforce Development Task Force to look at how NTEA can help.
Learn more at ntea.com/workforcedevelopment.
Innovation is another significant issue. There are so many
new products and enhancements to existing technology. I’m excited to see what
our industry develops next.
Putting
work aside, if you had an extra $5, how would you spend it?
I would love to come up with some profound
answer to this question; however, in reality, I would probably buy some food. I
love to find good food — from a food truck, a hole in the wall or a nice
restaurant. If for some reason that $5 made it all the way through the day,
with the lottery having such high jackpots, I might be tempted to buy a ticket
with hopes of hitting the big one (though I’m not a gambling man). This brings
up another big question — What would I do with $500 million? My ideas for this
are endless, so I’ll stop there.