Our Town Hall virtual event series is brought to you by the NAEC Member Services Committee.
Upcoming Town Halls
To be announced soon.
Recent Town Hall descriptions and recordings:
Description:
Panelists:
Mark Boelhouwer - American Elevator Group
Ricia Sturgeon-Hendrick - Elevator World Inc.
LJ Blaiotta - Columbia Elevator
Michael Ryan - The Peelle Company
Description:
On Tuesday, March 12, Vong Keovongsa helped participants discover their natural leadership style while also exploring alternative styles utilizing the Blake Mouton Leadership Grid. Before the Town Hall, participants were asked to virtually complete a leadership style quiz and attendees learned how to score their leadership assessment quiz and learn about why their leadership style matters.
Speaker:
Vong Keovongsa, Elevator Services Group
Description:
On Tuesday, December 12 at 2:00 pm ET, Amelia Holguin with Dynasty Elevator presented on "Next Generation Sales". Get ready to explore the transformation of sales methods and discover how trusting and investing in your company's young professionals can supercharge your business to new heights.
Speaker:
Amelia Holguin, Dynasty Elevator
To access the video, click here.
Description:
On Tuesday, October 10 from 2:00PM – 3:30PM EST, join NAEC members for our next Town Hall meeting. In this informative session, industry expert, Mike Stamn, will delve into the key leading economic indicators that drive trends and forecast performance within the construction and elevator sectors. Discover how to interpret and utilize data to make informed decisions and stay ahead in the industry. Don’t miss out on this opportunity to gain valuable insights into the economic landscape shaping the elevator industry. Register now to secure your spot.
Speaker:
Mike Stamn, MA Stamn & Associates
Description:
On Tuesday, July 18 from 2:00PM – 3:30PM EST, join NAEC members for our next Town Hall meeting. This Town Hall will focus on a look at our industry from the perspective of leading elevator consultants. Elevator consultants are experts in our industry, who assist building owners with understanding the status of their vertical transportation equipment and they assist them with the optimization of their vertical transportation assets. This independent and unbiased review, often provides elevator consultants with a unique and possibly divergent viewpoint of our industry.
Our speakers include:
Rob Isabelle, KJA Consultants Inc.
John Koshak, Elevator Safety Solutions, LLC
David Fried, VDA Consulting Services
Description:
On March 28 from 2:00 pm - 3:30 pm ET, join NAEC safety staff and members leading the industry in safety for a deep dive into the leadership key components of your safety program. This Town Hall will focus on leadership commitment, cultural transformation, process and results to teach members how they can implement successful safety programs at their own companies. An overview of the elevator industry’s 9 Safety Absolutes and an update on the progress of the OSHA Alliance will also be covered. There will also be an opportunity for you to ask your safety questions!
Our speakers include:
David Smarte, Global Education and Safety Officer, NAEC
Raymond Downs, Senior VP Environmental Health & Safety, TEI Group
Gabriel Maldonado, Safety Director, 3Phase Elevator
To access the video, click here. Passcode is B@7ti10+ (you can copy and paste).
Description:
Simply put, the goal of all of us in the Elevator Industry is to make money. Unfortunately, that is the only simple thing about that goal. Do you know how much it costs your business to complete a project? What we find is that anyone can “sell” or “guesstimate” a job. We can always find someone to perform the work, but in order to understand which jobs are profitable and which jobs are not, it is imperative that you have a proper job cost tracking system. A job costing system in the entire process of accumulating information regarding the total costs associated with a project. For this quarters Townhall meeting on November 15 we are going to delve into the job costing process which starts with a correct job take-off, a good estimate and specification review, through an exact job costing accounting review. These sessions are designed to teach you how to bid, sell, and perform profitable construction, modernization and fixed price (open order) projects.
Our speakers include:
John Tolar, General Manager, United Elevator Services, LLL naec_aia.pdf Sample_Estimate.pdf
Karen Kennedy Dodds, Director, Kencor, Inc. (Job_Cost_Review_Presentation.pdf)
Chris Flinn, Sales, Canton Elevator Example_drawings.pdf Noteable_spec_items.pdf
Description: The price of steel on global markets has soared. Fuel cost increases and parts delays are a part of the norm this year as we balance customer expectations as well as our own balance sheets. What can we expect in the intermediate future when it comes to these challenges presented by global events effecting the supply chain that we depend on?
Our featured speaker is Jon Holztrager, Director of Supply Chain Partnerships and an adjunct faculty member with the Haslam College of Business at the University of Tennessee. He is an accomplished supply-chain professional with expertise in total delivered cost reduction, operating asset strategy, supply chain transformation and best-in-class supply-chain results. Jon now teaches supply chain operations with an emphasis on practical aspects of leading manufacturing, purchasing, distribution, and transportation teams. He also works closely with UT Supply
Town Hall: Managing Sales Teams
Date: May 17, 2022
Description: Strong sales teams emerge from environments that are transparent and oriented on key sales metrics. When you put the right people together in a supportive environment, it drives the entire organization up and to the right. But how do you hire the right people people with drive and determination while creating an environment that is encouraging, transparent, and oriented on key sales metrics?
Our panelists included:
- Sandy Barr, Delaware Elevator Inc.
- Freddy Flores, Vantage Elevation
- Eric Lazear, American Elevator Group
Town Hall: Staying Power: Recruiting, Hiring, and Retaining Qualified Labor
Date: February 15, 2022
Description: Employee turnover is expensive. The Society for Human Resource Professionals (SHRM) found direct replacement costs (recruiting and training) can reach as high as 50–60 percent of an employee’s annual salary, and the total cost of turnover can range from 90–200 percent of annual salary. You spend a lot of time and effort to recruit and hire the right people for the right job—only to have them leave after a couple of months. Or perhaps you lose long-term employees who take great skills and knowledge with them. Either way, turnover is expensive and frustrating. Employee retention relies on a combination of factors, including flexible work arrangements, benefits, professional development opportunities, advancement opportunities, company culture, and more. Retention is also a key sign of employee sentiment and engagement — it can even be a competitive advantage. Our panel of experts included professionals in the vertical transportation industry as well as human resources to discuss the reasons that employees leave and strategies for retaining and supporting your most valuable company asset: your employees.
Our panelists included:
- Jay Arntzen, President, Genesis Elevator Company
- Sheryl Ellis, PHRca, SHRM-CP, DLMS, ADAC, Senior HR Consultant, The Hopkins Group (View her presentation HERE, view General Suggestions to Recruit Candidates HERE, view handout HERE, and view The Hopkins Group flyer HERE)
- Michelle Williams, Vice President of People and Culture, Vantage (View her presentation HERE)
Town Hall: Technology, IoT, and Alternative Testing
Date: November 9, 2021
Description: Technology is at the core of the service that the vertical transportation industry offers, and the various technologies are always changing. In this session, independent contractors will discuss tech solutions they have utilized to increase efficiency and profitability within their operation. Tapping into IoT (Internet of Things) innovations with sensor technology can reduce expenses, increase safety, and provide data to better forecast maintenance programs. This session covered how elevator contractors like YOU can utilize alternative testing to increase safety and better prepare clients for future alterations.
Panelists include:
• Guneet Bedi, relayr
• Chris Dodds, Liberty Elevator Experts (View his PowerPoint presentation HERE)
• Sean Madden, Madden Elevator (View his PowerPoint presentation HERE)
Town Hall: Creating a Culture of Safety
Date: August 31, 2021
Description: The topic of safety has grown over time, creating whole sub-industries dedicated to safety and training. However, even with all the information and resources at your fingertips, what can you do at your company to instill a company value of safety that is as strong as your work ethic? This panel of elevator and lift safety experts go over some of the best ways to bring safety home.
Panelists include:
• Patrick Bothwell, Draka EHC
• Sandra A. Boudloche, OSHA Region VI
• Lou DeLoreto, Elevate Safety Systems
• Dave Smarte, NAEC
Town Hall: 2019 Code Update and AHJ Interpretations
Date: May 25, 2021
Description: Public and worker safety in elevator use is of critical importance, and the Authorities Having Jurisdiction (AHJ) over elevator safety are on the front lines of oversight of the code enforcement. With the changes that came with the 2019 Code Update, how are the local authorities responding and what do industry professionals need to know about the local interpretations of the update?
Panelists include:
• Carl Burch, Vantage
• Don Holloway, Kings III (View the PowerPoint presentation from Don and Dave of Kings III HERE)
• Dave Mann, Kings III
• Chris Strawn, Elevator Safety and Technical Services
Town Hall: Marketing New Products
Date: February 23, 2021
Description: In this competitive industry, what are the best ways to bring new products and innovations to customers? This panel discussion will explore some examples of companies in the elevator sector introducing new products to the market and what you can do to maximize your new product launch!
Panelists include:
• Donald Gelestino, President, Champion Elevator Corp. (View his PowerPoint presentation HERE)
• Sanjay Kamani, President & COO, KP Property Advisors, LLC
• Bill Page, Director of Product Management,
Bruno Independent Living Aids, Inc.
• Steve Wurth, CEO/President, Wurtec