[QUOTE=" How does a company like this not have the resources to hire competent people.
Maybe because they went from paying one owner's well-earned salary to paying three marginally-if-it-at-all-earned salaries? Rags to rags in 3 generations.[/QUOTE]
Well, this is what I've seen and heard........which may answer some of that question.
1. Of the 2 sons and sil, only one has any experience in this field, and his is limited to bidding work mainly. The oldest son was/is a private jet pilot, the sil was in pharma before this gig.
2. The new trucks are abound throughout the business......especially for the top 3. $100K +trucks WTF?
3. I was told by a super last month that the company now has an airplane ( absolutely no reason for one, but they HAVE one.)
4. I asked about some old equipment in the yard that has needed to be sold or scrapped for years now. I was told they can't get rid of anything because they have borrowed money against everything. Thats what a $20M loan does to you.
5. Super high turnover rate in employees across the board. Mostly super's on down.
6. They went from an office space that had been theirs for multiple years and paid for to an office space downtown leased for $10k+ a month. The only reason I can think of is for image purposes.
7. Not holding the manager/mechanic accountable. This comes from not even knowing what to expect from management that doesn't know the business.
8. Equipment not being repaired until its down and no pm. If something cant be repaired quick (which is the case 90% of the time) they go and rent something to replace it. That cost alone is ridiculous.
9. Buying parts without regard to price. No shopping is performed because they don't know how to do it. The dealers are taking huge advantage of this.
9. When they do buy replacement equipment, they just trade off older stuff at whatever trade value the dealer throws at them. I've watched them get F^%&ed bigtime here.
10. An owner that is disconnected from the company. Yes, he is still in and out and has some say so, .......but he isn't paying enough attention to what has been going on, and letting his family bleed the company for personal gains.
I have seen this numerous times over my life in this business. The original owner retires, lets the family take over, and before you realize what's happened....the company goes under. Regardless of the ol saying "Too big to fail"....yeah, that isn't true.
I was told by the main asphalt super that the company has bought out a smaller one in OKC. He wants to send them the oldest Weiler paver, the Bomag miller, and the new Cat 622. I am to repair everything all of that needs so they can be ready to deliver by the end of this month. Is this the reason for the $20M loan? Maybe, I have no idea.
I have never had a problem getting paid from these people. The asphalt side of the company is where most of my work for them comes from...............and I am told it is still separate from the dirt side. The checks are still good, but I will have to watch how much I invest in them moving forward. If I get too into them and there is a sudden bankruptcy, it could pull me under with them.
