RDO Equipment Co. - Northern Agriculture Region Earns Farm Equipment's Prestigious 2010 "Dealership of the Year" Award
Posted 07/26/2010 —The Northern Agriculture region of RDO Equipment Co. has been chosen as the 2010 "Dealership of the Year" by Farm Equipment magazine.
Farm Equipment presents its "Dealership of the Year" awards annually to farm equipment dealerships in two categories: one award for those with sales revenues of under $50 million in annual sales revenues, and one award for dealers with more than $50 million in annual sales revenues. RDO Equipment Co. - Northern Ag earned the distinction in the "over $50 million in annual sales revenue" category this year, not only for its outstanding financial performance and growth over the past three years, but for its demonstrated commitment to employee training and development, as well as its unique management practices and renowned customer service.
Farm Equipment, in the article that featured RDO Equipment Co. and Northern Agriculture, said:
The Northern Agriculture region, which consists of the company's Midwest and Northwest Ag locations, operates 17 John Deere agricultural equipment dealership locations in North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Washington and Oregon. In total, RDO Equipment Co. owns and operates 56 dealerships in nine states. They are one of John Deere's largest distributors of farm machinery in North America.
In addition to carrying the full line of John Deere agricultural products, the company also carries John Deere construction and Vermeer equipment. Its specialty equipment product lines include Summers Manufacturing, Wil-Rich, Trioliet, Brent/Unverferth and Brandt, among many others.
The dealership was chosen for the award by a panel of renowned farm equipment experts. In their selection of RDO Equipment Co. as Farm Equipment's Dealership of the Year for 2010, the judges noted:
"RDO Equipment Co. has increased its market share to nearly 60% overall...this company has demonstrated a strong commitment to the communities it serves and encourages employee involvement in local and civic programs throughout the organization...Its three-year sales growth has averaged over 15% per year...Their strongest suit is their employee training program with their own RDO University and 30-month Leadership Institute."
The judging panel included Dr. W. David Downey, director, Center for Agricultural Business, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Ind.; David L. Kahler, retired CEO of the Ohio-Michigan Equipment Dealers Assn., Dublin, Ohio; and Charles Glass, president, Glass Management Group, Arlington, Texas.
Founded in 1968 by Ron Offutt, RDO Equipment Co. - Northern Agriculture region boasts a dynamic management group that includes Christi Offutt, RDO Equipment Co. CEO; Keith Kreps, Northern Agriculture vice president; Mark Kreps, GM-core accounts; Steven Connelly, GM (Hawley and Moorhead, Minn., and Casselton and Kindred, N.D.) Bruce Daughters, GM (Aberdeen and Redfield, S.D., and Hazen and Washburn, N.D.); Tom Iverson, GM-sales; Jeffery Lemna, GM (Breckenridge and Fergus Falls, Minn., and Lisbon, N.D.); Davin Peterson, GM - Northwest, (Pasco and Sunnyside, Wash., and Hermiston, Pendleton, and Wasco, Ore.) and Todd Thompson, sales manager.
In addition to measuring customer satisfaction, uniquely, RDO Equipment Co. also tracks employee satisfaction levels. "It's important that we look at and measure both customer loyalty and employee satisfaction," says Christi Offutt. "These are the most important measurements to ensure you're building a long-term sustainable business."
An in-depth profile of RDO Equipment Co. appears in the July/August issue of Farm Equipment magazine. The complete article can be found at www.farm-equipment.com.
Farm Equipment magazine, based in Brookfield, Wis., serves more than 11,000 farm equipment dealers, wholesalers and distributors throughout North America. It's also the publisher of Rural Lifestyle Dealer magazine, Ag Equipment Intelligence, No-Till Farmer and the Conservation Tillage Product Guide.
