FROM THE DESK OF THE PRESIDENT: RICHARD LICATA – Page 2
What a difference a month makes. Last month I spoke about how we have geared up to take advantage of the busy season and now we are honking down doing everything we can to get through this unprecedented period in our lives. It just goes to show that one never knows the challenges you are going to have to face. No one could have ever anticipated dealing with these kinds of unchartered waters.
I am closely monitoring this extraordinary situation and the challenges it presents. I have committed to keep you apprised of ongoing developments as it relates to the volume of business. I can now state that the expected downwards trend has started to materialize. This has impacted some areas more drastically then others; Northwestern and Rush have totally closed their campuses so business there has come to a halt. The household moving portion of our business has been strong for the first quarter, but signs indicate that this will continue to weaken in the weeks ahead. There is still a lot of uncertainty as to how this will impact each of us, but I wanted to share this with you, we are preparing to adjust our business activities to the best of our ability and for what’s coming in the days and weeks ahead. There’s no doubt that all businesses are facing this period of uncertainty.
My first priority during this time is to keep the Reebie family safe. We are doing this by making arrangements to have about 60% of our staff work from home. I would like to have more work from home, but limitations in our current software prevent this from happening. This has certainly opened our eyes and is something we need to take a closer look at for future concerns. Additionally, we are taking further precautions by having the temperature taken of our crews and asking them to stay home should they have a fever. For their safety and that of our customers, our crews are also being equipped with masks, gloves, and sanitizer for further protection.
Now for more pleasant news. Last month we were able to sneak in the annual PSA Conference in downtown Chicago prior to the City shutting down. The Operations Conference was to take place right after our conference but was subsequentially cancelled. It just goes to prove that sales is expendable but operations is not. Regardless, Reebie was well recognized during the convention winning two significant awards. Bill Ruecking won for the Top Consumer salesperson for Region 5 and Brian Arnold won top honors for National Account sales.
Please enjoy the attached photos of our sales team during the convention and be safe!
