Hello, Region Five members,
It has been a busy spring. I knew that once the weather turned nice, many of my customers would have a significant need for tents. Equipment rental operators have experienced the same rush. While it makes life hectic, especially with the labor issues, I am grateful to be handling that situation rather than what we dealt with just two years ago.
Not only has it been busy for our businesses, but our state chapters also have been offering exciting events for members in their states. I have had the pleasure of attending almost all of them.
For instance, the ARA of Wisconsin offered a great leadership seminar and exciting basketball event in a luxury suite. It also just wrapped up an awesome Department of Transportation presentation and store tour of Event Essentials. The ARA of Michigan offered two valuable forklift training sessions. The ARA of Illinois offered two events — an online update of what operators need to know if OSHA comes calling and an informative session on how to perform like an elite company. The ARA of Kentucky also offered a dynamic combo with a presentation on the status of a theft of services bill and then a “Day at the Races” at Keeneland Racecourse. The ARA of Ohio tackled two important topics for both equipment and event operations: licensing and commercial standards offered by an Ohio State Highway Patrol officer and cybersecurity. All these events were excellent, providing members valuable education and networking. You can’t beat that.
In addition to these great offerings, the American Rental Association (ARA) continues to provide us outstanding resources that will benefit our entire team and business operations. Here’s just a sampling of the newest resources you need to check out:
- New educational offerings from RentalU, including the Certified MEWP (mobile elevating work platform) training, the new Certified Sales and Certified Service courses and the new prioritized safety courses. Learn more about the new Certified offerings in this issue and in Rental Management.
- The ARA Job Posting Portal, which allows your postings to be seen by thousands of candidates per month. Each open position is shared among more than 15 additional national and local job boards with whom ARA has partnered, including Careerbuilder.com, Military.com, Google Jobs and Facebook Jobs. I know that we are all challenged with labor issues, so take advantage of the five free postings by using the promo code ARA-5Free2022.
- A new Mentoring Program, which offers personal and professional growth opportunities for both the mentee and the mentor. Learn more in this issue.
- A new solution for ARA members’ group health-care needs that will launch May 1. This is an initiative ARA has been working on for a long time. Now it is coming to fruition. Learn more about this important program in this issue.
ARA has so many resources available — all at our fingertips. See for yourself by going to ARArental.org. You will be glad you did.
I know that everyone is excited to gear up for the year. Yes, everyone is worried about hiring and retaining good workers, and the supply chain issues continue to nag us. I know that ARA is working diligently to help with these issues. If you have questions or want to share innovative approaches you are taking at your operation, let me know. We are here to help each other grow and succeed. I look forward to hearing from you.
Dean Miller, CERP, Region Five director
Miller’s Party Rental Center
Akron, Ohio
330-352-2107
cdm@millersparty.com
Connie Lannan
Connie Lannan is special projects editor for Rental Management. She helps plan, coordinate, write and edit ARA’s quarterly regional newsletters, In Your Region. She also researches, writes and edits news and feature articles for Rental Management, Rental Pulse, supplements, special reports and other special projects. Outside of work, she loves to bake for others, go for walks with her husband and volunteer for her church and causes she believes in.
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