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I am pleased to be able to talk to you through "The Scoop," The AED Foundation's new and exciting e-newsletter. Check out the different programs that are offered here. I would especially like you to consider registering yourself or your managers for our upcoming May webinars, as they are comprehensive and inexpensive. Then in June we have our next grouping of classroom courses.

Many dealerships in the past few years have cut costs in the area of training and personal development. I know we have been through extremely difficult times, but sometimes we fail to see that which is right in front of us. Employees are a dealership's key asset.

"Businesses are understandably focused on expenses" says Ronald Leopold, vice president of MetLife's US business. "But they are taking their eye off the ball with human capital issues; notably what drives employee satisfaction and loyalty." To turn this situation around and see resignations fall and employee loyalty improve, some simple things need to be done by employers today. One of the most critical items is career development and employee opportunities.

The AED Foundation offers industry- and position-specific training for managers. Their offerings are varied and comprehensive; from self-study programs to seminars; Managers Conference at AED's Summit and webinars. There is something for everyone.

I have been offering management training for parts, service, product support sales and marketing, and customer service with content based on my 40 years of experience in the construction equipment industry, as well as the collective knowledge and experiences of many of you.

Based on our successful results last year, we are offering three webinars each in parts and service this year and will expand the offering to eight webinars in parts and service in 2012. These webinars are a basic introduction to the subject matter; for instance Inspections in the Service Department or Inventory Control in the Parts Department.

This summer we are adding the first Internet self-study program as a prototype. The Internet self-study offering will be a four hour program with structured questions and testing throughout to gauge the knowledge of the registrant before proceeding to the next level.

I look forward to having you with us over the next few months. After all, employee development is a key component of employee satisfaction and loyalty. Those of you who follow my columns know that this is the next battle ground in business. Attracting and retaining employees will be more critical in the future than it has been to date. Ignore this at your own peril.

About CED Magazine

Kim Phelan, Executive Editor, CED Magazine

Construction Equipment Distribution is published by Associated Equipment Distributors, a nonprofit trade association founded in 1919, whose membership is primarily comprised of the leading equipment dealerships and rental companies in the U.S. and Canada.

With CED, content is king. No fluff, no advertorials – CED just gives AED members what they want to read: business information, industry and association news, plus fresh, original and useful feature articles that they share with their management teams. Our subjects range from rental, product support, sales strategy and customer service to technology, construction markets and legislation – and much more.