Equipment World Digital Magazine
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work managing the rink. But in 2004, Hurricane Ivan changed his plans yet again – by fl ooding the rink with 12 feet of water. Although friends and neighbors showed up immediately to pitch in, the damage was done. "It was a catastrophic loss," Winot says. "There was nothing that could be done to save the rink." Applying lessons learned Winot was free to return to his career, but he'd decided he wasn't about to go back to work for another large contractor. Running the rink had giv- en him a taste of being on his own and managing his business his way, and he'd lost the corporate mentality he once had. Winot had started as a laborer, working his way up to esti- mator and then regional supervisor, and felt he'd learned some impor- tant lessons over the years. "I slowly watched companies get too big – and too greedy," he says. Thinking he had a better way, Winot wrote a busi- ness plan for an excavating company, and in 2005 launched Northeast Site Contractors with the assistance of his mentor and business partner, Craig Hendricks. He started small, digging footers for a Kohl's and building a 5-acre pond for a friend. Winot knew he had an opportunity to make his mark in the area, as many of the busiest contractors were from out of state. As a local company, the fi rm could have its pick of projects, and now works primar- ily in the Poconos. The company has completed challenging projects for the Pocono Medical Center, East Stroudsburg Uni- versity and Dick's Sporting Goods, which had the added demand of an accelerated schedule. "They're a fast growing company," says Tim Prim- rose with Primrose Landscaping. "It seems like they've gotten all the com- mercial work in the area." Since the company grew rapidly, their equipment needs grew rapidly, says Phil Coventry, Northeast's vice president of operations. "We started with three pieces of equipment and quickly experienced growing pains." The company has all Caterpillar excavators and dozers, and a variety of paving and compaction equip- ment, which their clients say is well maintained. "They're in good shape and their equipment looks new," says Paul Brandenburg, the project man- ager for the cancer center at Pocono Medical Center. "It's not going to be embarrassing when those guys roll up on the hospital site." Shared philosophies Winot has implemented a level of fl exibility that allows his company to survive and thrive, but of course, he would be unable to operate in that manner without the talented people Northeast Site Contractors hires. He credits mentor Craig Hendricks – who now lives in London, England – for his philosophy towards how his employees get the job done. "He told me to hire good people and let them do their job," Winot says. "He said, 'You should be guiding them, not do- ing it for them.'" Winot and Coventry have devel- oped a "one voice" mentality. While Winot interacts with the employees every day, he allows Coventry to manage them, delivering continu- ity and building loyalty and trust. Coventry himself is possibly the best example of employee loyalty; follow- ing a heart attack in December that required four bypasses, he returned to work in just two weeks. "Our guys would go through a brick wall for him," Winot says. Coventry, a self- professed reformed micromanager, has learned his own lessons since coming on board. Although he has an open-door policy, he allows his people to do their work unimpeded. "I now know that if I have to mi- cromanage someone, it's the wrong guy," he says. "I don't tell them what to do, and I'm not worried about them making a mistake. Our men make us better." Perhaps the attitude that sends the strongest message to employ- ees that they are valued is that Winot simply refuses to give up on people. "Even a bad apple has its place," he says. "If they're a bad ap- ple but they have the right attitude, we'll fi nd a place for them." As a result, he often pays to send em- ployees to classes, something he'll also do if they express an interest in a particular skill. An avid hunter, Winot realized one of his workers was interested in taxidermy, and didn't hesitate to pay for him to learn the skill. "We're going to have a staff taxidermist," he says with a smile. "Of course, by setting this kid up with this skill, I may lose him, but that's okay if he's doing what he wants to do." One employee Winot knows he will lose soon is his father Keith, a long-time estima- June 2014 | EquipmentWorld.com 54 contractor of the year | continued Northeast Site Contractors took on the challenge of an acceler- ated schedule for this Dick's Sporting Goods location in Bartonsville Square, fi nishing the site work in 17 days rather than the originally planned 22 days.