PCCA Journal 3rd Quarter 2012

The Official Publication of the Power & Communication Contractors Association 3rd Quarter 2012 Building Quality Customer Service President Signs Executive Order on Broadband Construction Rural Telecom Leaders Warn About Universal Service Cuts PCCA Tackles Prevailing Wage Issue The Importance of the Pre-Job Safety Meetings

® ...but we come pretty daRn close. Toll Free 877-860-5666 www.tallmanequipment.com Tallman Equipment A worldwide supplier of tools to the electric utility industry. Nobody’s got it all... Dixie Industries ®

3rd Quarter 2012 Officer Directors Official Publication of the Power & Communication Contractors Association Board of Directors Craig Amerine Amerine Utilities Construction, Inc. David Aubrey Okay Construction Robert Breeden ElectriCom, Inc. Tony Briggs Vermeer Manufacturing Ed Campbell Henkels & McCoy, Inc. John Fluharty Mears Group, Inc. Mark Frosaker MasTec North America, Inc. Matthew Gabrielse Gabe’s Construction Co., Inc. John Hale John Deere Jerrod Henschel Michels Corporation Kevin Mason ElectriCom, Inc. Robert Orr Sherman & Reilly, Inc. Larry Pribyl MP Nexlevel, LLC Rob Pribyl MP Nexlevel, LLC Heath Sellenriek Sellenriek Construction Jameson Ringger NESCO, LLC Lindsley Thulin Michels Corporation Ron Tagliapietra Michels Corporation Matt Trawick Trawick Construction Co., Inc. Publication Staff Publisher Timothy Wagner Associate Publisher Cheryl Stratos Editor Michael Ancell Membership Stacy Bowdring Advertsing Victoria Elie Meetings Mackenzie Fluharty 1908 Mt. Vernon Avenue, 2nd Floor Alexandria, Virginia 22301 (800) 542-PCCA • www.pccaweb.org ©2012 Power & Communication Contractors Association President Tommy Muse Aubrey Silvey Enterprises, Inc. President-Elect Glen Amerine Amerine Utilities Construction, Inc. 1st Vice President Steve Sellenriek Sellenriek Construction 2nd Vice President Timothy D. Killoren CCI Systems, Inc. Treasurer Todd Myers Kenneth G. Myers Construction Secretary James Dillahunty Henkels & McCoy, Inc. Building Quality Customer Service 11 By Stephen Boughton How does a construction company demonstrate a real and higher-order understanding of, and commitment to, a client’s needs, not just lip service? The answer lies in proactively managing customer service—the third and final “piece” of the business development jigsaw (alongside marketing and sales) and the one that is so often taken for granted. While customer service is the easiest and most tangible component to grasp mentally, only very skilled contractors do a great job of truly bringing the concept to life within their organizations. President Signs Executive Order on Broadband Construction 28 On June 14, President Obama signed an Executive Order that the administration says will make broadband construction cheaper and more efficient by streamlining construction on government land. In this article, the White House discusses the order as well as US Ignite, a new public-private partnership that aims to create a new wave of services that take advantage of state-of-the-art programmable networks up to 100 times faster than today’s internet. RDUP News 7 Telecom News 19 Power News 25 PCCA 2013: The Naples Beach Hotel & Golf Club 30 Safety Watch | By Phillip Metcalf 33 Safety News 34 Industry Calendar 35 Vermeer Charitable Foundation 37 PCCA Member News 38 Advertiser Index 45 Final Word | By Tommy Muse 46

PCCA Journal|3rd Quarter 2012 6 FMI served as the exclusive financial advisor in the following transactions: *Represented by FMI Chris Daum | 919.785.9264 | cdaum@fminet.com www.fminet.com/ca Investment Banking for the engineering and construction industry. Mergers and Acquisitions Buy-Side Representation Corporate Divestitures Sell-Side Representation Knowledge • Expertise • Relationships Other companies serve the industry We’re IN the industry. we’re in it, with YOU. Over 50 years of industry experience, over 600 closed, industry transactions and the network to prove it — we’re FMI and

PCCA Journal|3rd Quarter 2012 7 RDUP News Idaho/Oregon/Washington Clearwater Power Company - $13,524,000. Funds will be used to serve about 500 consumers, build and improve 132 miles of distribution line and 5 miles of transmission line, and make other system improvements. Indiana Whitewater Valley Rural Electric Membership Corporation - $12,000,000. Funds will be used to serve 240 consumers, build and improve 121 miles of distribution line, and make other system improvements. Kansas Leavenworth-Jefferson Electric Cooperative, Inc. - $7,580,000. Funds will be used to serve 375 consumers, build and improve 100 miles of distribution line, and make other system improvements. Kentucky Pennyrile Rural Electric Cooperative Corporation - $22,894,000. Funds will be used to serve about 2,800 customers, build and improve 248 miles of distribution and make other system improvements. Warren Rural Electric Cooperative Corporation - $13,000,000. Funds will be used to serve about 3,300 consumers, build and improve 216 miles of distribution line, and make other system improvements. Minnesota Lake Region Electric Cooperative - $27,151,000. Funds will be used to serve about 1,300 consumers, build and improve 151 miles of distribution line, and make other system improvements. Mississippi Coast Electric Power Association - $51,766,000. Funds will be used to serve 9,240 consumers, build and improve 246 miles of distribution line, and make other system improvements. North Carolina Central Electric Membership Corporation - $22,000,000. Funds will be used to serve about 2,800 consumers, build and improve 102 miles of distribution line, and make other system improvements. USDA Announces Loans for Rural Electric Utilities Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack on August 9 announced that rural electric utilities in 18 states will receive loan guarantees to make improvements to electric lines and transmission facilities and to reduce peak electric loads by deploying smart grid technologies. The following is a list of rural utilities that will receive USDA funding, which is contingent upon the recipient meeting the terms of the loan agreement. New York Steuben Rural Electric Cooperative, Inc. - $9,362,000. Funds will be used to serve 318 consumers, build and improve 121 miles of distribution line, and make other system improvements. Oklahoma Northwestern Electric Cooperative, Inc. - $18,306,000. Funds will be used to serve 912 customers, build and improve 134 miles of distribution line, and make other system improvements. South Carolina Central Electric Power Cooperative, Inc. - $44,347,000. Funds will be used to build 77 miles of new transmission line. South Dakota/Minnesota East River Electric Power Cooperative, Inc. - $62,207,000. Funds will be used to build 44 miles of transmission line, three new substations, and make other system improvements. South Dakota/Iowa/Minnesota Sioux Valley - Southwestern Electric Cooperative, Inc. - $39,098,000. Funds will be used to serve over 1,400 consumers, build and improve 618 miles of distribution line, and make other system improvements. South Dakota/Montana/North Dakota Grand Electric Cooperative, Inc. - $14,164,000. Funds will be used to serve 153 consumers, build and improve 185 miles of distribution line and 1 mile of transmission line, and make other system improvements. Texas Comanche County Electric Cooperative Association - $18,469,000. Funds will be used to serve 1,068 customers, build and improve 143 miles of distribution line, and make other system improvements. Virginia Southside Electric Cooperative - $44,881,000. Funds will be used to serve 1,460 customers, build and improve over 700 miles of distribution line and 9 miles of transmission line, and make other system improvements. RDUP News continued on page 8

PCCA Journal|3rd Quarter 2012 8 USDA Rural Development is making available up to $7 million in High Energy Cost Grants during fiscal year 2012 to assist communities where expenditures for home energy exceed 275 percent of the national average. The maximum amount of grant assistance that will be awarded under this notice is $3 million. Applicants must demonstrate that proposed communities meet one or more high energy cost benchmarks, such as average total household energy costs that exceed $4,860 annually. Funds may be used to acquire, construct, extend, upgrade, or otherwise improve energy generation, transmission, or distribution facilities. Extremely high energy costs in rural and remote communities typically result from a combination of factors, including high energy consumption, high per-unit energy costs, limited availability of energy sources, extreme climate conditions, and housing that is not energy efficient. Eligible applicants include states, local governments, businesses, federally recognized Indian Tribes and Tribal entities, and other entities organized under state law. Georgia Colquitt Electric Membership Corporation - $20,000,000. Funds will be used to build and improve 478 miles of distribution line and make other system improvements, serving 3,284 customers. A similar announcement on July 11 covered loan guarantees for 15 states, including the following projects. Illinois Rural Electric Convenience Cooperative, Inc. - $7,900,000. Funds will be used to build and improve 45 miles of distribution line and make other system improvements, serving 229 customers. Iowa Corn Belt Power Cooperative - $55,788,000. Funds will be used to finance generation system improvements and minority ownership in the Walter Scott Jr. Energy Center Unit 4. The loan includes $22,838,826 in environmental improvement projects. Maquoketa Valley Rural Electric Cooperative - $3,250,000. Funds will be used to build and improve 252 miles of distribution line and make other system improvements, serving 635 customers. Kansas The Ninnescah Rural Electric Cooperative Association, Inc. - $9,670,000. Funds will be used to build and improve 410 miles of distribution line and make other system improvements, serving 359 customers. Kentucky Licking Valley Rural Electric Cooperative Corporation - $19,726,000. Funds will be used to build and improve 186 miles of distribution line and make other system improvements, serving 1,250 customers. Michigan/Indiana/Ohio Midwest Energy Cooperative - $24,000,000. Funds will be used to build and improve 208 miles of distribution and transmission line and make other system improvements, serving 1,100 customers. Minnesota Red Lake Electric Cooperative, Inc. - $5,166,000. Funds will be used to build and improve 58 miles of distribution line and make other system improvements, serving 188 customers. Missouri Barry Electric Cooperative - $14,335,000. Funds will be used to build and improve 47 miles of distribution line and 12 miles of transmission line and make other system improvements, serving 822 customers. North Carolina Surry-Yadkin Electric Membership Corporation - $20,000,000. Funds will be used to build and improve 114 miles of distribution and transmission line and make other system improvements, serving 1,489 customers. Cape Hatteras Electric Membership Corporation - $9,792,000. Funds will be used to build and improve 17 miles of distribution and transmission line and make other system improvements, serving 290 customers. Oklahoma Verdigris Valley Electric Cooperative, Inc. - $12,900,000. Funds will be used to build and improve 27 miles of distribution line and make other system improvements, serving 936 customers. Pennsylvania Adams Electric Cooperative - $40,000,000. Funds will be used to build and improve 200 miles of distribution line and make other system improvements, serving 1,443 customers. South Dakota Southeastern Electric Cooperative, Inc. - $36,972,000. Funds will be used to build and improve 467 miles of distribution line and make other system improvements, serving 1,610 customers. Texas Houston County Electric Cooperative, Inc. - $8,347,000. Funds will be used to build and improve 421 miles of distribution line and make other system improvements, serving 2,000 customers. USDA to Assist Rural Communities with Extremely High Energy Costs RDUP News Continued from page 7

CALL NOW FOR A QUOTE 800-558-0999 l www.uelc.com Join us at the NECA Show in Booth 2233 RELIABLE RENTALS AND LEASES Best Equipment. Best Solutions. Best Team. YOUR WAY

when we say all terrain, we mean all terrain. Why All Terrain? Because it’s the directional drill that’s most effective in the widest range of ground formations, including solid rock. Its patented shaft-within-a-pipe design features a hex-shaped rod that turns inside an outer pipe to allow continuous rotation of the drill bit. Can your machine drill and steer simultaneously through rock and rocky soil? Only if it’s got the name All Terrain. To learn more, see your dealer or visit ditchwitch.com/at. ditchwitch.com ©2012 The Charles Machine Works, Inc. ORIGINAL, INDUSTRY-LEADING TRIHAWK™ DOWNHOLE TOOLS NOW AT YOUR DITCH WITCH® DEALER. Learn more at ditchwitch.com/trihawk.

PCCA Journal|3rd Quarter 2012 11 So many people are urging contractors to refrain from defaulting to the tag line “on time, on schedule, and on budget,” that talking about it has almost become a cliché in its own right. Make no mistake, the advice still stands. The real question is, “How does a construction company demonstrate a real and higher-order understanding of, and commitment to, a client’s needs, not just lip service?” The answer lies in proactively managing customer service—the third and final “piece” of the business development jigsaw (alongside marketing and sales) and the one that is so often taken for granted. Executing and delivering a project is where contractors feel at home. After all, this is where the rubber hits the road—where we get a chance to do what we do best, build something. It is the other two “pieces” of the jigsaw that are seemingly so foreign and pose the greatest challenge to most companies—handling the “black art” of marketing and efficiently managing our resources to nurture leads, develop selling propositions, and close deals (i.e., sales). The reality is all too often very different. While customer service is the easiest and most tangible component to grasp mentally, only very skilled contractors do a great job of truly bringing the concept to life within their organizations. Faced with today’s pressure on margins, it is easy for employees to focus on production, not on customer service. Customer service deals with delivering value to the client to ensure both success on today’s project and winning the next. This service needs to happen 100 percent of the time. Your customer service process is what your field, project management and administrative functions are doing to ensure that clients get everything they have been promised in both the contract requirements and the procurement process (i.e., sales promises). What are the rewards of getting customer service right? The answers are obvious: increased customer retention, positive word of mouth, improved reputation in the marketplace, and opportunities for increased revenues. The flipside results are no more complex when poor customer service is provided. Highly successful contractors create distinct linkage among the three components of business development (sales, marketing, and customer service) and make the process real for those who promise—and those who must deliver what is promised to your client (see Figure 1.) We can control the messaging during the work acquisition phase, but any perceived “service quality gap” in the delivery phase creates dissonance between the client’s understanding of what has been promised and the reality of its perceived delivery. There is the heart of the issue, how your perceived ability to deliver directly impacts your brand—the outcome of what you say versus what you do. Although you might like to believe otherwise, the reality is you do not have complete control over the brand. Your brand lives in the minds of your clients, competitors, industry influencers, employees, and others. Though the name and logo belong to you, what they represent and the image they conjure are an entirely different issue. Service Quality Gaps Thinking through a service quality gap model is bread and butter to those who make their living in the service industry. Think of hotels, airlines, restaurants, banks, and any other “true service” industry where service quality depends on so many variables. Employee action (or inaction), uncontrollable events, disgruntled customers, an uncertain service delivery—all of these impact whether the promise is matched in delivery. This all adds up to “heterogeneity”—the everpresent variability that is a key difference in delivering services rather than factory-produced widgets. Companies in service industries constantly seek to eliminate problems that can arise because of heterogeneity. Using service quality gap models, they seek to identify and find ways to close the customer satisfaction gap. By using the same approach, construction companies, too, can identify Building Quality Customer Service As you roll out customer satisfaction initiatives, take a page out of the playbooks of companies in the service industry. By Stephen Boughton Figure 1 Continued on page 12

PCCA Journal|3rd Quarter 2012 12 and isolate some of the key problem areas. Identification of specific gaps is a first step in mitigating service quality gaps. A key factor to consider is the service interface line separating the customer and company (see Figure 2). To what extent is your project team considering the impact of its actions “above the line”? Contractors who do this well are those who have created a best-of-class customer service culture. You can identify gaps through evidence supplied by customer surveys or through candid conversations, observations, and discussion by experienced participants. Some typical gaps and underlying causes include: Provider Gap 1—Not knowing and/or communicating what clients expect • Failure to understand basic and higher-order needs during the work acquisition phase • Failure to communicate known expectations to all individuals involved in the project • Insufficient relationship focus—are we making the right “touches”? • Failure to understand the needs of other stakeholders— owners, community, architect, users, etc. Provider Gap 2—Having poor-quality designs and standards • Poor process/service designs in general (billing, change orders, project updates) • Absence of client-driven standards (something specific for this project, rather than our “usual” approach) • Lack of physical evidence (appearance of our people, equipment, project site, etc.) that matches our desired brand Provider Gap 3—Not delivering to defined standards • Failing to deliver the promised paperwork, reports, etc. • Deficiencies in our people, whether through lack of information, education, or motivation • Client’s failure to fulfill its role by not providing the information we need to make decisions • Problems with intermediaries and other stakeholders (other trades, consultants, advisors, etc.) Provider Gap 4—When promises do not match performance • Simple overpromising, raising client expectations beyond our capacity to meet • Inadequate internal cross-project communication • Failure to manage ongoing client expectations • Lack of ongoing client management satisfaction Look back at a recent project and consider how many service quality gaps you can identify. Then consider how many of these gaps could have been avoided through a more methodical approach to improve customer service and therefore satisfaction. Many construction companies conduct detailed post-job reviews to assess how operational performance could be improved in the future, but how often does one take the same approach to improve customer service? For companies that live and die in the service industry, these are questions they continually ask of themselves. How can we improve queuing efficiency, how can we reduce the time between order and delivery, how can we improve the Figure 2 Quality Customer Service Continued from page 11 Continued on page 14

Eastern / Central USA 921 S. Burleson Blvd., Burleson, TX 76028 800-666-6567 Fax : (817) 447-8917 Western USA 19020B S.W. Cipole Rd., Tualatin, OR 97062 800-444-7064 Fax : (503) 692-0474 E-mail: sales@wagnersmithequipment.com Burleson, TX Dayton, OH Tualatin, OR Lawrenceville, IL Sanford, FL Phoenix, AZ Ontario, CA wagnersmithequipment.com wagnersmithequipment.com NOW BUY OR RENT POWERLINE CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENT ONLINE! Get All The Lineman Tools & Equipment You Need ... Online! • Everything you need for powerline and telecommunications line work • Over 1000 high quality lineman tools and products • Heavy-duty stringing blocks • Most in stock and ready for fast delivery • Backed by 85 years of industry experience Tool&Block_Ad_4C_7.25x10.25indd.1 1 8/23/07 11:24:29 AM

PCCA Journal|3rd Quarter 2012 14 customer experience, and so on. Should we not ask ourselves similar questions in the construction world? Addressing Service Quality Gaps Service quality gaps exist, but then what? How does a contractor demonstrate a real commitment to client needs, not just lip service? By default, the solution begins and ends with your people. The solution seems to be simple: instruct your employees to be “customer-focused” or “put the customers first.” This approach is so general, so vague that it leaves the average employee wondering what those words really mean in practice. What is it that I am supposed to do differently, better, more frequently, not at all, more forcefully, more gently, etc.? One successful approach is to break down concepts of customer service into manageable portions and then provide tangible examples or “sticky stories” to focus desired behaviors. Here are five dimensions of service quality (RATER, for ease of memory) that can be shared easily and adapted to fit your company. What would achieving high marks on “RATER” look like in your company? Reliability • Provide service as promised • Handle client/project problems dependably • Perform services/information right the first time • Provide services/information at the promised time • Maintain error-free records Assurance • Employees instill confidence in clients • Employees are consistently courteous • Employees have the knowledge to answer client questions or know where to go to find the answers • Employees who handle surprises and crises calmly and with confidence Tangibles • Quality of equipment • Visually appealing facilities • Employees with a neat, professional appearance • Good jobsite and field office housekeeping • Maintenance of equipment at high standards of functionality, safety, and appearance Empathy • Give clients individual attention • Deal with client issues in a caring fashion • Have the clients’ best interests at heart • Understand the needs of the clients • Be open and available at all times Responsiveness • Keep clients informed as to when services will be performed • Provide a decisive and prompt reaction • Be willing to help clients • Be ready to respond to clients’ requests Power of the People The success of this approach rests on the capability and willingness of your people. The curmudgeonly project manager or superintendent who spends his or her time barking orders with a “my way or the highway” approach will likely consider talk of service quality gaps and RATER as “soft.” In today’s market, companies are looking for the secret formula that will edge out the competition and fill their backlog. The formula is no more than creating a relentless appetite for customer service in your people. What strategies can you employ to achieve this renewed focus? • Hire the right people. In addition to technical competence, select for service awareness and competency. • Develop people to deliver service quality. Train for interactive skills and encourage teamwork. • Provide needed support systems, such as supportive technology, equipment, and effective internal processes. • Ensure that existing and contemplated incentives reinforce the right behaviors. Eliminate those incentives that encourage counterproductive behaviors in your team members. • Retain the best people. Treat employees as customers, and measure and reward strong service performance. Ultimately, a service culture is key to closing service quality gaps. A service culture exists when giving good customer service is a natural way of life in the company and time is spent seeking ways to become ever better in delivering great customer service. Customer Service Mapping Exploring how a client is “touched” during the course of the project sets you on the right track. Understand the quality of the interaction from his or her perspective, not yours. Consider how a guest’s experience is handled at a premium hotel such as the Four Seasons brand. The brand conjures up an image of a smooth, relaxed “Four Seasons experience.” What appears smooth on the surface takes a great deal of time, efQuality Customer Service Continued from page 12

PCCA Journal|3rd Quarter 2012 15 fort, and energy behind the scenes to ensure the result meets client expectations. It is the apparent calm of a swan, while beneath the surface, the legs are kicking furiously. By developing your own process flow chart, you can document the optimal process for your work and identify possible service quality gaps. Consider Figure 3, a simple process that demonstrates the actions supporting a straightforward overnight stay. There are four primary components in this process: • Customer actions • “Onstage” contact employee actions • “Backstage” contact employee actions • Support processes and systems The level of client interaction, client visibility, and internal interaction (back of house) varies as the guest moves through the process, but all efforts should be aligned to achieve the best possible outcome. This is no different from a construction project, with its wide cast of characters on-site or supporting from the office. Yet how often do simple issues become huge headaches as a result of poor internal communication or lack of awareness of customer concerns? To make matters worse, rarely is the client represented by a single individual. More likely, many different entities are acting on behalf or in support of the client, including owner’s representatives, in-house users, facilities managers, consulting engineers, and numerous other stakeholders. Developing and using this approach may appear to be an onerous undertaking. You do not have to map the entire construction experience with every possible interaction. An easy start is to bring together a cross section of employees from both office and field and spend time analyzing some of the key touch points in the construction process. Where are the key challenges, what are the most common items to fall through the cracks? After all, failures of communication between the field and project management teams are a constant source of gripe, frustrating for all involved. What is the impact on the client, and what can be done to smooth out or overhaul a step in the process to yield a more positive result? Every interaction with a client, influencer, or other stakeholder should be treated as a service encounter. Each encounter is a moment of truth and can be crucial in determining customer satisfaction and loyalty. How do we use these opportunities to build trust, reinforce quality, build brand identity, and increase loyalty? Active Client Management Determining “how we’re doing” is key to identifying and addressing service quality gaps and potentially dissatisfied clients. Apparently, this is more difficult than it appears, evidenced by the large number of contractors who have not formalized a process for acquiring client feedback. On one hand, you are concerned about being seen as needy or unsure Figure 3 Continued on page 16

PCCA Journal|3rd Quarter 2012 16 of yourself. This can lead you to ask for little or no feedback, particularly during project construction. Perhaps you leave it all until project completion, on the basis that you do not want to encourage bad news and rock the boat while the project is under way. Perhaps you do not ask for formal feedback at all because it is a “regular client who likes us.” All these options fail to acknowledge one simple fact. There is no one-size-fits-all approach when it comes to seeking client feedback. Some clients may want to provide monthly updates, others none at all; perhaps some leave feedback to project managers, while others want to communicate only at senior levels. The only way to determine the right approach is to discuss and agree to the options on the front end of the project— how often we will check in, who will do so, how formal, written feedback or verbal, and so on. At the very least, do not lose an opportunity to capture a positive client reference. Just as important, however, is learning of a service quality gap at an early stage. In addition, do not rely on those closest to the project to solicit the feedback. If they are neck-deep in the project, they are less likely to assess feedback in the wider context of the client relationship. Remember those client expectations and how failure to reach them leads to a service quality gap? Well, why not make a big deal of those expectations and ensure they are communicated to all project team members. Posting a “customer charter” at the project site puts those expectations in plain view. Again, this moves you beyond “cost, quality, schedule” and focuses on conceivably softer, though highly important, issues: environmental concerns, access issues, respect for the nearby community, a client’s value set. In one swoop, this act focuses your people’s actions and at the same time broadcasts your intent to the client—a great marketing opportunity. In the U.S. airline market, Southwest Airlines has long been touted as being the most successful at managing service quality gaps. For years, legacy airlines pursued customers on the basis of “full service,” while Southwest focused on a low-cost carrier model, which seemed to resonate with customers. It is true to say there are many issues that impacted Southwest’s success over the years—fuel hedging, use of nonunion labor and single-model aircraft fleet, to name but a few. While these impacts have a real cost impact, other aspects of Southwest’s model were successful because of a focus on customer service. Customer Value Starts with the Customer While this might seem obvious, many companies have built their service proposition around their capabilities and not customer needs. Service definition should start with the customer—which services do not improve service quality (and therefore can be removed) and which are highly valued by customers and may be added or expanded at relatively low cost? The Importance of People Southwest Airlines recognized the importance of employees from inception. In a no-frills environment, there is little for customers to “consume” other than the experience with the airline’s people. In a service environment, it is essential to recruit, train, and nurture employees who buy into the service proposition that involves cross-discipline activities—flight attendants who clean planes, for example. Unwillingness to perform a variety of duties means frontline staff can become a cost burden and a liability, not an asset to the organization. Manage Customer Expectations Arguably, the most effective part of Southwest’s strategy is carefully creating and communicating the “no-frills” value proposition to customers. If customers buy in to this contract from the beginning and are under no illusions, then the opportunity to exceed expectations is created and even the good humor of the flight team becomes a “free” extra. Quality Customer Service Continued from page 15 Case Study: Southwest Airlines and Customer Service

PCCA Journal|3rd Quarter 2012 17 Branding Your Approach How does this approach to customer service provide you with a competitive advantage in the marketplace? It boils down to whether you are “doing what you promised.” More importantly, is your approach something that is institutionalized and replicable to the extent you are confident in delivering for the next client and the next project? This is where branding comes back into play. Can you develop a favorable relationship between the customer and your brand, and can you keep it fresh to make the association readily accessible in the customer’s mind? How can you leverage the brand if you are in the midst of pursuing a new client? You will not yet have had the opportunity to demonstrate this in action. The key is to translate the experience with other clients and demonstrate how it will be applied to the prospective client. To clarify, this is not simply providing an inch-thick stack of project résumés. There are a number of people with equally impressive résumés of similar completed projects. Focus energies on how it is your understanding of the prospective client’s needs, customer service, identification of service quality gaps—the focus on service quality that truly sets you apart from other contractors. As with many concepts, you have to “walk the walk” to truly create a unique point of difference. Simply saying “me too” is not going to cut it. Excellent customer service must be a top priority for everyone in the organization. Actual change, not marketing spin, separates you from the competition and delivers value—and therefore your ability to win (or lose) repeat work. As you roll out customer satisfaction initiatives, take a page out of the playbooks of companies in the service industry. Strive to make service quality a part of your living culture, not just a tag line. Stephen Boughton is a consultant with FMI Corporation. He can be reached at (813) 636-1245 or sboughton@fminet.com. This article is reprinted with permission from FMI Corporation, (919) 787-8400. For more information, visit www.fminet. com or call Sarah Avallone at (919) 785-9221. WWW.FS3INC.BIZ Electric Hydraulic Pump Easy Access Hoses Enclosed and Lockable Pump Housing All LED Lights Holding Bar Retaining Tabs Load Range H Tires on 17 1/2” - 8 Bolt Rims Rated up to 8000# GVWR Manual Hydraulic Pumps Dual acting cylinders provide pressure for lifting & lowering. Both cylinders have independent operation Optional Sign & Base Holder Electric Brake System and Safety Breakaway Package DOT Conspicuity Tape facing all directions Great New Feature! Spring Loaded Retaining Pins Replaceable Jack Stand OR Trailers for the Reel world !!! New Reel Winder OpTION!!! (Powered by HONDA ENGINE) SALES SERVICE SUPPLY CALL US - WE DELIVER! 320-274-7223

SUPPORT AFTER THE SALE. At Vermeer, earning your confidence is not a pursuit we take lightly. That’s why you can count on your local Vermeer dealer for experienced service technicians and genuine Vermeer parts throughout the life of your machine. From periodic maintenance to keep your asset in peak condition, to advice on tooling and accessories for your next project, Vermeer experts are a call, click or text message away. To learn more, talk to your local dealer or log on to vermeer.com. VERMEER.COM Vermeer and the Vermeer logo are trademarks of Vermeer Manufacturing Company in the United States and/or other countries. © 2012 Vermeer Corporation. All Rights Reserved. LEGACY. FOUNDER GARY VERMEER WOULD OFTEN FLY HIS PLANE TO PERSONALLY SERVICE MACHINES AND DELIVER PARTS.

PCCA Journal|3rd Quarter 2012 19 Telecom News Rural Telecom Leaders Warn Obama About Universal Service Cuts Looming reductions in federal Universal Service Fund (USF) and other rural telecommunications cost-recovery programs pose a threat to the repayment of public and private loans and will jeopardize the administration’s efforts to provide ubiquitous broadband access and stimulate rural economies, telecom leaders from more than a dozen states said in an August 23 letter to President Barack Obama. The letter urges the President to help “put the promise of rural broadband back on track.” Among other things, the group has been seeking an immediate suspension of new untested and unpredictable caps on USF support that are already preventing rural providers from planning and initiating the long-term network investments necessary for rural broadband. The group has also been urging the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), which adopted these reforms, to study their effects on broadband adoption, broadband deployment, consumer rates, and provider access to capital markets prior to making yet further changes that might only exacerbate the current problems. The USF cuts and related reductions in intercarrier compensation (ICC) rates are already yielding increases in consumer rates in rural areas, causing most network providers to reconsider rural broadband investments in the pipeline and prompting lenders and investors to limit access to capital for further investments. Such developments put at risk the Obama administration’s vision of universal broadband access and are frustrating efforts to stimulate rural economies and promote job creation and retention through the $7.2 billion broadband infrastructure development program in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. “In 2009, your administration pressed for an economic stimulus package that had the twin aims of promoting job creation and, as you said at the time, ‘building a 21st-century infrastructure,’” the group stated in the letter requesting a meeting with the president. “Now, however, other federal ‘reform’ efforts are throttling the predictable revenue streams needed to justify the business case for such operations and to help facilitate repayment of these stimulus loans, other Rural Utilities Service (RUS) loans, and private loans. “It is essential that our national broadband policy does not merely ‘trade off’ unserved rural areas or create situations in which the significant efforts of small providers to deliver broadband become ‘frozen in time’ or, worse yet, deteriorate over time,” the group added. “Moreover, at this critical juncture in our nation’s road to recovery, it would be unfortunate indeed to pursue a USF and ICC reform plan that injects regulatory uncertainty into the marketplace and calls upon small businesses to cut jobs and hike prices.” Telecom News continued on page 20 The National Broadband Map Is Updated By Lynn Chadwick, Acting Director, State Broadband Initiative, NTIA Today [July 25] we again updated the National Broadband Map, the unprecedented interactive map that shows what high-speed internet service is available in the United States. The map is powered by a new set of data from 1,865 broadband providers nationwide—more than 20 million records—and displays where broadband is available, the name of the provider, the technology used to provide the service, and the maximum advertised speeds of the service. Since its launch last year, the National Broadband Map has attracted more than 650,000 users who are employing the map to meet a variety of needs. For example: • The map is helping consumers and small businesses who are unaware of their broadband options. In Utah, for instance, a mid-sized company in the health care field was losing time and money due to frequent broadband outages at a rural office. The company considered moving these jobs to its headquarters in an urban location. However the company was able to use the National Broadband Map to

PCCA Journal|3rd Quarter 2012 20 On July 19, the Federal Communications Commission released the results of its ongoing, nationwide performance study of residential wireline broadband service in its second “Measuring Broadband America” report. The FCC says the report continues its efforts toward bringing greater clarity and competition to the home broadband services marketplace. This year’s report reveals that broadband providers have significantly improved accuracy in actual versus advertised speeds during the past year and that consumers are subscribing to faster speed tiers and receiving faster speeds than ever before. “Millions of Americans have improved broadband performance,” FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski said. “This is good news for consumers and the economy, but we need to keep pushing for faster broadband speeds and greater capacity. Bandwidth abundance is essential to driving innovation and unleashing the benefits of broadband, including increased education, healthcare, and job-creation opportunities across the country.” The FCC released the first “Measuring Broadband America Report” in August 2011. That report covered data collected in March 2011 and found that most broadband providers who participated in the study were providing over 80 percent of advertised speeds during peak usage periods. The July 2012 report reflects data collected from participating broadband providers in April 2012. Specifically, the report indicates two key areas of improvement. First, broadband providers’ promises of performance are more accurate. In the period measured for the August 2011 report, the average broadband provider delivered 87 percent of advertised download speed during times when bandwidth demand was at its peak. During the time period measured for the July 2012 Report, that number rose to 96 percent. FCC analysis indicates that the improvements of internet service providers in meeting their advertised speeds were largely driven by improvements in network perforTelecom News Continued from page 19 Confined Space Ventilation Made in the U.S.A Toll Free: 1-800-525-8460 | email: sales@pelsue.com | web: www.pelsue.com Pelsue blowers are manufactured and assembled right here in the United States insuring the highest quality of products. The motor components, blower housing, power cables, are manufactured in the United States as well as the high density plastic molded casing. Before any Pelsue product like the 1325P Blower Model leaves the Colorado facility it receives an extensive and rigorous Quality & Assurance check to ensure that each and every customer is getting a safe, reliable, quality product. All Pelsue products are manufactured and assembled in Colorado. identify other broadband providers in this rural county and retain hundreds of jobs in this rural area. • Businesses are using the map to identify and analyze potential employment locations. For instance, the Kansas Department of Commerce and a customer service company used the map to identify communities with the broadband necessary to support home-based workers. As a result, the company hired about 200 workers in the state, providing much-needed jobs in small towns that may have otherwise been overlooked for this work. Similarly, an online training company used the map to identify South Dakota towns where they can locate new offices, which will support more than 100 professional jobs in these rural locations. • The map has supported academic research at more than 1,000 colleges and universities and been used by more than 500 city and county governments. And developers are using the data from the map to create new applications. In the past nine months, Application Programming Interfaces have been called more than 20 million times. FCC Releases Second “Measuring Broadband America” Report

PCCA Journal|3rd Quarter 2012 21 mance and not downward adjustments to the speed tiers offered. Second, consumers of broadband providers covered by the report are subscribing to faster-speed tiers and receiving faster speeds than ever before. The FCC found that the average speed tier that consumers were subscribing to increased from 11.1 Megabits per second (Mbps) to 14.3 Mbps, an almost 30 percent increase in just one year. Because providers also did a better job in the testing period for this report of meeting or exceeding their advertised speeds, the actual increase in experienced speeds by consumers was even greater than advertised speed, from 10.6 Mbps to 14.6 Mbps, representing an almost 38 percent improvement over the one-year period. The FCC began focused attention on this issue in the National Broadband Plan (NBP). Since then, by continuing to shine a spotlight on actual versus advertised speeds, the FCC said it is ensuring accountability, increasing transparency, and enhancing competition in the marketplace. The report is part of a comprehensive series of initiatives that draw upon cooperation between the commission, industry, and other stakeholders to promote transparency and ensure that consumers get the information they need to make informed marketplace decisions. The increase in the availability and adoption of faster-speed tiers is a positive indicator that the U.S. market is moving toward the goal set out in the NBP that at least 100 million homes should have affordable access to actual download speeds of at least 50 Mbps by 2015 and 100 Mbps by 2020. Expansion in high-speed networks across the country will provide economic opportunities, increase civic engagement, deliver on the promise of better access to healthcare and online learning, and help fuel the development of a smart power grid and a more highly interactive and responsive public safety network. Infrastructure empowers innovation, and innovation drives demand for infrastructure. Broader access to fast broadband will encourage the expansion and adoption of cloud computing, more productive telecommuting, online education, telemedicine, and more. To read the complete July 2012 “Measuring Broadband America Report,” visit www.fcc.gov/measuring-broadbandamerica. Telecom News continued on page 22

PCCA Journal|3rd Quarter 2012 22 Telecom News Continued from page 21 NTCA Urges Members of Congress to Oppose Cybersecurity Act The National Telecommunications Cooperative Association (NTCA) in July urged members of Congress to oppose the Cybersecurity Act of 2012 (S. 3414) and to continue seeking a solution that will secure the nation’s critical infrastructure while also allowing infrastructure owners to invest and grow. “Today, all Americans continue to struggle in the face of deep and protracted economic challenges, and this is particularly true in the case of rural Americans and the companies operating in rural communities,” said NTCA Chief Executive Officer Shirley Bloomfield in a letter to members of Congress. Bloomfield stated that under current law, the telecommunications sector is already subject to mandatory, enforceable network operational and reliability standards aimed at protecting critical communications assets and the ability of consumers to utilize them, whether or not emergencies and threats exist. And despite the bill’s so-called “voluntary” compliance practices, companies choosing not to comply would have to explain to Congress why they did not, she said. “America’s rural communications providers are already hard pressed to remain afloat in the face of a series of FCC regulatory actions that are cutting off their ability to recover their costs and maintain affordable rates for their consumers,” Bloomfield stated. “The last thing this dynamic and entrepreneurial industry needs is further uncertainty created by more job-killing federal regulation of the nature envisioned by this legislation.” Calix Expands View into Broadband Usage in Rural America In July, Calix, Inc., announced the availability of its latest “U.S. Rural Broadband Report,” based on internet traffic information drawn from more than 50 U.S. communications service provider networks from the first quarter of 2012. Since the release of the inaugural “U.S. Rural Broadband Report” last April, the scope of the applications tracked and scale of the endpoints monitored has grown significantly, increasing 40 percent to more than 180 internet applications and 100,000 endpoints across rural America. The latest report also features a new detailed analysis of the peak broadband speeds subscribers experienced during the Q1 period, which found more than 70 percent of rural broadband subscribers are receiving service below the 4 Mbps downstream target of the Connect America Fund (CAF), while over 90 percent are experiencing upstream speeds lower than the CAF’s target of 1 Mbps. As was seen in the Q4 edition of the report, video streaming continued to dominate rural broadband networks in Q1, accounting for 64 percent of downstream internet traffic, fairly consistent quarter-over-quarter. Upstream video streaming traffic, however, grew significantly—increasing more than 40 percent to account for nearly 19 percent of all Q1 upstream internet traffic. In addition, video streaming made a bigger impact in all-fiber networks than other networks in the quarter, generating 70 percent of the downstream traffic in those networks. Along with the application-specific findings, the Q1 report provides a new level of insight into the broadband speeds rural Americans are experiencing. The most common peak downstream broadband rate consumed was between 1.5 and 3 Mbps during the quarter. Sixty percent of rural broadband subscribers in Q1 received a maximum downstream broadband speed of 3 Mbps or less, a fraction of the typical peak broadband speeds currently seen in most urban U.S. areas. However, the report also found in some areas of rural America with access to the high-end broadband services, subscribers enjoyed some of the fastest broadband speeds in the country, peaking at more than 100 Mbps in some communities and reaching up to 1 Gbps in the most advanced areas. “As we continue to fine tune the Calix Rural Broadband Report, we are finding more powerful ways to help our service provider customers plan, manage, and troubleshoot their networks,” said Miguel Alonso, Calix vice president of software products. “Based on the overwhelming positive

PCCA Journal|3rd Quarter 2012 23 A new report from Juniper Research has valued the smart home market at $60 billion by 2017, rising from $25 billion this year, driven by strong growth within the smart home entertainment segment, along with contributions from other segments including smart monitoring & control and smart health. The report “Smart Home Ecosystem: Connected Devices, Service Models & Revenues 2012-2017,” noted that many definitions can be attributed to the smart home concept and these definitions have evolved over the years to include different facets of connected life, such as entertainment, control, security, and health. With the role of broadband connectivity moving beyond its traditional use cases, new applications and enhanced services have emerged such as connected TVs, home automation systems, and smart meters. These new and improved applications, connected via broadband (mobile or fixed) network systems, will increase the service revenue attributable to the area. The new report observed that no stakeholders or individual members of the smart home ecosystem can succeed in isolation; operators, content providers, and vendors need to collaborate for a mutually beneficial business model. Report author Nitin Bhas noted that even though there are no single leaders within this space, service providers are coming forward and taking a proactive role: “Cable operators and broadband service providers have a major role to play as they have an existing billing relationship with the consumers. Bundling other features into existing services enable them to be in a much better position within the pyramid, compared to other new entrants.” response from our inaugural report earlier this year, we are now tracking significantly more applications and endpoints - providing a much richer sample and more granular analysis. Moving forward, we will continue to expand and refine our data set to this report and shine an increasingly bright light onto the broadband needs of rural Americans.” Smart Home Revenues to Reach Almost $60 Billion by 2017

RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MjE3MDU=