Page 45 - Peterson 85 Years and Going Strong

In 2008, Howard Peterson’s granddaughter discov- ered a document in the basement archives outlin- ing those original core principles. The header read: “Company Goals–Peterson Tractor Co.” and was compiled by Buster Peterson, Peterson’s VP and general manager at the time. Duane Doyle Sr. presented that chart—by then over forty years old—to his own executive committee. The two corporate visions were amazingly consistent, proving Howard’s initial philosophy—that trust, follow-through, and basic decency are
the building blocks upon which lasting rela- tionships are built.
Those original objectives are reflected in Peterson’s Core Values of today:
Customer First: The reason we exist.
Integrity: We do what we say.
Excellence: Best in all we do.
Teamwork: Together we do what we couldn’t do alone.
Fun: We enjoy what we do.
In March 2011, Peterson underwent a top-down reorganization to usher in the new strategy. “We were organized for a much higher volume of business than we were doing during the recession,” explains Duane Sr. “We had so many things going on that we needed a more structured, collaborative approach. We were too large to man- age by the seat of our pants anymore.” Peterson was organized into distinct companies—Peter- son Tractor Co., Peterson Power Systems, Peter- son Machinery, Cresco and SITECH—all under the umbrella of Peterson Holding Co.1 And that created business silos—each with its own presi- dent, its own operating budget, and its own goals. The restructure retained those same legal entities but reporting to a common COO—Jeff Goggin. What emerged was a leaner company built on a whole-team, cross-function platform. In essence, One Company—One Team: Peterson.
PETERSON’S CORE VALUES:
Customer First:
The reason we exist.
Integrity:
We do what we say.
Excellence:
Best in all we do.
Teamwork:
Together we do what we couldn’t do alone.
Fun:
We enjoy what we do.
1 Peterson Trucks Inc., or PTI, was added in June 2011.
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