Truck Dealer of the Year Speaks to Business Students
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- For the past 17 years, professors at Indiana University's Kelley School of Business have helped select the Truck Dealer of the Year for an annual competition held by the American Truck Dealers and Heavy Duty Trucking magazine. As the award recipient, the winner is invited to Bloomington to talk to students about entrepreneurship and marketing. This year, Richard "Dick" Sweebe, president and CEO of Diamond Companies in Memphis, Tenn., shared his "top 10 keys to success" with graduate and undergraduate students in the school's entrepreneurship track. Sweebe shared tips such as "look professional and act professional" and "be organized and look organized." He also advised the students to "set goals and set an example for others; make mistakes and learn from them; and enjoy what you do."
Sweebe, who will celebrate his 60th birthday later this month, began his career fresh out of college with International Harvester Co. In 1982, with the help of the company he opened his first dealership and sold just under $20 million his first year. Today, under his leadership, Diamond Companies has grown to $220 million in yearly sales and nearly 600 employees. The company recently celebrated the completion of a $6 million expansion of the Memphis dealership, which doubled its size.
Sweebe's success also caught the attention of the president of his alma mater, Adrian College, who asked him to speak to business students at the small school in Adrian, Mich. Sweebe visited the campus right after Bloomington and spoke to students about the similarities between today's tough truck market and the market in 1971, when he graduated. Sweebe's ability to devise innovative solutions during tough times was one of the reasons the Kelley business faculty picked him for the Truck Dealer of the Year award. "His story is a testimony to the commitment, strategic vision and perserverance of a single individual," Lynn McGee, chair of the 2009 Truck Dealer of the Year Selection Committee, told Heavy Duty Trucking magazine. "Sweebe's continual innovation in customer service programs suggests the source of his organization's strength and growth in its markets."
Source: ATD Newswire
