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Growth Rings: A History of The Davey Tree Expert Company and Companion to Green Leaves

The Davey Tree Expert Company provides residential and commercial tree service and landscape service throughout North America. Read our Flipbooks for helpful tips and information on proper tree and lawn care.

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61 60 Growth Rings Brub. Smith had been the last true businessman in the family to hold the company reins. A month before his departure, Smith penned a letter to the company board of directors in support of the changes proposed by the employees regarding the manage- ment structure. "If I were to continue as (chairman and) CEO, I would approve of and want these changes," Smith wrote. Change at the top of the organization included turnover on the board of directors. Donald J. Hardy resigned from the board of directors as did Cruse W. Moss, who had argued for a different direction for the company during the employee acquisition talks. Gene Haupt was elected to the company board of directors in May 1979. Ted Baer, who'd been named vice president and assistant to the president in 1978 with 38 years of Davey service, retired, but he continued for a brief time as a director. e new board makeup consisted of Martin L. Davey, Jr., as chairman; Jack Joy; Jim Pohl; Howard Eckel; Gene Haupt; Bert D. Stamp; Ted Baer; William Ginn; William G. Laffer, chairman of the board, Reffal, Inc.; Al Smith, retired chairman; and Edward P. Taylor, retired chairman, executive committee, Union Commerce Corporation. e acquisition necessitated the establishment of a new management group within the company. Joy was elected president and chief executive officer. Jim Pohl, formerly senior vice president of finance and administration, was elected executive vice presi- dent and treasurer. Pohl had served on the employee-ownership committee with Joy and now had responsibility for the finance, research and development, field services, and treasury areas. ose reporting to Pohl included Doug Cowan, who was named vice president of finance, Roger Funk, who was named vice president of research and development, and Bert D. Stamp, who was senior vice president in charge of corporate administrative functions. Howard Eckel, formerly vice president of utility services, was elected senior vice president of operations. In his new position, he was responsible for tree care and utility services, marketing services, and Davey Tree's Canadian and California operations. ose reporting to Eckel included: Gene Haupt, who was serving as vice president and general manager of Davey Tree Surgery in California; William F. Heim, vice president and general manager of Utility services; John S. Miller, vice president and general manager of Davey Canada; and Donald J. Shope, vice president and general manager of tree care services. In California, Haupt continued to benefit from the assistance and leadership of Bob Oyen, vice president of finance, and Paul Daniel, vice president of operations. Several other long-time employees moved into new corporate leadership roles. ese included Bert Stamp, who was responsible for personnel, safety, equipment, property, and purchasing functions. Vernon axton, director of purchasing, managed equipment, materials, and supplies. Ross McCafferty, personnel director, continued the development of employment standards as well as the deployment and implementation of training programs for all service lines. McCafferty had started with Davey in 1941, although his career – like many Davey employees' – paused while he served in the military from 1942 to 1946. He became employment manager upon his return and was promoted to personnel director in 1965. He would eventu- ally retire as director of corporate personnel in 1985 after having weighed in on union negotiations and served as an instructor at D.I.T.S.. Robert Holt, safety director, coordinated the company's safety program, which included standards of safety for personnel, equipment, and materials. Ralph Ferry, equipment manager, administered the records of the several thousand units of mobile equipment for the entirety of Davey Tree. Funk managed the Davey Horticultural Institute with continued assistance from William Jeffers and Henry Gilbertson. ese changes clarified authority and responsibility. ey also enabled people assigned new positions to understand and accept their responsibilities, in light of the employee-ownership acquisition, as the company approached its peak business period during the spring and summer months. Besides, the moves gave new and seasoned managers the opportunity to branch out and be progressive as they worked to grow the company – a goal explicitly stated in the 1980 annual report. "Our business plan for 1981 has been developed with continued growth objectives in all service lines, including Utility, Tree Care, Lawnscape, and our subsidiaries in California and in Canada," the report states. "Management is completing a strategic five-year plan that will provide direction and establish objectives to maximize the company's long-range opportunities. Integral strategies of this plan will key on personnel development, research and marketing as well as improved productivity, efficiency and continued improvement in the quality of our services." One of those seasoned managers was Bill Heim, who'd started with Davey in 1950 picking up brush. As vice president and general manager of utility services, Heim assisted Eckel in developing the five-year marketing plans for utility services. At the time, transmission and distribution line clearing was the bulk of the company's Chapter 4 By 1980, Davey employed close to 3,000 employees across the U.S. and Canada. Students attending the Davey Institute of Tree Sciences, the company's premiere training program, in the 1980s. A Davey crew at work during the early 1980s. Paul H. Davey, Sr., died in 1980 at the age of 86. Paul was the youngest of John Davey's sons and the last to officially join the family business, but like all four of them he had a tremendous impact on it. An ingenious engineer, his mechanical advancements and many patents greatly contributed to the success of the company in the early and mid 1900s. Paul was the founder of the Davey Compressor Company. Jack Joy, left, and Martin L. Davey, Jr. In October 1980, earlier than anyone expected, the employees moved to buy out Brub Davey, whose willingness to support the employee-acquisition in 1979 made the purchase possible. Davey retired as chairman three years later in 1983.

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