We’re having a fascinating conversation about the changing role of the equipment professional. I say “we” because it’s a community conversation that’s taking place on our LinkedIn group, Construction Equipment.
If you’re not a member of that community, please join us. We’re more than 1,700 strong, and we include equipment pros, OEMs and distributors, and others interested in the industry. Members are looking to buy and sell machines, there is some job and recruitment activity, and we have a large international contingent.
We initially created the group as a community around our magazine: Construction Equipment. But it has evolved into much more than that. Now it’s a community around our industry: construction equipment. Since you’re reading this blog, online activity is not unfamiliar and the idea of participating in discussions or asking questions of peers is probably not too big a step to take.
Equipment executives learn from each other, they learn from their suppliers, and they learn from others in the marketplace. Events such as Conexpo-Con/Agg and association conferences provide opportunities for face-to-face conversations, conversations from which this profession garners much. But waiting for an annual equipment show or conference delays the answers that can increase management effectiveness.
That’s where online communities such as LinkedIn come in. Chances are someone in the group will either have an answer for or be able to direct you to an answer for almost any question related to equipment management.
Construction Equipment has created two other online venues to broaden access to the equipment community. These complement our print publication and are specifically designed to provide more immediate information on new products and industry news.
Facebook and Twitter are less conversational and more immediate than LinkedIn. We post breaking news and new-product information daily to both these groups. Twitter posts occur regularly throughout the day; our Facebook page is a bit more discerning, offering a Product of the Day and only key news items. We differ in this because of the nature of the medium.
In fact, the items published electronically on Twitter and Facebook don’t show up in print for several weeks. At Construction Equipment, we operate online first, print second in our new product coverage. Such is the nature of today’s online community.
To gain access to any of our online communities, simply “follow” us. It’s that simple.