National Hardwood Magazine is reaching out to company leaders across the industry to solicit their input on key issues that impact overall business success. In this publication, Eric Porter shares his insights.
Eric Porter, President
Abenaki Timber
Kingston, NH
www.abenakitimber.com
Abenaki Timber Corp. operates two concentration yards. One in Epping, NH and the other in Belington, WV. These two yards have a combined yearly production of around 18 million board feet. Each yard has five SII dry kilns with a capacity of 250,000 BF per yard. In New Hampshire the yard concentrates heavily on 4/4 and 5/4 Hard and Soft Maple, White Ash, Red Oak, and Yellow Birch, along with some Cherry and other various species. The company will do 6/4 and 8/4 thicknesses but relies on the 4/4 and 5/4 for the bulk of the products.
In West Virginia they concentrate on 4/4 and 5/4 Basswood, Cherry, Beech, Hickory, White Ash, Yellow Birch and 4/4 -12/4 Poplar.
Q: Company culture is a top priority for any business leader. What factors contribute to your company’s culture and how is your company’s mission defined?
A: Our company’s mission is to provide quality, consistency, and service at the highest level possible. There are many companies out there who make fine Hardwood lumber. We try to do that and make sure that our customers and vendors know how much we appreciate them and do our best to help them succeed in their goals as well. We also know that all of our employees spend a good part of their lives working and we want them to enjoy working for Abenaki Timber Corp.
Q: How important do you believe it is for company leadership to lead by example in creating a positive, productive, cohesive workforce?
A: In order to be successful we try to make sure that everyone who works for us has a voice and we try to listen carefully to what they have to say. I learned that from Steve French and I have tried to emulate that attitude and pass that along to the next generation. We believe that if you listen to your employees you can head off potential problems before they occur and solve the ones that happen when they do. Our reaction to problems is not to play the blame game but to identify the reasons for the problems and get to the solutions quickly. We enjoy working here and we do our best to make the work environment as pleasant as we can from the top down.
Q: What programs and/or incentives do you have in place to motivate employees so they are not simply “going through the motions”?
A: At the main office we have a family atmosphere encouraging everyone to pitch in wherever needed to achieve our common company goals. At the lumber yards our yard managers have the autonomy to offer incentives of various kinds that they feel make their operations as safe and comfortable as a lumber operation can be. It is a major challenge considering the work, but we try to think outside the box and do production incentives and celebrate achievements and holidays in creative ways.
Q: Briefly describe any recruitment/retention programs that your company offers.
A: Our first priority is to try and promote from within. This has been an Abenaki policy from the very beginning. We make that plain to any employee who walks through the door. If we can’t find what we need from within we usually start with our personal industry connections to get the word out and then use trade publications like NHM and others to recruit. The Hardwood industry is unique so we try to recruit from within the industry. Our benefit package and incentive programs are the best tool we have in addition to our work environment for retention.
About Eric Porter:
“My wife of 40 years (KAREN) and I have two grown and married children and 6 grandchildren who we love to spend time with. We are very active in our local church. I love ice hockey and still try to play at least once a week. We both enjoy outside activities such as boating, skiing, golfing, and walking. I also enjoy hunting, fishing and woodworking.”
