As it’s been said many a time, Ajax’s strength is its people. One of the things that stood out to me most when I started working here three years ago was the number of people here with such longevity at the company. It speaks to the culture of the company that people choose to come work here and also choose to stay. It also speaks to the quality of the employees being brought in and retained. While it can almost feel cliché to hear it repeated that our strength is our people, it absolutely is. What else would it be, our fleet of equipment, our asphalt plants? Without great people to operate and care for our plants and equipment, we wouldn’t have much.
Our Strength is Our People
Just as is with our equipment, where Ajax has committed so much to proper care and maintenance, we need to ensure that we are taking care of our most valuable asset in that same way. Our people. It’s odd to think about, but often we end up spending more time with the people we work with than maybe we do with our own families. In that way, we definitely get to know each other, know when our teammates are feeling good, and we tend to know when they are not.
It’s vital to the success of this company that we purposefully take care of and look out for each other in the same way we purposefully take care of our equipment. When you notice that someone seems “off”, go and check on them. Ask if they need a break or have something they want to talk about. Not everyone is always willing to discuss their issues, but it’s always important to check and give them that opportunity. The industry we work in is a very dangerous one and being distracted on the job, or not having our heads in the game, can be deadly.
Along the same lines, it is equally important that we look out for ourselves. We won’t always be feeling our best, day in and day out, but we need to make sure we are doing what we can to try to be. We can eat right, hydrate well, get the rest we need to at least feel physically well. We owe that to ourselves and to those we work with. We can also take the time and care needed to ensure we are mentally fit for the workday as well. And on those days where we may not be, we need to take the steps needed to get better, whether that’s asking for help or maybe taking some time to decompress and just talk to someone. However, we deal with our stresses, it’s important that we don’t ignore our own care needs and that we do not shy away from seeking help. Through our health insurance, there are a number of options out there for seeking mental health care, and obviously the physical care we all need as well.
Again, we, the employees of Ajax, our it’s most vital asset. And we owe it to ourselves and our teammates to ensure we properly look out for one another and look out for ourselves. When I think of leadership, I think of the people we are charged with leading, or being led by. And if we take care of our people, ourselves included, then we’re setting ourselves up for success, both at work and at home.
Project Manager
