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Enterprising history The company began in 1957, when founder Jack Taylor ran an auto-leasing business out of the body shop of the Cadillac dealership where he worked. Business didn't take off until the 1960s, when Taylor realized the futility of trying to beat the larger rental companies at their own game, and thus moved into the less crowded market of replacement rentals. Business quickly grew, and by the 1970s, Enterprise began to expand into other segments, such as coffee and tea distribution. In the 1980s, Enterprise launched an aggressive and focused media campaign, targeting the older and more upscale viewership of the CBS Network. Sales continued to grow, leading to Enterprise's establishment in several foreign markets, including Canada, the U.K., Ireland, and Germany. 1/5th of the car rental pie With 500,000 vehicles and 4200 offices throughout the world, Enterprise can claim nearly 20 percent of the $16.5 billion U.S. car rental market, and enjoys a 56 percent share of the replacement market share. These numbers have made Enterprise the No. 1 company in the car rental business. Such impressive numbers translate into serious wealth for Jack Taylor. Forbes put his wealth at over $2 billion. Part one of the recipe for success: the right market What makes for such success? Certainly one part of the equation is the company's effective exploitation of the replacement niche. Rather than amass several thousand cars at major airports, Enterprise has sprinkled the land with thousands of offices, each with up to 300 vehicles maximum. Thus, Enterprise can provide cars to stranded drivers, wherever they may be. Andrew Taylor, Enterprise's CEO, likes to brag that 90 percent of the American population can get to an Enterprise office within fifteen minutes. Multiple benefits With such a network in place, Enterprise reaps the multiple benefits of the replacement market. These benefits include avoiding the onerous rents charged by airports, enjoying a more consistent demand (business travel fluctuates, but accidents always happen), keeping cars for longer, and renting cars for longer. As Jon LeSage, editor of Auto Rental News, once told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch: "repairs always take longer than they're supposed to." Part two of the recipe for success: the right culture A cozy niche, however, hasn't been the only factor driving Enterprise's success. Industry observers often point out the intense competition of the car rental 'biz as large, well-capitalized corporations duke it out for market share. What has helped Enterprise maintain its position has been an intense devotion to salesmanship and a customer service mentality. To cultivate such a workplace, Enterprise makes sure that all employees do their share of cleaning and vacuuming cars, as well as shuttling vehicles to body shops and customers. Even Andy Taylor, in comments to Fortune recalled: "We were visiting an office in Berkeley, and it was mobbed, so I just started cleaning cars." And if getting down on your hands and knees doesn't sound like an ideal position, remember that Enterprise was named to Fortune magazine's "100 Best Companies to Work For" in 1999, mainly for hiring its management trainees and moving them quickly into management positions.
Enterprise Rent-A-Car provides a helpful career area at www.erac.com, where job seekers can submit resumes online. The company's Human Resources department is also extremely accessible by telephone at 1-888-WWW-ERAC. Our insiders recommend contacting local branches. Says one: "Probably the best way [to find job-related information] is to call a local branch and ask to speak with the branch manager. Tell him or her you're interested in working for ERAC and would like to get in touch with the recruiter or HR manager for the region. The best time to call is in the middle of the day on Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday when it's least busy. Don't call first thing in the morning or last thing in the evening, and never on Mondays and Fridays - those are the busiest hours." Regarding the kinds of candidates the company is looking for, heed the words of Fortune, which observed: "Hang around Enterprise people long enough, and you'll notice that despite their informal exteriors, most seem to have the competitive, aggressive air of an ex-athlete." Enterprise's COO, Donald Ross, told Fortune: "We hire from the half of the college class that makes the upper half possible. We want athletes, fraternity types - especially fraternity presidents and social directors. People people." Ross' observations are borne out by our insiders' comments. One recalled: "It was a weeding out process to find out who would be willing to wash a car in a full suit and completely ruin a pair of shoes. I also felt it was a test of your selling ability. How well can you sell yourself - that's what the company wanted to know." Another informant recalls that the interview process involved "an initial screening interview, followed by two or three interviews with area managers and regional managers, respectively."
Get ready to bust your chops Enterprise isn't bluffing about starting all its employees at the same level - and it isn't joking about getting their hands dirty. The result? Enterprise employees work hard. One contact sums it up: "Great company if you are prepared to put in a lot of hours." The same contact adds: "In my experience, they treat you well, but work you really hard. I would recommend being a really strong person with a fun, easy-going personality." Says another, "the hours are extremely long. Working for ERAC is not just a career, it's a lifestyle." One fatigued contact believes Enterprise "is a very demanding job. You are running around all day long. This makes for a long day." He warns, "just be prepared to wash a lot of cars. The job is not glamorous and there are long hours. The offices are generally open from 7:30 am to 6:00 pm and sometimes you can be caught until 6:30 or 7 pm, especially on Mondays and Fridays." Delta Kappa Enterprise The hard work at Enterprise, however, doesn't mean a dearth of fun. One insider explains: "The people you work with become your co-workers and playmates." Says another: "The employees of Enterprise are similar to a fraternity in the sense that they are a very close-knit group." A colleague picks up on the greek theme in noting "there is a great fraternity out there." And a former Enterprise employee tells us: "The atmosphere at Enterprise is really great for a fresh college grad because most everyone you'll be working with is in the same boat. The hardest thing about leaving ERAC was leaving the close friends I made. You really become best friends with the people you work with. It's a great mix of professionalism and fun." Pay your dues, and reap the benefits "I will say this," an Enterprise insider tells us, "it is a lot of work, but the rewards are tremendous." Another adds: "If your intention is to aim for management, there are significant rewards, but you WILL pay your dues for the first year and a half to two years." An insider with experience at Corporate HQ echoes this sentiment in noting: "Although the hours are long and the first couple of years are stressful, the survivors generally reach middle management and great compensation." Get "grilled" at Enterprise The starting rank at Enterprise is the "management trainee," a position that lasts for eight months to a year and a half. At the end of this period, Enterprise employees undergo a phenomenon known as "the grill," a three hour oral exam usually conducted by two Area Managers. One of our contacts tells us that the content of the exam will cover "aspects of the business, and your eligibility for promotion to Assistant Branch Manager." "After your grill," a different contact notes, "you can be considered for any number of jobs out of rental like HR, Accounting, Loss Control, Corporate, and so on." Regarding the pay scales in Rental, trainees usually start out at $25,000 to $35,000, after which advancements proceed as follows: Management Assistant (25-40k); Branch Manager (30-60k); Area Manager (60-150k); Regional Rental Manager (100k-200k); Regional Vice President (150-400k); and General Manager (unspecified). Sales culture As noted above, Enterprise has built its success by cultivating a vigorous sales ethic, a fact reflected in our insiders' comments. "Everything is based on performance, and not on tenure, which I like," says one contact. Another tells us that "the fastest way to get promoted is to be known for being excellent with customers, have stand- out sales statistics, and to show that you understand how a profitable branch is run." Another notes: "The most important thing about Enterprise [is] selling waiver. Waiver is the additional coverage that the renter can, and should, purchase for the rental. This is what Enterprise bases all the employees on. A matrix comes out every month which tracks waiver sales. A lot of monthly, weekly, and daily contests are based on waiver sales." Diversity: money talks Comments on diversity and gender equality also show Enterprise's intense focus on performance. A former Enterpriser tells us: "The company wants to make money, and it always seemed to me, whoever was working hardest and getting the best results moved up the fastest." Another says: "As a woman, I always felt very comfortable working in a male dominant environment, and didn't mind being in the minority. My performance spoke for itself, and there are benefits, like never having to wait in line for the bathroom at manager meetings!" Dress: formal America may be gradually casualizing, but Enterprise sure isn't. Says one insider: "The Enterprise atmosphere is professional and the dress is business (i.e. suits, heels, hose, the whole shebang) - never business casual." A different informant verifies this information: "The dress code is suits. Professional attire. Men wear dress slacks, white shirt, and tie everyday. Women wear business suits or other appropriate attire."
Ed Adams Human Resources (888) WWW-ERAC
Car leasing;Car rentals;Hotel beverage supplies;Non-food prison commissary supplies;Golfing facilities;Coffee/tea supply;Used car sales
Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group More Company Profiles For more career information, go to Vault.com ©2000, Vault.com Inc
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