Action and Accomplishment: NECA President Dennis Quebe’s Goals

Following a video-recorded welcome by U.S. Senator Dean Heller of Nevada, NECA President Dennis Quebe took the stage to open Sunday’s General Session. He described his travels over the past nine months, saying he “found the whole process exciting, frustrating, and stimulating all at the same time.

“NECA has been working hard make labor agreements more competitive, government more responsive, and to find new market opportunities for all of us,” Quebe said. He emphasized the need to move beyond discussion by characterizing the theme of his presidency as “action and accomplishment. Our industry needs “less talk and more action.”  He summarized the three main priorities he has as NECA President:

1. CW/CE Classification – Quebe advocated for CW/CE classification in every IBEW labor agreement.  He is committed to making Category 1 language for CW/CE and said that it is the best tool the industry has but is not being used to its potential.  “I know the reasons why, but after seven or eight years of talking about it, it’s time to complete the job.  Local unions must embrace the reality of our marketplace.  NECA members must aggressively change their business models to employ CWCE in the mix.”  Quebe said NECA is sponsoring training sessions around the country to teach and encourage members to use this tool.

2. Labor Agreement Benefits Package – While expressing pride in the benefits NECA members promote and their role in ensuring a quality workforce, Quebe said, “We can’t set ourselves apart to the point these benefits prevent us from securing projects.”  He cited the inflexibility and ineffectiveness of the benefits as currently structured.  “We are looking for short- and long-term solutions to these problems.”

3. Going After New Business Aggressively – “The name of the game is sales and market development,” Quebe said.  He recalled a 1950s NECA campaign called ‘Sell More and Bid Less,’ saying, “That sounds like something we need to revive in this decade.”

Quebe emphasized the importance of finding new market opportunities and actively selling them if the industry wants to prosper and grow. NECA is hiring business development professionals and charging them with finding new market opportunities for the industry.  He encouraged members to attend the business development meeting starting at 2 p.m. on Monday and recommended all NECA members add a business development person to their companies. “There are plenty of business opportunities for our industry.  We just need to find and take advantage of them.”