Notes from the meeting room: Steve Bridge, eStar Truck and Van

Meeting chaired by: Steve Bridge, managing director.

Why was the meeting called and who was in attendance? In attendance were all members of the leadership team, including the heads of sales, service, parts, marketing, HR, training, compliance, and quality, as well as the board directors. This was the first time that all 20 leaders from across the business were physically in a room together, since eStar formed in September 2020, due to Covid restrictions, so it was a great opportunity to bring the strategy to life and discuss leadership going forwards.

What was top of the agenda? The eStar strategic direction moving forwards. While this has been shared from a topline perspective in the business, the purpose of the meeting was to discuss the strategy in more detail, centring around leadership and how we can best work together to deliver the result.

What was decided as a result of the meeting? The positive, energetic, and thought-provoking meeting was inspiring, with many aspects of the business discussed. The agreement was to start to filter down the message topline to all colleagues on a team-by-team basis, with a real focus on people, and how we can collectively ensure the energy levels remain high.

Any other business? We looked at the top 10 most valuable global businesses to understand their methods, routes to market, and growth strategies, including a deep dive into McDonald’s, as the most insight can be gained from those with a mix of real estate, but utilising digital methods to suit customer requirements.

When is the next meeting, and what is it about? The leadership meeting will be followed up in October, with the team taking a deeper strategic dive into each area of the business, to better understand the dynamics, focus areas, team strengths, and direction in relation to the overall objectives. We will deliberately hold this off site to ensure free creative thinking is released. 

• Company: eStar Truck and Van
• Head office location: Warrington
• Principal business: Mercedes-Benz commercial vehicle dealer group
• Number of employees: 340