Dixie Electric Company, Montgomery's oldest
electrical contractor, celebrates
100th anniversary
MONTGOMERY, Ala.— Electricity was still relatively new to Montgomery when Dixie Electric Company opened its doors in 1908. Introduced a mere 20 years before, the new kind of power lighting up the city drew the attention of a young man named Peter W. Crump. Crump saw electricity's exciting potential and proceeded to form Montgomery's first electrical contracting company.
From the start Dixie Electric Company played an important role in the life of the city. It maintained Montgomery’s trolley system, the first electricity-powered streetcar system in the U.S. It installed wiring and performed electrical maintenance and repairs in homes and businesses around town. As the town grew and prospered over the next ten decades, so did Crump's company.
A family tradition of customer service
The company today is sometimes confused with the power company of a similar name, Dixie Electric Cooperative. But to its base of 6,000 customers, there is no confusion. When they need an electrician to make repairs or install wiring, they know to contact Dixie Electric Company. As company president John Yelverton III likes to say in discussing his company's dedication to service, "They call Dixie, and it's done."
Customer service is today's mission and mantra for Yelverton, his management team and the 55 electricians and support people working at Dixie Electric Company.
John, who is the great grandson of the company founder, points with pride to the tradition of service that has always guided Dixie Electric Company. John was particularly inspired by his grandfather, J. Noble Crump, who led the company for six decades. He went to work for him in 1984 when he graduated from the University of Alabama with a degree in mechanical engineering. When Crump retired in 1989, John took over as president. Serving as vice presidents were his brother, Noble, and their close friend, Jimmy Jehle, whose father, Frank, had worked with the company his entire adult life.
Today's Dixie Electric Company handles everything from installing wiring for large industrial plants, commercial buildings and housing developments to making service calls to individual homeowners and businesses. Operations are divided equally between electrical construction work and service calls.
"Many electrical contractors perform service and repairs as a sideline, but we take that part of our business seriously," said Yelverton.
A focus on employees
John also takes seriously the importance of providing employees with both technical and customer service training. Everyone in the company attends training sessions of one kind or another. Training is conducted on everything from greeting customers on the phone to the use of the latest technology. Electricians attend one or two training sessions a week in-house, and once a year they attend a training center in St. Louis to update their technical skills.
John and other members of the management team meet with their staff on a regular basis to discuss each employee's personal and professional goals and how the company can help to achieve them. John believes that when his employees succeed in serving customers well, the company succeeds and is able to be of even greater benefit to its employees. He strives to show his employees that connection.
In addition to emphasizing strong employer-employee relationships and providing regular training, the company offers employee incentive and bonus programs.
Putting customers first
"Everything works together to keep our employees motivated, well trained and focused on taking good care of our customers," said Yelverton.
The end result is not only low employee turnover but also high customer satisfaction. The company is proud of the fact that 75 to 80 percent of its service calls come from existing customers or people referred by customers.
What lies ahead for Dixie Electric Company? Yelverton hopes to continue the company's pattern of steady, sustainable growth.
He believes the way to do that hasn't changed. It's still to take good care of his employees and customers.
