Built on Iron, A Brilliant Harvest Podcast copertina

Built on Iron, A Brilliant Harvest Podcast

Built on Iron, A Brilliant Harvest Podcast

Di: Remi Schmaltz
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Built on Iron dives into how machinery dealerships deliver exceptional service. Brilliant Harvest CEO Remi Schmaltz talks with dealership leaders about operations, technology, customer experience, and the stories that define this industry.©2026 Brilliant Harvest Economia Gestione e leadership Leadership
Episodi
  • Beyond the Hard Iron: How AI Is Reshaping Equipment Dealerships

    Beyond the Hard Iron: How AI Is Reshaping Equipment Dealerships
    Sep 28 2026

    A dealership can have more than a century of history without being stuck in the past. Pat McCrabb, General Manager of JJ Nichting Company, shares how the five-location Case IH and New Holland dealership stays rooted in customer trust while continually evolving the way its teams work. From radio-dispatched technicians and paper manuals to connected equipment and AI, Pat sees technology as valuable when it makes employees more effective and helps customers get answers faster.


    Pat and Remi discuss how JJ Nichting is putting AI to work across service operations, using knowledge from work orders across multiple locations to help service managers and technicians troubleshoot, quote jobs, and find answers faster. They also discuss extending AI directly to farm customers for setup, calibration, and equipment questions, reducing repetitive seasonal calls while freeing dealership experts to focus on more complex problems. For Pat, the goal isn’t to replace expertise but to make that expertise more accessible and valuable.


    Looking ahead, Pat sees technology becoming an increasingly important dealership differentiator. As equipment grows more complex, farms and dealerships consolidate, and autonomy advances, successful dealers will need to understand far more than the iron itself. For dealership leaders considering how AI can strengthen service, support leaner teams, and improve the customer experience, download The Equipment Dealer’s Guide to Creating an AI-Powered Customer Experience at BrilliantPowered.com.


    About Pat McCrabb


    Pat McCrabb is the General Manager of JJ Nichting Company, a family-owned Case IH and New Holland equipment dealership with five locations serving customers across Iowa and Missouri. The business traces its lineage to the late 1800s and is identified as the oldest Case IH dealership in the United States.


    Pat began his career as a technician, giving him a hands-on perspective on how equipment service has evolved from paper manuals and radio dispatch to laptops, connected equipment, and AI-powered knowledge tools. Today, he brings that process-driven approach to dealership leadership, with a focus on customer support, employee development, technology adoption, and sustainable multi-location growth. His perspective combines respect for a long dealership legacy with a willingness to change processes when better tools can help employees and customers move faster.



    Key Moments:

    [00:02:44] The “Duct Tape” Philosophy of Customer Communication

    [00:06:05] How a Century-Old Dealership Keeps Innovating

    [00:08:20] Getting Dealership Teams to Actually Adopt Technology

    [00:09:39] The Growing Challenge of Hiring Technicians and Parts Staff

    [00:13:36] Putting AI and Dealership Work-Order Data to Use

    [00:17:22] Giving Farm Customers AI-Powered Support

    [00:22:01] Dealership Consolidation and the Case for Multi-Store Growth

    [00:27:16] Why Technology Could Become the Dealer Differentiator

    [00:31:44] Where Autonomous Farm Equipment Is Actually Headed

    [00:40:09] What the Successful Dealership Looks Like Five Years From Now


    Resources discussed in this episode:

    • Working Genius by Table Group podcast


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    Contact Remi Schmaltz | Brilliant Harvest:

    • BrilliantPowered.com
    • LinkedIn: Remi Schmaltz
    • LinkedIn: Brilliant Harvest
    • YouTube: Brilliant Harvest
    • The Equipment Dealer's Guide to Creating an AI-Powered Customer Experience
    • Make Your Equipment Experience Brilliant — Schedule a Demo

    Contact Pat McCrabb | JJ. Nichting:

    • JJNichting.com
    • Facebook: @jjnichtingcompany
    • Instagram: @jjnichtingcompany
    • YouTube: JJ Nichting Company
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    45 min
  • What OEMs Need From the Next Generation of Dealers with Megan Tanel (AEM)

    What OEMs Need From the Next Generation of Dealers with Megan Tanel (AEM)
    Sep 7 2026
    Megan Tanel, President and CEO of the Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM), joins Remi Schmaltz to discuss how technology is changing the relationship between OEMs, dealers, and equipment owners. As connected equipment, precision tools, software, and data become more important, dealers are taking on a new role: helping customers understand and adopt the technology built into the equipment they operate.Megan explains what manufacturers increasingly need from their dealer networks, from stronger digital capabilities and faster diagnostics to software support, data interpretation, and better communication between customers, dealers, and OEMs. They also discuss mixed fleets, interoperability, dealership consolidation, and how established manufacturers can work more effectively with technology startups.They also look at the workforce shortage across manufacturing and dealerships, the knowledge leaving the industry as experienced employees retire, and where AI and autonomous equipment can help. For dealer principals, Megan’s message is straightforward: disruption is coming, but adopting everything isn’t the answer. Stay open to learning, understand where technology creates real value, and build the capabilities customers will need next.About Megan TanelMegan Tanel is President and CEO of the Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM), an industry association representing more than 1,000 member companies and over 200 product lines across agriculture, construction, mining, forestry, and utilities. Megan has spent her career working across the equipment manufacturing ecosystem. Her perspective spans trade shows, industry collaboration, workforce development, technology standards, public policy, and the evolving relationship between OEMs, dealers, and equipment users. That experience gives her a broad view of where the equipment industry is heading and what dealers will need to do to remain central to it.Key Moments:[00:03:26] Megan shares what it's like bringing the equipment industry together at CONEXPO-CON/AGG in Las Vegas.[00:06:10] How OEM, dealer, and end-user relationships have shifted from transactions toward an interconnected equipment lifecycle.[00:08:35] Why competitors need trusted spaces to collaborate on safety, workforce, data standards, sustainability, and industry growth.[00:11:55] How established equipment manufacturers can respond to the accelerating pace of technology and AI.[00:15:26] Megan's outlook for agriculture and construction equipment markets heading through 2026 and toward 2027.[00:19:26] Why tomorrow's equipment dealer needs to become a technology translator for customers.[00:22:18] The skills dealers will need as the business shifts from selling equipment toward selling uptime and connected services.[00:25:07] Why dealership consolidation only makes sense when it produces a better outcome for the customer.[00:26:34] Mixed fleets, interoperability, connected equipment, and the shift from reactive repair to predictive support.[00:29:51] How OEMs can work more effectively with technology startups—and the role AEM can play in creating those connections.[00:34:27] The workforce shortage across manufacturing and dealerships and the industry's growing knowledge-transfer problem.[00:38:31] Where AI and autonomous equipment could have the greatest impact on productivity, safety, and workforce constraints.[00:42:55] Megan's advice to the next generation of women entering equipment and manufacturing leadership.[00:46:29] One piece of advice for dealer principals navigating technology disruption: be ready, keep learning, and understand where new technology fits.Resources discussed in this episode:Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM) — industry association representing equipment manufacturers across agriculture, construction, mining, forestry, and utilities.AEM Advisor — AEM's free twice-weekly industry newsletter.CONEXPO-CON/AGG — the AEM-run construction equipment trade show discussed by Megan.Agritechnica — the German agricultural machinery exhibition discussed in relation to the international trade-show cycle.The Alchemy of Air by Thomas Hager—Contact Remi Schmaltz | Brilliant Harvest: BrilliantPowered.com LinkedIn: Remi SchmaltzLinkedIn: Brilliant HarvestYouTube: Brilliant HarvestThe Equipment Dealer's Guide to Creating an AI-Powered Customer ExperienceMake Your Equipment Experience Brilliant — Schedule a DemoContact Megan Tanel | Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM): AEM.org LinkedIn: Megan Tanel
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    49 min
  • Why Customer Experience Is Your Dealership's Biggest Profit Driver with Ryan Condon

    Why Customer Experience Is Your Dealership's Biggest Profit Driver with Ryan Condon
    Aug 17 2026

    Technology may be changing the equipment dealership industry at an unprecedented pace, but Ryan Condon believes one thing hasn't changed at all: people still buy from people. The dealerships that thrive over the next decade won't simply adopt new technology—they'll combine it with exceptional communication, strong leadership, and a relentless focus on customer and employee experience.


    Remi Schmaltz sits down with Ryan Condon, CEO and Founder of SATISFYD, to discuss the findings from SATISFYD’s new Revenue Signal Report, an analysis of more than 20 million dealership transactions representing $36 billion in customer spend. Their conversation explores how customer feedback is far more than a satisfaction score—it can be an early warning system for lost revenue, declining customer lifetime value, and operational weaknesses hidden inside the dealership.


    Ryan explains why communication is often the biggest driver of customer satisfaction, not price, and how dealerships can use customer experience data to predict future business performance, and why investing in employee development ultimately produces better customer outcomes. The discussion also explores the growing expectations shaped by Amazon, AI, and digital-first experiences, while highlighting why dealership leaders must continue investing in people alongside technology.

    About Ryan Condon


    Ryan Condon founded SATISFYD in 1998, providing an enterprise-level Voice of the Customer solution for heavy equipment dealers to stay on top of customer issues until they were resolved. In 2001, SATISFYD introduced one of the industry’s first cloud-based Customer Experience Management platforms, marking the beginning of a strong growth period driven by innovation. This SaaS solution allowed clients to access real-time results, reports, and insights across the enterprise in multiple languages while maintaining strict security measures to protect their data. Today, Ryan continues to lead with the same grit his father had when they started the company over 20 years ago, drawing inspiration from clients, staff, and industry trends to drive innovation and improvement for manufacturers and dealers worldwide.


    Resources discussed in this episode:

    • The SATISFYD Revenue Signal
    • The 2026 SATISFYD Technician Experience Benchmark Report
    • The 2026 SATISFYD Employee and Customer Experience Benchmark Report
    • The Tim Ferriss Show


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    Contact Remi Schmaltz | Brilliant Harvest:

    • BrilliantPowered.com
    • LinkedIn: Remi Schmaltz
    • LinkedIn: Brilliant Harvest
    • YouTube: Brilliant Harvest
    • The Equipment Dealer's Guide to Creating an AI-Powered Customer Experience
    • Make Your Equipment Experience Brilliant — Schedule a Demo



    Contact Ryan Condon | SATISFYD:

    • Satisfyd.com
    • LinkedIn: SATISFYD
    • The SATISFYD Podcast
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    52 min
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