Throughout the year, we feature employees sharing their unique stories about their time at Ritchie Bros. In this edition, Stefan Buski, Employee Experience Specialist, talks about his journey from Equipment Inspector to his current role and how Ritchie Bros. has supported him in his career and personal life.
At Ritchie Bros., you may hear people say we bleed orange. What this means to me is that working at Ritchie Bros. is so much more than just a job—it’s a community where you feel supported by your teammates and the organization. The sense of community at Ritchie Bros. is one of the things I like best about working here.
And I have been fortunate to have explored a few roles in my career at Ritchie Bros. (RB) thus far. My RB journey started in December 2011 when I returned home to Canada after living and working overseas for five years as a day trader in Thailand and Turkey. I was looking for work and an old friend of mine, Jeff Koehler (who is still a great friend and colleague at RB), gave me a part-time opportunity working at the gate which eventually led to a full-time position as an Inspector—a role I loved because it allowed me to put my passion for photography to good use as I worked to inspect and document key information about all of the amazing equipment we transact at RB. During this time, I also got married and started a family. So, I dug in and learned as much as I could to support my family and give my son, Ben, who was born in 2012, a great life.
In 2015, I was given an opportunity by Jake Bumgarner (Yard Manager) to take on the role of Refurbishment Manager / Assistant Yard Manager, which I held for two years. These two years were a huge part of my RB knowledge progression. Jake saw my enthusiasm and guided me along supportively, giving me many tools and tips that I still use today. After two years as Refurbishment Manager, Chris Townsend (Regional Operations Manager) reached out to me about an opportunity as an Auction Coordinator, which allowed me to further expand my knowledge and progress in my career at RB.
Then in 2019, I took on the role of Field Inspector at the Orlando site. That’s when I made the move from Canada to the United States (U.S.) so that I could be closer to my son whose mother had moved to Florida to be closer to her family. Most recently, I joined the People Team (Human Resources) as an Employee Experience Specialist in June 2022. The role allows me to put all that I’ve learned over my 10 plus years at RB to good use as I work to provide an exceptional experience for all colleagues by helping to create a culture where everyone feels like they belong and recognized for great work and where colleagues are provided opportunities to have a positive impact in their day-to-day roles and in their communities.
Great work-life balance and flexibility
Regardless of the role, I’ve enjoyed a good work-life balance throughout my time at RB. In 2017, when I was an Auction Coordinator, my wife and I split. We decided that she would move back to Miami to be close to her family and Ben would remain with me in Canada. To ease the strain of being a single father, RB gave me the opportunity to drop down to part-time work and I was able to come in late and leave early as necessary in order to dedicate the time needed to be a good father to Ben. While it was a difficult couple of years, my job was never the issue—in fact, it was my place of solace due to the support I received from my managers and colleagues.
After about a year and a half, Ben’s mom was able to get settled in Florida and it was decided Ben would move in with her. I wanted to remain close to my son, so I started looking for jobs at the Yard (auction site) in Orlando. I applied for an Inspector position, and with the support and assistance of Operations leadership in both Canada and the U.S., I was able to transfer to Orlando. In addition to being geographically closer to Ben, my work was also extremely rewarding. I was able to travel to sites and connect with colleagues across the U.S. It made me proud to work for a company full of knowledgeable, hard-working, and caring people. And that’s true of RB colleagues regardless of country boundaries—we’re a global company with amazing people all over the world that are willing to support you in any way they can and you’d do the same for them as well.
Praise for internal mobility – transitioning from Operations to the People Team
While I was now in Florida with Ben, we were still a four-hour drive from each other. This meant I couldn’t be a part of his daily life and that a large portion of our time together was taken up by the commute. So, I was hoping to find an opportunity to work fully remotely which would allow me to move closer to and spend more time with him.
That’s when Adam Cripps, Field Inspections Manager and Chair of the RB Pride Employee Resource Group (focused on the LGBTQ+ community) let me know the People Team was looking for an Employee Experience Specialist. He sent me the job description and I was intrigued by the role. However, what really piqued my interest was the fact that the role could be fully remote, which meant I would be able to work from home full-time and move closer to my son.
So, I applied. And because Ritchie Bros. strives to provide opportunities for employees to develop their careers, the hiring manager for the position reached out for an initial conversation. I am now happy to be able to call that hiring manager my manager because I got the role. They saw the value my years of experience at RB in various roles brought to the table and I’m grateful to now be able to utilize all that experience and knowledge in my current role to help provide an exceptional experience for all colleagues.
Supported within
These are very exciting times for me, and the People Team has welcomed me with open arms. As the Employee Experience Specialist, I’m able to stay connected with my teammates from previous roles, meet even more colleagues due to the nature of my current role, and work to create an exceptional experience for all which is extremely rewarding.
Working remotely and living closer to my son has given me the opportunity to be the father I want to be, present and available. We have traded our daily virtual connection sessions with meaningful time spent together. As much as I bleed orange and as much as I love this company and the people that work for it, I am a father first. This new opportunity has given me the time and space to be me and work on what’s important to me.
My current manager, Phillip Lipka, allows me to bring my full self to work and trusts in my abilities. I can speak my mind and give input and suggestions openly as we work to enhance the employee experience together. Further, I receive constructive feedback and constant support. His guidance and confidence in me have empowered me in my work and as a person and I know that I will be able to continue to help my colleagues have better experiences at RB as a result.
Moreover, I’m excited to give back to the company that has supported me in so many ways. I’m using all the insight, connections, and experiences I’ve gained throughout my career to make RB an even better place to work. In less than a year in my new role, I’ve been able to support the roll out of a community giving platform that allows colleagues to have a positive impact in their communities, launch employee interest groups to support the health and well-being of colleagues, and partner with our Employee Resource Groups to continue to create a culture where everyone feels like they belong. I’m proud to say that I bleed orange—and I wouldn’t have it any other way.
If you’re interested in working at Ritchie Bros., I hope that my career journey has shed some light on what that might look like for you—and I hope it encourages you to apply. I don’t think you’ll regret it.