b'CHAPTER 09KEN OATHANGUS CONTINUED TO BUILD A STRONG AND VIBRANT BUSINESS AND OVERSAW THREE YEARS OF GROWTH BEFORE STEPPING DOWN AS CEO IN 2020. He was replaced by Bill Whitehouse, a true old-guard Kennards Hire man. Having risen through the ranks of the company over three decades, Bill knew the business almost as well as the family. It was fortunate that such a solid bloke was at the helm, because justas he stepped into the role, the world was plunged into a global pandemic.Bill Whitehouse has been critical to the success of 2020 ANDBEYONDKennards Hire over the last thirty years and is well-placed to drive the business forward, particularly during these uncertain times, Andy told reporters at the time.Kennards Hire emerged on the other side of Covid with the business intact, a renewed vigour, and a swathe of ideas for the future. One thing had remained rock solid: the most important thing for the business was to continue to make its customers lives easy. Kennards Hire had the drive to tackle the challenge. Opposite A Kennards customer with a Ken OathKEN OATHbumper sticker, 2021. As part of that commitment, in 2021, Kennards Hire developed the Ken Oath campaign aimed at keeping focus on the customer as king. Ken Oath was: YES we can help customers, YES we wont say no, OF COURSE we have what the customer needs, general manager marketing and customer experience Manelle Merhi says. But Ken Oath was also an oatha customer service pledge and a promise to deliver the best service.By taking the oath, new team members pledge to uphold Kennards Hires values of being fair dinkum and making every customer a raving fan. The cheeky and very Aussie slogan was a hit. It was seen as a fun, engaging and memorable way of communicating the companys customer service focus. In fact, Kennards Hire liked it so much, they trademarked it.'