Introduction

However, Enterprise Rent-A-Car has quite a different idea of what its business is all about. In Enterprise's view, the business it is involved in is customer satisfaction. This is a characteristic that it shares in common with every successful service company, large or small.

What is a service company?

A service business is one that meets customer needs by providing them with a valued service. As individuals, all of us use services – having our hair cut, going to the cinema, drawing money out of our bank account and many other activities. Businesses also use services such as transport, insurance, and financial services.

Enterprise Rent-A-Car is the number one rental car company in North America and arguably, the world.

Jack Taylor founded Enterprise in 1957 in the United States. It is a privately-owned business. Forbes ranks Enterprise as number 16 in the top 100 private companies in the United States.

Enterprise wins awards for achievements in many areas. These are some of those won in the UK and Ireland in 2006:

• Best Corporate Car Rental Company 2006 - Institute of Transport Management

• Top 50 'Where women want to work' - The Times with Aurora

• O2 Ability Awards 2006

• Service Provider of the Year 2006 - British Insurance Awards

• Best Graduate Advert and Best Graduate Web Site - Recruitment Advertising awards 2006.