By Jack Daly

We can’t expect different behavior than what we offer as an example. “We are the message” in our companies.

Business leaders today must develop ways to thrive during times of constant change. Below are 10 specific actions designed to gain peak performances from our most important resource – our employees.

Never before have we seen companies put so much pressure on their employees to work long and hard. John Hinrichs, president of the consulting firm Management Decision Systems, observes that “10 or 15 years ago, we used to talk about job enrichment. Now we talk about job engorgement.” Reasons for this stress-inducing tendency include the following:

• Corporate restructurings that have wiped out layers of managers without reducing the amount of work they used to do
• New technologies – which eventually will lessen the need for supervision – currently are causing tough transitions for managers and employees
• Increased competition coming from both large, efficient players and niche opportunists

Our challenge as leaders/mentors is two-fold. First, we must energize our associates so they can optimize their performance now. Secondly, we need to maintain balance and perspective in our own lives in order to have a proper working relationship with our associates.

You are the message

Communication is based more on action than on words. If we come in Monday morning out of sorts, walk straight to our office without saying “hello” to anyone and then shut the door – in what manner will our associates answer the phone that morning? We can’t expect different behavior than what we offer as an example. “We are the message” in our companies.

Here are the 10 things to think about and then proactively implement. If you think some of these 10 “energizers” need to come from the top of your organization to be successful, we remind you that leaders start where they are. Do these on your own, and then see what happens around you.

1. Energizers set direction for their units by writing quarterly mission statements. As part of this process, the team commits to established values. Enthusiasm is generated within departments as they formulate their shared missions. Revising those statements quarterly rekindles that energy and commitment, while also providing an opportunity for each person to develop appropriate short-term goals. Planning’s value is in the process, more than in the plan itself. Once your associates have “bought in” to your shared mission, you’re on your way to success!
2. Energizers truly listen and thus are plugged in to reality. They are both open and inquisitive, and their search for ideas is never-ending and boundless. Useful suggestions come from competitors, suppliers, customers, front-line associates, trade groups and your own mentors. Don’t assume that listening is one of the things you do best. Our booked calendars, busy travel schedules and constant phone calls don’t help us become better listeners. And, as an opportune occasion for listening occurs, too often we are talking. So, ask yourself, “How much time did I spend truly listening?” Good listeners practice “zero-based thinking,” which requires that we forget the way we’ve always done things, and instead look at situations in new light. One way to judge how much we value input is to figure the amount of time we spend in our offices, sitting safely behind our own desks. But, energetic new ideas emanate from where things are happening. Most of us, thus, need to spend more time in the field. You can start this process by talking with your customers and then acting on their suggestions.
3. Philosopher John Gardner refers to what he terms “tough-minded optimism.” Energizers possess such a spirit, which combines hope and realism as the driving forces in building a business. Again, focusing on customer needs helps make this happen. A leader is more interested in serving his customer than in worrying about what the board of directors will think. “If it’s meant to be, it’s up to me” is the rallying cry for energizers who, nevertheless, remain prudent and balanced They neither are foolish dreamers nor impassioned extremists. Instead, leaders are positive cheerleaders who each day provide a message of optimism for those with whom they work.
4. Energizers forever are thinking about and articulating their company mission and values. At least once a year, give a speech reinforcing what you and the company stand for. Nearly every successful leader relates the concern of repeating the same message too often. Yet his or her supporting team usually feels they can’t hear such a message often enough. Providing an over-all mission statement helps each unit to construct its own specific mission. Studies have shown that 74 percent of employees rank information sharing as very important, whereas only half of all executives felt this was what their associates wanted.
5. Where procedure manuals give rules, company stories offer morals. “Storytelling’s power is timeless,” says author Tom Peters. “The marketplace is demanding that we burn the policy manuals and knock off the incessant memo writing; there’s just no time. It also demands we empower everyone to constantly take initiatives. It turns out stories are a – if not, the – leadership answer to both issues.” Stories, which in a simple manner describe who we are and what we do, influence thinking and action more than procedure manuals do. Storytelling is one of the oldest forms of communication, and the energizer turns it into a powerhouse management tool that works in both large and small companies.
6. Energizers are bureaucracy busters. “It’s no wonder we manage our way to economic decline,” says Stanley Davis. “Our managerial modes don’t suit today’s business. We still are using the model GM founder Alfred Sloan developed for organizing corporate America back in the Twenties. As a result, we have industrially modeled organizations running post-industrial businesses.” Energizers know the value of the motto, “If it’s not broke, break it.” They work outside normal rules, and thus stand out in the eyes of customers and their own associates. By unleashing your creativity, you can spark the energy within your organization. Even simple changes can mean a great deal to your unit or company.
7. Great benefits can be found in delegating without abdicating. Remain accountable for your group, but don’t allow a decision to be made at a higher level in the organization than it needs to be. Your associates know the daily specifics of their jobs better than you do. Foster an environment in which they design their function in a framework consistent with the company mission and values.
8. Energizers understand the Pygmalion Effect. People usually accomplish what they believe they are expected to do. If we have high expectations as leaders/mentors, our associates probably will show excellent productivity. Ambitious expectations are built by energizers who believe in their own abilities to train and motivate their associates. Simply being demanding is insufficient. Your associates actually will rise to the level of your trust or fall to the level of your mistrust.
9. Energizing and leading people are more powerful than managing a process. By building trust with associates and customers, a leader/mentor puts together the team described in his or her mission statement. Effective leaders usually are appreciated for their interpersonal skills, rather than for their managerial abilities. People care more about what’s in a manager’s heart than about what is in his or her head.
10. An energizer surrounds himself with associates who are positive and realistic, rather than negative. A “can-do” attitude characterizes the energized leader/mentor. It is seen in the unwillingness to take “no” or “it’s never been done before” for an answer.

To make this possible, an energizer’s mission statement should include minimum production standards and continual training of staff. You also should spend most of your time assisting your best producers, rather than motivating and supervising marginal performers. Good recruiting practices are the basis of a productive office.

In addition, consider hiring an administrator to handle your routine paperwork, so that most of your efforts can be given to increasing production.

The characteristic of energizers who move organizations to their highest levels of performance is that of a dreamer. Fred Smith’s college term paper was graded “impractical” – but he used it as the basis for building Federal Express. Steven Jobs acted on his dream of having personal computers in every home and classroom.

Energizers manage their dreams; and each of us has a like capacity with regard to our business. If we resist change, we will only fall further behind. If we merely go along with change, then we will just keep pace with it. But, if we create change, we will be the ones who lead it.

Jack Daly brings 30-plus years of field-proven experience from a starting base with CPA firm Arthur Andersen to the CEO level of several national companies. Daly is a proven CEO/Entrepreneur, having built six companies into national firms, two of which he subsequently has sold to the Wall Street firms of Solomon Brothers and First Boston.

 

by Melissa DeDonder

With increased competition and a shaky economy, one of the biggest challenges facing binderies today may be keeping the doors open. Many binderies have been able to move from merely surviving to thriving in today’s marketplace by investing in the equipment needed to expand the range of services that they are providing. Four companies share the secrets to their success.

Slow and steady growth in packaging wins the race at CRT, Custom Products, Inc.

CRT, Custom Products, Inc., Whites Creek, TN, was founded in 1979 to provide top-quality custom packaging services for the entertainment industry in Nashville. Over the years, the company has expanded its customer base to service the national entertainment, software and communications industries.

CRT, Custom Products, Inc. is highly diversified, providing digital and offset printing, a complete prepress department, CAD/CAM package design, diecutting, gluing, folding, saddlestitching, foil stamping and embossing, riveting, turned edge products, blister/clam shell packaging, softcover bookbinding, fulfillment and distribution and much more.

“The secret to CRT’s success has been adding services slowly – expanding one service at a time over the years,” said Ron Brower, marketing director. “Every piece of equipment that we’ve bought has been customer driven – we wanted to offer our customers more value by not having to farm out the additional services that they needed,” Brower said. The company became a one-stop-shop for custom packaging services because it ultimately saves the customer money and keeps the entire project in-house – a win for the company as well as the customer.

Brower echoes a popular sentiment that referrals offer the strongest sales leads, but the company also relies on several traditional marketing services to get the word out, including print advertising, web banners, pay-per-click advertising, organic search engine optimization, email marketing and social media.

While the company has a wall full of gold and platinum records for musicians’ projects that it has manufactured, a key to success is the company’s many certifications. “They are as important to us as any award, because many of them were much harder to obtain,” Brower said. CRT, Custom Products, Inc.’s certifications include the following: G7 Print Media Master Certified, SFI Certified, FSC Certified and Nintendo of America Certified. In addition, the company is a Microsoft Certified Solution Provider and a WBENC Certified woman-owned business.

Book Boutique creates the unique for self-publishers

The Book Boutique, a division of Advantage Book Binding, Inc. in Glen Burnie, MD, provides complete book finishing services for self- publishers, with services that include specialty binding, repair work and custom packaging such as clamshell boxes, tablet cases and slipcases. In the summer of 2010, the company created its Book Boutique after noticing that many customers had been expressing an increased desire to create one-of-a-kind custom books that would stand out in the marketplace.

To create such masterpieces, the company uses various hand machines, turn-of-the-century book presses and antique blades in combination with techniques such as hand skiving and hand tooling. “The uniqueness of our boutique is the personal touch that we provide, which has been vacant in the marketplace for many years,” said Christine Webbert, director of the Book Boutique. “We feel that we take more of an in-depth approach, which helps us achieve goals and exceed expectations.”

The Book Boutique represents 20 percent of Advantage Book Binding, Inc.’s business. It has increased sales, provided more benefits to existing customers and increased the company’s pool of potential customers. The Book Boutique’s services are marketed through its own website – independent of the parent company – as well as through tradeshows and publishing conferences. Local book stores, schools and faith-based stores are targeted via sales flyers and personal visits from the sales team. In addition to these efforts, Webbert says that the company’s greatest marketing tools are client referrals and “word of mouth” advertising.

The Book Boutique has won numerous awards, including the 2012 Printing and Graphics Association MidAtlantic (PGAMA) Award for Best in Finishing/Binding – Q Award and the Best of Category in Finishing/Binding for the National Opera project, which featured raw silk and a clamshell custom box, and the 2011 PGAMA Best of Category in Finishing/Binding and the People’s Choice Award for the Charles E. Smith leatherbound book and slipcase.

New Hampshire Bindery goes for the gold with restoration and gilding

New Hampshire Bindery in Bow, NH, was founded in 1934. In the early days, the company’s collating, book lining and casing services were completed by hand. Over the years, machinery replaced much of the handwork and the company invested in new equipment to increase its capacity. By 1995, the company was binding more than two million books each year. Although the company had been restoring old books for years, with an influx of new equipment New Hampshire Bindery created a department specializing in restoration work and gilding that would take the company to new heights.

The machines needed for book restoration are highly specialized – skiving machines to prepare the leather, large stamping presses for the detail work and gilding machines that can apply gold to both straight and round corners. Plus, skilled craftsmen are needed to do the handwork. “These investments produce a book that people will treasure, not only for the contents, but also for its beautiful craftsmanship,” said Tom Ives, president/CEO.

“We are one of only a handful of binderies in the US that can offer such a wide spectrum of services,” Ives said. “And, specialty bookbinding is one of the only areas that we have seen growth in lately. While the economy is not very good, the market for people wanting leatherbound gilded books seems to be growing.” The company credits its website and its loyal customers, including book dealers and historical societies, for its boom in business. “We find that our customers are our best salespersons,” Ives said.

New Hampshire Bindery has won numerous local awards over the years, and last year the company won the Product of Excellence Award in the Special Products Category from the Binding Industries Association.

Specialty Finishing Group masters mailing and fulfillment services

Specialty Finishing Group, Elk Grove Village, IL, was founded in the 1920s by a father and son team who represented Spiral of Illinois and JMM Services, respectively. Specialty Finishing Group had generations of expertise in mechanical binding and all of the services that went along with that, so the company’s move toward mailing services in 1994 was a big step. At that time, the company purchased a few inkjet systems; however, changes were coming just around the corner as the Internet exploded in popularity, bringing with it the invention of ebooks and changing the fate of the postal system.

“My father and a friend put me in charge of getting our new mailing venture off the ground, and I will never forget what it was like having all of that technology with no idea how to use it,” said John Mascari, president. He explained that once the digital age started taking a piece of the bindery pie, Specialty Finishing Group made the decision in 2004 to expand its service portfolio to include the remaining lettershop services – data services, more inkjetting, inserting, wafer sealing, labeling, stamp affixing and laser printing.

“By adding mailing services instead of expanding the bindery, we were able to even out our seasonal workload so that our plant would stay busy most of the year, and we would be able to keep revenue flowing even throughout the days of the digitalization of books and manuals,” Mascari said.

In the last six months, Specialty Finishing Group has taken things to another level by offering match mailing, card affixing and read/write services. Mascari said that card affixing has become a new lettershop standard because recipients are more likely to open an envelope or self-mailer if they feel there may be something inside. “So, even if a binder does not want to be a full service lettershop, they can add card affixing equipment to an existing line with a glue system to offer this service to mailers and printers. These lines can do more than direct mail, so there is additional value in them as well,” Mascari said.

Mailing services currently represent 35 percent of Specialty Finishing Group’s revenue. “We feel strongly that our mailing services revenue will surpass our binding revenue by the end of 2013. Our binding business is declining due to book digitalization and international outsourcing, but the mailing business doesn’t have that problem.” He said that many reports indicate that the mailing business market has stabilized from the effects of email and web advertising. Mascari continued, “The other positive is that direct mail cannot be outsourced to other countries like book production can be. Because direct mail has a short production timeline and an in-home window, the print manufacturing has to happen in the US.”

For companies that want to start mailing and fulfillment services, Mascari recommends investing in an inserter and an inkjet system on a mail base. “There are many options available, so binderies should do their homework,” he said. When considering data services, Mascari advised, “Don’t do it! It is costly to find someone to manage it correctly, and the postal liability is huge. Instead, send the data out for USPS sortation and add data services later, if need be.” He said that working with the USPS can be scary, but it doesn’t have to be. “The local post office can assign a local representative so that businesses have someone to go to when starting a project. Use their business service network to get preapproval for postal rates via email.”

Finally, Mascari suggests binderies avoid the “if you offer it, they will use it” mentality. “We thought that we could convert many of our clients to our mailing services right away, but that was not the case,” he said. “Our clients were already using someone they trusted, and other binderies will find that, too, so talk to clients before making an investment.”

A View from Finishing’s Side of the Fence

In recent years, binderies have been venturing outside of the traditional binding arena when looking to expand the services that they are providing. McGraphics, Inc., a custom print finisher and BIA member in Nashville, TN, has been investing in and expanding its bindery services to attract new customers during challenging economic times.

With a slogan of “we finish what you start,” McGraphics has provided custom print finishing since 1986. When it was founded, the company primarily focused on foil stamping, embossing and diecutting, as well as small format letterhead, envelopes and pocket folders. In 2009, McGraphics expanded its bindery services in response to the growing needs of its customers. Today, the company offers up to 40 diecutting and foil stamping, in-house diemaking, folding and gluing, indexing and UV coating services. McGraphics recently added wire-o binding services to its line up in order to fulfill its growing digital printer market.

CEO Tommy McEwen said that bindery services account for 15 percent of McGraphics’ business. “It’s been an investment that has paid off. The equipment has been very affordable, and we’ve generated new customers because of our increased capabilities,” McEwen said. There have been challenges, including turnaround time and competitive pricing.

Despite the challenges, McGraphics, Inc. has pushed forward successfully. The BIA recently recognized the company’s efforts with a Product of Excellence award in 2012 for its Holiday Leftovers self-promotion piece. In 2011, the company received the Trade Finisher of the Year award from the BIA.

by Landy Chase

When it comes to providing quality content to your online community, you don’t need to be an expert, and you don’t need to be personally responsible for creating new ideas. You need only to be skilled at redistributing information produced by others to those who follow you. To illustrate how this process works, consider a common traditional selling model.

This author has worked in the past with distribution-based industries and their sales forces. There are many variations of this selling channel, but in almost all cases the relationships involve manufacturers that produce goods which are then sold through distributors; this is simply an alternative to selling directly through an internally-housed sales force. The distributor companies who represent the manufacturer are usually independent, privately-owned businesses who are licensed to sell the manufacturer’s goods and services in a defined territory. The distributor company buys inventory from the manufacturer and then resells (distributes) that inventory to customers within its defined markets.

As a value generator, your marketing process works in exactly the same way. The goods and services (content) that you provide to your online community/defined market are “manufactured” by anyone and everyone on the internet who is writing about information that is of interest to your followers. You get your “inventory” from these manufacturing sources via RSS feeds “for free, of course” and then you distribute the best of that inventory to the customers and prospects who are following you within your online community.

This defines your role as a value generator to your online community as one of a distributor of content, and not, unless you choose to be one, a manufacturer of it. You will review relevant information online from those “manufacturers” that interest you and your job will then be to evaluate this information, select items of interest to your followers, and, with a single click of your mouse, deliver it to every single one of them. The benefits to you are not only free; they are myriad and profound. By redistributing useful content to your online followers, you will build your own bridge of “know, like and trust” with your online community. You will establish your brand as a thought leader and expert. You will receive an invaluable, free education in aspects of your industry from others in the business whose knowledge you do not currently possess. And, best of all, when the buyers – both existing customers and prospects – in your community have a need for what you sell, they are going to contact you because they buy, like all buyers do, based on familiarity. You are seen as the go-to source for value, and you are viewed as the option that presents the least risk.

Utilizing social media in this way certainly would be time-consuming if we were suggesting that you spend hours on Google or one of the other search engines, continually typing in keywords and scouring the Internet for articles and information that would be useful to your online community. That is how you currently research information for yourself, right? And now you think that I am asking you to do the same thing for the benefit of your customers and prospects. Think again.

Let’s go back to the distribution sales model for a moment. A distributor who sells for manufacturers does not go out into the marketplace every day looking for suppliers with product to sell. Rather, they have ongoing relationships with the manufacturers that they have chosen to work with, and those manufacturing partners supply the distributor with the product that they need to then provide to their end-user customers. The distributor doesn’t have to go looking for inventory; inventory is provided to them by their selected manufacturing partners.

As a distributor of online content, the technology is readily available to provide you with exactly the same kind of relationship and service that the traditional distributor gets from his manufacturers. With just a few simple steps on your computer, the online “manufacturers” (content producers) that you choose to partner with (follow) will deliver an endless supply of free, high-quality product (content) that you then can review and distribute to your end-users as you see fit. In other words, after some initial set-up work, no searching on your part is necessary; everything that you need will be delivered to your inbox the moment that it is produced.

Excerpted from Landy Chase’s book, “The Social Media Sales Revolution,” available via Amazon. Landy Chase, MBA, CSP is an expert who specializes in speaking to corporations and associations on sales and selling with social media. His last book, “Competitive Selling,” was named an Editors Choice Best Business Books of 2010 selection and also is available on amazon.com. To book Chase for a next sales meeting or conference, visit his website at www.sellingrevolution.com or call 800.370.8026.