WP Spring 08 NL

8/14/2019 WP Spring 08 NL

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spring 2008

talk inprinta quarterly look at print communication


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Using Your CompanysCulture to Succeed

Organizational culture is the collection of values, decision-making styles, and

accepted behaviors (good and bad) which together describe the way things

are done at a company. Most managers consider culture a nebulous or soft

concept, but a companys culture has a significant impact on the bottom line.

An ineffective culture leads to employee turnover and missed opportunities in

the marketplace. Strong cultures have effective leaders and attract talented

employees who know how to create value for the company.

Usually a companys culture originates with the founder(s) and if, over the

years, senior managers have done nothing to change it, that original way of

working persists. If managers consciously behave differently and pursue different

techniques and values, a companys culture can shift.

Some ways that company cultures can be labeled include:

Aggressive Entrepreneurial Hierarchical Innovative

Risk-taking Process-oriented Collegial Family-friendly

Traditional Collaborative Flat-hierarchy Rule-based

Many things go into what is ultimately described as the culture: how employees

treat each other, customers, and vendors, what is expected of employees, the

way in which managers make decisions and motivate people, the physical officeenvironment, and where the companys values and focus lie. There are no right

and wrong types of cultures, but some styles are considered more productive and

successful in todays business environment.

2 Tel 520.624.4939 Toll-Free 888.637.0337 Fax 520.624.2715 westpress.com


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3Tel 520.624.4939 Toll-Free 888.637.0337 Fax 520.624.2715 westpress.com

Types of Company Culture

Out of favor & less effective Linked to greater success

Need-to-know communication style Transparent decision-making andopen communication throughout

Top-down management (authoritative) Free exchange of ideas and feedback

from all employees; ideas are solicited

actively by managers

Employees treated as replaceable Employees valued and their loyalty

actively courted

Owner owns the company and makes

the decisions

Employees have sense of ownership

and take responsibility for decision

making

Employees are dutiful and wait for

direction; indecisiveness pervades

until manager shows up

Managers encourage innovation

and risk-taking so employees take

initiative and make job-related

decisions whether manager is there

or not

Work is a required chore Work is fun

Only managers/owners have

knowledge of operating results

Employees have access to operating

results to facilitate full partnership in

accomplishing goals

Focus on satisfying boss Focus on satisfying customer

Face time, or hours spent on the job,

dictate employees value to company

Performance evaluation is based on

results; flex-time and telecommuting

encouraged

Customer complaints get passed along

to supervisor or manager for resolution

Front-end employees are

empowered to satisfy customers on

the spot

Front-line managers use customer

interactions to enforce companys

policies

Front-line managers use customer

interactions to learn and build

customer loyalty


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Tel 520.624.4939 Toll-Free 888.637.0337 Fax 520.624.2715 westpress.com4

Can you describe your companys culture? Ask yourself these questions:

How do we motivate employees?

What do our employees value in their jobs and at the company?

What is our style of communication and decision making?

What is our attitude toward technology?

Do managers work side-by-side with their employees or in offices?

Do we emphasize established procedures or emphasize results?

Is management hovering or hands-off? Consistent or variable?

Who is most important: owner, manager, employee, customer or vendor?

How well do employees understand how the company makes money?

Do employees consider their work enjoyable or a chore?

Do employees understand their career path within the company?

Can employees make job-relevant decisions without manager involvement, without

fear of reversal later?

The answers to these give you adjectives to describe your culture. Would

employees recommend your company to their friends as a great place to work?

The answer to this question tells you whether your culture is effective from your

employees perspective.

As you define what you want your culture to be, recognize that it will impact the

type of employee you are able to hire, as well as the type of customer who is

comfortable doing business with you.

Be careful that you compare your vision with reality, though. One of the deadliestmistakes with company culture is to say one thing and do another.


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Eric RomeroIn business: for 14 years

West Press customer: since 2006

Type of organization: Production and sale of greenhouseequipment, packaging supplies, and quality control instruments for the produceindustry. Our main market is Northwest Mexicoits the largest production areafor produce coming into the U.S. during the winter months.

Location: Nogales, Arizona

About Oremor: My father Raul Romero started this business 35 years ago and in1994 we (3 brothers and a sister) took over the business.

Success they are proud of: When the produce industry is growing and doing well,Oremor does well. Last year was kind of bad, but this year well catch up, saysEric. As demand for fresh produce increases, the demand for Oremors productswill grow. We are ALWAYS trying to introduce new products into this market.

What West Press does for Oremor: Prints and produces full-color tags and headercards for retail produce, such as tomatoes.

Whats new: The full-color produce tags that West Press produces for Oremor werenew last year. We never did that before and it has worked out well this year.

About Eric: Eric is in charge of sales and new products at their family-ownedbusiness. In the past, they would look for new product ideas outside of thecompany, but now, we are more into developing new products.

Eric is a big ASU [Arizona State University] fan and Im a U of A [University ofArizona] fan, says Deanna Lopez, Erics primary point of contact at West Press.We razz each other about it all the time.

What Oremor thinks of West Press: A good friend of mine referred me to JoelLevine. I called West Press and they immediately found the product I needed,gave me a good price and we have been doing business with West Press eversince, says Eric. Joel and his staff are excellent people. Eric works withDeanna and Sally on a regular basis. Theyre very professional.

What Eric likes best about West Press is the service. West Press always goes theextra mile. There have been times when we urgently need more product and theyhave come through even on short notice.

West Press is an example of how a business should be run. It has been a

pleasure to work with Joel Levine and his staff.

You can reach Eric at 520.281.0455 or [email protected]

OremorInternational, Inc.


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Are Those GraphicDesigners at the

Printer RealDesigners?

Choosing a graphic designer for your company

can be a daunting prospect. Often graphic

designers work on their own or for small firms, making

it difficult to assess their reliability and suitability for your job. With the advent

of inexpensive software packages, anyone with a computer can call themselves a

graphic designer whether theyve had formal design training or not.

Services you need Where to find your graphic designer

Design layout, concept development &

creative ad solutions for print media

- Independent designer

- Small graphic design firms

- Full-service printerDesign layout for web design - Large graphic design firm or

web designer

Advertising and marketing advice, media

buying, P.R. campaigns as well as design

layout for print + web

- Advertising Agency

- Marketing Firm

- P.R. Agency

When evaluating a potential graphic designer start by deciding what services youneed. Look at something youve received and ask who designed it. Contact your

local advertising federation and look at who has won awards with work similar

to yours. Although winning an award doesnt necessarily mean a piece achieved

business goals, it can show you which designers are serious about their work. Ask

your printer for recommendations on designers who send good quality files to be

printed. From that, contact three or four candidates and evaluate them based on:

Portfolio what is the quality of the work shown to you and how suitable

is it for your project? While a good designer can create a logo or concept

for any business, most designers tend to have a style that may or may not

appeal to you.


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Technical Expertise look at the range of projects completed and their

complexity. Gauge the depth of understanding of budgets, printing and

finishing.

Experience & Education what formal training has the designer had?

Marketing Know-How can the designer talk about how the design fits in

an overall advertising or marketing strategy?

Professionalism is the designer presented in a way that fits with your

companys culture? How confident are you that the designer will meet

deadlines and budgets? Does the designer recognize that your business

goals may not be the same as his or her creative goals?

Availability if the designer is independent or part-time, what hours will be

available to you, and how full is the artists schedule?

Managing a creative relationship can be challenging, but being forthright about

your goals and asking lots of questions can improve the likelihood of success.

West Press has a full-service Graphic Design department. If youd like a

consultation with a professional designer, please contact your Account Executive

or Cathy Grimes.


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Inside West PressEmployee: Louisa Albrecht, Graphic Designer

[email protected]

At West Press: for 3 years

Louisa graduated from California Polytechnic

State University, San Luis Obispo (Cal Poly)

with a degree in Graphic Communication and has

spent a lot of her life living and working in various parts

of California. The central coast of California is a well-known wine region. When I

lived there I did a lot of work for the wine industrylabels, brochures, events.

Best part of the job: Louisa enjoys that every day brings her something new. I like

the combination of being creative and technical and I love it when customers are

excited about their piece. Customers use what Louisa designs in a wide range of

applications. I think its cool that some of my work has made it across the U.S.

and even internationally.

Most challenging part: Creating something fabulous within a certain time frame,

budget, corporate or industry specifications, and within the [printing] equipmentcapabilities. Its like a puzzle, fitting all the pieces together.

About Louisa: Louisa moved to Tucson from San Luis Obispo, California. She was

born in Mexico and Spanish was her first language, followed by German, then

English. She loves to travel. There is so much beauty everywhere. You get to

meet people from all over the world, taste new foods, see amazing things that are

centuries old I can never get enough.

In Tucson, Louisa has a horse named Vic. Hes a clever guy and keeps me on mytoes. Vic, a Haflinger, is a traveler too. I bought him in Ohio, shipped him to

California, then to Arizona. Vic doesnt care where hes at as long as theres food.

Louisa loves to garden and grew all sorts of things in California. I attempt to

garden in Tucson, but its really challenging. Ive had some success but mostly

Ive come to appreciate what can grow on its own.

Favorite color: Tropical water blue tones, specifically Pantone 299.

Favorite Food: A good hamburger Cool Cats in San Luis Obispo is so good.

If you could dine with any personliving or from historywho would it be?

Oprah. I admire people who have really made something of themselves, yet are

so generous with others.


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How to Explain your

Product When You

Cant Be There inPerson

If a picture is worth a thousand words, whats a

video with sound worth?

Sometimes its not enough to explain your product, your company or your service

with words on paper, or even with visuals. Sometimes you dont want to rely on

three different employees explaining a product three different ways.

Fortunately, the compact disc was invented by James Russell, an avid music

listener, in the late 1960s in his search for a process that would record and

replay sounds without physical contact between parts (think of an LP record or

cassette tape).

Today the compact disc is ubiquitous and technology companies continually

expand its capabilities for audio and video recordings, as well as for computer

memory. Because almost everyone has access to a DVD or CD player, it presents

a valuable opportunity for businesses looking to communicate information or to

market a product.

Recently, West Press produced a marketing video in conjunction with Wolf Creek

Productions, a professional film production company in Tucson, Arizona. The

5-minute DVD explains and demonstrates West Press in a way that incorporates

visuals, action, and sound, providing a potential customer with a succinct and

compelling view of the company.

Because compact discs can hold an immense amount of data, they are an

effective way to send out information to customers, employees, or suppliers. What

can be stored on a compact disc?

A PowerPoint presentation describing your service

A training presentation for sales personnel or users


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An audio recording describing how to use a product

A video interview with employees or customers to market your business

Computer file templates for customers to use when ordering from you

While a video is best produced with professionals, PowerPoints and other

computer generated files can easily be produced in house and then replicated.

Recently, West Press invested in state-of-the-art technology to quickly and

efficiently replicate audio and video compact discs in house. Once replicated,

the discs are printed with the customers full-color artwork, packaged to the

customers specifications and sent out or delivered, often in conjunction with

other printed materials.

If youre interested in learning more about incorporating compact discs into your

companys materials, please contact Cathy Grimes, [email protected].



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West Press host to Adobe Training SeminarWest Press hosted Adobe Certified Expert Kelly McCathran on March 7 for an

all-day training session on InDesign and Photoshop. McCathran is not only a

Certified Technical Trainer but is a Service Provider Evangelist for Adobe andhas broad expertise in Adobe applications and their use in print-based design.

McCathran travels across North America teaching these software applications

to designers. Such seminars typically cost $300 to $500 for attendees (not

including travel expenses), making them costly for individual designers from

Tucson to attend. West Press hosted McCathran at its Tucson facility and invited

West Press customers to sign up at no charge. The at-capacity seminar received

positive feedback from attendees, who learned valuable tips on integrating

Adobes various packages through Bridge CS3. We are pleased to provide these

sorts of added benefits to our customers because when customers succeed we

succeed, said West Press President Joel Levine.

Holiday Cards Throughout the YearDid you recently receive a Valentine and a St. Patricks Day card from West Press?

As the typical holiday season in December becomes clogged, marketers have found

success with sending greetings to customers at different times of the year. To meet

this need, West Press has developed a selection of unique holiday cards that you

can customize with your name and message and send out at a time that supports

your business model. West Press will print and mail them directly to your mailing

list. Visit westpress.com and click on Holiday Card Program to learn more.

Postage Increase In MayWhile direct mail remains one of the most cost-effective methods of marketing, the

U.S. Postal Service will have made it more expensive as of May 12th. From that day

forward a first-class stamp costs 42 for a letter and 27 for a postcard. Unlike

the previous rate increase just a year ago, no new size regulations accompany this

change and the price of an additional ounce for first class mail remains unchanged.

In a rare shift of policy, the foreverstamp introduced last May costs 41 until May12th, and then can be used on its own after the rate increase. This gives individuals

and businesses an incentive to stockpile those stamps, both to save money and to

avoid having to purchase make up 1 stamps. As of May 12th, the price of the

foreverstamp is 42.


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West Press 1663 W. Grant Road, Tucson, AZ 85745

Tel 520.624.4939 Toll-Free 888.637.0337 Fax 520.624.2715 www.westpress.com

WP Spring 08 NL

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