Inland Chairman William B. Howes: 'I never got bored in this business': PIMA's Executive of the Year William B. Howes traces his career path through a changing industry.Over a career that has spanned 40 years, William B. Howes has seen plenty of change--ranch of it on a personal level. Though he got his industry start as a sales trainee at Union Camp, Howes retired this year from a higher post--chairman of Inland Paperboard and Packaging. Bill Howes joined Inland in 1990 alter a 28-year career with Union Camp. He has also served as chairman of the International Corrugated cor·ru·gate v. cor·ru·gat·ed, cor·ru·gat·ing, cor·ru·gates v.tr. To shape into folds or parallel and alternating ridges and grooves. v.intr. Case Association (ICCA (Independent Computer Consultants Association, St. Louis, MO, www.icca.org) A membership organization of independent consultants in the information technology field. It is devoted to helping members improve their professional services capabilities. ), president of The Paper Bag Institute, and member of the boards of the Institute of Paper Science and Technology (IPST IPST Institute of Paper Science and Technology, Inc. IPST Internet Professional Sales Training ), the National Council for Air and Stream Improvement (NCASI NCASI National Council for Air and Stream Improvement ) and the Fiber Box Association (FBA FBA Federal Bar Association FBA Functional Behavior Assessment FBA Fibre Box Association (North America) FBA Forms Based Authentication (Microsoft Outlook Web Access) FBA Florida Bicycle Association ). In recognition of his career achievements, the Paper Industry Management Association (PIMA) named Howes its 2002 Executive of the Year--the association's highest honor. Editorial Director Alan Rooks interviewed Howes at PIMA's 83rd Annual International Management Conference, where he received the award. Rooks Rooks can refer to: People:
Howes: Actually, I planned to go to law school after my service and become a lawyer; but then I spent six extra months in the U.S. Army because of the Berlin Wall being erected (in August 1961). When I was finally discharged [as captain], my wife and I had a 15-month-old child and no money, and I needed a job. My father had been in the paper industry his whole life; he was a paper distributor in Washington, D.C. Wyatt Shorter's father, Walter, was head of sales at Union Camp, and we had known their family for a long time, so I ended up with Union Camp. I guess you can give my father the credit for me joining the paper industry. That was 1962. Rooks: Obviously you liked the industry enough to stay in it the rest of your life. What made you stay? What have you liked most about it? Howes: I kept getting new challenges and I've been very lucky; I've been affiliated with two great companies and had the chance to do a lot of different things, so I never got bored in this business. I think the thing I liked the most is working with people. That's been my forte; I have enjoyed working with a lot of different people, I have met people from all over the world, and it has been a great experience. I like the sales aspect of the business because I grew up in sales and marketing, but I also love the manufacturing side. I'm not an engineer, but I love to be around people who make things. The American production worker is the backbone of our economy and is under-appreciated in our high-tech world. Rooks: Who were some of the people who had the most influence on you early on in your career? Howes: There are several. My first boss was Frank Grimes Grimes is a surname, that is believed to be of a Scandinavian decent and may refer to
sales manager n → directeur commercial sales manager sale n → in Spartanburg, South Carolina Spartanburg is the largest city and the county seat of Spartanburg CountyGR6 in South Carolina, and is the second-largest city of the three primary cities in the Upstate region of South Carolina. . He really taught me the ropes on how to sell. Later, when I went to New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of , I made the acquaintance of Jim Patterson Jim Patterson was mayor of Fresno, California between 1993 and 2001. He succeeded Karen Humphrey with a 'tough on crime' campaign. Alan Autry succeeded Mayor Patterson. 2002 congressional race , one of the old timers who was about ready to retire. He took me under his wing and was instrumental in pushing my name up for a job that was a tremendous jump. I moved from national accounts manager of the container division to being general sales manager of the bag division. In that position I worked for Bill Bess. He was a West Pointer and a demanding boss, but I learned a lot about leadership from him. lie was the kind of guy that would let you do the job--he would say, "okay, it's yours, run with it." As long as you produced he supported you, even when things did not work as planned. But if you did not take the initiative--if you went to him and said, "boy, I got a problem that I don't know Don't know (DK, DKed) "Don't know the trade." A Street expression used whenever one party lacks knowledge of a trade or receives conflicting instructions from the other party. what to do with"--he would eat you alive. Rooks: Of all the jobs and experiences you've had in the industry, have there been one or two that stand out as your greatest achievements? Howes: The most fun was when I was about 35 years old and I took over Union Camp's bag division, which nobody wanted. It was the reason that Union Bag was in business, but it had lost its glamour. We took a handful of people, got them focused, and turned the division around. We had a lot of fun doing it. The most challenging has been trying to change the culture at Inland, which had been a very successful culture. The hardest thing to change is embedded success. Personally, I had to make some difficult personnel decisions. Going through the process of making that organization more responsive to today's business Today's Business is a show on CNBC that aired in the early morning, 5 to 7AM ET timeslot, hosted by Liz Claman and Bob Sellers, and it was replaced by Wake Up Call on Feb 4, 2002. climate has been a challenge, and to date it has been a great reward. Two years ago we didn't know where we were headed as a company. Today, Inland is going to be one of the key players in the packaging business, with the acquisition of Gaylord Container, assets from Chesapeake, and others. We have the support of the Board of Directors and I'm excited about the future of this company. I don't think we would have gotten here had we not gone through that very difficult period in 1997-1998. Rooks" How did the Inland culture change? Howes: We bad built a strategy based on being a low-cost box producer and we ended up with a lot of low price business that did not give us a satisfactory return. In short, the buyers got tougher and our previously successful business model didn't work any more. We thought that "more tons" was the solution to everything. It wasn't. I had to get people focused on return on investment. We had to face the fact that we needed to change our approach to the marketplace. As a result, we changed some personnel, organizational structure  This article has no lead section.To comply with Wikipedia's lead section guidelines, one should be written. , and compensation. Rooks: When you say you focused on return on investment, how did you do that? Howes: For operating purposes, we are looking at simple return. That's the ratio of depreciated Depreciated may refer to:
Rooks: So you have moved your strategy away from being just a low cost provider. What is the new strategy? Howes: On the box side, Inland has always been very good on quality, and exceptionally good at service. If we can't get paid for this quality and service, then we're going to pass on the business. We reorganized re·or·gan·ize v. re·or·gan·ized, re·or·gan·iz·ing, re·or·gan·iz·es v.tr. To organize again or anew. v.intr. To undergo or effect changes in organization. our box division into market-related districts. Management took the best people, made them district vice presidents, and told them, "this is your own business." Interesting things happened. We had some managers who started out saying, "I'm going to strip down to a very lean organization." others said, "I need this, and this, and this." In the end, the people that didn't cut back as much got better returns than the others, because they had a clear idea of the resources they needed to accomplish their strategy. They understood the vision. Rooks: What would you describe us the biggest change in the industry over the 40 years you have been in the business? Howes: Slower growth--the change in the competitive landscape brought on by globalization globalization Process by which the experience of everyday life, marked by the diffusion of commodities and ideas, is becoming standardized around the world. Factors that have contributed to globalization include increasingly sophisticated communications and transportation . In the old days you knew who your competitors were--they were your neighbors. It was the IP or Weyerhaeuser mill up the corner; it wasn't someone across the country. Slower growth in this country and the move to globalization has brought different competitive situations. Certainly, there has been a new environmental focus; it was the right thing to do and it has changed the way we manage our assets. Another primary change has been the growth in the power of the consumer. Sam Walton Samuel Moore Walton (March 29 1918 – April 6 1992), born in Kingfisher, Oklahoma was the founder of two American retailers Wal-Mart and Sam's Club. He was the patriarch of the Walton family, one of the richest families in the world. [founder of Wal-Mart] changed the world. Rooks: You've retired and obviously have a little more time to explore some of your interests outside of working. What do you plan to do in your retirement? Howes: I plan to have some fun. I'm very involved with Furman University Furman University is a private, coeducational, non-sectarian university in Greenville, South Carolina, United States. Furman is the oldest, largest and most selective private institution in South Carolina and is one of the top liberal arts colleges in the United States. , where I went to school. I am going back on the hoard as vice chairman and then probably will end up being chairman for two years, and that will take some time. I've traveled ever since my wife, Mary, and I have been married, and I want to spend more time with her. I would like to be involved with my community, which I've not had a chance to do. I've had a grand time. I've been very fortunate and gotten to do a lot of different things and have been rewarded handsomely. The little kid that didn't know what he was going to do has grown up and turned out pretty well. IN THIS ARTICLE YOU WILL LEARN: * How changes to Inland's corporate culture improved its financial performance. * The new strategic focus that Inland developed in response to a changing marketplace ADDITIONAL RESOURCES: * Inland Paperboard's home page: www.inlandonline.com * To learn more about PIMA's Awards Program: www.pimaweb.org |
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