13 minute read
WELCOME, AICC CHAIRMAN GENE MARINO
Leadership
Who Are Your Champions?
Advertisement
BY BEN BAKER
Everyone needs a hero in life, someone to learn from and emulate. That is how we grow as people and become leaders in our own right.
Unfortunately, most of us never actively seek out people who can guide us and teach us what we do not know. Instead, we have an overwhelming desire to be independent and not rely on others, to our own detriment.
Why?
Why do we take the more challenging path and become the worst obstacles in our path to success? Why are we unwilling to acknowledge that others have been down the path that we are embarking on and can provide insights and guidance that could make our lives easier? Why are we unable to say, “I am not sure” and ask for advice from those who would be happy to provide it, if they were only asked?
Is it pride? Possibly. Is it not wanting to look foolish in front of people we consider to be authority figures? Probably. Is it a culture of self-dependence in which we rely on the wisdom of Google and YouTube rather than ask for help from those we know and trust? Most likely!
The challenge is that when we rely on Google and YouTube and base our search patterns solely on the questions we know how to ask, we only make decisions synonymous with our preconceived view of reality. We do not know what we do not know, and because of this, our discovery is limited by our blind spots. We possess the inability to formulate the right questions or discover answers that will lead us to a broader view of the world.
For this reason, all of us need champions in our lives—people who can help us become the best version of ourselves; those who can challenge our sense of reality and provide perspectives that are outside our comfort zone. This is how we grow, and this is how we become more valuable members of society.
So, who are your champions? Who are the people you can turn to who enable you to move beyond your comfort zone? Who are those you trust enough to allow you to be vulnerable without being exposed? Who are those who will allow you to broaden your viewpoints, become a better version of yourself, and become more valuable to those around you?
These people may not be who you think of first. They are not necessarily your boss or your boss’s boss. They may not even work in the same company or industry as you. They may not live in the same city, state, or country. However, they are out there, and it is up to you to find them.
How?
First, understand what you need and why you need it. Each of us has to look internally and decide who we are and who we want to be. (A free chapter of my book, Powerful Personal Brands: A Hands-On Guide to Understanding Yours, is available at www.yourbrandmarketing.com/ebooks— it may help.) We need to understand our wants, needs, goals, desires, and fears. We need to know what we do well and what we do not, and why. (This discovery tool may help, too: whyinstitute.com/ discover-your-why; use code “BenBaker” to get a discount—no affiliate fee provided to me.)
From there, we need to determine what is keeping us from achieving our goals. Do we require insights, strategies, or skills, or a combination of all three? Then we must look first to our network. Who has the skills and expertise that we lack, which keep us from succeeding on our terms? Those people are your first conversations. Those are people you know, like, and trust, and you believe that they have your best interests at heart.
Ask them for help. This is a sign of strength and not weakness! Tell them your goals and your challenges, and ask them what they think. Now is the most crucial part of the exercise. Be quiet and listen! Do not interject. Do not try to show how smart you are, and most importantly, do not take what they say as attacks on your character; they are there to help. All of these will be to your detriment.
Your goal is to find not one champion, but many. A number of people can help you with specific issues, and sometimes you need more than one for the same problem. Take what they have to say and incorporate it into your own set of beliefs; contemplate, think, test, evaluate, and then go back and ask more questions.
This is not easy and may be a little uncomfortable, and it is meant to be both. This is how we grow. This is how we get better. Communication is far more about understanding and internalizing than it is speaking.
Oh, one last thing: Someday, someone will come up to you and ask you to be a champion for them. Do not take this lightly; it is an important step in both your and their growth.
Ben Baker is president and CEO of Your Brand Marketing, an employee engagement consultancy designed to help you communicate your brand’s value effectively inside your organization. He is the author of two books: Powerful Personal Brands: A Hands-On Guide to Understanding Yours (2018) and Leading Beyond a Crisis: A Conversation About What’s Next (2020). Ben also hosts the iHeartRadio and Spotify syndicated YourLIVINGBrand.live show with more than 265 episodes. How can Your Brand Marketing help you achieve your goals? Book a free 30-minute conversation at bit.ly/3e5bbo3.
The Perfect Combo
Get Peak Performance From Your Equipment with Matched Component Sets
Nothing’s more rewarding than a couple made for each other. That’s why the engineers at ARC International have focused their skills and talents on crafting perfect matches between the components that must work in tandem on your exo folder gluers and die-cutters:
You can achieve the press speeds and print quality you need to ll your most demanding orders by pairing your team with
The ARChitects of Flexo.
Contact ARC today to learn how these engineered matches of exo folder gluer and die-cutter components (new or reconditioned) can help you achieve a more perfect union of production and pro ts.
The ARChitects of exo
ARCInternational.com 800-526-4569
WELCOME, AICC CHAIRMAN GENE MARINO
As the industry continues to grow, this boxmaking leader aims to build an even stronger Association community
By Geoff Williams
To say the COVID-19 pandemic changed everything would be an understatement. It not only transformed people’s lives on a personal level, but also changed how and where they worked and interacted with customers and colleagues alike. It tested organizations in ways they had never before been tested. It even led AICC’s incoming chairman to take on an exciting new opportunity, a bit closer to home, as the executive vice president of Akers Packaging Servicing Group.
Before joining Akers last August, Gene Marino worked at another independent packaging firm. In fact, unlike many previous AICC chairpersons, Marino isn’t a family member in the family business, so commonly found in this industry. He came into his packaging career as many often do: kind of by accident. And within this industry, full of passion, he has always felt welcomed with open arms.
As we do whenever a new chairman takes over, BoxScore spoke with Marino about his path into the industry—and about what he hopes to accomplish while overseeing AICC. But before we get started, a few items of biographical note: He is celebrating his 28th anniversary with his wife, Megan, this year. Together, they have three daughters—Emma, 26; Grace, 23; Claire, 21—and live just outside of Chicago, the city where Marino was born and raised.
In 1991, Marino earned a B.S. in finance at Northern Illinois University, which took him into banking, working at the American National Bank and Trust Co. of Chicago (now known as J.P. Morgan Chase). During that time and shortly after getting married, Marino decided to attend graduate school at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. He secured an MBA in strategic management in 1998.
Photos courtesy of AICC.
The Akers Packaging Services Group in Chicago, IL.
Marino has served AICC in many ways, including previous board service and as a popular speaker at AICC summits.
BoxScore: A lot of AICC chairmen have historically come from family businesses that have been in the industry for generations. You, however, did not. How did you find yourself in the packaging industry?
Marino: I was a banker working in Chicago. Innerpac was a customer of mine at the time, and they were looking for someone to head up sales and marketing. One partner suggested they speak with me. That partner just happened to be Francis “Fran” Mentone, who is greatly admired and really beloved at AICC. I am forever grateful for his support in putting my name in the hat. The rest is history, so to say. In 1998, I joined Innerpac, then a private organization. But in 1999, they were sold to private equity firm, National City Equity Partners, in Cleveland.
BoxScore: That must have been quite an adjustment.
Marino: It was an intense time, where you had a rapid learning curve at a midsize packaging business. National City Equity Partners ran our company until 2006, at which time we were sold again to Evolution Capital Partners. The plan was to execute a specific strategy for the next five years and then sell the company again. We were successful in that effort, exiting to RTS Packaging, a joint venture between WestRock and Sonoco. Then, in 2011, with nowhere to go and nothing to do, I joined Evolution as an operating partner.
BoxScore: So, you were out of the packaging industry.
Marino: Yes, although I stayed actively involved with AICC doing speaking engagements and facilitation exercises at regional and national meetings. [Former AICC President] Steve Young was instrumental in keeping me involved in the industry, and I am grateful for that. Around 2015, I joined a company in Alabama, Rusken Packaging. My role there was to help grow the business through an acquisition strategy and to work with owner Greg Rusk and Chief Operating Officer Joey Jackson to drive the strategic plan—getting everybody on the same page, rowing in the same direction, with the right focus to drive successful growth.
Navigating Life
For the next five years, Marino worked at Rusken Packaging and would fly back to his home and family on the weekends. It was not an ideal situation, but Marino
had hoped that at some point, he would move his family to Alabama—and that his widowed mother and father-in-law, also a widower, would follow suit.
But as the years went on, it became clear that his mother and father-in-law had no intention of moving. Meanwhile, Marino liked working at Rusken, and he had no plans to leave. So, he was in kind of a lifestyle limbo; he enjoyed his work but didn’t enjoy being away from his family.
And then the pandemic happened. Flights were grounded, everybody was working out of their homes, and people had a lot more time on their hands (as if you didn’t know all of that already). Marino had a lot more time to think, and one of those thoughts was: Do I really want to spend the balance of my career flying back and forth across the country and seeing my family part time?
He realized the answer was no. Marino began thinking about his options, and he started exploring Akers, a company that was founded in Middletown, Ohio, in 1963. It was a company that started off small but had become quite large, with 12 facilities spread over six states. Marino had known President Mike Akey for nearly 25 years, as well as Jim and Bill Akers for close to 20. He admired the people, their business philosophy, and how the company was run. He approached Akey to explore the possibility of joining Akers, and in August 2020, that’s what he did. Marino didn’t exactly meet Akey in person, of course—or anyone else. It was amid the pandemic; the job interviews were all via Zoom.
BoxScore: You’ve been involved in AICC for a long while—about as long as you’ve been in the packaging industry, right?
Marino: Yes. In fact, when I was at Innerpac, I was on the board for the Association, and I was due to be the
chairman of AICC in September 2010. However, that was right around the time that Evolution Capital Partners sold the company to RTS Packaging. At the time, the bylaws said you couldn’t be owned by an integrated company, and I had to resign from the board in August 2010. This is actually my second stint at becoming the chairman of AICC.
BoxScore: Wow. So, how has AICC changed over the last 20 years or so you’ve been involved with the organization?
Marino: Oh, it’s changed a lot, especially when it comes to training and development. It’s really progressed, offering online and in-person training to develop talent. This allows businesses an excellent opportunity to take advantage of personnel development. The online format also affords an on-demand option that is valuable in smaller, fast-moving businesses.
BoxScore: Can you give some examples of how AICC has helped you over the years?
Marino: The CEO advisory group format is one of many examples. Participating in the advisory group gives you the opportunity to learn and grow as a leader, fostering an environment of continuous improvement. I can’t speak highly enough
Marino joined Akers Packaging in August 2020.
about what I gained from that experience. It’s just very impactful, even more so if you own or work at a company that doesn’t have a board. You’re put into a group of CEOs who don’t compete in the same market but who face—or have faced—similar challenges. The ability to tap into that knowledge network is extremely valuable.
BoxScore: Right now, we’re in this weird zone where the pandemic is definitely not over, but it can feel like it is at times. How was AICC helpful for you during the pandemic?
Marino: We were doing weekly Zoom calls, available to all members. They were in a Q&A format, where we were talking about what people were doing right, best practices, how to manage and maintain clean equipment, and discussing what people were doing for distancing. It was a great resource for all of us. At points
during the pandemic, we would have 100 people on these calls.
BoxScore: Can you elaborate on any other ways AICC has been helpful?
Marino: Well, the relationships you build are simply tremendous. One specific recent example was my regular calls with John Kochie with Acme Corrugated. When the pandemic was at its worst, we talked a few times about the actions Acme was taking to maintain a safe work environment. We discussed what Acme was doing with machine cleaning, plant disinfecting, and distancing in their facility to keep people safe and virus-free. Everyone was scrambling, trying to react quickly; it was good to have this network to reach out to for advice and confirmation of our action plans.
So many of my longtime professional relationships can be credited to AICC. I
Marino with AICC President Michael M. D’Angelo.
