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VIEGA VIEWS &NEWS EMPLOYEE NEWSLETTER
N AT I O N A L SALES MEETING 2016
Company Outreach pg. 2 The Move to Denver pg. 4 Sales Force Optimization pg. 6
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C E L E B R A T I O N S
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HELPING FLINT N O M I N AT E E M P L O Y E E S C V
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A M B A S S A D O R
Submit nominations via email to cvambassador@viega.us. Locate the form on the Intranet under Human Resources or call Sara Pierce and she can assist with your nomination.
G E T T I N G K N O W
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The Rocky Mountain Columbine was made the state flower in 1899 after winning the vote of Colorado’s school children.
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With its white bark and dazzling seasonal colors, the Aspen tree is the quintessential Colorado tree.
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“If you had the know-how to fix it, wouldn’t you?” Those are the words from Viega sales reps on their volunteer work during the Flint, MI, water crisis. To save money, two years ago the state switched Flint’s water supply from Lake Huron to the Flint River, a tributary that runs through town. It was determined that the water was high in iron, which when left untreated can erode lead pipes, which made up approximately half of the supply lines to Flint homes. With lead in the water, residents began to get sick, eventually prompting the switch back to Lake Huron water, although it has not completely eradicated the problem. For many months, Viega has worked alongside Local 370 Union members. They’ve conducted water quality training seminars, helped replace faucets, installed filters and in some cases completely gutted and installed new plumbing throughout homes. Viega employees have spent more than 50 hours volunteering. One Saturday, the union brought more than 800 volunteers, doing everything from providing bottled water to identifying affected homes and sending plumbers to assist. Viega takes safe drinking water seriously and will continue to do so into the future. To find out how you can help make a difference in Flint, MI, please visit www.helpforflint.com.
VIEGA SUPPORTS THE COMMUNITY In combination with Make-A-Wish Kansas and the #ForceForChange platform, Viega raised $8,655 for Peyton, a child whose wish was to visit Germany. The campaign, Star Wars: Force for Change, is an initiative that inspires people to make a positive impact on the world. The month-long campaign led up to “Star Wars Day” on May the 4th. Starting April 5, Star Wars: Force for Change matched the donations of Star Wars fans to four select charities up to $1 million, including the U.S. Fund for UNICEF in support of UNICEF Kid Power, American Red Cross, Boys & Girls Clubs of America, and Make-A-Wish. Thirty-one donations were matched by Viega and the ForceforChange campaign between April 25th and May 3rd. The charity campaign raised a total of $2,236,312, with $1,941,341 for Make-A-Wish alone. “Viega is always looking for opportunities to support our community,” said Cassie Chauncey, Vice President of Human Resources. “I am so happy to be a part of such a wonderfully giving set of employees.” W W W . V I E G A . U S
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WEIGHT LOSS CHALLENGE Between January 18 and April 18, 2016, employees in Wichita and McPherson lost a total of 292.6 pounds during Viega’s first Weight Loss Challenge. One male and one female with the greatest weight loss received an annual membership to the YMCA. Shane Lobmeyer, Traffic Analyst in Wichita, lost a total of 17.3% and Kim Smith, Supply Chain, lost a total of 10.9%. Discount YMCA memberships were available to all employees, regardless of participation in the challenge. Everyone who participated is a winner because they took the time and effort to make a difference in their lives by eating right and exercising. Congratulations to everyone and keep up the good work!
NEW EMPLOYEES NAME Benjamin Amezcua Keith Barbour Trevor Baumgartner Kim Blomberg Mary Bond Megan Boyd Clint Carriere Donna Colahan Troy Cottam Sarah Ediger Jennifer Garcia Ly Phi-Halstead James Harper Doyle Hoffman Geana Houser Frank Jara Kate Lee Jeremy Lucier Tyler Morse Gustavo Ochoa-Pacheco Tyson Owens Bob Peters Eric Peterson Andrew Peuchen Joe Piazza Greg Roller Dave Scheibler Robert Wyman
DIVISION Supply Chain Operations Supply Chain Operations Supply Chain Operations Supply Chain Operations Supply Chain Operations Supply Chain Operations Business Development Supply Chain Operations Supply Chain Operations Supply Chain Operations Supply Chain Operations Finance Supply Chain Operations Supply Chain Operations Supply Chain Operations Sales & Marketing Market Innovations Sales & Marketing Supply Chain Operations Supply Chain Operations Supply Chain Operations Business Development Market Innovations Supply Chain Operations Sales & Marketing Supply Chain Operations Supply Chain Operations Finance
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DEPARTMENT 3rd Shift Manufacturing HPA DC SCO Operations MegaPress 1st Shift F, V & M 1st Shift MegaPress 1st Shift Marine Sales MegaPress Assembly F, V & M 1st Shift F, V, & M 1st Shift 3rd Shift Manufacturing Accounts Receivable AGA DC MegaPress 1st Shift SCO Operations Southeast Region Metals Mid Atlantic Region MegaPress Assembly RNV DC MKS DC Business Development Administration Product Development Process Engineer Canada MKS DC Traffic Admin Network & Systems
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M I L E S T O N E S
YEARS OF SERVICE
05/13/1986 - Connie Cutsinger
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YEARS OF SERVICE
04/15/1996 - Carl Antle
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YEARS OF SERVICE
06/11/2001 - Aric Souder
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YEARS OF SERVICE
05/22/2006 - Bart Austen 06/25/2006 - Ronald Bryant 04/10/2006 - Reid Goodrich 06/12/2006 - Rebecca Minier 04/03/2006 - Russell Olive 04/03/2006 - Richard Plenert 04/24/2006 - Christopher Witter
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YEARS OF SERVICE
06/27/2011 - Thomas Castro 03/14/2011 - Michael Dean 04/04/2011 - Wendy Garrett 05/02/2011 - Michael Ghilardi 05/16/2011 - Zachary Goldberg 03/21/2011 - Russell Haley 03/28/2011 - Bryan Wert
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Broomfield is nestled in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, with easy access to hiking, skiing and other activities.
The temporary offices in Broomfield offer wonderful views and natural light.
View of downtown Denver, Colorado.
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D E N V E R R E L O C AT I O N This is an exciting time for Viega. From its inception in Bedford, Massachusetts to the transition to Wichita, KS, Viega is once again poised for tremendous growth. Wichita has been a great home base for the last 10 years and Viega is successful because of each and every employee. The next step in this evolution is in Broomfield, CO, where Viega is building a new headquarters and educational training facility. “Moving to the greater Denver area ultimately makes our corporate staff more accessible to our customers and partners throughout the country,” says Dave Garlow, CEO, Viega LLC. “A new state-of-the-art headquarters and training facility 4
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will drive further innovation, serve as the foundation for the next phase of Viega’s growth and allow us to better serve our customers throughout North America.” Construction on the headquarters is expected to begin this summer. Some employees have already relocated and are working in the temporary office space and many have attended the pre-decision trips. The move out of Wichita is expected to be completed by December 17, 2017. “The temporary space, located near the headquarters, is located in a nice office building and we’re working to make it look and feel like Viega,” said Justin Turner, Director of IT, Viega.
“At the same time, we’re excited about the possibilities we have at the new headquarters. We’re exploring all our options for everything from the interior and exterior design, to office amenities. ” The temporary space is 20,000 square feet spread over three suites on the 3rd floor of the building. Similar to the Wichita offices, the exterior walls are glass and offer wonderful views and natural light. Equipped with four conference rooms and similar furniture, the office will fit the short-term needs. Construction is underway to connect 2 of the 3 suites, which Turner says will have “more open workspaces to enlist a modern look and feel.”
As employees begin relocating or making plans to find new jobs, it’s important to remember that Kansas remains a significant part of the growth plans for the company through the manufacturing and distribution center in McPherson. “This move strengthens the company and allows us to further focus on advancing technology and growth in the markets that we serve,” says Garlow. “We consider each of you a part of our success.” Find more information, including FAQ’s, by logging into the Viega Intranet and search “Corporate Move.”
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S A L E S F O R C E O P T I M I Z AT I O N
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Additional improvements include:
• Advance our ability to utilize data to align and focus resources • Increase our communication within the sales team and with all departments of Viega LLC • Boost cross-functional operations • Refine our on-boarding process • Improve our sales training process • Provide an environment of continuous professional improvement
Every successful company believes in constant improvement. It’s the art of improvement that propels businesses to the next level. Viega is no stranger to this concept. We have been improving for generations. You can see it in the innovative, quality products we manufacture, so continuing to refine our sales processes is a natural step towards improvement at another level within Viega. The Sales Force Optimization (SFO) project was announced at Viega’s National Sales Meeting and was met with great enthusiasm. The project is a top to bottom review of our current sales strategy, processes, methodology, communication, messaging, roles and responsibilities. “From this rigorous review we will identify, formalize and share best practices while identifying areas of improvement. This will result in the development and implementation of tactical plans to ensure that our sales team is the best in the industry and will deliver the results necessary to meet the goals of Viega 2020,” said Jeff Neczypor, a member of 6
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SFO Team Leadership. The ultimate goal of the SFO project is to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of the sales team. These goals are already in process and will continue as we reach our 2020 goals. A few of the efforts already underway include realigning districts and regions. This is being done by utilizing a mix of historical sales and market forecast data. We are also working on defining the customer segmentation criteria and have begun the process of segmenting all customers. The objectives for a “value based selling” course have been established and content is currently in the works. Determining meeting cadence and agendas to enhance communication are also in development. “This will have a positive impact on our sales force,” Neczypor said. “Our goal is to provide all members of the sales team with better information and greater support to allow them more focus on generating sales and supporting our customers.”
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Viega’s annual National Sales Meeting is a time of reflection and excitement looking forward to the future. This year’s event took place April 9-13 in Wichita, KS, where more than 200 sales professionals, guests and VIPs came together. Attendees participated in product training, learned practices and gained new perspectives on the industry and received company news. As part of the event, Viega also honored eight Top Gun winners. These hard-working individuals included (pictured above from left to right) Russell Olive, Southeast District Sales Manager; Mike Buck, Central District Sales Manager; Kerri Sutter, Western District Sales Manager; Dennis Harvey, Technical Manager; Robin Taylor, Customer Service; Bob Aagaard, Midwest District Sales Manager; Mike Kubacki, Great Lakes District Sales Manager; and Francis Longtin, Canadian District Sales Manager. Congratulations to this year’s winners – they are part of the growth and future of Viega. “These winners epitomize what Viega aims for when setting an example of what it takes to be a leader in this business,” said Dalyn Cantrell, Vice President of Sales and Marketing, Viega. “We are proud to honor individuals who bring so much hard work, passion and enthusiasm to the industry.” This year Viega was honored to have Dan Clark as the keynote speaker. Clark is the author of 21 books, and is a primary contributor to the Chicken Soup for the Soul series. At the National Sales Meeting, Clark signed copies of his new book, “The Art of W W W . V I E G A . U S
Significance.” Those interested in obtaining copies may contact Amy Meadows at Amy.Meadows@ Viega.us or ext. 521. A group of Viega employees at the National Sales Meeting took time to participate in Run4aReason, a 5K benefit run on Sunday, April 10. Wesley, son of employee Andrea McDonald, earned first place in the event with a time of 22 minutes. Elizabeth, daughter of Tim Allbritten, placed 1st in the walk portion with a time of 21:30. Proceeds from the run benefited the American Cancer Society. Thank you to everyone who participated in the Run4aReason – runners, walkers, volunteers and spectators! We look forward to another great National Sales Meeting in 2017.
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MO M E NTS IN TI M E
Viega employees are more than coworkers, they’re friends. Like friends, they know how to have a good time on and off the clock. From holidays to a lunch out, employees have made many lasting relationships and memories.