HGI Co. — Completing a Triple Play
To help maintain a human touch between the facilities, members of the executive team and department heads have been designated as the HGI Group and charged with overseeing and facilitating communication between both plants by regularly spending time at each location. "We try to keep a very flat organization," Faust explains.
That is especially true when it comes to pre-media. All file processing, proofing and platemaking is handled by a single pre-media department located in the Hi-Liter facility. A new PlateRite Ultra platesetter from Screen (USA) was added in an upgrade to the department. Plates are delivered to the Inland plant via a shuttle, and the company says it can get a new plate back on-press within an hour.
It's more than just lip service when Faust says, "It's about people." He has made human resources a strategic function at HGI because of how integral the employees are to the firm's success. HR policies and procedures should be about more than just keeping a company out of trouble, he contends, and be part of its long-term strategy. As a result, Amy Turner, vice president of human resources, is involved in all executive activities.
All for One, One for All
When it comes to the employees, everything is kept identical between the divisions. All staff members are covered by exactly the same benefits package, work rules, review structure, etc. To keep everyone informed, quarterly update meetings covering sales, financial, manufacturing and human resource topics are held during normal work hours for all three shifts at both locations. When quarterly bonuses are distributed, everyone gets the exact same amount.
"It's everybody pulling together as one team--from the front desk through to job delivery," Faust says. "We want to instill an entrepreneurial spirit."
The same group does each of the six (three shifts, two plants) quarterly update presentations. Angela Damon, vice president of finance, is part of the presentation team and an HGI Group member. "Every meeting has the same format, so we've been showing employees KPI (Key Performance Indicators) data for five years," Damon notes. "We make sure all attendees understand what they are seeing to help promote engagement in our plans."
