Simon Printing Is True Calling

"I think they would say I'm driven. Forward thinking. Visionary," he says. "Someone who is always looking down the road, seeing how things might be done better. . . a person with an eye on today and on tomorrow."

Simon's intensity and desire to be on the leading edge of technology have garnered much attention.

"I don't know if I've ever met someone as intense and focused on the job as Michael is," states Ty Bobit, president/CEO of Bobit Publishing and a customer for more than 15 years. "He's always thinking about new ways to solve problems, new opportunities, ways to help his customers."

Bobit once split his printing between Publishers Press and another firm. But when Simon told him what direction he wanted to take technology-wise, Bobit took all of his work and gave it to Simon.

"Michael's impressed me with his foresight," he adds. "He really sees the future of his industry."

"Innovative, technical minded and customer-oriented," is how Tom Martin, vice president of manufacturing for Cygnus Business Media, describes Simon. Riding the CTP wave with Publishers Press, Cygnus went from having six publications printed there to more than 50 now.

Through it all, the proud lineage of Publishers Press is a stewardship he takes seriously, along with the obligation to build upon the tradition his elders have established. Simon left another footprint on the company's equipment dossier with the acquisition of two MAN Roland web presses he first saw during DRUPA 2000.

"Maintaining family ownership is paramount to all of it," Simon remarks. "In a business environment, when the company is five generations old, there's a great source of pride in the accomplishments of my forefathers and a great deal of responsibility to carry that forward."

To that end, Simon has used the principles passed down from his father. "It's not any one thing, but the 10,000 little things that make a difference," he says. "Things like acknowledging employees in the hallways, being genuinely concerned about customer problems and keeping up to date on technology. You try to do each of those right, and do them with honesty and integrity. In doing that you're not guaranteed of anything, but you greatly increase your odds of being successful."