PPB October 2018

MICHAEL WENGER Co-owner Quality Logo Products, Inc. Number of Direct Reports: 115 Years Managing Others:14+ W ith 44 nominations for PPB ’s Best Boss, Michael Wenger at Aurora, Illinois-based distributor Quality Logo Products, Inc. is doing something right. As it turns out, those who work for him can’t say enough good things about him. He leads by example, is a great motivator, excellent listener and is always looking out for the people who work with him. He constantly strives for both personal and professional excellence and brings out the same in the people who work for him. “Mike makes a point to meet with every employee at least once every 90 days. We have 115 employees,” says nominator Bret Bonnet, who is also president of the company. “These one-on-ones usually last 15 minutes to a half an hour and they range fromwork wellness and performance to personal development. Need help with your 401k? See Mike. Need help negotiating the best price possible on your home or new car? Mike can help. There is nothing he can’t do. It’s amazing.” What’s cool about Michael He allows employees to be who they are and express themselves freely. He’s not judgmental and is always there to help and lend a hand when needed. His best boss David C. Wenger, otherwise known to me as Dad. He is a Marine, an accomplished man in the logistics world and a serial entrepreneur. Dad taught me the brutally honest and harsh realities of the world that most children don’t figure out until much later in life. He had no filter and no time to paint rosy pictures; he taught me that life is hard, and success is earned, never given. More specifically, over the 10 years I worked with him, he taught me how to properly clean an 800,000-square- foot warehouse (including moats full of unmentionables), load and unload trailers, and pick and pack shoe orders. He also taught me other essential skills in customer service, human resources, accounting, collections, sales and marketing. That experience still guides (and haunts) me to this day. What managing others has taught him about himself There are no limits to your own ability or anyone else’s for that matter. I have learned that limits are imaginary speed bumps that fear has disguised as reason. Once you figure that out, you see opportunity in adversity and clarity in obscurity. His best advice for other bosses Look in the mirror when things go wrong, and out the window when things go right; obsess over customers—their needs and wants are far more important than your own; help is a privilege, not a right. Until you can afford good help, you have to do a lot yourself. And when you can afford help, make sure to appreciate their efforts and never take them for granted. Tina Berres Filipski is editor of PPB. Her best boss One of the best bosses I’ve ever had is my current boss, Tom Economou, our VP of sales. We share an open communication style and I can’t overstate how important that is to me. Every employee needs a safety bubble—to speak frankly, bounce off ideas, talk through thoughts and assumptions, drop a few f-bombs, get excited or despondent, and so on. A good leader fosters that environment and helps to steer their employees through the ups and downs. I appreciate that Tom has done so for me and others at Sunrise. What managing others has taught her about herself Everyone has a strength and an asset that is unique to them—we have the best working relationship when I focus on and trumpet those individual qualities. This helps me to view people in a more positive light. I’ve learned how much I need that renewed perspective in my personal outlook on life. Her best advice for other bosses I couldn’t manage my team well if I was not tuned into their individual needs, goals, expectations and day-to- day business. Likewise, I couldn’t be any kind of a leader if I was clueless about the big picture and didn’t have an informed understanding of what’s happening with our company as a whole. This requires a lot of time and energy, and open communication on all levels is key. My advice to anyone in a position of leadership would be to not underestimate the effort this will take, and to count it as time very well spent. Michael Wenger (waving from the back row) with part of his 115-member team at Quality Logo Products, Inc. Best Bosses Of 2018 | FEATURE | OCTOBER 2018 | 41