Today’s blog post is authored by Michael Brunswick, president of Versa Pak.
At Versa Pak, our culture and values are of the utmost importance to our entire team. They shape how we work and guide the way we treat one another and customers.
I wanted to share more about our history and growth up until now to help you fully understand our company and the way we work.
Versa Pak’s Beginnings
In 1986, Versa Pak’s original founders were in the materials business and noticed they were getting plenty of requests for plastic materials. Instead of buying or outsourcing it, they decided they’d start manufacturing it themselves.
From there, Versa Pak changed hands, and again when the current owners took over in 2001. Two years later, in 2003, we moved to our current location at 500 Staeger Road in Celina.
We really started growing in 2010 as our business took off, and we’ve added on every other year since then. We’ve grown since 2010 from about 40 employees to more than 150, and we are on pace to sell over $45 million worth of materials this year. In 2021, we expanded once again, and our facility now includes 30 total lines and over 200,000 square feet of space.
Read more about our latest expansion >>
Photo courtesy of the Daily Standard.
Why Versa Pak is Different From Other Plastic Manufacturers
One of the things that makes Versa Pak stand out from other plastic manufacturers is the relationships we have with our customers. It goes beyond simply picking up the phone.
Oftentimes, we know about their families and their personal lives; feeling like you have friends in the industry makes this a fun place to work.
Another thing that’s important to us is the versatility we offer. We have anything from small bubbles to big bubbles and mono, to three-layer and five-layer lines. We’re a one-stop shop when it comes to filling our customers’ poly needs.
Making a Shift in Versa Pak’s Internal Culture
As we continued to grow, our primary focus was on sales. As time went on, we recognized that we started to have internal miscommunications. To fix that, we realized that we needed to start doing something different.
We began the culture shift with leadership meetings and leadership training. In the training, we were able to learn a lot about different leadership styles that we weren’t exposed to in the past. It’s allowed us to grow not only as individuals but as leaders.
We’re also getting our employees more involved. They’re seeing a difference in the way things are presented and the leadership style we are adapting to. Something new we’ve begun is holding monthly mentor meetings with several employees to take what we’ve learned and pass it on to them.
Our overarching goal is to provide the best leadership that we can. Since beginning our culture shift, our communication efforts have noticeably improved, not only interoffice but also company-wide. We’ve also narrowed our focus for growth to pay attention to what matters most.
A Focus on Versa Pak’s Company Values
Again, our company values are key. We talk daily about how people are living – or not living – those values.
For example, during our mentor meetings, we always ask for examples. We’ll go out on the floor and quiz people on what the values are, handing out little gifts with regards to employees knowing the values. We also guide our conversations around the values. When an associate is not living a value, it’s much easier to approach a conversation. And when they are living a value, we can reiterate the benefit of living that value.
At Versa Pak, the values we strive to live by every day are:
• Integrity
• Teamwork
• Communication
• Mentoring
• Fun spirited
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This article was originally written in September 2020 and was updated in August 2022.