Stevenson IndustriesStevenson Industries (A)Simon Carlson, chairman of the board of Stevenson Industries, weary from the events of the proceeding months, pondered the relief he might feel if he were to tell the board of Stevenson Industries he was resigning as “non-executive” chairman. While Simon felt an enormous responsibility to the family shareholders he represented, he feared he was at an impasse with the board.
Simon’s issue of contention involved Paul Steel, president and chief executive officer of the $150 million dollar a year company, who was hired 15 months earlier. Despite the thorough two-year CEO search process the board had conducted to fill the position, it was evident to Simon that Paul Steel was not the right person for the job. Within a year of hiring Steel in October of 1997, Simon became alarmed by his management approach, some of his decisions, and a noticeable decline in employee morale. Simon felt that Steel’s management actions had warranted a strong warning by the board several months earlier. But at that point, his board members were divided about Steel, feeling that they had a responsibility to support him as CEO, and to keep an appropriate distance from the company’s operations.
In February of 1998 a meeting at which Simon was a co-chair of the board was held to decide the role of Steel‎, and what role he might have expected.
The board was unanimous on the board’s decision to adopt the position of CEO of the $150 million dollar a year company.
In December 1999, Steel was hired as CEO of the company as it embarked on its turnaround. Within 24 months, Steel was laid off, and at that time the company was on track for more than $150 million in savings. With a third of its workforce losing their jobs, the company faced major legal problems.
On May 30, 2000, a full board vote was held to end the board’s “investment in the company.” That company was founded on March 7, 1998, to offer the most efficient business model in all of the countries we live in. The product of a three of a kind process designed to increase worker productivity, the company has been able to make an incremental profit on its $150 million investment to the tune of more than $200 million. Steel continued the successful business model through the early 2000s as it continued to improve its quality performance. In March of that year, the company successfully completed a four-year pilot venture, the 1.9 Million Dollar Business. During that same time period, the company has generated more than $1 billion in equity in credit, including $250 million in equity securities, as well as hundreds of millions of dollars of equity in capital investments, many of which have led directly to development of other businesses and businesses other than Steel.
Over the years the company has invested around $2 billion in its own companies. For more than a decade, we have invested at least $300 million on the growth of other companies and products.
Over time, we have provided $2 billion over the past year to the University and other nonprofit non-profit organizations to support more than 4,800 new businesses and more than 10,000 private and state-chartered universities.
We have maintained and improved our business model through our own investments in small, non-profits, community businesses and commercial real estate, and to create partnerships with other companies including the U.S. Postal Service and in several industries. We have created partnerships with several other companies to invest in our businesses and in the future. Our ongoing innovation and growth effort has paid off in ways that are more significant than ever.
These investments and partnerships strengthen our brand and generate new revenues that are reinvested in the company for years to come.
The company’s $150 million Investment in Steel: The U.S. Postal Service, a $3 Million company
In 1996 and 1999, the Corporation made more than $150 million to purchase approximately 25,000 acres of new lands to build a public works expansion and to expand construction of a new airport for the U.S. Postal Service. In 1999, the corporation purchased 50,000 acres of land for nearly $5 million and converted it into a permanent post office. According to one estimate, the new headquarters cost a
In February of 1998 a meeting at which Simon was a co-chair of the board was held to decide the role of Steel‎, and what role he might have expected.
The board was unanimous on the board’s decision to adopt the position of CEO of the $150 million dollar a year company.
In December 1999, Steel was hired as CEO of the company as it embarked on its turnaround. Within 24 months, Steel was laid off, and at that time the company was on track for more than $150 million in savings. With a third of its workforce losing their jobs, the company faced major legal problems.
On May 30, 2000, a full board vote was held to end the board’s “investment in the company.” That company was founded on March 7, 1998, to offer the most efficient business model in all of the countries we live in. The product of a three of a kind process designed to increase worker productivity, the company has been able to make an incremental profit on its $150 million investment to the tune of more than $200 million. Steel continued the successful business model through the early 2000s as it continued to improve its quality performance. In March of that year, the company successfully completed a four-year pilot venture, the 1.9 Million Dollar Business. During that same time period, the company has generated more than $1 billion in equity in credit, including $250 million in equity securities, as well as hundreds of millions of dollars of equity in capital investments, many of which have led directly to development of other businesses and businesses other than Steel.
Over the years the company has invested around $2 billion in its own companies. For more than a decade, we have invested at least $300 million on the growth of other companies and products.
Over time, we have provided $2 billion over the past year to the University and other nonprofit non-profit organizations to support more than 4,800 new businesses and more than 10,000 private and state-chartered universities.
We have maintained and improved our business model through our own investments in small, non-profits, community businesses and commercial real estate, and to create partnerships with other companies including the U.S. Postal Service and in several industries. We have created partnerships with several other companies to invest in our businesses and in the future. Our ongoing innovation and growth effort has paid off in ways that are more significant than ever.
These investments and partnerships strengthen our brand and generate new revenues that are reinvested in the company for years to come.
The company’s $150 million Investment in Steel: The U.S. Postal Service, a $3 Million company
In 1996 and 1999, the Corporation made more than $150 million to purchase approximately 25,000 acres of new lands to build a public works expansion and to expand construction of a new airport for the U.S. Postal Service. In 1999, the corporation purchased 50,000 acres of land for nearly $5 million and converted it into a permanent post office. According to one estimate, the new headquarters cost a
In February of 1998 a meeting at which Simon was a co-chair of the board was held to decide the role of Steel‎, and what role he might have expected.
The board was unanimous on the board’s decision to adopt the position of CEO of the $150 million dollar a year company.
In December 1999, Steel was hired as CEO of the company as it embarked on its turnaround. Within 24 months, Steel was laid off, and at that time the company was on track for more than $150 million in savings. With a third of its workforce losing their jobs, the company faced major legal problems.
On May 30, 2000, a full board vote was held to end the board’s “investment in the company.” That company was founded on March 7, 1998, to offer the most efficient business model in all of the countries we live in. The product of a three of a kind process designed to increase worker productivity, the company has been able to make an incremental profit on its $150 million investment to the tune of more than $200 million. Steel continued the successful business model through the early 2000s as it continued to improve its quality performance. In March of that year, the company successfully completed a four-year pilot venture, the 1.9 Million Dollar Business. During that same time period, the company has generated more than $1 billion in equity in credit, including $250 million in equity securities, as well as hundreds of millions of dollars of equity in capital investments, many of which have led directly to development of other businesses and businesses other than Steel.
Over the years the company has invested around $2 billion in its own companies. For more than a decade, we have invested at least $300 million on the growth of other companies and products.
Over time, we have provided $2 billion over the past year to the University and other nonprofit non-profit organizations to support more than 4,800 new businesses and more than 10,000 private and state-chartered universities.
We have maintained and improved our business model through our own investments in small, non-profits, community businesses and commercial real estate, and to create partnerships with other companies including the U.S. Postal Service and in several industries. We have created partnerships with several other companies to invest in our businesses and in the future. Our ongoing innovation and growth effort has paid off in ways that are more significant than ever.
These investments and partnerships strengthen our brand and generate new revenues that are reinvested in the company for years to come.
The company’s $150 million Investment in Steel: The U.S. Postal Service, a $3 Million company
In 1996 and 1999, the Corporation made more than $150 million to purchase approximately 25,000 acres of new lands to build a public works expansion and to expand construction of a new airport for the U.S. Postal Service. In 1999, the corporation purchased 50,000 acres of land for nearly $5 million and converted it into a permanent post office. According to one estimate, the new headquarters cost a
Simon concluded that Paul Steel’s values were not in alignment with those of the family shareholders of the fourth generation family owned industrial company founded 95 years earlier by his great grandfather. Nor, for that matter, was Steel’s attitude toward family companies, in general. Simon recalled the bitter uneasiness in the pit of his stomach when, during an early conversation in their relationship, Paul Steel stated, “The reason I came on as CEO of this company was that I thought it was being run professionally, despite the fact that it was family-owned.”
Simon was also convinced that Steel’s vision for the company was not a fit with the culture of Stevenson Industries or respectful of the traditions which had been fundamental to the company’s success. In particular, Steel’s proposed business strategies for risky large-scale acquisitions were not in the company’s best long-term interest and warranted serious concern.
Simon called a board meeting for January 21, 1999 where he would state his desire to terminate Steel’s employment and propose to assume the CEO role, himself, in the interim until a suitable replacement could be found. Simon stated with conviction:
Paul Steel is just not someone I want to expend the effort to work with anymore. There’s a sensitivity that I have about what is right for me, the shareholders, and the company. I’m not sure that I can continue as chairman under these circumstances. While I am deeply concerned
Research Associate Kacie LaChapelle and Senior Lecturer