Quality CEO Archives - Page 5 of 6

Recent Articles

Clarksville Team

I spent the day discussing the integration of the new Clarksville facility into PalletOne. There are many challenges. We’ve had more than a dozen folks on site there since the merger occurred. As a “standard setter” in our industry, you can imagine what an effort it is to teach what we expect in terms of safety, engagement, maintenance, operations and housekeeping. We appreciate the willing and responsive efforts of the Clarksville team. The strain of

Howe Q. Wallace October 20, 2017

When lumber is more expensive, the cost of waste rises

Our lumber is markedly more expensive than a year ago. In every phase of our business, we are spending more for it than we were a year ago. When lumber is more expensive, the cost of waste rises. It’s the nature of our business that material that goes in the dumpster may be ugly, but we paid the same for the waste as we do for the good pieces. The more expensive our raw material,

Howe Q. Wallace October 16, 2017

Happy 16th Birthday PalletOne!

PalletOne is 16 years old! When we started, we had 12 pallet manufacturing locations. Since then: We added six pallet locations. We entered the wood treating business and expanded to four locations. We added a trucking operation. We closed one location. We opened then closed another. We grew our team to 1,400 people. We have a stellar reputation with our customers, suppliers and within our industry. We are a valued employer in the communities we

Howe Q. Wallace October 11, 2017

Tour Ready

“Tour ready” all the time. If I popped in your work area tomorrow with a visitor, would you be proud to show us around? Is housekeeping the way you like it? Safety rules in order? Equipment in working order? A healthy level of productivity? The whole team engaged? I learned a long time ago that you can’t fake it for a tour. If you don’t act like a tour is coming tomorrow every day, it

Howe Q. Wallace August 16, 2017

“Great Teachers”

This is a blatant cut and paste job on my part of a post by educator Danny Steele. I’ve adopted a couple of thoughts gleaned from reading about Teach for America, an innovative teacher training program that recruits non-traditional candidates to teach underserved students in impoverished areas. The thoughts are: “Teaching is leadership.” This idea that the teacher is committed to leading students to a better learning experience. “If the student hasn’t learned, the teacher

Howe Q. Wallace July 24, 2017

Choosing!!!

“A man who procrastinates in his CHOOSING will inevitably have his choice made for him by circumstance. So if you now number yourself among the disenchanted, then you have no choice but to accept things as they are, or to seriously seek something else.” Hunter Thompson. Gonzo journalist. I studied journalism when I was younger. Thought I might become a sportswriter. One of the popular writers in those days was a novelist Hunter Thompson. He

Howe Q. Wallace July 19, 2017

Company Survey

At a recent industry meeting, there was great concern about the difficulty of finding suitable teammates. Positions are unfilled around the country. It occurs to me as I listen to these concerns that I’m glad that we have a jump on this challenge. A couple of years ago, we began to survey everyone who works in our company annually. We ask these questions: Do you know what’s expected of you? People who are clear on

Howe Q. Wallace June 22, 2017

Being or Becoming a Leader

I heard Erwin McManus give an inspiring speech on being or becoming a leader. As I describe his take on the topic, perhaps you will recognize some of traits. First, show up. The opportunity to lead doesn’t come to you. You go to it. You have to be in the arena where leadership is needed to become a leader. Second, nominate yourself. When I find myself in a new setting, I immediately look for the

Howe Q. Wallace June 15, 2017

“Shareworthy Service”

I have been exposed to a book called Good Company by Tim Miles. He is a marketing consultant and I have found his insights on business to be “on point.” One of his concepts is “shareworthy service.” The idea is that companies and individuals should be interested in providing service that is so impressive that customers would readily tell others about it. Have you received service that you would brag about? That’s kind of service

Howe Q. Wallace April 20, 2017

Just One More Can Make All The Difference

Our colleague who manages our Butner plant, shared the following with me. It speaks of the importance of 212 degrees: Turning Up The Heat At 211 degrees, water is hot. At 212 degrees, it boils. And with boiling water comes steam. And with steam, you can power a train. Applying just one extra degree of temperature to water means the difference between something that is simply very hot and something that generates enough force to

Howe Q. Wallace January 6, 2016

Talk To The Leader in PT Lumber. Request A Quote for Pallets.

Articles About Leadership

THE JUICE IS WORTH THE SQUEEZE

“Everything you want is on the other side of ‘hard’.” – CJ McCollum, NBA player McCollum is a story of overachievement. He was undersized. Played college basketball at a non-descript school. Was a long shot to be an NBA player but worked his way to being a first-round draft pick and was a solid star in his 10th year in the league. I heard him describe his approach to the game and his development on a podcast called

Howe Q. Wallace March 25, 2024

HAPPENING TO THE WORLD – A SATISFYING WAY TO LIVE

PalletOne leaders “happen to the world.” What does that mean? A PalletOne leader is confident. Each situation creates an opportunity for service and contribution. We are talented and put those talents to work. We see those around us as having talent. We seek to unlock it. We realize that we can be called upon to take the initiative to improve things at any moment. We act when the situation calls for it. We inspire through

Howe Q. Wallace March 25, 2024

SUFFERING AND CHALLENGES

“Weep, trust, pray, think, shift, hope, grow. Ways to handle suffering.” – Tim Keller Tim Keller was a preacher from New York City. He passed away in 2023. I followed him on Twitter because he tweeted profound thoughts like the one above. You don’t exit life without tough things happening to you. It’s a fact. None of us are exempt. In specific order, Keller gave us seven verbs to consider when challenged: Weep – It’s

Howe Q. Wallace March 22, 2024