Past Winner Stories
The Schneider Corporation
www.schneidercorp.com
"We hire the right people, give them freedom, and their entrepreneurial spirit flourishes."
Now in its second generation of family ownership, Indianapolis-based The Schneider Corporation has a strong chairman at the forefront of the business: John Schneider, whose motivation is ensuring the business can be passed on to a third generation. The company, the largest engineering firm in Indiana, found itself in a leadership crisis in the mid-1990s. "No longer was it enough to focus unending energies on individual projects and clients and, as time permitted, direct efforts at substantive organizational issues," says Schneider. Knowing that changes needed to take place, the company struggled with developing the "right blueprint." A 14-month effort to get on the right track proved disappointing, and the internal struggle continued to prevent organizational development.
In 1997, a task force was created to take "a hard look" at the organization. Members represented a cross-section of employees, and a facilitator was hired to keep the process on track. The company, at the time a combination of Schneider Engineering Corp. and architectural firm Bohlen Meyer Gibson & Associates, was restructured into one firm. The Schneider Corporation's market focus was determined, and the staff was reassigned to teams focused on specific client sectors.
Schneider then needed a COO who could quickly get up to speed. Since bringing Ed Jolliffe on board as president and COO in 1998, The Schneider Corporation's sales have increased from $11.5 million in 1997 to $18 million in 1999-and things just keep getting better.
Now in its second generation of family ownership, Indianapolis-based The Schneider Corporation has a strong chairman at the forefront of the business: John Schneider, whose motivation is ensuring the business can be passed on to a third generation. The company, the largest engineering firm in Indiana, found itself in a leadership crisis in the mid-1990s. "No longer was it enough to focus unending energies on individual projects and clients and, as time permitted, direct efforts at substantive organizational issues," says Schneider. Knowing that changes needed to take place, the company struggled with developing the "right blueprint." A 14-month effort to get on the right track proved disappointing, and the internal struggle continued to prevent organizational development.
In 1997, a task force was created to take "a hard look" at the organization. Members represented a cross-section of employees, and a facilitator was hired to keep the process on track. The company, at the time a combination of Schneider Engineering Corp. and architectural firm Bohlen Meyer Gibson & Associates, was restructured into one firm. The Schneider Corporation's market focus was determined, and the staff was reassigned to teams focused on specific client sectors.
Schneider then needed a COO who could quickly get up to speed. Since bringing Ed Jolliffe on board as president and COO in 1998, The Schneider Corporation's sales have increased from $11.5 million in 1997 to $18 million in 1999-and things just keep getting better.