‘We Always Have To Be The Best’

DUANE HUGHES has spent his entire career with a financial services company in St. Louis, but he’s had to “make change” recently due to shifts in employment and by his employer. Yet, despite a company transition that has altered the in-plant, Hughes has capitalized on his ability to balance people and production to keep himself and the print shop secure within the securities firm.

Hughes has lived in Illinois, right across the Mississippi River from St. Louis, since he was about a year old. He received his Associate’s Degree in data processing from Lewis & Clark Community College, in Godfrey, Ill.

In 1983, after graduation, Hughes joined St. Louis-based A.G. Edwards & Sons as a trainee in the company’s IT department. As he worked his way up the ladder, he served in several supervisory positions, including manager of customer communications and project manager.

By 2004, however, Hughes wanted out of IT.

“I just felt like I needed to get away from computers,” he admits. “I was putting in extremely long hours.”

Hughes wanted to remain with A.G. Edwards, perennially considered one of Fortune magazine’s “100 Best Companies to Work for in America.” He targeted the company’s General Services department due to his respect for department head Sue Weiss. “[Sue] definitely made me a better manager,” he declares.

At that time, general services comprised mailing, printing and supplies. Hughes focused on mailing in his first year, and then moved to print production management.

“It struck me that printing is just about as technical as working on computers, so I didn’t really get away from computers,” he laughs.

Hughes had worked with printing and mailing services while in IT, so the transition was fairly smooth. During his tenure, the shop has gone computer-to-plate and installed the ePace print shop management system. “I like to think that we’ve brought the print shop from the industrial age to the information age,” he states. “[ePace] allows us to look at our efficiency in different ways. Before, the data was there, but we couldn’t get to it.”

A Big Change

In May 2007, Hughes received some exciting news: A.G. Edwards had been acquired by Charlotte, N.C.-based Wachovia and would merge with Wachovia Securities to create a “…brokerage firm with … nearly 15,000 financial advisors,” according to a Wachovia press release.

Wachovia remained bullish on the in-plant and its staff.

“[The decision-makers] saw that we were well-organized and well-managed, that we had a lot of experience and that we accounted for everything,” Hughes reports.

The print shop is now called Wachovia Commercial Print (WCP), a 26-person department that operates within Wachovia’s Utility Services division. Hughes oversees WCP’s four-person leadership team.

“One of my direct reports manages prepress, press and bindery,” he explains. “Another manages the office and customer service, billing, inventory, the copy center and shipping. The other two provide project support, estimates and coordination.” The bulk of the shop’s work includes stationery, envelopes, statement inserts and brochures.

Volumes had been decreasing in 2007, Hughes recalls. “But now volumes are on the rise again.” He calculates an increase of about 10 percent by April 2008, with the possibility of doubling volumes by July. Wachovia Commercial Print is adding more color copying and IT printing, while moving into a slightly smaller space next year.

“It’s still about balancing people with production,” Hughes asserts. “Right now, we just have to work smarter.” He does plan to increase operating hours to two full shifts by year’s end and then three shifts in 2009.

“The bottom line is that we always have to be the best,” Hughes concludes. Fortunately, the company’s culture has remained harmonious. “My co-workers and my employers are some of the best people I’ve worked with,” he asserts, adding that he expects to keep riding toward print shop perfection. “I’ll be here until I retire—or until they run me off,” he asserts.

Beyond the shop, Hughes rides high and keeps stress low on his Harley-Davidson Dyna Super Glide.

“No deadlines to meet, no budgets to worry about, no problems to solve,” he philosophizes. “You just ride with your friends and get home when you get there.” IPG