Grace Under Pressure

Paul Kida would like to put to rest some common misconceptions about working for state government. Having worked his first 18 years in the private sector, he'd long been told that the private sector was where the real money was, backed by the best technology and the most opportunities for career advancement.

But after 15 years with Texas Health and Human Services—11 as plant manager of HHS Printing Services—Kida can say with authority that this blanket statement is simply not true.

"I've had the opportunity for a lot more growth. We have better equipment, and I've seen a lot more pay raises," he notes. "It was a really good decision to pursue this position, and I'm happy that I made the choice."

HHS Printing Services is sometimes called upon to deliver in a pinch, providing relief forms for state emergencies, such as Hurricane Ike in 2008, or health-related alerts that require communications to be delivered to the state's 25 million residents. For Kida, it's a rewarding job in many aspects, and he's proud of the advancements that have made the in-plant a rousing success.

Born in Washington, D.C., Kida graduated from the University of Arizona in 1979 with a degree in political science. He'd been fascinated with the idea of getting into intelligence work for the government and entered the Air Force for pilot training. He found the experience to be fun, yet stressful, and returned to civilian life a year and a half later following an honorable discharge.

"They were going through a lot of cutbacks in the services at that time," he notes. "There was not much of a career there."

Stationed in Oklahoma, Kida opted not to return to Arizona because the economy there was flagging. He chose Austin, where he took on odd jobs, working first at a lumber yard, then selling real estate. But when his wife, Lynn, revealed that she was pregnant, Kida felt he needed a more substantial, steady income as opposed to living commission-to-commission while selling property.

Checking the classified ads, he found a printing company—Quick Print—that offered to train prospects. Kida became a manager trainee and learned the ropes on how to operate press and bindery equipment. The firm gave Kida a branch to manage, as well as a handful of employees, a task he handled for about six years.

Kida then took a sales position with a trade thermographer, Flash Cards, in 1988. He worked the Texas, Oklahoma and Louisiana region and attended trade shows, then ran a shop in Corpus Christi that was acquired by Flash Cards. Six years later, Kida took over as production manager.

From Private to Public Sector

In 1999, Kida found an opening as a prepress manager with what would become HHS Printing Services. Four years later, when his predecessor retired, Kida applied for and captured the job as plant manager.

"When I took over, we still had a dark room. We were shooting negatives, stripping and burning plates," he says. "It was old school."

Operations were a bit scattered. There were two printing shops 10 miles apart in Austin—one under the Texas Department of Health, the other under the Department of Human Services. Each shop had a manager and was organized under the different agencies. They shared work and a single budget.

"It was convoluted and confusing. Communication wasn't great," Kida recalls. "I had discussed consolidating them with management, and in 2006 the opportunity came up."

It wasn't an easy proposition. Kida had to cost-justify the move (his is a full cost-recovery shop) by putting numbers together to show how the organization would save money by paying less rent, along with the efficiencies of having everyone under one roof.

Over an arduous six-month period, Kida orchestrated the move, bringing gear from the other plant to his location. It entailed working with vendors, rigging companies, electricians, and a property management company (space was leased), among others. The employees were integrated as well. Everyone and everything was now under one roof and one agency.

The future is bright for Kida, who notes his in-plant is on the verge of acquiring wide-format printing equipment for the production of posters and signage. He also sees HHS Printing increasing its digital printing capacity, as its current gear is fully booked.

Away from the shop, Kida enjoys salt water fishing on the Texas coast. Port Mansfield, about an hour north of the Mexico border, is one of his favorite spots, where he angles for speckled trout and red fish. Paul and Lynn Kida have been married 33 years and have two sons—Mike, 31, and Matt, 20. Of his wife, Kida quips, "She's a lucky lady."