Innovation And Success

This year's Manager of the Year has brought savings to his university through research, networking and an innovative managing style.

IT WOULD be an understatement to say that this has been Mike Loyd's year. Going back to last December when Louisiana State University Graphic Services was ranked number 18 on the In-Plant Graphics Top 50 list and number five among all college and university shops, through June when he was named IPG Manager of the Year for 1999, it has been a year that he can look back on with pride.

"Winning this award has brought prestige to me personally and to the organization," stresses Loyd, director of graphic services. "Vendors now introduce me to other vendors as Manager of the Year."

In the few years that Loyd has been at the helm of the Baton Rouge-based operation, it has gone from a total of 4,000 square feet to a 45,000-square-foot printing plant and a 20,000-square-foot mailing facility and copy center, known as Pawprints. The in-plant is home for 92 employees and has a budget of $7.6 million. Loyd has brought new services, equipment and a new attitude to the LSU shop.

In July, Loyd attended the University Printing Managers Group conference in England, along with Ken Macro, director of printing and copying services at the University of Akron. Though he was booked to speak at the event for two years, Loyd recalls that his counterparts in the UK were understandably excited when they learned that they would be joined by America's in-plant Manager of the Year.

"They were just thrilled," Loyd explains. "We were treated like celebrities."

It is through these travels that Loyd has found many of the money-saving ideas that he has brought to the university. On a tour of Colorado State University, he was impressed by a student intern program, which he later successfully implemented at LSU. Similarly, while at the University of Pittsburgh, Loyd got the idea to allow customers to self-publish short runs of books using a networked DocuTech and a color copier. He notes that many of the services he has brought to the in-plant were ideas other shops came up with and he brought back to his campus.

New Copier Contract

These are just a couple of the ways Loyd has found to lower costs and boost services at the in-plant. He has also negotiated a new copier contract with a single vendor to save the university about $200,000 annually. His decision to print longer runs of university letterhead has brought home a savings of about $70,000. And the decision to outsource certain jobs that the shop could not do cost effectively, like business cards and envelopes, has resulted in a savings of about 60 percent.

All these cost savings have had a positive effect not only on the bottom line of the university, but also on a group of people very important to Loyd—his customers. To keep his clients up to date with what is going on at the in-plant, and to get feedback from them, Loyd formed a customer advisory panel. Consisting of the shop's 10 largest customers, the panel is invited to meet with the LSU Graphic Services management staff on a quarterly basis.

If he gets any complaints from other customers, they are invited to join the meetings, as well. He says it has become a great management tool, since he can talk directly with the people who use his services. Also, those who are there because they were not satisfied with a job done by the in-plant will see that it was an isolated experience.

So What's New At LSU?

Since we last caught up with Loyd, he has added a Xerox 6180 to the Pawprints copy center and has a Canon CLC1000 on order. He has also hired Don Davis as associate director of printing services. Davis has 16 years of in-house printing experience at the University of Oklahoma. He says the knowledge Davis brings into the shop will surely bring about even more positive changes.

Surrounding himself with a supporting staff of smart and experienced employees is what has made him so successful, Loyd adds. This allows him to remain confident that the shop runs effectively while he looks for more ways to save the university money.

Chris Bauer can be reached at: cbauer@napco.com.