The Way West Won

Dedication to his organization, great customer service and a plan for the future all helped West Barton become Manager of the Year.

by CHRIS BAUER

DEDICATING MORE than three decades of his life to printing at Brigham Young University, West Barton is not only a well-known figure on the BYU campus, but also all around the in-plant community. He recalls that this air of recognition expanded after In-Plant Graphics named him Manager of the Year in 1996.

"People tended to recognize me more and ask more questions," Barton says, remembering working extensively with his peers and being used as a sort of "educational stepping stone" at conferences and industry events after winning the award. And the university community took notice, too.

"It goes a long way to give you credibility," Barton notes. "It helps you especially on the local level." Not that Barton needed this award to earn respect from his customers. Judging from the great number of letters IPG received raving of Barton's commitment to customer service and his leadership abilities, his past actions have gone beyond what any award might bring.

Back in 1996 Barton was director of Print Services, overseeing 43 full time employees, 90 part time students and a budget of $5.5 million at the Provo, Utah-based shop. A sizable operation in its own right, it pales in comparison to what he has built today.

An in-plant innovator, Barton has since merged the Print Services department with the university mailing operation, and now is the head of both divisions. Now known as the Print and Mail Production Center, the in-plant boasts a staff of 63 full time and 120 part time employees, and a budget of over $9 million. Barton decided to merge the two departments to cut down on traffic on campus and to save the university money. Employees now are cross-trained to thrive in both the mail and printing realms.

Barton is also a strong proponent of technology and digital equipment, which helped him earn the title of Manager of the Year. He constantly looks at trends in digital printing, keeping up with new technology and making sure the in-plant at BYU stays on the cutting edge. Barton proudly announces his shop is now more digitally networked than ever before. This is something he has no plans to curtail in the future.

Advice For Peers

Always personable and ready to help out other managers with ideas to better their in-plants, Barton gives this advice to his peers:

• Look at your organization and understand the needs of your customers.

• Be customer oriented. Remember, you are providing a service.

• Don't get too comfortable. There will always be challenges to overcome.

• Keep looking for ways to improve.

Obviously Barton puts his customers first. He has made customer service a priority for himself and his shop, and he always listens to his customers' concerns. Surveys are sent out with each job so the in-plant gets feedback on its work. If a survey comes back and the customer is not satisfied, Barton is immediately on the phone trying to rectify the problem.

Another group of people Barton feels strongly about is his staff. His supervisors credit him with creating not only a successful in-plant, but also a shop that has a positive and fun atmosphere. Again this can be attributed to Barton's personality. He makes a point of regularly interacting and visiting with his employees to hear concerns or just to see how they are. Also, the in-plant employees are welcome to come to Barton with any ideas or problems.

Meeting with teams of employees is another practice Barton implemented at the shop. At the meetings, jobs that the in-plant produced are analyzed to see how they could be improved. This allows the employees to see what shortcomings they have and to make suggestions on how to fix them. Jobs that are found to be especially well done are often put aside to be entered in various printing contests. This is a good practice, since BYU Printing Services regularly takes home awards in contests such as In-Print—it even won the prestigious Best of Show award in 1995.

Barton, who once served as Utah State Printer, is heavily involved in the printing industry away from BYU. He has been a member of the IPMA for 17 years and now serves as international president.