Working His Way Up

After several in-plant jobs, Tim Steenhoek now heads up document management for ING, a financial services giant.

By Kristen E. Monte

When Tim Steenhoek began working for his school district's print shop in high school, he never dreamed printing would be his ultimate career choice.

Now, however, as head of the Document Management Center for ING, one of the world's largest financial services companies, he wouldn't have it any other way.

His Des Moines, Iowa-based operation provides ING with on-demand, variable data printing, as well as mailing and fulfillment.

Steenhoek didn't just stumble into ING's in-plant; this self-described "technology freak" had been working to get to this point for most of his adult life.

Following his stint at the school district in-plant, Steenhoek enrolled at Buena Vista College, in Storm Lake, Iowa, and worked in the event promotions department, making signs and flyers using movable type, which he says gave him some perspective on typesetting's history.

"We also had Macintosh computers on campus, so I was exposed to the very latest in cutting-edge computers," quips Steenhoek, adding that having access to Macs in 1986 was cutting edge.

Steenhoek left college to join the work force and got his first job as production coordinator for the Iowa Association of School Boards (IASB), in Des Moines, where he operated the one-person in-plant by running a duplicator, folder, collator, inserter and addressograph machine.

"My responsibility of keeping this system up to date and submitting mailings to the post office is how I got my first exposure to postal automation," says Steenhoek. "I quickly learned that standardizing addresses and doing as much work share for the post office as possible paid dividends."

After a couple of years, Steenhoek yearned to run a printing and mailing operation, and began looking at larger organizations that had more opportunity for growth. However, he took a job with the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union (IGHSAU), because it was similar to the work he had done with the school board, yet it gave him more responsibility and flexibility with equipment purchases.

"Back then, I ultimately wanted to get to where I am now," says Steenhoek. "I am glad I stayed with the smaller plants first. I learned a lot there, and it helped to prepare me for a lot more."

Steenhoek remained with the IGHSAU for five years, learning about postal automation, bar coding, multi-color printing and laser printing. In the process, he earned his Certified Graphics Communication Manager (CGCM) and Certified Mail Manager (CMM) designations from the International Publishing Management Association.

"Desktop computers, computerized equipment and the Internet were just emerging as tools that could be used effectively in printing," says Steenhoek. "I did everything I could to maximize their impact."

Hired by ING

It was this drive, and his desire to grasp new technology, that lead Steenhoek to his post with ING. Steenhoek joined the company, then called Equitable Life of Iowa, in 1995, as distribution manager for mailing and fulfillment. He managed the two mailrooms and two supply departments.

"I had some early success with projects such as merging the mailrooms together and merging the supply rooms together, turning it into a fulfillment center," says Steenhoek. "I also brought new knowledge of postal automation with me, and the post office handed me a gift called postal reclassification. I saw it [the new automation rules] as an opportunity to show my company how much money we could save if we followed their simple rules."

Steenhoek says he had tremendous management support for automation projects, and as the company grew through acquisitions, Steenhoek was able to expand the in-plant. In 1997, Equitable built a new plant in downtown Des Moines, and Steenhoek was able to integrate all functions: printing, copying, mailing and fulfillment.

"All I knew is that work would flow better if we were in one department," says Steenhoek. "Our print volumes were around one million pages per month. Today, we average 12 million pages per month."

Equitable was acquired by ING in 1997. Three years later ING acquired ReliaStar and Aetna Financial Services and eventually consolidated Reliastar and ING's document management centers into one location. In 2002, the in-plant moved into another new facility in Des Moines.

Steenhoek has seen much of the in-plant's technology change during his 10-year tenure, and says he will continue to develop the in-plant at the same astronomical rate.

"We plan to continue improving our systems and processes to reduce the touch points, reduce inventory levels and improve the products we produce," says Steenhoek. "We are placing a lot of emphasis on improving our systems that deliver personalized materials, with attractive color, at a competitive cost."

This 62-employee shop, currently ranked at number 15 on IPG's Top 50, is in the beginning stages of launching a digital storefront, offering everything from prepress to binding services online.

Steenhoek claims the biggest challenge he faces as a manager is doing a good job communicating the value of the Document Management Center.

"Staying abreast of new technologies, continuing to reduce unit costs, improving service levels, and hiring good talent is easy compared to the challenge of doing a good job of marketing our operation," says Steenhoek.

Born in Centerville and raised in nearby Winterset, Iowa—the birthplace of John Wayne—Steenhoek, along with his wife Lisa, has three children: Jacob, 10, Morgan, 8, and Marissa, 4. He says that his children's hobbies are now his hobbies, so much of his time is spent racing go-carts and attending sporting events and dance recitals. He also enjoys "spending time in the yard, doing anything related to computers, riding ATVs and tinkering with home entertainment systems."

"Des Moines is a great community," adds Steenhoek. "It has a great school system, low crime and traffic—just a great place to raise a family."