Thinking Ahead
For a company seeking to adjust to the fast-moving changes in its business, the research involved in strategic planning brings vital consciousness, greater buy-in, innovation and organizational accountability.
C
huck Anderson had started and grown a remarkable company. But a few years back, it reached a point where its direction was no longer certain. Since founding Midwest Rubber Service & Supply Company in 1976, Anderson had built the Plymouthbased company into an international manufacturer and distributor of conveyor belts, hoses, and other industrial rubber products, with 90
28
/ ENTERPRISE MINNESOTA MAY 2014
employees and operations in Shanghai and the Netherlands. (One of its most successful specialties is a line of squeegees for use in professional floor care machines.) Midwest Rubber President Doug Turk credits the company’s distinctive die-cutting technology as being a key factor in its
By Gene Rebeck
growth. Then, about four years ago, Anderson told his employees that he planned to retire and transfer oversight of the business to his five children. Midwest Rubber had been guided by an energetic, visionary entrepreneur who made all of the big moves. Now crucial decision-making would be spread across more people. To accommodate that new leadership, Midwest Rubber would need to make