3 minute read
Message from the CEO
MESSAGE FROM THE CEO Mark Carpenter WHEELS UP AT PREMIER
The founder of Southwest Airlines, Herb Kelleher, had a famous quote, “Think small and act small, and we’ll get bigger. Think big and act big, and we’ll get smaller.” Southwest has continued to be the most successful airline because they have continually kept a focus on service and what the customer wants most. And despite takeover attempts from other airlines, Southwest has stayed focused on what works best by staying agile and close enough to the customer to be responsive. Their “small” mentality has indeed helped them grow into a big airline!
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Too often we see legacy household/industry brands slowly begin to leave their patrons behind. These brands signal to their customers that they are done with them and they become focused on preserving themselves even when it is at the expense of the products and services it is supposed to provide. Some examples would be Kodak, Compaq computers, and more recently, Sears. In this case, the “big” thinking made them not only small…but obsolete. One of the best current examples of the bureaucracy of self-preservation at all costs can be seen in the Johnson & Johnson baby powder debacle. What’s this have to do with your local cooperative you may ask? Well, maybe nothing, and maybe everything. I share some of this with you in the spirit of which we work for you every day. It’s not enough for us to start and end each day being completely focused on our members. We also must learn valuable lessons from failures around us to make certain we do our best to not fail you. At Premier, we pride ourselves on being your local provider of industry-leading and uncompromised services. Along with these, we also work hard to provide marketplace protection through access and a fair price for all our members of the reproductive and herd health products we offer. Our people, philosophy, and dedicated farmer board members are what guide us.
With that I’d like to share an initiative we’ve started called the POV that I am personally invested in and very proud of. It stands
for the Premier Owner Voice. We will be developing a more informal network of Premier Cooperative members from across our 23 states to participate in small group sessions with me and my leadership team. Our goals are to make sure we remain connected to the membership from all categories in our diverse territory and gain valuable local feedback and direction to ensure we continue to meet our members’ expectations. Service in a POV group will be on a volunteer basis and is a great way to become more engaged with your cooperative. If you have any interest or would like to learn more about how to become involved, please reach out to either myself at mcarpenter@ premierselect.com, or Kirk Sattazahn, VP of Marketing and Development at kirk7@premierselect.com. Thank you for your patronage and support of your local cooperative. We are Premier Proud to serve you.
FIND THE SEMEN STRAW for a chance to WIN a special Premier Select Sires prize!
1. Find this semen straw hidden somewhere in the newsletter (hidden straw may be smaller than the one shown here) 2. Go to www.PremierSelectSires.com and click the“Newsletter Contest” button on the home page 3. Tell us where you found the straw to enter the drawing!
You may also send your submission in the mail. Write us a note including the following information: your name, account #, address, and where you found the semen straw. Mail it to the following address for a chance to WIN!
