2013 Choice Employers, Employee of the Year: Matt Morrison

Matt Morrison says despite the highly competitive nature of the commercial printing industry, he’s found plenty of opportunity for success.

“When we began operating in Springfield … commercial printing was a relatively small percentage of our company’s revenues. Since that time, it has grown to more than 50 percent,” he says.

As regional sales manager for Nowata Printing Co. – a regional printer with facilities in Missouri, Oklahoma and Arkansas specializing in mass marketing for retail chains in the Midwest and a subsidiary of Community Publishers Inc. – says he’s dedicated to ensuring clients get what they need, when they need it, even when what they need may seem impossible to achieve. And that gives Nowata an edge over competition.

“I do not have a customer that doesn’t get called on regularly by competing printers with promises of lower prices and better services. It is often the nonproduction related efforts that we provide that build the confidence and eventual loyalty from our customers,” Morrison says. “I have been on press checks in the middle of the night. I have ridden with our drivers to make sure that first-time deliveries were made without error.

“Once, we had a plate processor down and I had to drive plates to and from our plant in order to make sure that our jobs got out the door.”

Logging seven years with the company, Morrison was the first Nowata employee to be awarded a Caribbean cruise for selling more than $1 million in new business in a year.

“This was a surprise and required closing a large book of work with a local retailer that had never worked with us in the past,” he says.

“The thing I am most proud of, is that we are still working with that customer to this day.”

Morrison says his motivation comes from his mentor and father, John, who came from humble beginnings.

“He came from a very modest childhood and had no inside track in the world of business. He was able to blaze his own trail in life through hard work, determination and a keen eye for business,” he says. “I’ve always admired his dedication to family and work and try my best to do the same.”

Before joining CPI, Morrison worked as an account manager with The Team Inc., in Ozark, where he displayed that same motivation to provide marketing support for clients with budgets in excess of $1 million.

“My motivation for going above the call of duty is not based on financial rewards,” he says.

“I have a great relationship with all of my customers and I look forward to any opportunity that I can help them find a solution or to make them shine. I feel vested in the success of their business.”[[In-content Ad]]