On a Us a Moment to Reflect on Some Key Initiatives the Last 12 Months
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November / December 2011 Internal Journal A newsletter for the employees of the News-Press and Gazette Company David Bradley, Brian Bradley, President's Chief Executive Officer, & President, Corner NPG Co. NPG Co. Looking forward, with a renewed mission In an effort to better communicate, we would like to take a moment of your time to share some changes taking place at NPG. Improved communication with our workforce is an important goal of ours, especially in this new world of convergent media where every person is being asked to do more in order for us to remain dominant and to anticipate rapidly changing consumer behaviors. The year 2011 NPG has been action-packed and 2012 is shaping up to be very exciting; however, allow On a us a moment to reflect on some key initiatives the last 12 months. Printing The most significant change in our recent company history occurred April 1 with the sale of the cable division. David Bradley Sr. built the cable system in St. Joseph facility is in 1965. After 46 years, the stars were aligned (i.e. capital markets, consolidation, competition) to make the right deal to sell this business. A deal was struck with impressive Suddenlink Communications, based out of St. Louis, Mo., and we feel very good If you think NPG Printing exists just to roll NPG newspapers off the presses, about the quality of the deal. We set a goal early in the process to exit this industry roll think again. with great integrity and on sound footing with our employees, recognizing they had taken great pride in building this business over the years. We were very transpar- NPG Printing and its commercial printing operations, located in St. Joseph, Mo., ent and worked to communicate with them each step of the way. The employees runs 24 hours a day and prints a daily paper 365 days a year. pledged to finish their careers with NPG Cable on a strong note and hand the keys to the “red Corvette” over to Suddenlink in April. They accomplished just that as Yes, newspapers make up a majority percentage of the work at the plant. evidenced by the final three months being the most profitable in NPG Cable his- They purchase over $1.5 million of newsprint (paper) every year. That’s more tory. Because of their dedication through the years every cable employee shared in than 100 semi-trucks a year, the proceeds of the sale. equating to more than 2,000 tons. In any given month, the With this divestiture, 24 TV stations, 13 newspapers, four radio stations and a press crews print more than commercial printing division serve as the foundation from which we will build. We 2,500,000 individual pieces for know this will require a higher level of operational excellence and a more engaged NPG. Some of these are spe- workforce than at any point in our history. Recognizing this, in the 4th quarter cial sections, some are com- of last year, we initiated “Project 2010,” which involved dedicating resources to mercial and advertising types interviewing more than 35 managers seeking their advice on how to improve the of products, and some are daily company. The results uncovered a need to improve processes in several categories. and weekly newspapers. Those most glaring included how we 1) Build and Deploy strategy; and 2) Engage Employees through Effective Communication. The total operational budget of the plant is more than $6 No stopping these presses - a newspaper rolls along the large press at NPG Printing. In response to this constructive feedback, we have spent the last six months million per year. Electricity restructuring the Executive Team, redefining our mission and principles, framing a expense to run the facility is corporate growth strategy and working to communicate and engage employees. more than $200,000 a year. Let us take a moment to provide a brief overview of work in these categories: (During the summer, it’s not uncommon to see an electric Statement of Mission and Principles: bill in excess of $20,000 for a NPG is a family-owned, employee-friendly company with long-term investment single month.) More than $2 horizons (this is a competitive advantage against larger public companies in hiring million in annual payroll goes the best people). Sustained by an insatiable winning spirit, we are guided by the to the staff of approximately 85 desire to be recognized as best-in-class in the industries we compete (this helps hire employees. About $200,000 a and retain the best people and form the right partnerships). Our central purpose year is spent on ink. is to be the dominant provider of local news and information in our communities (this is our core competency and usually involves mid-sized western markets where In October 2011, the facility we publish on a mix of powerful platforms). We value autonomy for our leadership A blank canvas - rolls of newsprint tower to the ceiling, printed more than 2,600,000 waiting their turn on the press. at the local level and encourage involvement from our people in the communities copies of various newspaper we serve (this keeps us agile and provides local knowledge leading to higher profit- publications and sections. It’s ability). We will be successful by executing the following four business principles with not uncommon to mail more than 100,000 newspapers or direct mail pieces every week and spend more than $1 million annually with the Post Office. Continued on page 2 Continued on page 2 President's corner, continued from page 1 NPG Printing, continued from page 1 NPG Newspapers publication days and quantities: the highest integrity: 1) Recognized as the employer of choice in our markets. St. Joseph News-Press (Daily): 31,502 2) Exceed customer expectations. Atchison Daily Globe (Saturdays and Wednesdays): 3,800 3) Remain financially balanced. Hiawatha World (Tuesdays and Fridays): 2,500 4) Quality driven. Green Acres (Twice monthly): 43,000 Miami County Republic (Wednesdays): 3,745 Growth Strategy: Osawatomie Graphic (Wednesdays): 2,045 Our goal is to double the size of this company over a five-year period while never Louisburg Herald (Wednesdays): 1,750 jeopardizing financial stability. This growth will occur both internally and externally. Smithville Herald (Wednesdays): 2,350 Externally our strategic growth priorities will include: Kearney Courier (Thursdays): 3,000 1) Building capacity in existing NPG markets that helps to achieve our mission of Gladstone Dispatch (Thursdays): 20,000 being the dominant provider of local news and information. Liberty Tribune (Thursdays): 11,000 2) Building diversity in revenues by seeking opportunities inside familiar industries KC Nursing News (Weekly): 14,000 (i.e. broadcast, radio, newspaper, printing, digital, broadband). 3) Identifying attractive new western markets where we can be positioned as the But again, NPG Printing is about dominant provider of local news and information. We will not make an invest- more than just newspapers. ment approximately 25% greater than the market value of the company at one time. We prefer full ownership avoiding investment partners if possible. In the commercial sheet-fed opera- tion, we are able to print a wide Executive Restructuring: range of products that include post- ers, direct mail pieces, political flyers, Chief Executive Ofcer annual reports, catalogs, brochures, David Bradley pocket folders, advertising inserts President and postcards, just to name a few. In a typical year, the plant spends more Brian Bradley than $500,000 for sheet / cut paper. The sheet operation has some great Adding in ads - grocery inserts are stacked on a pallet flexibility in printing lots of different after being pre-run for the Wednesday News-Press. Executive Vice-President, Executive Vice-President, Executive Vice-President Executive Vice-President Executive Vice President, Chief Technology Ofcer Chief Organizational & Chief Operating Ofcer, & Chief Operating Ofcer, Chief Financial Ofcer formats, types of paper, sizes and Effectiveness Ofcer NPG Broadcasting NPG Newspapers Liam Catherall Bill Severn John Kueneke Lee Sawyer Lyle Leimkuhler colors. The press crew is constantly looking at new technology that will This team meets every Monday to improve communication across division lines make them more efficient, produce and to discuss strategic issues facing the company. This structure better positions higher quality and be able to meet the company to manage functions that stretch across the organization such as the demands of the market. Human Resources, Accounting/Finance and Purchasing. Improved communica- tion at the corporate level will also better position NPG to execute a sound In the area of quality, the sheet- corporate growth strategy. fed team was a national finalist in the 2010 SAPPI Print Quality Employee Engagement: Competition. Their work was so We have a renewed focus to maximize the engagement of our employees in incredible, it competed in the World our businesses so they approach their work and make decisions as if they were Class Category. They received a Not just newspapers - sheet-fed presses allow busi- owners. At the first-ever NPG Leadership Summit held in St. Joseph in July Silver Award from SAPPI North ness to grow beyond the daily papers. 2011, managers heard new company goals geared towards improving employee America and were recognized for engagement to be measured by satisfaction survey results. The following goals will being one of the top quality printers in the country. be incorporated into leadership's 2012 performance plans: • Goal: 90% of employees agree they are informed about what is going on In 2010, NPG Printing purchased a Heidelberg press. This new press has several in their location. efficiencies that include the ability to print faster, achieve less waste, permit faster • Goal: 60% of employees agree they have a say in decisions that affect their work.