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Making money of a dinosaur industry It's not every company that can pull in a tidy profit from a dying industry, but the Lisle, IL-based Wallace Computer Services is hoping to buck the trends. The company, now the country's eighth-largest printer in North America, had its beginnings in 1908 in Skokie, IL when farm owner Walter Wallace traded in his land for a printing press. The company then took its first in a long series of names, Wallace Press, and focused on producing forms for businesses. Though the name would change again in 1963 to Wallace Business Forms and then to Wallace Computer Forms in 1981, the business remained the same. New clients despite shrinking industry But the business form industry is fading away in the era of electronic data systems. The entire industry has shrunk by about four percent a year. Still, Wallace has been able to remain profitable, in part by turning to commercial printing to supplement its forms business. In 1996, for example, Wallace's form business increased by about 15.7 percent, due in part to Maytag's decision to go with Wallace for most of its information management products, a task the appliance giant once relied upon 200 companies to complete. The contract with Wallace, which supplies Maytag with custom forms, labels, computer supplies, among other printed support materials, has been valued at about $15 million annually. Fighting off obsolescence through diversification To keep itself from obsolescence, the company expanded its line of offerings to include COLORFORMS (though its acquisition of MGI Industries), and acquired Apollo Labeling Systems and Lampro Graphics. In May 1999, Wallace bought Commerical Press, a San Diego printer, raising its number of commercial print facilities across the country to a current 27. The Total Print Management (TPM) program, which began in 1992, brought in 40 precent of Wallace's revenues for 1999. The program allows Fortune 2000 companies to outsource the work and costs of managing print purchasing and usage. A customer typically saves 15 to 25 percent in costs for the first year on the program. In order to increase its portion of the $24 billion marketing and promotional printing market, last year Wallace introduced an Internet-based version of the TPM program, in addition to acquiring Metro Printing, Inc. based in the Minneapolis/St. Paul marketplace. Stop the Presses? Wallace expects to incur many changes over the next months. 33-year Wallace veteran Robert J. Cronin stepped down as Chairman and CEO in early 2000. About the same time, Wallace announced it was closing four printing plants in Cleveland, Tampa, Miami, and Lebanon, KY, prompting 300 people to lose their jobs so Wallace can boost profits. As a result, stock plummeted, following a downward trend that began back in July 1999. Now the company is struggling to integrate its commercial printing presses and restore consumer confidence.
Wallace does not consider blind resumes, though they may be kept on file until a proper position becomes open. For a listing of available job openings, consult the company's human resources webpage at www.wallace.com/career/empapp. Interested parties can also pick up an application at the sight. Just download the ap, print it out, and fax or mail to the region you are applying to. Remember to include the job code. A list of regional recruiting offices can also be found on the website. No matter what job you're applying for (from sales to factory work to administration), expect to take part in an extensive training program.
Despite "the industry's downward spiral," employees say that they remain "loyal to Wallace." Similarly "we haven't lost any of our prestige," said one employee. The company "offers the best perks it can. You may find better in other industries, but Wallace actually cares about its employees." Much of the work "can be quite demanding; deadlines can be fierce," added one. The dress code "varies, but things around here have gotten pretty lax." The pay is "well above average for the industry, but you can definitely find better."
Human Resources
American Business Products;Data Documents;John Harland;Moore Corporation;New England Business Service More Company Profiles For more career information, go to Vault.com ©2000, Vault.com Inc
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