Consensus Builder

This year, TLMI is again showing off its main strength in the industry—its people. In an association loaded with industry leaders, the TLMI Converter of the Year award can be considered recognition as the "best of the best."

Even with this lofty description, it is no surprise to those that know him best that John Hickey, CEO of Smyth Companies, Inc. and currently in the coveted position as past TLMI chairman of the board, has been selected to receive packagePRINTING's 2010 TLMI Converter of the Year award.

Frank Sablone, president of TLMI, says Hickey is one of the strongest and most thoughtful leaders TLMI has had as chairman. "John is a leader who will sit back and listen to fellow board members and then follow with an insightful question that helps lead the board to consensus."

Last year's TLMI Converter of the Year honoree, Dave McDowell, chairman of McDowell Label and Screen Printing, is also a big fan. "John is a picture of humility, while at the same time always exhibiting calm, confident, strong, and effective leadership," he says.

World class

The family business that Hickey owns and manages with his brothers Bill and Dan, along with long-time friend and CFO Dave Baumgardner, dates back more than 130 years. According to Hickey, family lore has it that his great grandfather secretly bought out the company stock during a period of 20 years while he served as general manager, taking full ownership in 1900.

Through four generations of family ownership, the company today is one of the premier label printers in North America and offers a wide array of decoration methods. "We offer virtually every label process so that our customers can move from whatever form of decoration they desire, depending on the market appeal," notes Hickey.

This breadth of offerings is important to the competitive markets served by the company. These include: food and beverage; personal care; household care; beer, wine, and spirits; and private label. In addition, Hickey says the company offers in-house design and prepress services, along with proprietary label application solutions and expertise.

Earlier this year, Smyth Companies entered into a partnership with Novacap, a Montreal-based private equity firm that is investing in the company. With this outside capital resource, Hickey expects to complement organic growth with possible acquisitions. But don't think that Smyth Companies will forget its roots. "I think Smyth has always represented good citizenship and business ethics to a fault. We will continue this tradition with our new partners at Novacap," asserts Hickey.

Getting started

Although he was born into a family with a long history in printing, it wasn't a given that printing would be his calling. As a matter of fact, Hickey says his mother encouraged him and his brothers to become doctors or lawyers or anything other than joining the family business. By the time he reached his teenage years, he developed a strong interest in science and entered college with the intention of pursuing what he calls the "honorable trade of medicine."

He pursued medical studies for much of college before switching to liberal arts, which he says "left me educated, but virtually unemployable." He was able to land a job with Control Data Corp. and set out in a career in computer graphics. Hickey stayed in this field for about 10 years, started his own computer services business, and earned an MBA in Entrepreneurial Studies.

With deep family roots, however, the printing industry was never far away, and, in 1986, his father asked him to help run a new upstart division called Label Specialties. "It was the stepchild to the main sheetfed offset business and badly needed some integrating/upgrading as compared to the rest of the business," says Hickey. "I cut my teeth in labels, essentially learning the business from the ground up as I fought—even internally—for my division to become as world class as the traditional Smyth cut-and-stack business. It was an education in family dynamics, hiring well, and perseverance that could never be taught at any university."

Hickey learned the value of differentiating a company from the competition while in the computer graphics field and applied this lesson in the printing arena. "I was surprised by the lack of differentiation among competitors compared to what I was used to in the computer world, so I embarked on a talent search to create a label application division that would use new technology to place us above the rest," he says. The resulting business, called the Red Rock Division, is a great source of pride for Hickey.

Much of Hickey's success can be attributed to a management style that puts a high value on competitiveness, combined with what he calls "terrific bed side manners (my doctor influence). My senior team, for instance, is very vocal, very intense with each other, but at the end of the meeting we are closer to the truth than would otherwise be if we didn't trust we'd be friends at the end of the day."

TLMI, too

Hickey joined TLMI in 1994. Not knowing anyone in the organization, he –decided to "just jump in and get involved." Being part of a family-run business, he admits that he first thought the program was pricey and felt somewhat guilty staying at five-star venues to attend conferences. This quickly became a non-issue. "It became very apparent that we had five-star programming, along with participation from the members that made these meetings feel like graduate school at a bargain price," he says.

Hickey has been on the TLMI Board of Directors since 2002, first serving as the finance chair and later as chairman. During his time on the Board he has used his influence to help TLMI members adapt and grow in a global economy.

"I don't think there's any mystery anymore that the global economy will provide threats to TLMI members, but I believe the leadership has done a very stand-up job in providing content to help members compete globally," he says. "In addition, I've been an advocate from the beginning to reach out internationally to our friends in Europe, South America, Asia, and other fast-developing nations to share and exchange ideas that raise the bar for all."

These efforts have brought tangible results and are clearly recognized by other leaders in TLMI. Frank Gerace, TLMI chairman and recently retired CEO of Multi-Color Corp., says, "John has provided an enormous amount of leadership in developing relationships between North American and other international trade associations." Gerace attributes much of the success in these endeavors to Hickey's personal leadership style. "John is very sincere and forms deep and trusting relationships; his integrity is beyond reproach."

Family man

Hickey and his wife Michelle make their home in St. Paul, Minn. They are the proud parents of four children. Joe recently joined the family business at Smyth; Matt is an officer in the U.S. Army; Chris is a junior in college; and Lizzy is a sophomore in high school.

Although he used to play sports competitively, Hickey has settled into a more recreational sports routine that includes biking, golf, and occasional tennis. That said, one of his son's had him climbing Mount Rainier recently, and ascending other such peaks may be in his future.

Hickey is also a fan of Westerns, such as any Clint Eastwood movie. "I like clear lines between good guys and bad guys, as unrealistic as this is today. I guess that's the escape," he muses.

Those he views as heroes seem to provide a good portrayal of Hickey, himself. "Just like the Westerns, my hero is the anonymous one who doesn't claim the credit; rather rides away in the end." And, he adds, "See any man or woman wearing a U.S. Armed Services uniform today." pP