Eddie Daniel, president of McVantage Packaging, discusses some of the company’s human resources practices. McVantage Packaging operates wood packaging plants in Alabama and Tennessee, including a scragg mill. It is part of the McVantage Group, which specializes in manufacturing pallets, pallet lumber and tropical hardwood products.
Pallet Enterprise: In a recent interview with Christianity Today, you said your company’s “retention rate is creeping up because we’re more focused on the people.” What has McVantage done to increase its focus on employees?
Daniel: The main thing is we started focusing more on our company culture with an emphasis on our employees’ needs. We became better at communicating with our employees and taught them how to communicate better with us. We also added a chaplain to our staff who makes regular scheduled rounds each week in our facilities to interact with employees. The chaplain also is available to meet with employee family members as needed.
Pallet Enterprise: When did you begin this emphasis on people? What was your retention rate then, and what is it now?
Daniel: We started focusing more on our company culture and employees in the spring of 2019 after I joined the C12 Group. In the fall of 2019, we made the decision to add a chaplain. He officially came on board at the beginning of 2020.
As far as retention goes, we have always had a good core group of key employees. However, we always had eight or 10 employee positions that we were trying to fill all of the time. Currently that number is down to about four or five positions.
Pallet Enterprise: What are the chief reasons that employees have left McVantage?
Daniel: We really don’t know because we never really did a good exit interview with outgoing employees. However, since placing more emphasis on employees, we have not lost any employees whom we wanted to retain.
Pallet Enterprise: What employee benefits do you offer?
Daniel: We pay by the hour and have production bonuses for sawmill and cut-up employees. Our pallet builders and repair workers are paid by piece rate on top of their hourly wage. We have paid vacation time, and we offer two types of health care insurance as well as dental, vision and life insurance.
Pallet Enterprise: Tell us about your human resources policies and practices that directly seek to help retain employees.
Daniel: There have been no real policy changes. We have just started focusing more of our efforts toward better communicating with our employees and letting them know more precisely what we need from them. In turn, they have responded by telling us what they want or would like from us. Outside of more money, there have not been any outrageous requests. Most requests have been for very simple things that were easy and inexpensive to accommodate.
Pallet Enterprise: Tell us how the C12 Group has helped you to become a better leader.
Daniel: Through C12, I have learned to focus more on people. Coming from a military background, I think I was more mission-focused and maybe less in tune to employee needs.
For me, the C12 curriculum has been very practical, challenging, and well-timed, and the resource center – not to mention my fellow C12 Group members – has a plethora of knowledge and experience to pull from on any subject that you could possibly need. C12 is not just another tool in the toolbox. It is a whole other toolbox to source information and guidance needed to lead a business.
(Editor’s Note: C12 Group is a global network of peer-advisory groups for Christian CEOs and business leaders. For more information about C12 Group, visit www.c12group.com.)
