Difference Maker Spotlight: ECi’s Ron Books

For Ron Books, no day is typical and that’s the way he likes it. The President and CEO of ECi said that when you have 630 employees and over 8,000 customers around the world there are no standard hours and items and issues may arise at any time. All that time spent in airports and airplanes doesn’t help either.

“The only part I try to keep consistent is getting up around 5:30am and going to the gym before the craziness begins,” he said with a smile.

Top 100 - ECI photo by Jon P. Uzzel Ron Brooks

Ron Books, President & CEO, ECi

Ron Books has been credited for the strategic direction and vision that have helped revitalize ECi, but he pointed out that to make a difference, you need great employees and a skillful leadership team. He stated that he is fortunate to have them both.

“Their hard work and dedication is what makes me look good,” said Books. “Our employees live by our core values or CODE — Crave Greatness; Own the Outcome; Deliver Awesome; Embrace Community. These core values are focused on making a difference for our customers, our employees and our communities. This recognition provides some validation that we are making progress both internally and externally and that makes me incredibly proud.”

Books said that he is blessed to have had a number of people who have positively impacted him both personally and professionally, but he singled out his uncle, David Morehouse, as being particularly influential. He recalled that his father was very ill for several years and passed away at a pivotal time in his young life. He said he was very fortunate to have his uncle as both a father figure and as an exceptional business mentor.

“He came from very little and is now the President and CEO of the Pittsburgh Penguins hockey team,” said Books. “That demonstrated to me that if you work hard and treat people well you can create your own success. He has guided me throughout my career and has always been there when I have needed someone to bounce thoughts or ideas off of. There is no CEO handbook, so having phenomenal people around you is critical.”

Books also recalled that when he took on his first leadership role, one mentor advised him, “Remember: not everyone is you.” He admitted that he wasn’t sure he understood that completely at the time, but over the course of his career, it clicked.

“Each colleague, employee, customer, and so on all have their own personalities, strengths, weaknesses and often times things they are dealing with behind the scenes,” he explained. “What I have learned is that there is no cookie-cutter way to work with or manage people and not everyone will approach things exactly the way you will. Getting to know and understand people personally gives you a much better foundation for how you can work successfully together. I still have to regularly remind myself of that advice and I appreciate it now more than ever.

For Books it is a challenging but exciting time in the industry. He noted that they have approximately 2,000 customers in what they call their Field Services Division, and that ties ECi’s success to the success of this industry. Even with the many transformative changes, he remains decidedly optimistic.

“We see so many amazing entrepreneurs and those who experience continued success have consistently been willing to change,” he said. “As the printed page declines, we have to be sure we are all focused on other areas of growth and opportunity. At ECi, we have invested significantly over the past two years in managed services and we believe this is extremely important for the future of our dealers. With that said, we still feel like there continues to be great opportunities on the managed print side for those that continue to evolve.”

Added Books: “I am sure we are a little biased being a software company, but we also see the office equipment industry’s reliance on technology growing at a rapid pace. Dealers need automation, integration and real-time access to data so they can continue to do more with less.”

ECi has over 8,000 customers across the world and 95 percent of them are SMBs. Books is amazed at their entrepreneurial spirit and considers them all to be difference makers too. He said that as he became better acquainted with them, many became truly inspirational. So much, in fact, that in November of 2015, ECi launched their Everyday Hero contest at their annual Connect Conference to recognize those who go above and beyond to help others in their local community.

“We asked our customers to submit nominations of employees that were making a difference by helping others,” he said. “We received dozens of incredible stories that literally brought tears to my eyes. Having the opportunity to meet and work with these people is definitely the best part of my job.”

We congratulate Ron Books for being a Difference Maker!

About the Author
Todd Turner is a contributing editor of ENX magazine. Todd has a background in marketing and a nearly 20-year history in the imaging industry. He can be reached at todd@enxmag.com