{"id":41146,"date":"2020-07-30T12:17:14","date_gmt":"2020-07-30T19:17:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/?p=41146"},"modified":"2020-07-30T12:17:17","modified_gmt":"2020-07-30T19:17:17","slug":"polek-polek-difference-maker-chris-polek-seeks-to-elevate-customers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/the-week-in-imaging-twii\/editors-blog\/2020\/07\/polek-polek-difference-maker-chris-polek-seeks-to-elevate-customers\/","title":{"rendered":"Polek & Polek Difference Maker Chris Polek Seeks to Elevate Customers"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"
Chris Polek, Polek & Polek<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

In the early stages of his career, Chris Polek quickly\nappreciated the value of finding a better way of doing something. As the CEO of\nPolek & Polek, a wholesale distributor supporting the independent dealer, he\nis always thinking of ways to better serve the customer. His membership in\nVistage NYC\u2014a peer group for leadership development\u2014further underscores his\nquest to deliver on that promise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Not long after graduating from Lehigh University in\nBethlehem, Pennsylvania, Polek followed his father\u2019s suggestion that he gain\nsome experience in the business world prior to joining the family firm. Polek\ncame upon a company that specialized in typesetting equipment and supplies, and\nthey were looking for a sales rep to staff their newly-created inside sales\ndivision. It was a large firm, with more than 1,000 employees in its main\nheadquarters, and provided a golden opportunity for Polek to ply a craft he\u2019d\nlearned while working summers at the family business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Polek soon encountered an obstacle. The customer service\ndivision was located in a different part of the building. This was the\npre-email era, so it entailed him leaving a voicemail if someone didn\u2019t pick up\nthe call, and that meant any questions he had would have to wait until a\ncallback. That placed a drag on productivity, especially for a newbie.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The then-22-year-old Polek soon had enough, and marched over\nto the manager of customer service, where he expressed the thought that it\nwould be more productive for everyone involved to devise a system that would\nprovide for better communication between inside sales and customer service.\nWithin a few months, the layout was changed, and the two departments were\npositioned next to one other.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The move enabled Polek and his inside sales teammates to have better access to critical information. \u201cI was only 22 and a little intimidated to approach the person in charge,\u201d said Polek, a 2020 ENX Magazine<\/em> Difference Maker. \u201cBut I learned never to be afraid to ask for what you want.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Client-Centric<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

For Polek, improvements are most keenly felt when delivered\nin the name of the customer. In doing business with clients, it\u2019s essential\nthat his company is able to provide a meaningful difference. After all, if\nclients aren\u2019t growing and thriving, \u201cthen we don\u2019t have any customers for our\nfuture business,\u201d he observed. \u201cWe take a long-term focus on what we do.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gratification for Polek takes form in the growth and\ntransformation of employees. He cited numerous examples of team members who\ncame aboard fresh out of high school, moved within the ranks at Polek &\nPolek, have married, become parents and, in some cases, grandparents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s not surprising that Polek derives much of his\ninspiration from his father, company Founder John Polek. Even as a 10-year-old,\nPolek was awestruck by the fact his dad owned his own business, with the family\nname attached to it. His aspiration, even then, was to take the helm someday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Among the advice John Polek provided his son was a universal nugget of wisdom that so many fail to grasp. \u201cHe told me it was OK to go out and try other things before coming here, but regardless of what I decide, I should make sure that I\u2019m doing something that I love,\u201d Polek remarked. \u201cBecause if you don\u2019t love the business or aspects of it, it won\u2019t last the test of time.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another individual who has influenced Polek along the way is Bob Goldberg, BTA general counsel. He values the dedication Goldberg has shown the industry, and in particular, his penchant for giving back to the industry, which Polek emulates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Best of Class<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As part of Polek\u2019s quest to deliver the best in\nOEM-compatible products, the company created a program dubbed Peak Performer\nItems in early 2019. Using 12-month tracking of product performance in the\nfield, Polek & Polek highlights those goods that have a 99.5% or higher\nsuccess rate. The ongoing evaluation program, which requires that products\nmaintain that rate on an ongoing basis to keep the Peak Performer Items\ndesignation, has proven to be popular with customers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Like most providers to the industry, Polek is seeking a\nreturn to pre-COVID-19 business levels, as activity was brisk in the months\nleading up to the shutdown. \u201cWe\u2019ve been focusing on getting out and having\nconversations with dealers to show them how we can help orchestrate their\ncomeback, and show them how we\u2019ve done it for others,\u201d Polek said. \u201cIf we focus\non helping dealers reach that recovery, we should eventually see results\nourselves.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Polek and his wife, Lynda, have been married 19 years. They\nhave two daughters: Lily, 16, and Sophie, 14. The family has season tickets for\nthe New York Yankees and have dearly missed that aspect of the summer. The\nbaseball void has been filled by trips to the beach.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In the early stages of his career, Chris Polek quickly appreciated the value of finding a better way of doing something. As the CEO of Polek & Polek, a wholesale distributor supporting the independent dealer, he is always thinking of ways to better serve the customer. His membership in Vistage NYC\u2014a peer group for leadership development\u2014further underscores his quest to deliver on that promise. Not long after graduating from Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, Polek followed his father\u2019s suggestion that he gain some experience in the business world prior to joining the family firm. Polek came upon a company that specialized in typesetting equipment and supplies, and they were looking for a sales rep to staff their newly-created inside sales division. It was a large firm, with more than 1,000 employees in its main headquarters, and provided a golden opportunity for Polek to ply a craft he\u2019d learned while working summers at the family business. Polek soon encountered an obstacle. The customer service division was located in a different part of the building. This was the pre-email era, so it entailed him leaving a voicemail if someone didn\u2019t pick up the call, and that meant any questions he had would have to wait until a callback. That placed a drag on productivity, especially for a newbie. The then-22-year-old Polek soon had enough, and marched over to the manager of customer service, where he expressed the thought that it would be more productive for everyone involved to devise a system that would provide for better communication between inside sales and customer service. Within a few months, the layout was changed, and the two departments were positioned next to one other. The move enabled Polek and his inside sales teammates to have better access to critical information. \u201cI was only 22 and a little intimidated to approach the person in charge,\u201d said Polek, a 2020 ENX Magazine Difference Maker. \u201cBut I learned never to be afraid to ask for what you want.\u201d Client-Centric For Polek, improvements are most keenly felt when delivered in the name of the customer. In doing business with clients, it\u2019s essential that his company is able to provide a meaningful difference. After all, if clients aren\u2019t growing and thriving, \u201cthen we don\u2019t have any customers for our future business,\u201d he observed. \u201cWe take a long-term focus on what we do.\u201d Gratification for Polek takes form in the growth and transformation of employees. He cited numerous examples of team members who came aboard fresh out of high school, moved within the ranks at Polek & Polek, have married, become parents and, in some cases, grandparents. It\u2019s not surprising that Polek derives much of his inspiration from his father, company Founder John Polek. Even as a 10-year-old, Polek was awestruck by the fact his dad owned his own business, with the family name attached to it. His aspiration, even then, was to take the helm someday. Among the advice John Polek provided his son was a universal nugget of wisdom that so many fail to grasp. \u201cHe told me it was OK to go out and try other things before coming here, but regardless of what I decide, I should make sure that I\u2019m doing something that I love,\u201d Polek remarked. \u201cBecause if you don\u2019t love the business or aspects of it, it won\u2019t last the test of time.\u201d Another individual who has influenced Polek along the way is Bob Goldberg, BTA general counsel. He values the dedication Goldberg has shown the industry, and in particular, his penchant for giving back to the industry, which Polek emulates. Best of Class As part of Polek\u2019s quest to deliver the best in OEM-compatible products, the company created a program dubbed Peak Performer Items in early 2019. Using 12-month tracking of product performance in the field, Polek & Polek highlights those goods that have a 99.5% or higher success rate. The ongoing evaluation program, which requires that products maintain that rate on an ongoing basis to keep the Peak Performer Items designation, has proven to be popular with customers. Like most providers to the industry, Polek is seeking a return to pre-COVID-19 business levels, as activity was brisk in the months leading up to the shutdown. \u201cWe\u2019ve been focusing on getting out and having conversations with dealers to show them how we can help orchestrate their comeback, and show them how we\u2019ve done it for others,\u201d Polek said. \u201cIf we focus on helping dealers reach that recovery, we should eventually see results ourselves.\u201d Polek and his wife, Lynda, have been married 19 years. They have two daughters: Lily, 16, and Sophie, 14. The family has season tickets for the New York Yankees and have dearly missed that aspect of the summer. The baseball void has been filled by trips to the beach.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":166,"featured_media":40103,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[3626,80,1650,82,84,1638],"tags":[3861,298],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41146"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/166"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=41146"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41146\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":41148,"href":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41146\/revisions\/41148"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/40103"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=41146"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=41146"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=41146"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}