{"id":41575,"date":"2020-09-17T11:37:19","date_gmt":"2020-09-17T18:37:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/?p=41575"},"modified":"2020-09-17T11:37:21","modified_gmt":"2020-09-17T18:37:21","slug":"courage-to-attack-the-biggest-challenges-kindles-passion-in-marco-difference-maker-dale-evens","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/the-week-in-imaging-twii\/editors-blog\/2020\/09\/courage-to-attack-the-biggest-challenges-kindles-passion-in-marco-difference-maker-dale-evens\/","title":{"rendered":"Courage to Attack the Biggest Challenges Kindles Passion in Marco Difference Maker Dale Evens"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"
Dale Evens, Marco<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

In many ways, Dale Evens represents the type of person we\nstrive to become, but perhaps lack the courage or the focus to follow through.\nHe likes to tackle challenges that are seemingly impossible\u2014both inside and\noutside the office\u2014and he loves to learn new things that are not easy to\nmaster. Like fabricating, welding and powder coating. As Evens observed, he\nentered the world turning a screwdriver.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf it has working parts, I can fix it,\u201d he noted. \u201cAnd if\nthe parts aren\u2019t moving, I can fix that, too.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Evens\u2019 determination is centered on completing a task that\nis seemingly impossible. That isn\u2019t surprising; he\u2019s been tackling tough chores\nduring his entire working life, starting as a tech in the novelty industry,\nwhere he repaired pinball machines and video games. The ability to construct\nsomething that exists perhaps only in his imagination is only the genesis of Evens\u2019\nvalue proposition. The finished product validates his belief that if you can\nimagine or dream about something, you can build it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As Evens celebrates his 30th<\/sup> anniversary with\nMarco, his days are less about turning a screwdriver and more centered on\ncreating cohesive technical teams for the vaunted St. Cloud, Minnesota-based\ndealership. The vice president of copier service focuses on ensuring his\nservice teams are constantly striving for optimal technical performance, and\nworks to integrate dealer acquisitions into the fold in following Marco\u2019s\nrecipe for success.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But at the end of the day, bringing resolution and\nsatisfaction to the many clients the company serves, enabling them to work at\npeak efficiency while driving profitability for the dealership itself, brings a\nsmile to his face. It takes a team effort to achieve those ends, and having\nonce been a field tech himself, Evens knows what it takes to get the job done.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt starts with a team that\u2019s in sync,\u201d said Evens, a 2020\nENX Magazine Difference Maker. \u201cYou need to have harmony and understand\neveryone\u2019s strengths and weaknesses, and be able to leverage them. When you\nhave career technicians like we do, some who have been on board for 20-30\nyears, it\u2019s satisfying to know that you\u2019ve provided a good home for their\ncareer, a solid income. They don\u2019t want to go anywhere else.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe\u2019re all a part of the bigger picture that is Marco. Landing a new customer and being able to execute on it is very exciting.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sustained Success<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Much of what makes Marco so special, in Evens\u2019 estimate, comes from the top-down, with management empowering its employees to make the right call. Being an early adopter, particularly in areas such as MPS, has its advantages. Evens notes the dealer quickly smoothed out the early bumps to create a program that was repeatable and could be applied across its customer base. As a result, some clients have been on the program for 10-plus years. Evens believes it says something about their performance when customers note, \u201cYou weren\u2019t the cheapest bid, but we want to go with you.\u201d Being able to consistently provide positive outcomes weighs heavily in winning the day and the customer, according to Evens.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOur team has the ability to go in and navigate through minefields, to be able to figure out what the customer wants,\u201d he said. \u201cThey want to run their business cost-effectively, and so do we. And we have the means to help them do that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of the greatest influences in Evens\u2019 career was Keith\nSchwichtenberg, a man who \u201cbled toner\u201d and always left team members energized by\nhis wisdom. \u201cSwitchy,\u201d as he was called, understood the parts and toner game,\nbut employees truly felt that he cared about them. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cKeith was always very personable and knew something about\neveryone,\u201d Evens noted. \u201cHe was a good listener.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Evens cited Jerry Newberry as a financials guru who provided\nthe company valuable insight on attaining and exceeding industry benchmarks for\nprofitability. He credits Newberry\u2019s guidance for enabling Marco to reach the\n50% profitability level.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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

\u201cJerry came in and told us how reaching the 50s was\nattainable,\u201d Evens noted. \u201cWe started following his plan, watching what we were\ndoing and holding our people accountable. And we hit and passed the 50% mark.\nAlso, our first-call efficiency went from the middle of the pack to the top\n7-10% in the country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt came down to having the guidance and support from (CEO) Jeff Gau. He gave us the bandwidth to try things, and he didn\u2019t lose faith when we didn\u2019t hit our number. He\u2019d hold us accountable, but he never lost faith. That\u2019s important.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Market Mavens<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Evens was able to tackle a few challenges during 2019,\nincluding a successful foray into the Detroit market. He notes the company was\nable to leverage some lessons learned from its previous entry into St. Louis;\nit\u2019s about having the right leadership and resources in place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve had acquisitions that we could turn in eight months,\nand others have taken two years,\u201d he said of the integration process. \u201cIt\u2019s\nabout having the right people in the right position, and then turning the\ndials. Some deals require more heavy lifting than others.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Like most of the industry and the country, Evens is longing\nto see business return to some sense of normalcy, but acknowledges the pandemic\nwill spell the end of business for some companies. He believes it takes leadership\nto guide a company through the downturn with confidence, knowing that brighter\ndays are ahead. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHopefully we can look back on this in 12 months and say\nwe\u2019re glad it\u2019s over, but we did well,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Evens and his wife, Patty, have been married for 24 years. In\nhis spare time, he enjoys fixing things around the house and puttering around\nin the garage with one of his many muscle cars, which include late-\u201860s Chevy\nCamaros, a 1970 Plymouth Duster and a 2008 Dodge Viper. One of his greatest\npassions is drag racing, which he has enjoyed for the past 38 years. Evens also\nmentors younger drivers on the track.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In many ways, Dale Evens represents the type of person we strive to become, but perhaps lack the courage or the focus to follow through. He likes to tackle challenges that are seemingly impossible\u2014both inside and outside the office\u2014and he loves to learn new things that are not easy to master. Like fabricating, welding and powder coating. As Evens observed, he entered the world turning a screwdriver. \u201cIf it has working parts, I can fix it,\u201d he noted. \u201cAnd if the parts aren\u2019t moving, I can fix that, too.\u201d Evens\u2019 determination is centered on completing a task that is seemingly impossible. That isn\u2019t surprising; he\u2019s been tackling tough chores during his entire working life, starting as a tech in the novelty industry, where he repaired pinball machines and video games. The ability to construct something that exists perhaps only in his imagination is only the genesis of Evens\u2019 value proposition. The finished product validates his belief that if you can imagine or dream about something, you can build it. As Evens celebrates his 30th anniversary with Marco, his days are less about turning a screwdriver and more centered on creating cohesive technical teams for the vaunted St. Cloud, Minnesota-based dealership. The vice president of copier service focuses on ensuring his service teams are constantly striving for optimal technical performance, and works to integrate dealer acquisitions into the fold in following Marco\u2019s recipe for success. But at the end of the day, bringing resolution and satisfaction to the many clients the company serves, enabling them to work at peak efficiency while driving profitability for the dealership itself, brings a smile to his face. It takes a team effort to achieve those ends, and having once been a field tech himself, Evens knows what it takes to get the job done. \u201cIt starts with a team that\u2019s in sync,\u201d said Evens, a 2020 ENX Magazine Difference Maker. \u201cYou need to have harmony and understand everyone\u2019s strengths and weaknesses, and be able to leverage them. When you have career technicians like we do, some who have been on board for 20-30 years, it\u2019s satisfying to know that you\u2019ve provided a good home for their career, a solid income. They don\u2019t want to go anywhere else. \u201cWe\u2019re all a part of the bigger picture that is Marco. Landing a new customer and being able to execute on it is very exciting.\u201d Sustained Success Much of what makes Marco so special, in Evens\u2019 estimate, comes from the top-down, with management empowering its employees to make the right call. Being an early adopter, particularly in areas such as MPS, has its advantages. Evens notes the dealer quickly smoothed out the early bumps to create a program that was repeatable and could be applied across its customer base. As a result, some clients have been on the program for 10-plus years. Evens believes it says something about their performance when customers note, \u201cYou weren\u2019t the cheapest bid, but we want to go with you.\u201d Being able to consistently provide positive outcomes weighs heavily in winning the day and the customer, according to Evens. \u201cOur team has the ability to go in and navigate through minefields, to be able to figure out what the customer wants,\u201d he said. \u201cThey want to run their business cost-effectively, and so do we. And we have the means to help them do that.\u201d One of the greatest influences in Evens\u2019 career was Keith Schwichtenberg, a man who \u201cbled toner\u201d and always left team members energized by his wisdom. \u201cSwitchy,\u201d as he was called, understood the parts and toner game, but employees truly felt that he cared about them. \u201cKeith was always very personable and knew something about everyone,\u201d Evens noted. \u201cHe was a good listener.\u201d Evens cited Jerry Newberry as a financials guru who provided the company valuable insight on attaining and exceeding industry benchmarks for profitability. He credits Newberry\u2019s guidance for enabling Marco to reach the 50% profitability level. \u201cJerry came in and told us how reaching the 50s was attainable,\u201d Evens noted. \u201cWe started following his plan, watching what we were doing and holding our people accountable. And we hit and passed the 50% mark. Also, our first-call efficiency went from the middle of the pack to the top 7-10% in the country. \u201cIt came down to having the guidance and support from (CEO) Jeff Gau. He gave us the bandwidth to try things, and he didn\u2019t lose faith when we didn\u2019t hit our number. He\u2019d hold us accountable, but he never lost faith. That\u2019s important.\u201d Market Mavens Evens was able to tackle a few challenges during 2019, including a successful foray into the Detroit market. He notes the company was able to leverage some lessons learned from its previous entry into St. Louis; it\u2019s about having the right leadership and resources in place. \u201cWe\u2019ve had acquisitions that we could turn in eight months, and others have taken two years,\u201d he said of the integration process. \u201cIt\u2019s about having the right people in the right position, and then turning the dials. Some deals require more heavy lifting than others.\u201d Like most of the industry and the country, Evens is longing to see business return to some sense of normalcy, but acknowledges the pandemic will spell the end of business for some companies. He believes it takes leadership to guide a company through the downturn with confidence, knowing that brighter days are ahead. \u201cHopefully we can look back on this in 12 months and say we\u2019re glad it\u2019s over, but we did well,\u201d he added. Evens and his wife, Patty, have been married for 24 years. In his spare time, he enjoys fixing things around the house and puttering around in the garage with one of his many muscle cars, which include late-\u201860s Chevy Camaros, a 1970 Plymouth Duster and a 2008 Dodge Viper. One of his greatest passions is drag racing, which he has enjoyed for the past 38 years. Evens also mentors younger drivers on the track.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":166,"featured_media":40074,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[3626,80,1650,82,84,1638],"tags":[3878,545],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41575"}],"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=41575"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41575\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":41577,"href":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41575\/revisions\/41577"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/40074"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=41575"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=41575"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=41575"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}