Steven Means Email & Phone Number

I have over 20 years of experience as a manager and partner in the Recycling/Reuse Industry. My most recent experience was as a partner with a gracious family business. Together we created a start-up sustainable/reuse business that serviced the wood pallet needs of retailers, manufacturers, and distributors throughout the United States. Over 14 years we realized substantial growth through expansion and acquisition, building strong and mutually successful relationships with employees, customers, and other stakeholders. Customer wins were consistently achieved via a candid, consultative sales approach leading to profitable revenue growth. Recognized for embracing difficult and unanticipated challenges, managing through crises, and developing and implementing the right solutions and improvements. Known for consistently helping organizations and teams successfully achieve goals by analyzing all angles of situations, anticipating problems or changes, and identifying new and different ways to strategically grow the business. Key Accomplishments• Equity Partner and Founder of Woodford Logistics. The company was successfully divested to a Private Equity owned strategic buyer in 2021.• Developed and implemented the strategic plan for Woodford Logistics, resulting in 31% annualized revenue growth over 14 years. • As a consultant for PALNET USA, developed and provided direction for strategic plan that resulted in annualized revenue growth of 22% over 6 years. • Led recurring, successful negotiations with 3 of the company’s top 5 customer relationships, resulting in increased share of customer wallet during each negotiation. • Throughout career, led 7 greenfield plant start-ups in key strategic markets. Markets included: Atlanta, GA; Boston, MA; Cincinnati, OH; Cleveland, OH; Philadelphia, PA; Portland, OR; Salt Lake City, UT• Completed 6 plant acquisitions, integrations, or turnarounds throughout career. • Developed business plan for IFCO Systems’ diversification in to the 3rd Party Freight Handling business. • Partnered with an international software development company to develop and implement an industry specific ERP program. The software developer entered a commercialization agreement and has successfully marketed the program to additional organizations in the industry. Core Competencies• Organizational Leadership• Strategic Vision & Planning• P&L Management• Alignment & Consensus Building• Executional Management• Stakeholder Relationships• Change Management