Thursday, 16 January 2020

Ted Fick: Changing the Game

For more than 30 years, Ted Fick has provided high-profile, multimillion-dollar companies the innovative ideas and leadership needed not just to identify opportunities for improved productivity and profitability, but to achieve the dramatic growth and competitive edge needed to realize their full potential.



Now the CEO at Kansas City’s LTA Manufacturing, Ted Fick applies that same savvy leadership approach and eye for opportunity to ensure LTA performs at its best, as well as to retain its long-held position as the top manufacturer of truck accessories in the country.

Changing the Game

Recruited to his current LTA leadership role in late 2018, Fick taps into his decades of experience as a senior executive and high-performance teambuilder to help his company prepare for the future—and to meet any and all challenges that come the organization’s way.

A recent plan to boost employee compensation at LTA has been a game-changer for the company and for Fick, the feature of a recent article in Kansas City Business Journal.

Thursday, 9 January 2020

Ted Fick: EBITDA Increase at CPI Card Group

Ted Fick joined CPI Card Group, Inc. as President and CEO in 2007. Recruited to drive company expansion and position the firm for a prospective public offering, Ted Fick successfully increased CPI’s EBITDA from $16 million to $33 million in just one year. This increase was made possible both through organic growth (25%) and strategic acquisitions (75%) across the U.S., UK, and Canada.

Saturday, 4 January 2020

Ted Fick: Simple Ways to Cut Business Costs

Ted Fick knows that to execute a successful company transformation, a comprehensive strategy, and approach is not only a good idea, but absolutely essential.

And one of the key elements of an effective, strategic turnaround plan is cutting costs, redundancies and overlapping expenses that, once eliminated, can free up invaluable resources for fueling growth and unlocking opportunity elsewhere in the organization.



Simple Ways to Cut Business Costs

Having executed successful strategic plans throughout his career, Ted Fick understands the many methods available to companies seeking to reduce costs and maximize profitability.

Some of the area's businesses can look at for reducing operational costs include:

·     Supply expenses. Shopping around for different vendors and better deals on supplies can be an effective way to save a little money.

·     Production costs. Setting efficiency goals and maximizing the use of your production space may help stretch you're a dollar a little further.

Monday, 23 December 2019

Ted Fick: Turning Loss into Profit


As VP of Commercial Tire Systems at Goodyear Tire (2001-2003), Ted Fick executed a successful turnaround that included turning $20 million in annual losses into $45 million in annual profit. Ted Fick also drove a 20% increase in the business unit’s OEM market share, and led the turnaround of a 200-branch operation network threatened with closure from $25 million annual loss to more than $13 million in annual profit.


























Also, read the following posts
https://tedfick.wordpress.com/2019/12/23/ted-fick-what-to-include-in-your-strategic-plan/
http://ted-fick.mystrikingly.com/blog/ted-fick-2000-01-svp-at-hino-diesel



Thursday, 5 December 2019

Ted Fick: The Benefits of an Effective Product Development Strategy

Why develop new products?

As accomplished senior executive Ted Fick knows, having an innovative mindset and an efficient, effective product development process in place can do wonders for an organization—and can often provide the lift a struggling company needs to turn things around and regain a lost competitive edge. 



The Benefits of an Effective Product Development Strategy

As President at Thermo King Corporation, Ted Fick led the development and launch of the Tripac auxiliary unit—an innovation that forever changed the organization and the trucking industry, and which was key to the company’s eventual multimillion-dollar transformation.

Having spearheaded such an effort, Fick knows the benefits an effective product development approach can have for an organization, including:

· The opportunity to win more business and increase revenue through new innovation.

· The chance to improve your brand’s reputation for quality.

· The opportunity to reduce production costs through the refinement and improvement of existing products.

Thursday, 28 November 2019

Ted Fick: Front-Page Coverage


Ted Fick has stood out as a results-driven senior executive and leader throughout his career. The driver of multiple multimillion-dollar business transformations over the past 20 years, Fick garnered front-page coverage in the Wall Street Journal for his work at Polar Corporation, where he served as President & CEO for four years (2009-2013). As President, Ted Fick oversaw significant improvements in top-line EBITDA and sales.



Sunday, 24 November 2019

Ted Fick: Trucking Manufacturer Leadership


Customer-centric executive Ted Fick was recruited in late 2018 to take on the role of CEO at LTA Manufacturing. A manufacturer and marketer of high-quality truck covers and cargo management solutions for trucks, vans and utility bodies, LTA (Light Truck Accessories) is made up of four distinct brands, including ATC Truck Covers, Jason Truck Caps, Ranch Fiberglass and LoadMaster.



Wednesday, 13 November 2019

Ted Fick: Key Elements to Include in Your Strategic Plan


As a transformative leader and senior executive, Ted Fick knows that for any successful turnaround to work—particularly at the corporate-level—a robust, comprehensive strategic plan must always be in place.

As such, great care, research and evaluation must be performed to ensure that strategy is not only tailored to the organization’s unique situation, characteristics, and goals but also has the focus and framework that provide the best opportunity at successful, sustained execution.
Key Elements to Include in Your Strategic Plan


Key Elements to Include in Your Strategic Plan

As Ted Fick knows, there is no one-size-fits-all approach to business strategy; though, every strategic plan should at the very least include several keys elements, such as:

·         A mission statement that clearly defines why your organization exists.

·         Guiding principles or attributes that describe which behaviors are acceptable and which aren’t throughout your organization.

·         Value propositions that explain the value you offer your stakeholders.

·         Clear goals that show where you want your organization to go.


·         Focus areas that define how you’ll get your organization to the next level. 

Tuesday, 15 October 2019

Ted Fick: Optimizing Your Company’s Profitability


Ted Fick has been orchestrating multimillion-dollar transformations throughout his career, providing organizations the decisive, visionary leadership needed to build high-performance teams, achieve dramatic growth and implement the operational excellence.

And one of Ted Fick’s most notable leadership strengths, and a key to much of his success has been his uncanny ability to optimize company profitability—something he’s accomplished as chief executive at such firms as Polar Corporation, Port of Seattle and more.



Optimizing Your Company’s Profitability

An accomplished senior executive, Fick knows that optimizing company profitability—no matter your size or industry—generally begins by:

· Analyzing and adjusting your operational costs. Identifying areas where expenses can be cut back or even eliminated, such as with overhead, can help improve your expense-to-revenue ratio.

·  Evaluating your prices. Regular review of your cost structure helps you determine if the markup on your products is sufficient—particularly with rising costs of raw materials, labor, etc.

Wednesday, 9 October 2019

Ted Fick: What Are the Core Elements of a High-Performance Team?


As a transformative business leader, Ted Fick knows that no organization can get very far—much less turn things around—without the work and dedication of a great leadership team at the helm.
Having orchestrated the successful turnaround of numerous high-profile companies during his career, Ted Fick understands the value high-performance teams not only for improving productivity and profitability in the short-term, but also to sustaining and adding to organizational progress for the foreseeable future.


So, What Are the Core Elements of a High-Performance Team?

Successful leadership teams that continually meet and exceed expectations are grown from team-based company culture, one with a strong focus on such elements as:

·         Values. A high-performance team believes in and adheres to a shared set of meaningful values, those both aligned with the company’s and specific to the team’s unique needs and characteristics.

·         Results-driven performance. Strong leadership groups are always pushing for consistent results, which are used to measure team progress and performance.  

Thursday, 3 October 2019

Ted Fick: Finding Opportunities for Growth


Ted Fick has the proven ability to locate and capitalize on opportunities for improving revenue, profitability and productivity. An experienced senior executive and CEO, Ted Fick has utilized this talent to drive dramatic improvements and growth at a number of high-profile firms, including Port of Seattle, Polar Corporation and Ingersoll Rand. Fick is responsible for spearheading numerous successful company transformations during his career.




Monday, 2 September 2019

Ted Fick: Building the Team that Delivers Superior Results


Ted Fick has managed the successful transformation of multiple multimillion-dollar organizations during his career, including such notables as the Polar Corporation, Thermo King Corporation and the Port of Seattle.
An accomplished senior executive, Ted Fick knows that without the right team in place, executing such a transformation—or achieving any long-term organizational goal—is impossible.

Building the Team that Delivers Superior Results

A proven leader and CEO, Ted Fick knows that building a high-performance team is integral to enhancing productivity, increasing profitability and laying the foundation for future growth.
Putting together a team that delivers superior results involves:

Looking within. Great teams are often comprised of those who’ve already shown promise within an organization—and who have the ability to bring a fresh perspective to existing projects and processes.
Demonstrating trust. Providing teams the latitude needed to do their jobs and execute tasks in accordance with their skillsets is key to building confidence and getting results.

Tuesday, 27 August 2019

Ted Fick: Steps for Improving Employee Productivity


Ted Fick has overseen the transformation of numerous high-profile companies during his career, including Port of Seattle, Polar Corporation and Thermo King Corporation.

A senior executive with more than 30 years of top-level leadership experience, Ted Fick empowers underperforming businesses with the visionary, proactive approach and strategy needed capitalize on opportunity, improve performance and enhance profitability.



Steps for Improving Employee Productivity

As Fick knows, a productive workforce is key to executing any successful transformation. And some of the keys to increasing that productivity include:

Providing the right resources. Maximizing employee productivity means supplying your staff with the tools they need to succeed, such as the right amount of training and the best tools for communicating and collaborating effectively. 

Encouraging autonomy. Trusting your team to complete tasks and providing the freedom to perform and grow on their own typically leads to better results.


Saturday, 24 August 2019

Ted Fick: What Elements Make Up a Powerful Strategic Plan?


Ted Fick has designed and overseen the successful transformation of multiple, multimillion-dollar organizations throughout his career—including such notable names as Thermo King Corporation, Polar Corporation and the Port of Seattle.


Behind each of these transformations has been a comprehensive, well-designed strategic plan—one not only carefully developed, but which also provided the roadmap each the multi-layered organization needed to achieve company goals and realize its full potential.

What Elements Make Up a Powerful Strategic Plan?

A proven senior executive and strategic planner, Ted Fick knows the components essential to include in any comprehensive plan-of-action. 

These include:

·   Vision and mission statements that clearly define the company’s purpose and long-term goals.
· A thorough SWOT analysis that examines the organization’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats to determine existing status and gaps to address.
·         Methods for executing the plan and measuring its progress along the way.


Saturday, 17 August 2019

Ted Fick: Phases of New Product Development


Senior executive and seasoned CEO Ted Fick understands the transformative impact new product innovation can have on an organization—as well as the impact new product development can have in terms of driving rapid growth and increasing market share.

Phases of New Product Development

As President at Thermo King Corporation, Ted Fick was responsible for expediting the development and launch of the Tripac auxiliary power unit—an innovation that proved both profitable and essential to the company’s significant growth and transformation.

And as someone who knows the product development process, Ted Fick knows the steps or phases that go into such a process, including:

· Ideation—the initial stage of sourcing for ideas and laying the foundation of product development.

·Screening and concept development—the process of screening through potential innovations to identify which are worthy of pursuit, and to develop those that show promise.

· Actual development—where the product enters the design and manufacture phase before being tested on the market.


Tuesday, 23 July 2019

Ted Fick: Innovation, Opportunity and Performance


Ted Fick has worked at the highest levels of corporate leadership throughout his more-than-30-year career. He has the proven ability to identify and capitalize on opportunities for driving growth, continuous improvement and innovation through sustained contributions to productivity, revenue, and profitability. 


Fick is adept at building and executing on strategic plans that root out inefficiencies, drive higher company performance and deliver successful organizational turnarounds.

Sunday, 14 July 2019

Ted Fick: Former President of Thermo King


Ted Fick once directed the Thermo King Corporation, Americas division of Ingersoll Rand Ltd. The President of Thermo King from 2004 to 2007,  Ted Fick drove significant growth in sales and profit during his tenure—including a leap in profitability of more than 136 percent ($70 million to $205 million). Additionally, Fick spearheaded the development and launch of Thermo King’s highly successful Tripac auxiliary power unit. 


Thursday, 4 July 2019

Ted Fick: Opportunity and Reward with LTA Manufacturing


Ted Fick was approached for the CEO role at LTA Manufacturing only a short time after accepting the role of COO with Norca Engineered Products.

Made an official in December of 2018, Fick’s service as CEO of LTA (Light Truck Accessories) promises to continue well into the future—and to present both Fick and the LTA team opportunities to grow and thrive in the truck accessories the industry for years to come.

A Closer Look at LTA

As LTA CEO, Fick serves as a leader at the company’s Kansas City headquarters and of LTA’s four major brands—including Jason Truck Caps, ATC Truck Covers, LoadMaster and Ranch Fiberglass. LTA products are made from two manufacturing plants in the Midwest region (Ottawa, Kansas, and Elkhart, Indiana), and the company currently ranks as the number 3 market share player in the industry.



To learn more about LTA’s four brands, click here.

Wednesday, 26 June 2019

Ted Fick: Driving Project Success


Ted Fick has led and driven a number of successful, large-scale projects throughout his career. A proven senior executive and the former head of such firms as Port of Seattle, Polar Corporation and Thermo King Corporation, Fick provides the decisive, visionary leadership major capital projects and companies need to thrive. As Port of Seattle CEO, Ted Fick was responsible for spearheading a $2 billion improvement project at SeaTac International Airport.



Tuesday, 11 June 2019

Ted Fick: Tips for Launching a New Product


Ted Fick has managed significant turnarounds and multimillion-dollar company transformations throughout his career—most notably as a senior executive at such firms as Polar Corporation (2009-2013), Port of Seattle (2014-2017) and Ingersoll Rand (2004-2007).

An accomplished leader and executive in the business community, Ted Fick has enjoyed the opportunity not just to turn underperforming organizations into reinvigorated, newly-competitive enterprises, but to also be a driving force behind a number of important process and product innovations—including the development and launch of the TriPac auxiliary power unit as President of Thermo King Corporation.


Launching a product: what to know

As Fick knows, launching a new product can be a complicated process, though it’s important to keep several things in mind as you prepare to put your innovation in the market, such as:

  • You’re solving a problem. When developing something new, it helps to approach the process knowing you’re not only creating a product—you’re providing a solution that can potentially resolve an important customer problem.
  • Experience is your product. From clicking on the advertisement to actual use of your product, it’s important to consider the entirety of the experience when developing and launching the new item.