A Clear Mission: Sloan Valve’s leadership takes their responsibility seriously

By Mary Jo Martin
Special to Plumbing Engineer & editorial director for The Wholesaler

The Mission Statement of today’s Sloan Valve is simple: “Passionately Preserve the Environment.” And it is clear that passion and focus come directly from the three brothers that together are leading the company through a uniquely established Office of the President.

Pictured from left to right above, Graham, Jim and Kirk Allen — fourth-generation descendants of company founder William Elvis Sloan — are successfully continuing the long-standing traditions of quality that Sloan Valve is known for, while also blazing a trail in the water conservation movement.

It would undoubtedly please W.E. Sloan that the company he founded in 1906 — and put his heart and soul into until his death in 1961 — is being so capably and responsibly led by his great-grandsons.
W.E. Sloan began working in the plumbing industry at a young age, originally serving as an apprentice pipefitter, and later working as a foreman, superintendent, and then independent contractor. By combining this experience with his creativity, Sloan was able to look at the limitations of toilet systems in a unique way, which led to his invention of the Royal Flushometer. He continued experimenting and inventing, earning a number of patents, including multiple versions of the original Flushometer, vacuum breakers, and showerheads.

Even in those early years, water conservation was at the core of Sloan’s designs — something that today’s Sloan Valve leadership wholly embraces. Sloan Valve continues to broaden its scope with new technologies to ensure that commercial plumbing systems operate efficiently. And as an indication of their true commitment to the environment, Sloan’s green efforts go much further than just their products. In recent years, a team at Sloan did a re-evaluation of the company’s own sustainability efforts, not only in terms of products, and production, but also how the company gets its energy. These efforts led to the creation of a number of new partnerships for the procurement and the use of solar and wind energy technology.

Recently, editor Mary Jo Martin sat down with Sloan’s leadership trifecta of Kirk, Graham, and Jim Allen at their 450,000-square-foot headquarters in Franklin Park, Ill., to candidly talk about the grand traditions of Sloan and their vision for the future.

MJM: What was behind your father Chuck Allen’s decision to move into the role of chairman several years ago and create the office of the president that is held by the three of you?

Kirk: There has been a history of co-leadership that pre-dates us. Our dad and our Uncle Bill Sloan shared the leadership of the company until Bill passed away in 2001. While they had different titles, they really shared the decision making process. Dad then served as president and CEO until July 2008.

The three of us all worked in the industry as manufacturers’ reps before coming into the business. As we joined Sloan Valve, we very much wanted to strive for a leadership partnership. It had been ingrained in us since we were very young that we were to be humble stewards of Sloan Valve. We knew that the one thing that would ruin this plan for our eventual leadership would be if the three of us couldn’t get along. We joined the company at different times and took on different roles, developing through our business experiences. In implementing the Office of the President, we consulted with Loyola University and their Family Business Group on how to navigate the landscape of shared leadership in a family business and how to optimize our chance for success. They were very excited about being involved in the process and assigned a number of grad students to our project. They worked with us on governance documents, as well as the formal structure for the way the three of us operate and interface with businesses, vendors, banks etc. It has been important for us to effectively communicate this philosophy to employees throughout the organization. They need to know that an answer from any one of the three of us is the final answer. There is no such thing as going down the line to try to get a different response. We take this very seriously.

Jim: The transition has been an evolutionary process. Dad is now executive chairman and he still participates in strategic planning, as well as high level business development.

I think he came to the decision to transition to Chairman because he felt it was time for the three of us to take the leadership roll. I have to say that Dad has really done a great job with the process. He acts as a mentor and advisor for the three of us; but he has made it clear to the organization that the decisions are ours and that they are final. It’s been challenging for him, but he’s handled it very well.

Graham: A lot of folks here literally watched us grow up. When we were small we would sit on the receptionist’s lap and answer the phones; when we were in high school, and our friends were getting tans working as lifeguards, we were members of the United Steel Workers working on the plant floor.

From very early on Dad worked on our development as executives. We have had the privilege of sitting in on, and participating in, many key decision making meetings from our early years with the company. Dad wanted to make sure the transition was handled properly; meaning that he wanted the transition to be smoother than the one between his father and himself – our Grandfather had a heart attack at the age of 69 right here in his office on a Friday afternoon, he died on Saturday, and our dad became CEO Monday morning. That’s not “transition”, that’s abrupt change. And that’s not the way our dad wanted things to go for us, or for him for that matter.

Jim: From the age of 16, each one of us has been in the plant and knows how to make a flush valve. We’ve also been in front of our customers and suppliers from a very young age, and have a tremendous amount of hands-on experience. It’s a family business and by that I mean more than just in ownership. Our employees have 18 years of average service with Sloan. If you go out to the shop floor, you’ll see multi-generations of employees and family members working together. It is something that we are very proud of.

MJM: Describe how you share the duties of Office of the President, and the attributes/background that each of you bring to your role?

Kirk: One of the first things the three of us worked on was moving away from a functionally organized business, toward one that is oriented around end to end business processes. Shortly after our transition, we began to implement organizational change to support the Process initiative. The broadest of these moves was to insert a layer of Vice Presidents. Each one of the VPs also carries the title of Executive Process Owner for the process they oversee; which include business development, supply chain and operations, human resources, finance, and IT. Each of the three of us seemed to naturally gravitate toward one of those areas, although big decisions involve all of us. Graham loves to spin a wrench and be on the shop floor, he’s a hands-on technical-minded person, so supply chain and operations oversight really fit him well. Jim has a number of patent applications, he’s a lot like our father and very involved in engineering, so he has oversight over R&D, along with finance. I spend most of my time with our sales organization and had been a regional sales manager and product lines manager, so I lean toward business development and IT.

MJM: Were you always interested in becoming part of the Sloan Valve leadership or did you ever consider other careers?

Jim: We all went to different colleges and got different degrees, and we all worked outside the industry for a while. I think there is a natural desire as a young man to get away from the family business, but then we all gravitated back. We’ve been fortunate that we have a great relationship with each other and with Dad, both at work and outside, which makes it easier. We’ve always felt that this is a great family asset.

Graham: As a kid Sloan was where dad went to work. I didn’t have a sense for the significance of the business in the industry, or how it has contributed, it its own way, to the evolution of construction in this country since 1906. The innovation and products from Sloan Valve have meant something to the health and sanitation of the country, and allowed for much of the commercial building styles we know today. That’s a humbling realization.

Kirk: There were some summer time jobs we held in the factory where it was 100°F and we were in protective suits scraping nickel off the walls of the plating tanks and saying ‘I don’t ever want to come back here.’ But deep down, I always felt I was going to end up at Sloan.

We cannot be accused of not being passionate about this business. We’re a bit over the top with our love for this place.

MJM: Describe the importance that you place on your relationships with wholesalers, and how you are working with them to ensure that the Sloan brand continues to be one that inspires
confidence?

Jim: It’s part of our core values. We have an undying commitment to our customers, and to distribution. It’s like that old saying about ‘Who brought you to the dance.’ With Kirk overseeing business development, he is most frequently involved with listening to our wholesalers. And we all like to participate in industry events related to distribution. At least one of the four of us — including dad — attends our buying group meetings, and visits national and regional accounts on a regular basis.

We work very hard to support the demand creation process for distribution. Wholesalers make a wonderful commitment to us by putting our products on the shelf, and we take that responsibility very seriously. We also participate in contractor groups and work with our wholesaler customers to develop demand for our products. We will continue to listen to the wholesale community and ensure they are getting the most value out of Sloan Valve’s products.

Graham: Each one of us was nurtured in this business by Ren Owen, our longtime national sales manager and later our vice president of sales. He taught us how to go to market. Ren was an institution in the business. He was a soft touch but he really listened to the customers.

As vice president of business development, John Aykroyd has done a lot to help Sloan carry on the traditions that Ren established. You learn more from customers when you really listen to them. We listen to our wholesalers, understand what we need to do to evolve the business and then re-engineer the process to best meet their needs.

MJM: Customer service is such an important part of any business. What are some of the key elements of your customer service focus?

Kirk: We are a customer-focused company. Among our customer support processes in the macro sense are providing distributors the opportunity to use EDI or other forms of electronic ordering, Web-based ordering, even VMI. We have joined our customer service group with tech support, so that now all of our customer service people are cross trained on technical support so they can answer questions rather than having to pass them on to someone else. It allows our reps and our customers to get answers much more quickly.

Jim: We have to give credit to our reps. We’ve been very demanding of them, and we have the very best rep firms in the industry. We stand behind our products and our philosophy is to do whatever it takes to satisfy customers. Our reps are very good at supporting that in the field.

Graham: Their knowledge of our product line alone is a tremendous strength. Our reps are not just out there with a catalog and price sheet. They are proud to be Sloan reps and they take their responsibilities very seriously. Many of our reps are multi-generational firms as well. One office has been our rep since 1914, and are on their fourth generation of serving Sloan and our customers. It comes down to doing what you say you will do. That carries you far in any business.

MJM: What would you describe as the strengths of your brand?

Jim: I like to ask our customers that all the time. One of the key attributes they cite is our quality. We are a multi-generational, family-owned business making products in America for over 100 years and people can rely on our brand. We are very committed to our business, to innovation, and take great pride in our quality.

Graham: Being a leader and having the expectation of constant innovation by our customers is difficult. It’s expensive, and can be risky at times when you are constantly pushing the envelope. But we assume that risk and take pride in our successes. When you have an innovation that the industry embraces it is very rewarding.

MJM: How have green building and sustainability guided your new product development efforts?

Jim: It has been a transformation in the industry and Sloan has been on the front end of that wave. Graham and I are both LEED accredited. It was clear to us that even though it was just a small portion of the new construction community at the time; it was an important avenue for us because it aligned with our core values. I immersed myself in this opportunity and have become a real advocate for the green movement.

Graham: Sloan has positioned itself well. Developing a product that uses less water and calling it green isn’t enough. We are testing renewable energy and improving efficiency throughout the organization. We offset 100% of our energy usage at our main manufacturing facility with renewable energy. Those kinds of things are expensive but they are an investment in our future. Our products are made in a responsible way that greatly reduces the negative impact on the environment, as on the health of people who work here. Sloan endeavors to buy locally which minimizes our carbon profile, it also has the added benefit of a greater efficiency in the supply chain. The way it all comes together is what the green building movement is all about.

Kirk: We do a lot of this at great cost because it is the right thing to do. We would do it irrespective of the effect on the business world, because we as a family feel it is important.

MJM: What are your projections for economic recovery and the near-term for Sloan Valve?

Kirk: Construction forecasts are not good, so we don’t anticipate a swift recovery in new construction. Fortunately we are boosted by the renovation, remodel and repair segments of our business, and are benefiting from the stimulus money available for retrofits. I would say that we are going to start seeing some better activity by the middle of next year with commercial construction. We’d love to see commercial construction start to improve sooner but we don’t think that is realistic.

Graham: There is more optimism today. As Kirk said, the opportunities go far beyond new construction, and staying closely aligned with our industry partners has allowed us to remain in front of the downturn and act in a responsible manner.

MJM: What do you believe sets Sloan Valve apart from its competitors?

Kirk: Very simply the things the brand represents. We give confidence to the supply chain. Whether it’s the building owner, his maintenance person, the installation contractor, wholesaler, or engineer, they know who Sloan is and trust us. We have a solid reputation in the marketplace.

Plumbing systems are very sensitive and doing a water conservation retrofit in an 80-year-old building sounds easier than it is. When you start reducing the flow of water or making major changes to the plumbing system, it’s very important to do an assessment up front. We consult with the value chain in these assessments. Sometimes that means that the latest Sloan product is not the right choice, but satisfying the customer is more important than making a sale. We will give them our honest assessment, based on our expertise, so the new system will be the right one for them.

Graham: We’re also set apart by our passion and commitment to our market sector. This is all we do. We’re not dabbling. We’re three brothers in Chicago working with the United Steel Workers trying to do it right, competing against some very large and well capitalized companies.

It’s very challenging and very expensive to do it right. But when you believe it’s the right thing to do, you make those trade offs. You have to be passionate and committed to succeed. We stick to the fundamentals and concentrate on serving our customers. But at the same time, we’re not afraid to be a market leader. When it comes right down to it, we want to help our customers be successful.

For information, visit www.sloanvalve.com.