Questions

1.  Let’s talk about your professional background. Can you share some standout moments from your career journey?

So, this journey is in two parts. My first job was as an Air Force officer. I wanted to fly fighter planes, but I couldn't because of my eyes. I pivoted to work in the business side of the government. I managed Lockheeds, Boeings, and Raytheons when they developed a defense system. As Air Force officers, we ran those programs. I spent seven years running defense development programs, some in Ohio, Boston, and before I left the military, I was out in Colorado Springs. I got a chance to do all kinds of really cool things with technology - things that hopefully keep all of us safer.

Then I went to 3M.  Just before I made the change, my wife and I had just had our first daughter, Abbey. When she was one, we had a fun discussion on what we wanted our lives to look like with my job and now having kids. I took the chance and started with 3M back in 2001. And really there over the course of 24 years, I kind of just kept doing whatever they asked me to. My roles went from marketing positions to sales leadership roles to general management types of roles. I enjoyed seeing these different sides of 3M, mostly industrial, but also a little bit on the healthcare side. Overall, I saw a lot of different things in my career, including things that are very close to what we do here at Viega.

2.  What initially stood out to you about Viega and the prospect of working for us?

I had been reached out to by a few different firms and really what intrigued me about Viega was they talked about a company that was very entrepreneurial, one that had big aspirations in terms of growth. My initial impressions were that Viega had amazing people and an amazing culture. Honestly that is what kickstarted the first conversation and what really drew me to being here today - every person I talked to was someone that I could see myself working with. And not just work with, but wanting to be friends with, wanting to play hard with, and wanting to work hard to create something special with. Every person I saw made me think, “I want to be with those people, be a part of the team, and do things with them for a long time.”

3.  Can you tell us a bit about your first week on the job? Were there any memorable moments, impressions, or people that made an impact?

One thing I will remember is how I got to be part of the new employee orientation. I can't honestly remember the last time I was part of something like that. When you've had a long tenure at just two companies, you don't get a lot of new employee orientations. I loved sitting there among our other new hires with a “My name is Todd” nametag, learning like everybody else. I love the excitement of being in something brand new with other people that were excited about it too. Orientation day stood out to me a lot in terms of meeting other people like myself that were just trying to figure out, “How do I fit in here? How do I do something to try to help the team?”

During that first week, I quickly found myself instead of handshakes, giving hugs. The entire team has been so welcoming and I think that really speaks to people here, so willing to welcome me as a team member and a person that can be part of this - this family.

4.  How has Viega culture lived up to (or differed from) your expectations?

I have been really lucky and privileged to be a part of a lot of great teams, sports teams, work teams, things like that. I think what probably surprised me was that the culture and environment that we're in wasn't just one person, or two, or ten, but every single person was the same way. Every single person was a great person, an open person, who wanted to learn, wanted to share, and wanted to figure this out together. I don't know if I've ever seen so many people live and exude that level of culture, that level of personal touch, that level of professionalism, that level of sharing and learning and wanting to become better together from top to bottom and side to side.

5.  What do the “Viega Values” mean to you?

Values are the cornerstone of any organization or any team. I think they are absolutely critical. When I consider the Viega Values, there are two things that come up for me I think one part is how we treat each other. The other part is how we commit to each other - to being better every day and being something really special as a company, and as a team. Values give us the ability understand what we expect of each other - what you expect of me, what I expect of you, what we expect of each other and the roadmap to exactly how we do it. Not only are these important foundations, but I think there are things that bind us all together.

6.  What’s something you’ve learned about Viega that you didn’t know before starting?

I had no idea how many things you could build with press technology! I had a chance to build a bottle opener, to see the ladder golf game built out of press technology, and I had a chance to see a warrior girl being built out of press technology for our GIRLs Career Day event. I think it’s so great - the amount of things that we have on display in our Seminar Centers that you can build. It completely surprised me in a fun way because press technology is almost like a living, breathing thing. It is who we are in a way that relates to everyday life.

7.  If someone new were considering joining the team, what advice would you give them?

Do it. And in some cases, blindly do it. I have always believed that if you're doing something with people you want to be around, no matter what it is, it's fun and it's energizing. That doesn't mean it's easy but do it because I don't know if you're going to find another team around who cares for each other as much as we do here. This is a place that can say, “We are a large company yet we're still extremely entrepreneurial. We get to create and architect our future together.” So just jump in and do it.

8.  Is there anything you would like to share with the wider Viega team?

I just want to make sure to say thank you. Over the last 2-3 weeks, I've had a chance to get out with a lot of our customers, meet a lot of Viega team members in the field, and see even more customers in the Seminar Center. For those of you that don't get a chance to see and get out with our customers as much as I do, I just want to tell you an honest, genuine, heartfelt thank you on behalf of them. What each of you do and does for our customers matters. Our customers do business with Viega because of each and every one of you and what you do to care about them. To build relationships with them, to support them. They are our customers because of each and every one of you. So I just want to tell you on behalf of all of them, thank you. Thank you to each and every one of you for what you do, for how you do it, and for who you are personally and professionally for our customers, for each other, for our team, and for our business. Thank you all. I look forward to seeing you out there sometime.