As Southwestern Company’s Sales School enters its second week, 740 screaming students in a packed War Memorial Auditorium in downtown Nashville welcomed Dan Moore, President. When the standing ovation and cheering roar of the crowd ended, Dan was promptly interrupted.
In a special surprise, Dan was joined onstage by his wife and best friend, Maria. On behalf of all of Southwestern and the students dealers, Tabitha Taylor, serving as emcee, recognized Dan for the extraordinary impact he has had on over 70,000 students – including all of the first-year dealers in the audience he was about to inspire.
With just about all of students who have attended Sales School for the last 30 years trained and mentored by Dan, it all starts for everyone with that Sales School door. In showing our appreciation, it is now and forever will be known as “Dan’s Door.” The plaque on the door reads:
“In honor and recognition of the outstanding dedication, commitment, and executed personal development Dan Moore has shown to more than 70,000 students, one door at a time, beginning with this one.”
The surprise and emotion in Dan’s face said it all. While taken aback by the moment, he graciously and humbly accepted the recognition, then did what any Southwestern Company great would do… moved to the next door.
With the horrific flooding the Middle Tennessee area has experienced this past weekend, Southwestern Company has experienced an increase in concern from student dealers who will attend Sales school next week and their parents.
To let everyone know, the flooding has been unprecedented and many people in the mid-state are struggling to recover from tragic losses. We appreciate all of the concern. While Southwestern Company, headquartered between the airport and Opryland Hotel was spared, many well-known landmarks and parts of historic downtown are flooded. These are the images that have been on the national news, and that’s understandable: it can galvanize people to help in whatever ways they can. The relief efforts and spirit of volunteerism is inspiring. It is comforting to know in a great time of need, there are so many caring members of our community.
Please keep in mind the images do not show the majority of our hilly mid-state which has weathered the storm and is now drying out. The hotels we use for dealer lodging, and the War Memorial Auditorium which we will use for Sales School have not been affected. As well, almost all major roads are now open and traffic is flowing normally on all routes that dealers would use. Soon, all road and overpasses will be restored to all routes throughout the city.
Although we are all looking for ways to help those who are dealing with this epic flood, the majority of people and businesses are able to carry on constructively and positively.
For the students traveling to attend Sales School, please travel safely! We look forward to welcoming a great group to Nashville over the next several weeks!
“IT JUST FEELS GOOD TO WORK FOR SOUTHWESTERN COMPANY!”
There, I said it. And I am serious, too.
We claim we build people and those people are building a great company. It’s more than a claim, it’s true – and it gets proved over and over again.
Case in point: the recent tragedy that befell Southwestern Company’s Annette and Lee McRee. When their home burned to the ground, company employees jumped in to help where they could, through the Mary Moore Foundation and in other ways. Most of us have a hard time imagining having to rebuild our lives from scratch. That’s exactly what the McRee’s will have to do. They are resilient and Christian. They will survive and, in turn, be stronger.
Another similar case in point: I received an e-mail from the Moberg family in Canada. A portion of the e-mail:
On July 16, 2008, we purchased a set of books on remittance #929128 and would like to buy another set. There were five volumes (Volume Library & Health/Wellness) plus 4 cd’s. Our children were using them regularly but then on January 12th, 2010 our home burned to the ground and the books were lost. We were sorting through some salvaged items tonight and found the receipt. We are in the Ottawa, Ontario, Canada area. Please advise as to how we may purchase replacement books.Without a second thought, we e-mailed the Moberg family informing them we were sorry to hear about their loss and would like to provide them, free of charge, with an updated version of what they lost. Their response was priceless:
Wow!! That is definitely not the response I expected BUT it is sooooooo much appreciated. There have been many challenges of course with the rebuilding of a “normal” life for the girls (I have four daughters aged 11,13,15,17) but this is amazing. I am so touched by your generosity. There are a lot of things to replace and this offer of yours will go a long way to alleviating some of the challenge.Once again, thankyou so much for this generosity. My daughters loved using these books …….. as a matter of fact, my daughter Samantha (15) is having trouble with her grade 9 math this semester and we keep wishing we had the books out of the fire in order to help her.You guys are the best!!
This post is not intended to brag, as things like this happen on a daily basis – whether here in Nashville at Landers Plaza, on the bookfield, on university campuses all over the world or through the good deeds alumni do all the time because of the service-mindedness they came to live by while selling books door-to-door with Southwestern Company. It’s something we under-promote. Paul Weathers with Southwestern Investment Services said it best in an article from the Tennessean:
“The executives of this company who sold books, they’re like the football player who scores a touchdown and just gives the ball to the referee. They don’t do any end zone dance. They know they can do it again.”
Last night, Southwestern Company was honored with two Awards of Merit by the Nashville chapter of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) which recognized the best public relations programs and projects in Middle Tennessee.
The two winning categories were:
Southwestern Company Interview Handout
BROCHURES & BOOKLETS: The Southwestern Company Recruiting Displays The Southwestern Company’s Interview Handout is one of the most important recruiting tools for our company. It is a simple, multi-functional marketing and PR tool for our organization that serves several different audiences including student prospects, parents, and media. It also serves as a tangible piece used in mail-outs and pitching.
Southwestern Company Recruiting Displays
POSTER, DISPLAYS OR EXHIBITS: Southwestern Company Interview Handouts The Southwestern Recruiting Displays were designed in-house for the purpose of use in job fairs and to dress up internal meetings. The result is a series of crisp, sharp displays that tell a story with a quote and large, charismatic photo that can be used alone or in any combination. The intended story is that of confident, successful college students who have benefitted by their participation in the Southwestern summer internship.
The annual ceremony, hosted at the Hutton Hotel, acknowledges excellence in all aspects of public relations, including programs and projects ranging from overall communications campaigns to social media projects and annual reports.
This year, I have the honor of serving the Nashville PRSA Chapter as President. Overseeing such an empowering combination of creativeness that comes from the PR professionals in this city will leave you awe-struck.
It was a good night. Also, thanks to Tabitha Taylor for her limitless dedication and creative talents.
The first Southwestern Company Sales School begins this Sunday! We are excited to welcome almost 100 students from Michigan and Florida to Nashville for an intense week of sales training and fun. To better get an idea of what a Southwestern Company Sales School is like, watch the video below:
All of our students are trying to push hard and finish strong in team building before it’s time for their trip to Nashville. In a related topic, Lee McCroskey is hosting a webinar on that very subject Thursday night (4-29-2010) at 10:00pm CDT. He will be covering 5 reasons to have an “I wanna win” recruiting effort, and he will also share some bonus tips on how to prepare for a great summer. If your a student manager and would like more info, sign up by entering your email below!
Think of the nicest super-inclusive resort you have EVER been to. Now, watch the below video to see how much the resort GRG winners will be at in December exceeds beyond that!
Beautiful beach, they have it. Amazing food, they have it. Mini-golf, skate park, tennis, soccer, bowling, volleyball, game room – they have it!
Wana know the best part? It’s ALL free – once you bring an amazing team to sales school and lead them to the field for an awesome summer!
Breezes Buzios in Brazil. December 5-10. Will you be there?
Remember: there are several ways you can win this phenomenal trip:
ASL of the Year - Grow your base by 100%
FSL of the Year
- Bases less than 100,000 units must grow 50%
- Bases greater than 100,000 units must grow 25%
Full-Time Recruiter
- Bring 20 or more people that sell 10,000 paid for units OR
- Regardless of team size, bring a team that sells 15,000 paid for units
In-School Recruiter
- Bring 10 people that sell 5,000 paid for units OR
- Regardless of team size, bring a team that sells 10,000 paid for units
Part of the 2010 United Way Committee: Henry Bedford, Becky Sudman, Nicole Langlois, Lee McCroskey, Trey Campbell, Tabitha Taylor, Shayne Merrick
At the company meeting at Landers Plaza this week, Southwestern Company received recognition from the United Way of Metropolitan Nashville.
Nicole Langlois, Southwestern Company’s corporate campaign coordinator, presented the Pillar Award and the Corporate Champion Award for our generous corporate gift to United Way.
The Pillar Award recognizes all-around consistent and dependable campaign excellence, including employee giving, corporate support, in-kind support and implementing campaign “best practices.”
Last December we took an amazing group of top recruiters on the Great Recruiters Getaway. We ventured to the country of Panama where we explored the mountains of El Valle and relaxed in a 5 star super-exclusive resort! Trip attendees will tell you they never dreamed the trip could be as awesome as it was nor could it be better than Sizzler! But it was! I know each and every one of them are striving to win again this year…won’t you join them?
The 2010 GRG is in Buzios, Brazil! From the looks of the TBR – we may need to reserve our own hotel! There are MANY people, both in-school and full-time who are in contention for recruiting requirements for the trip and several more that are VERY close! Click on the video below to see why you DON’T want to miss this trip and be sure to post your comments to this blog and let us know what motivates you, what your goals are and why this trip would be so awesome to win!
Remember: there are several ways you can win this phenomenal trip:
ASL of the Year – grow your base by 100% FSL of the Year – bases less than 100,000 units must grow 50%
– bases greater than 100,000 units must grow 25%
Full-Time Recruiter
- Bring 20 or more people that sell 10,000 paid for units
OR
- Regardless of team size, bring a team that sells 15,000 paid for units
In-School Recruiter
- Bring 10 people that sell 5,000 paid for units
OR
- Regardless of team size, bring a team that sells 10,000 paid for units
Southwestern Company Chairman and CEO, Henry Bedford, was recognized at the inaugural, Dancing for Safe Haven Family Shelter, as the recipient of the Safe Haven Hero Award.
As many SWGA employees know, Henry was instrumental in the development of Saint Patrick’s Family Shelter, now known as Safe Haven Family Shelter. His drive to help people in challenging situations, led him to his involvement of the capital campaign in 1990 to build Saint Patrick’s Family Shelter. After he led the building project for the 3rd Avenue facility, he served as board chair of the shelter for 10 years.
“We are extremely grateful to Mr. Bedford for his dedication to our mission at Safe Haven,” stated Joyce Lavery, Executive Director. “Because of his vision of helping homeless families in the Nashville community; we have been able to achieve a milestone of 25 years, serving our families,” she continued. “As the plans were underway for this event, no one stood out more than Mr. Bedford to be the recipient of this honorable award.”
Safe Haven celebrated 25 years of serving homeless families in Middle Tennessee with Dancing for Safe Haven on Friday, April 9th, at the Hutton Hotel. In total, the inaugural event garnered close to $88,000. The raised funds will provide shelter and transitional services to homeless families with children; empowering them to achieve lasting self-sufficiency.
“This is an amazing honor. Safe Haven is an outstanding organization that has helped so many families over the past 25 years rebuild their lives and gain confidence to support themselves. I am blessed to be a part of their mission and thank everyone associated with the organization,” says Henry.
Henry started his career at the Southwestern Company running his own business with the home learning (Bible) division after his junior and senior years at the University of the South in Sewanee, Tennessee. He heard about the Southwestern from a friend and felt selling door-to-door away from home would at least be a great adventure and had the potential for earnings well above the hourly wage to which he was accustomed. His summer profits paid for his last year of tuition at Sewanee, and allowed him to earn an M.B.A. from Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas. Bedford was named Chairman and CEO in 2006. He has been recognized numerous times for his civic and community involvement.
Safe Haven Family Shelter provides shelter and transitional services that empowers Middle Tennessee homeless families with children to achieve lasting self-sufficiency. Safe Haven is theonly shelter program of its kind in Middle Tennessee that serves homeless families as a whole unit, with a comprehensive approach to address the underlying causes of homelessness and help each family regain self-sufficiency. Safe Haven Family Shelter is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that has served the community for 25 years.
SBR Executive Healthcare Search, a division of the executive search and professional placement firm Southwestern Business Resources, has been recognized in the “Top 25 Largest Healthcare Executive Search Firms” by Modern Healthcare magazine.
The ranking is compiled of a total number of U.S. placements made for senior-level healthcare executives for calendar-year 2009. Modern Healthcare is the leading weekly business newsmagazine for hospital and healthcare managers.
SBR Executive Healthcare Search is headquartered in Nashville, TN with two offices in North Carolina (Wilmington, Outer Banks). In 2009, the division had a total of 10 recruiters who placed 38 executives.
“We appreciate the recognition by Modern Healthcare acknowledging our 15-year commitment to superior client service in the U.S. healthcare market. We thank our clients for their contribution to this success,” says Guice Smith, Partner in Charge, Healthcare Division.
About SBR:
As a recruiting firm, SBR operates from four regional offices in the United States and two in Europe (London, Barcelona). SBR represents companies ranging in size from small privately held concerns to the Fortune 100. In 2009 SBR placed 227 professionals with 93 clients, ranking SBR in the top 3% of search firms in the United States and Canada.
SBR was incorporated in 1982 as a division of the Southwestern Company, the nation’s oldest direct selling firm. For over 150 years the Southwestern Company has trained and developed young people in the area of sales and sales management. It is from this solid foundation that SBR has established its reputation as a premier search firm.
SBR is a member of the National Association of Personnel Services (NAPS), the Tennessee Staffing Association (TSA), North Carolina Association of Staffing Professionals (NCASP), (MGMA) the Nashville Chamber of Commerce and the Better Business Bureau. The professionals of SBR also participate in many healthcare-specific trade associations and networks such as HIMSS, HFMA, ACHE, MGMA, AMIA, etc.
With the horrific flooding the Middle Tennessee area has experienced this past weekend, Southwestern Company has experienced an increase in concern from student dealers who will attend Sales school next week and their parents. 
Think of the nicest super-inclusive resort you have EVER been to. Now, watch the below video to see how much the resort GRG winners will be at in December exceeds beyond that!
Last December we took an amazing group of top recruiters on the Great Recruiters Getaway. We ventured to the country of Panama where we explored the mountains of El Valle and relaxed in a 5 star super-exclusive resort! Trip attendees will tell you they never dreamed the trip could be as awesome as it was nor could it be better than Sizzler! But it was! I know each and every one of them are striving to win again this year…won’t you join them? 
Family Shelter, as the recipient of the Safe Haven Hero Award. 
“This is an amazing honor. Safe Haven is an outstanding organization that has helped so many families over the past 25 years rebuild their lives and gain confidence to support themselves. I am blessed to be a part of their mission and thank everyone associated with the organization,” says Henry.
SBR Executive Healthcare Search is headquartered in Nashville, TN with two offices in North Carolina (Wilmington, Outer Banks). In 2009, the division had a total of 10 recruiters who placed 38 executives.
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