"By having a working understanding of everything, I can stay informed about our work and how its success is measured, offering my insights as a leader"
Thomas Samuels Tweet
Thomas Samuels is the President of Cardinal Expo, a full-service trade show and exhibit services company originating in Chicago, headquartered in New Orleans, and with site supervisors in Baltimore/DC/East Coast and Las Vegas/West Coast. Cardinal Expo is a family-owned business that has been operating for over 28 years.
In addition to providing booth design and exhibit rentals, Cardinal’s comprehensive services include production management, artwork, graphics, print production, fabrication, logistics, shipping, third-party show services, installation, onsite supervision, dismantling, storage, and inventory management. Exhibits come in a wide variety of sizes, including 10×10, 10×20, 20×20, large, double-deck, outdoor, mobile, and custom options.
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We’re grateful for your time today, thank you for joining us! Share your story with us.
Thomas Samuels: Originating in Chicago, Cardinal Expo spans three generations with over 28 years of experience in the trade show industry. We’re a family-owned business and we take pride in our work, finding innovative new ways to enhance our clients’ experiences. We are headquartered in New Orleans and have full-time show site supervisors in Baltimore/DC/East Coast and Las Vegas/West Coast, enabling us to participate in trade shows and events across the country. Before becoming President of Cardinal Expo in 2018, I was the company’s Vice President.
Some say leadership is innate, others would argue against it. Would you say you were born a leader or did you have to become a leader? Explain your experience and viewpoint.
Thomas Samuels: While certain skills and tendencies are innate, leadership skills have to be nurtured and developed. Even as a kid, I demonstrated integrity and problem-solving skills. I believe in working hard and staying involved with the company’s actual work as much as possible, which naturally helps me lead our team. As the company’s Vice President, I had the opportunity to learn the ins and outs of our business and industry while honing my leadership skills. I was able to be very hands-on, giving me stronger familiarity with our processes and team.
Tell us about your company/Organization. What are some of the most exciting projects that you’re working on and how does your organization distinguish itself from the rest?
Thomas Samuels: As a full-service trade show and exhibit services company;
We provide exhibit rental booths and comprehensive management services before, during, and after events. Recently, we worked hard to create a very exciting client booth for the Miami Boat Show. It was one of our larger exhibits, and all hands were on deck. Our busiest time of year is March and April, so going into the spring we’ll start to develop even more exciting projects.
Cardinal Expo differs from other companies because we provide both exhibit design and full-service management. We help our clients through every step of the process, creating dynamic exhibits and handling all of the logistics from paperwork to on-site labor, shipping to storage, setup to takedown. With decades of trade show experience, Cardinal Expo has created a national presence that stands out based on our strong work ethic and commitment to client satisfaction.
Throughout your career, have you been a team player or a lone wolf? How did that benefit or handicap you throughout the years?
Thomas Samuels: I’ve definitely been a team player. Ever since I started working at Cardinal Expo, I’ve gotten involved with every aspect of the business. From development to installation, my employees know they can count on me. Working with the different teams helps me understand how things work at every level. This not only inspires my employees to work hard, but also helps me to make informed business decisions.
What leadership qualities do you possess that, in your opinion, inspire your employees to work harder and be more productive?
Thomas Samuels: My integrity and commitment to teamwork help me connect with my employees. When they see me working right alongside them to deliver outstanding customer service, it inspires them to work harder and better, too. Above all, I lead by example. If employees see me working hard, being productive, and staying positive, it can help set the company culture and be an inspiration for them to do the same.
A national survey from the University of Phoenix has found that 95 percent of employees who have functioned as part of a team think that teams are an important workplace function but less than 25 percent prefer working in teams. Individual and teamwork both have their advantages and disadvantages. What work model have you adopted and how has it benefited your organization?
Thomas Samuels: At Cardinal Expo, we prioritize cohesive teamwork with cross-departmental planning and strategy. When every employee and department is on the same page, the company runs more smoothly. However, we also break everyone into different teams based on their work, splitting employees up into the sales team, design team, logistics team, etc. This allows employees to operate in a more specialized setting and develop a specific skill set that plays to their strengths and interests.
People often procrastinate when they are unsure of how to do certain tasks. Is there an element of your business process that employees shy away from? How do you counter this problem?
Thomas Samuels: Our different teams all have different skill sets, so if one team is facing uncertainty, another team member can jump in and help solve the problem, especially when a project requires a different team’s expertise. To facilitate cross-departmental strategy, we keep internal teams in close communication. This reduces friction overall and eases any pain points. The sales executive team also oversees every aspect of a project’s management to help bridge any gaps.
The proper teams also contribute to creating a detailed parts list and providing step-by-step instructions for booth installment so the on-site labor team never has to guess what goes where. The parts list also ensures that the on-site supervisor can properly take inventory of everything in the exhibit while it’s being dismantled and packed up for shipping back to the warehouse. To protect our clients’ investments, we also track shipping to and from the warehouse. This means that the on-site team knows when an exhibit should arrive and the warehouse team knows when to expect an exhibit back at the warehouse, so the proper parties are always in the loop.
Many businesses today are being overwhelmed with all kinds of data which impacts productivity. How do you ensure that you and your employees are focusing on the right metrics?
Thomas Samuels: To ensure that my employees and I are focusing on the right metrics, I get involved with all the different teams and business processes. By having a working understanding of everything, I can stay informed about our work and how its success is measured, offering my insights as a leader. At the same time, delegation is part of leadership, so there is a level of trust that I have with our sales and marketing teams to use their expertise and insights when it comes to measuring our success as a business.
According to PwC, nearly 60% of survey respondents reported that they would like feedback on a daily or weekly basis. Which employee feedback system does your business use to boost productivity?
Thomas Samuels: Above all, I communicate openly and often. Because I maintain hands-on involvement in a lot of our teams’ projects, I am able to regularly give feedback in real time when I see someone working hard, overcoming a challenge, delivering outstanding results, or making the company more efficient. This not only boosts productivity but also morale.
What financial or non-financial incentives do you offer employees for motivation? What role has that played in increasing productivity?
Thomas Samuels: One of the best ways I’ve found to increase productivity is to teach your team new skills, strategies, or efficiencies that they can implement in their work. This can include everything from staff-led lunch-and-learns to training programs and industry conferences. Additionally, we work to establish goals for every Cardinal Expo team so they know what’s expected from them and can track the results of their hard work. We talk to our employees about their own career goals as well to set highly motivating goals and help them move forward in their careers, checking in regularly to see how they’re progressing towards these goals.
If you had an unlimited budget and resources to spend on increasing productivity, what is the first thing that you would change?
Thomas Samuels: The first thing I would implement is more learning opportunities for employees. Effective learning experiences can be costly, requiring a substantial budget for software, seminars, and conferences as well as employee time. But with an unlimited budget, I could afford an endless amount of resources for employees to utilize whenever they have the time.
According to Gusto, 54% of employees say a strong sense of community (great coworkers, celebrating milestones, a common mission) kept them at a company longer than was in their best interest. How do you improve the way teams work together? How do you build a sense of community?
Thomas Samuels: Our mission is full service from start to finish, meaning that Cardinal Expo is working with clients every step of the way to create a successful event and ensure that things run smoothly. This means that teams work closely together on projects often, helping to foster a sense of community as we all work toward the same client goals, events, and company mission.
In order to build a sense of community, I also stay involved in the majority of my teams’ projects, creating connection from the bottom up. Additionally, Cardinal Expo employees have the opportunity to develop close working relationships with our clients, many of whom work with us on multiple events every year. This helps us build lasting relationships within and outside the company.
This has been very insightful and I’m sure other entrepreneurs can learn from the knowledge you have provided. As for your company’s future, what big changes are coming down the pipe in the next 6 months that might increase productivity?
Thomas Samuels: During the pandemic, attendance rates at events have been lower. However, this can give clients a bigger opportunity to stand out at events with strong exhibits, especially those that take advantage of more space or the latest technology. Streamlining Cardinal’s processes for the most in-demand products can help increase productivity during the pandemic, as well as spotlighting our new offerings to help exhibitors adhere to COVID guidelines.
For example, we’ve started offering personal protective equipment (PPE) for our display booths and demo stations. With convention centers having to adjust their events and safety precautions—sometimes without much notice—it’s important to ensure fast turnaround times on our end for orders big and small.
Lower attendance rates also mean more space for the exhibitors who do attend, allowing them to invest in 20×20, double deck, outdoor, or larger custom exhibits. This not only boosts our business and productivity, but also draws more attention at trade shows with large, statement-making exhibits.
Productivity is important but as is an employee’s wellbeing. What are you currently doing to prevent employees from burning out?
Thomas Samuels: To encourage employees and prevent burnout, I try to show my appreciation as often as possible. When someone works exceptionally hard, overcomes a challenge, delivers outstanding results, or makes the company more efficient, I always show my appreciation with praise, a celebration, or even a gift. This is not only motivating for the employee involved, but also inspires others to work for that kind of appreciation as well. It’s also a great opportunity for the high-achieving employee to share what they’re doing, what they’ve learned, or any tips they may have with the rest of the team.
I also communicate frequently and openly with my employees to identify barriers to success, establish helpful career goals, and keep an eye out for any issues with burning out. Framing an employee’s work in terms of their unique goals boosts morale and productivity, making the workplace more constructive and efficient.
Thank you so much for your time but before we finish things off, we do have one more question. We will select these answers for our ValiantCEO Award 2021 edition. The best answers will be selected to challenge the award.
Share with us one of the most difficult decisions you had to make, this past year 2021, for your company that benefited your employees or customers. What made this decision so difficult and what were the positive impacts?
Thomas Samuels: The most difficult decision I had to make this year was continuing to invest in marketing, business development, and new products while the trade show industry was undergoing shifts during the pandemic. Despite decreases in event attendees and exhibitors, I knew we could help our clients make the best out of a tough situation with innovative exhibits and high-quality PPE. While my first instinct was to conserve resources, I knew there was an opportunity for growth. Because others took the cautious approach and slowed down their marketing and outreach, it created a period of less competition and more opportunities to build our industry presence and cater to the clients that are still exhibiting.
Jed Morley, VIP Contributor to ValiantCEO and the host of this interview would like to thank Thomas Samuels for taking the time to do this interview and share his knowledge and experience with our readers.
If you would like to get in touch with Thomas Samuels or his company, you can do it through his – Linkedin Page
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