When I was hired by Swift & Company in 1979, they brought me into the Chicago headquarters to meet with some of the corporate quality assurance personnel with whom I would be working. In the lobby of the building, there was a picture of Gustavus Swift, founder of the company and innovator of the ice-cooled rail car to efficiently ship meat around the country. Under the picture was a quote attributed to him: "Still, I am learning." Those words have stayed with me, through 43 years of employment in the industry and now through almost three years of retirement. To continually improve, we must continually learn.

Throughout my career, I have been fortunate to have learned from people far wiser and smarter than me, and all are appreciated. Whether mentors, peers, supervisors, coworkers, suppliers, or customers, I have been blessed with people who are willing to share their expertise. At about the midpoint of my food industry career, I was asked by one of our valued customers to participate in a "kaizen" event to improve the efficiency of their sandwich making process. The customer invited several of its suppliers to its headquarters and production location, where they introduced us to the owner and personnel from food safety and quality assurance, purchasing, sanitation, and production. It was impressive that the owner demonstrated leadership and participated throughout the entire process.