PFFC - August 2008 - (Page 64)

EXPERIENCE SPEAKS uWhat do you enjoy most about your job? When we close a deal with a new customer. uWhat is the key to growing a business in a bad economy? Developing new products with high added value and continuously pursuing our advantages versus the competition. uWhat is the biggest mistake you made in business and how did you fix it? Early on we did not enter production partnerships in the US and Russia, the two most important markets for CLP . We have remedied that in Russia, and we are working hard to create a venture with the right partner in the US. Flexible packaging is a very complex industry with low margins—you cannot make mistakes. uWhat is the biggest threat to the converting industry right now? Oil prices and their influence on raw material prices. It is difficult for customers to keep up with rising prices. uAre there any management or business books that have influenced you? There’s an expression, “From all my mentors I have become wiser.” Every successful manager in leading companies around the world is a tutor for me. The book Built To Last: Successful Habits of Visionary Companies by Jim Collins and Jerry I. Porras was one of the most important ones I read. I am confident that we will have production capacity in the US very soon. uWhat do you know now that you wish you had known when you started out? That in any global market in which you want to succeed, you must have production capabilities close to the market in order to strengthen customers’ trust. uHow do you handle a difficult customer? I will join my managers in dealing directly with the challenge— some customers appreciate the managing director’s personal involvement. It takes empathy and patience, as well as decisiveness. uChaim Gofen uPresident of CLP Industries Ltd. uBest advice he ever got | To always win uWorst advice he ever got | To wait for better days uHow did you get into the converting business? I served in the Israel Defense Forces for 30 years as a jet pilot and commander, rising to the rank of Brigadier General. When I retired, I looked at my options for a second career. The packaging industry has been an excellent way for me to use the management skills I developed in the air force and my education in economics and political science. uDo you have a personal uHow would you describe your management style? Targeting management goals in all of our fields of activity, with an emphasis on giving managers responsibility to achieve those targets. I also maintain an emphasis on R&D in order to stay in front of the industry technologywise. About CLP Industries Ltd. uHeadquarters in Kibbutz Negba, Israel uwww.clp-packaging.com uFounded 1972; 310 employees uSpecialization | Flex-pack; multilayer laminates; and standup, retort, shaped, and spouted pouches motto? Only challenges that are hard to achieve make me get up in the morning and continue to do my job. What management books have influenced you? Share your perspective. Write to yolanda.simonsis@penton.com. 64 | AUGUST 2008 WWW.PFFC-ONLINE.COM http://www.clp-packaging.com http://WWW.PFFC-ONLINE.COM

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of PFFC - August 2008

PFFC - August 2008 Table of Contents First Glance Calendar of Events From the Editor Web Lines Process Management News Clips Carton & Box Reporter Carton & Box What’s New Products Narrow Web & Label Reporter Narrow Web & Label What’s New Products Cover - Show Preview - Labelexpo Labelexpo Floor Plan Conference Program Digital Printing Gravure Printing Bagmaking What’s New Products Services Directory Classified Marketplace Equipment Buyers & Sellers Advertisers Index Experience Speaks

PFFC - August 2008

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