The righT way is The sTine way bEing a privatEly ownEd, indEpEndEnt SEEd company in a world of mEgaconglomEratES cErtainly SEtS StinE SEEd company apart from itS compEtitorS. wHilE talk of mErgErS and buyoutS abound, tHE company conSiStEntly goES back to itS corE buSinESS – cuStomErS – and lookS at wHat tHE opportunity iS rElativE to wHat tEcHnology, tHE induStry and conSumEr dEmand rEquirE. EvEry timE, it goES back to tHE cuStomEr. tHat’S wHy StinE iS Still indEpEndEnt aftEr all of tHESE yEarS. But being independent isn’t the only reason Stine succeeds in business – it’s the company culture that truly sets it apart from others. Harry Stine believes the company culture is in its people, “we hire good people that care about what they do.” Some current and former employees weighed in on the various ways Stine sets itself apart: “Making things fast and efficient! On the way to my office one spring day, I passed a competitor’s plot planting operation. On a six-row planter were six riders, two walkers, one driver and two people watching. Turning the corner to another plot, I noted a Stine planter with one driver and two riders – three people doing the job of eleven!” — bob mulvihill “We don’t get off track with every little fad. We don’t have to be just like every other company.” — chuck Hansen P 24