ADAPTING TO NEW CLIMATES: 2001-2019
Maya Angelou reportedly said: “People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”
How do you measure if a company culture is effective? One measure of a company’s culture is how well it engages people. Corporate values, taglines and sustainability goals matter, but how team members feel matters more. Sonoco’s handshake culture of respect and teamwork keeps our global team members energized, innovating and engaging for the long haul.
Throughout the decades, we’ve created numerous ways to celebrate these loyal, longstanding relationships. In 1956, we started the Old Timers Club for coworkers who reached 25 years or more with us. This group grew to encompass all our locations in 1989. By mid-1990, it had more than 2,400 members. One year, the group’s branch at the New Albany, Indiana, plant held its annual meeting on a dinner cruise—and planned to hold the next one at a local dinner theater.
![Paper with old black and white image and text from typewriter. Text reads "Mr. Coker was always a familiar figure at employee gatherings as evidenced [edit written in: by his attendance at this] Sonovista Club picnic held in July 1957. One of his ocmpanions at many of these events was Aaron "Shy" Tyner (left), one of Sonoco's twelve original employees. Shy died in August 1960 following 61 years of service." Image depicts four men.](http://www.sonoco.com/sites/default/files/2024-02/Sonoco%20Stewards%20Longstanding%20Employees.jpg)
This group honors and connects Sonoco team members who’ve stayed by our side. “Old Timers feel honored to be in the club, even though they’re not quite comfortable with being called old!” said Doris Crawford, facilitator for the club at our Richmond, Virginia, paper mill, in 1990. “There’s a lot of prestige in being a 25-year veteran here.”
Aaron “Shy” Tyner, one of Sonoco’s original 12 employees, set the gold standard. At the time of his passing in 1960, he had devoted 61 years to the company.
As we’ve expanded globally, so has our esteem for long-term dedication. Sonoco’s workforce now numbers more than 22,000 employees in more than 300 operations around the world. As remarkable as these numbers are, the fact that more than 1,600 of our international employees have stayed with Sonoco for more than 20 years speaks volumes about our culture. Among them, a handful in Europe, Asia and North America have worked with us for more than 50 years each.
When a company’s culture keeps people innovating and excelling throughout their lifetimes, we think it’s safe to label it effective. More importantly, our words match our culture—Better Packaging. Better Life.