You’ve heard of TED Talks – those short, powerful presentations where a fascinating person talks about anything from quantum physics to jump ropes.
Well, at Lee Company, we’re blessed to have our own Ted talk! Ted Lee has been part of Lee Company since day 1, when his dad Leon opened up shop in their basement, with Ted’s mom Joyce serving as secretary and bookkeeper. The company was immediately a second-generation family-owned business; Ted and his brother Wallace helped with everything from sweeping and sorting to service calls.
Today – with four generations of Lees on the team – our company is a bonafide rarity. According to the Conway Center for Family Business, a nonprofit service organization, only 12 percent of family-owned businesses make it to the third generation and only 3 percent are still going at the fourth generation and beyond!
Ted Lee is clearly one of the reasons we’re still going strong. Now 82, he’s just as energetic, dapper and precise as ever. We invited him to Wallace Place recently, to share a few stories and a whole lot of laughs. As colleagues who worked with him would expect, Ted walked in wearing a nicely cut suit and a well-pressed dress shirt.
And that leads us to our first story.
“You want to know about my favorite Lee Company memory?” A group of us have gathered in a conference room, excited to spend time with a company legend. Ted is sitting on a couch, with notes for the interview – and our attention – in the palm of his hand. He leans back and laughs, green eyes crinkling.
“We had begun to do business with a general contractor, J.D. Mullican Company, a design/build contractor. One job, in particular, I remember. Hager Hinge Company in St. Louis was going to build a factory just outside Montgomery, Alabama …”
With only a few weeks between the initial call from Mullican and the presentation, Ted drew up the mechanical, electrical and process piping plans – and prepared his part of the presentation. Then, he drove to the airport for the flight to St. Louis.
“The Mullican Company had a two-engine prop plane and their pilot was a World War II fighter pilot. Well, to fly with a fighter pilot was, in itself, pretty exciting. Then, we hit rough weather outside St. Louis, and I was very glad to get back on the ground!”
He chuckles and shakes his head, remembering.
“At the time, Lee Company was undergoing a pretty severe financial problem. I was the treasurer, as well as being an engineer. I knew how bad it was. I knew we really needed this job. So I was nervous when it came time to present.
“Now, as usual, I was in a full suit and tie and white shirt. And one of the expressions I had adopted was: Never let them see you sweat. I wanted to appear completely composed and confident, but I could feel the sweat rolling down my back. I was sweating so much, my suitcoat was wet. But my face was not bothered. They never saw me sweat: I did not turn around!”
As we all start laughing, Ted grins and keeps going – this story isn’t over yet.
“The presentation and negotiation took about five hours. I was exhausted, so when we got out to the car, I told Mr. Mullican, ‘If you find us a place to eat, I will buy the meal.’ Now, there were six of us. And he looked at me and said, ‘Ted, I know just the place.’
“Well, he took us to the most expensive French restaurant in all of St. Louis. We ordered cocktails, wine, lobster, filet mignon, the whole works. The waiter presented me the bill, I looked at it, and, as treasurer of the company, I thought, ‘Well, my American Express card will not go through.’ But, I put the tip on, signed it and, it did go through – fortunately.
“We got the contract, finished it ahead of schedule, made a profit, and – from that day forward – I always chose to fly commercially. And if I ever offer to buy dinner, I choose the restaurant.”
Choosing Lee Company
As a kid, Ted rode with his father on service calls, handing him tools and small parts. As a teen, he worked summers in the field, learning to thread pipe by hand. After graduation and a stint in the U.S. Army, Ted passed up a better paying job to join Lee Company full-time – even though, as he says, “I wasn’t sure the company was big enough for three family members and two mechanical engineers.”
As hindsight shows, it was the right decision – for him and all of us. Ted Lee was a guiding force at Lee Company throughout his career; he officially retired in 1998.
“I remember my first sale – Louis Hody Florist. I sold them a three-ton air conditioning unit. I think I went to that job site three-to-four times a day, just to make sure it was going like it should.”
What really matters
Given this rare opportunity to talk with someone who literally grew up with Lee Company, we wondered what makes him proud about where we are today.
“I can’t help but be impressed by the size and success of the company. What really makes me proud, though, is to see some of the same people I worked with 20 years ago, still here and still loyal.”
Does anything about the company now surprise him?
“I’m surprised about the size,” he says, thinking back to the days when the company was 20 people strong, rather than 1,000+. “I never dreamed Lee Company would be this size; it has grown beyond my wildest imagination.
“I sometimes read minutes of management meetings, and when I read them over, what surprises me are that the problems are still the same as 20, 30, 40 years ago – controlling costs and overhead, finding good people. The stakes are higher, but the problems are the same.”
When it comes to finding – and keeping – good people, Ted says it’s “the job of management to help employees reach their full potential.” And he encourages all of us to learn the history of Lee Company.
“It’s important to know the history of the company so the employees can feel an important part of continuing that tradition,” he says, making eye contact with those of us gathered in the now quiet room. This is personal, and meant for all of us. “The success and professional growth of all the employees is very important to the success of the company.”
What are his hopes for our future?
“I hope the culture at Lee Company stays the same, and that it continues to be a place where people enjoy working. Work is hard enough. It’s good to find a place where you can do good work, be friendly and respected all around.”
Ted Lee leans back and smiles. In his typically cautious and well-planned manner, he has requested interview questions before this meeting – and has periodically glanced at the notes he brought with him. But he needs no notes to conclude our very special Ted talk.
“Dad would be absolutely astonished at Lee Company today – and he’d also be very proud of all that has been accomplished. If he saw Wallace Place, he’d be very pleased. But, I think Dad – and Mom – would also say that it’s not the building that’s most important. What matters most are the personal relationships you form in business, with customers and fellow employees.”
We hear you, Ted. We know that the days ahead – like those that form our history – will include great opportunities and interesting challenges. As we move forward, you have our word that we’ll work together. We’ll protect the Lee Company culture. And, no matter what, we’ll never let them see us sweat.
