E.J. Ajax Named Manufacturer of the Year

 E.J. Ajax and Sons, a small metal forming business in Fridley, was named 2011 Minnesota Manufacturer of the Year by the Manufacturing Alliance of Minnesota.  We at ELA are delighted but not surprised: I wrote an Ethical Leaders in Action profile about E.J. Ajax back in 2008, available here.   Since then, company president Erick Ajax has spoken to each of my MBA classes.  Students routinely cite Ajax’s presentation as the highlight of the course (and I confess: my ego and I are slightly ambivalent about that). 

Erick and his fellow company leaders walk the walk, investing deeply and steadfastly in employee, customer, and community relationships.  They reap the rewards, both personal and commercial.  Indeed, Erick takes his work quite personally: “I am excited that our employees can earn the American Dream,” he says.  That vision is anchored first to an absolute commitment to safety: in an industry plagued by amputations, Ajax has gone more than 19 years without a time-loss injury.  (That’s no accident.)  The vision extends to customer relationships and community service, as well.

The firm doesn’t disclose profitability figures, but Erick assures his audiences that the business remains quite profitable.  They create and capture value by partnering to meet customers’ total needs, and by sharing cost savings and innovations with those customers.    A key source for innovation: Ajax’s workforce of less than 50 turns out literally hundreds of suggestions for quality improvements and cost savings on an ongoing basis.

Ajax’s leaders don’t brag much, but they do share learning and best practices across the industry, constantly.  Frequent presentations and public training sessions advance their commitment to worker safety beyond the walls of their firm, and promote a robust (even if more competitive) industrial marketplace.  The firm also invests in state and private workforce development efforts, leading and participating in programs that train and prepare great, skilled workers.

So, it is no wonder that smart MBA students sit up and pay attention:  Ajax competes globally on both quality and price, not by cutting costs to the bone, but by investing in an engaged and talented workforce, and by partnering with customers to create value through innovation and ongoing improvement.   We can all take a moment to learn from that.  

Congratulations to E.J. Ajax and Sons for this most recent award, fine recognition of ethical leadership in action.

CAW