Big change brings bigger challenges

April 10, 2005

Simply Sleight/Kari Sleight

I've written a lot about change in the Mat-Su Valley over the years in this column, and about the problems associated with change: traffic congestion, overcrowding in our schools, increased crime and increased property taxes are all concerns we are facing as a result of change and growth.

The Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman has experienced its own change and growth over the last few years, the most recent of which was the installation of our press and our newly built production facility. Just as the Valley has experienced problems associated with growth, it was inevitable we, too, would face our own problems and challenges.

It would be great to be able to write that the installation and building went perfectly and all is well in the newspaper world, but this isn't a perfect world.

We thought we had planned for just about every possible problem scenario in making our "live print" deadline. We surprised even the most experienced press installers with this one, though.

People in Alaska are used to the challenges we experience in moving products in and out of the state. When you are dealing with equipment as large as the press units, the problems are usually magnified accordingly. Then, just when you think you have it all figured out, Mother Nature has her say by throwing out some of the worst storms in recent history, and you are forced to scramble for alternative transportation at the last minute.

We were able to get the shipping worked out, and then came word that one of the suppliers had "forgotten" to ship out one of the pieces of equipment necessary to create the plates we use on the press. The manufacturer apologized and promised to get it sent out right away. Oh, by the way, I forgot to mention the manufacturer was in Germany and it would take about five weeks for it to arrive.

The good news is we were able to overcome all of the obstacles this project threw our way and the result is the quality of this newspaper you're reading. Bringing the printing home to the Valley was extremely important to me and to the other employees of the Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman. We feel strongly that this was the right decision, regardless of the growing pains we endured.

Nothing drives that sentiment home more than the dedication from our employees that I've witnessed the past few months. The press crew worked 12- to 14-hour days, seven days a week for more than two months to get us printing by the time our old printing contract expired. Our contract carriers, those dedicated persons who work diligently through the night to get your newspaper to your door, pitched in to help wherever they could the first few nights when press problems delayed our finished newspaper until the wee hours of the morning.

After experiencing the printing and production problems, office staff, advertising staff and members of the management team all pitched in to hand-insert the newspaper on several occasions to help make sure our carriers, and ultimately our customers, received the newspaper on time.

All in all, I am extremely proud of the wonderful employees and carriers we have working here. They have really stepped up to accept the additional responsibilities and have worked well with each other to help serve our customers.

And, just as importantly, I appreciate the patience our customers have shown as we worked through the challenges this change brought about. We may have experienced a few bumps and bruises along the way, but we are happy with the end result. I hope you enjoy the increased quality this new equipment affords us as much as we enjoy the privilege of delivering it to you.

Kari Sleight is the Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman's