Reflections on 35 years of business
May 18, 2023
This May, Axios HR celebrates 35 years of serving people and businesses in Michigan. Our VP of HR Consulting John Sanford spent some time reflecting on this milestone and his experience at Axios over the years.
I’ve been fortunate to be part of the Axios, now Axios HR team for 17 of the 35 years, and as I recall within 5 or so years of the HR Services team becoming a distinct division. Across the board, every division has been through growth and occasional contractions, restructuring, and using new tools to refine our operations.
What has been a constant are the opportunities we've taken to refocus on what we all do best – personalized service. It can sometimes get lost in the procedures, best practices, and new technology, but ultimately what makes every division of Axios HR great is building relationships, proactive communications, and personalized service.
The opportunity to still be working with some of the same clients today that I worked with 17+ years ago is a special opportunity and responsibility, but I really treasure the relationships that have been built over those years and use that experience every day when meeting and working with new clients or working on a special project with new people, and working to build those new relationships.
A few of the real milestones that came to mind for me were the announcements of the ESOP, and as that concept began to take hold across the company, being part of the team that came together to redefine our Mission, Vision & Core Values. You imagine in most organizations this happens at an executive retreat somewhere and the “new words” come down from the mountain top on stone tablets.
Not so here. True to the company’s roots, a group of 20 or so team members from across the company at every level representing every team came together with a facilitator. The company founder, Dan, set the tone talking about the history of the company, how we made it to where we were at that time, answered questions and then exited the room, leaving us to do the work and decide, ultimately , how to define who & what we are, and how we do it. That was a great experience to be a part of, and we soon rolled out the new Core Purpose – “Vested in Making a Difference”, in the fall of 2019.
From a day-to-day perspective, I think of the dozens of all-company meetings, outings, client events and holiday celebrations where we get the opportunity to re-connect in person with those we don’t work with regularly, learn a bit more about what is happening outside of our day-to-day world, and have a bit of fun. I think what I am most proud of is the continuous growth opportunities that are available to everyone at Axios HR – personal, professional, organizationally, and within our communities.
This company has always been about looking for ways to grow by learning, taking on new challenges, continually improving processes and client service, being responsible for ourselves, our teams & clients, and never losing sight of the big picture while managing the daily fire hose of craziness we often have to face.
It’s a new adventure every day! Our team has continued to grow and improve. I can confidently say that we have our best team in place today, and I look forward to the challenges that tomorrow brings.
John W. Sanford
May 2023
I’ve been fortunate to be part of the Axios, now Axios HR team for 17 of the 35 years, and as I recall within 5 or so years of the HR Services team becoming a distinct division. Across the board, every division has been through growth and occasional contractions, restructuring, and using new tools to refine our operations.
What has been a constant are the opportunities we've taken to refocus on what we all do best – personalized service. It can sometimes get lost in the procedures, best practices, and new technology, but ultimately what makes every division of Axios HR great is building relationships, proactive communications, and personalized service.
The opportunity to still be working with some of the same clients today that I worked with 17+ years ago is a special opportunity and responsibility, but I really treasure the relationships that have been built over those years and use that experience every day when meeting and working with new clients or working on a special project with new people, and working to build those new relationships.
A few of the real milestones that came to mind for me were the announcements of the ESOP, and as that concept began to take hold across the company, being part of the team that came together to redefine our Mission, Vision & Core Values. You imagine in most organizations this happens at an executive retreat somewhere and the “new words” come down from the mountain top on stone tablets.
Not so here. True to the company’s roots, a group of 20 or so team members from across the company at every level representing every team came together with a facilitator. The company founder, Dan, set the tone talking about the history of the company, how we made it to where we were at that time, answered questions and then exited the room, leaving us to do the work and decide, ultimately , how to define who & what we are, and how we do it. That was a great experience to be a part of, and we soon rolled out the new Core Purpose – “Vested in Making a Difference”, in the fall of 2019.
From a day-to-day perspective, I think of the dozens of all-company meetings, outings, client events and holiday celebrations where we get the opportunity to re-connect in person with those we don’t work with regularly, learn a bit more about what is happening outside of our day-to-day world, and have a bit of fun. I think what I am most proud of is the continuous growth opportunities that are available to everyone at Axios HR – personal, professional, organizationally, and within our communities.
This company has always been about looking for ways to grow by learning, taking on new challenges, continually improving processes and client service, being responsible for ourselves, our teams & clients, and never losing sight of the big picture while managing the daily fire hose of craziness we often have to face.
It’s a new adventure every day! Our team has continued to grow and improve. I can confidently say that we have our best team in place today, and I look forward to the challenges that tomorrow brings.
John W. Sanford
May 2023