Imperial’s Sheptor Before Houston Strategic Forum

Compassion, clear-headedness, communications and a committed team of leaders are the keys to weathering the kinds of financial, operational and emotional storms that have beset Imperial Sugar Company over the last few years, Imperial President and CEO John C. Sheptor told an influential audience of Houston business leaders recently.

Speaking at a Houston Strategic Forum luncheon, Sheptor detailed numerous difficulties faced by Imperial between 2007 – 2009, described the management team’s success in addressing those challenges and offered thoughts on how other leaders facing turbulent times should respond.

Sheptor spoke frankly about:

• A 25 percent reduction of industry pricing
• An industrial accident that shut down the Georgia-based Port Wentworth, idled 60 percent of the company’s production capacity, and caused numerous injuries and 14 deaths
• The threat of losing raw sugar supply in Louisiana, creating risk for the other 40% of the company’s capacity
• Increased competition for sales share in Texas due to free trade agreements with Mexico
• The bankruptcy of its largest shareholder.

Sheptor then discussed how Imperial met each challenge with a laser-tight focus on their corporate strategy and solutions that strengthened the company’s competitive position, including:

• A $210-plus million rebuild of the Port Wentworth refinery
• The formation of a 3-way venture in Louisiana to construct a new 1 million-ton refinery and secure long-term raw sugar supply
• Initiating a cross-border marketing venture with a premier Mexican sugar producer
• Building effective shareholder relationships with new investors, resulting in a more than 200 percent increase in share value over the last six months
• Service improvements that enabled recovery of key accounts, and …
• Enhanced future portfolio profitability through purchase of an option to acquire its partner’s 50 percent share of Wholesome Sweeteners, a successful distributor of organic and fair trade sweeteners.

Complimenting his executive team (in attendance at the presentation) for diligently holding to their strategy and continuously supporting each other, Sheptor emphatically declared, “Imperial is a more capable and stronger company today through your innovative response to impossible challenges. You have given our shareholders reason to believe in us and our associates a predictable future.”

He then widened his remarks to share insights about dealing with turbulence in today’s uncertain markets.

• Decide to be a victor, not a victim. “In every crisis, there’s an opportunity for transformation. You either grab it or let it go by. We’ve decided to lead industry change.”
• Communicate, communicate, communicate. “The worst thing you can do is withdraw. Everyone — your employees, your investors, your partners, your vendors, the government the press, and, especially, your customers, are looking to you for signs that the future will be better.”
• Allocate your resources zealously. “There will never be enough time, money or talent to do everything that you want to do, so you need to commit to a few key strategic initiatives and make sure those have the resources they need to have a real chance of success.”
• Lean on your leaders. “It is vital to surround yourself with capable, hardworking leaders with a strong moral and ethical compass, and then trust them to shepherd key elements of the plan.”


John Sheptor with Ravi Kathuria, President, Effective Execution, Inc.

• Stay the course. “Once you arrive at a strategic approach that you believe in, you need to stick to it. You should always listen to others and be willing to alter, speed up or slow down some of your tactics to match your resources, but you should hold true to your overall vision.”

Sheptor emphasized that Imperial still faces significant challenges, but remains “cautiously optimistic, because our story is still unfolding. I would say we are in chapter six of a ten-chapter book.”

Asked how he found the personal wherewithal to deal with such wrenching challenges, Sheptor replied that he leaned on three things: his family’s love and encouragement, his fellow company leaders, and his faith. “I gave quality moments to all three to refresh my inspiration and strength.”