When companies are small and just getting off the ground it is common for employees to become a “jack of all trades:” well-rounded and diverse in their skills and knowledge. When mk North America, Inc. was a fledgling company 20 years ago, it found such an employee in Bob Gardner. Gardner came to mk with a background in architecture but a desire to work with his hands as he had done previously in his father’s plumbing company and in construction.
Twenty years ago, when Shawn Hall was looking to relocate from Los Angles back to Massachusetts, mk North America was a small seven-person company operating out of a warehouse in Simsbury, Connecticut. Hall was looking for a company that would provide stability and the means to move back home. mk was looking for a talented, mechanically and electrically-inclined individual to work on assembling standard conveyors, their fastest growing product line at the time. Hall was introduced to the ownership and management from a friend who already worked at mk, and ever since Hall has been a dedicated employee.
Recently I had a chance to sit down and talk with Hall and mk’s management about Hall’s tenure with the company.
