Ken Allison and friend Sharon Zimmerman were standing inside the restaurant at Oaklawn Race Track in Hot Springs, waiting for a friend, when a man in a particular suit jacket caught her attention.
The green jacket, adorned in a wild pattern of hundred dollar bills, was not only apropos for the occasion. It was a heck of a lot of fun.
“Look at that guy with that money jacket on. Isn’t that great,” Sharon said to Ken at the time.
Ken just laughed.
“That’s Lee! That’s the man we’re meeting!” he replied.
And with that, a Saturday of revelry and rejuvenating camaraderie ensued. The long-time Datamax friends shared plenty of laughs, endured more than a few lost bets, and certainly enjoyed one another’s company.
Fun’s a big word for this duo.
But Ken, a Sales Manager in Little Rock, and Lee, Hot Springs Area Sales Manager, aren’t just longtime buddies who pack the fun. They’re well aligned in their pursuit to bring as much positivity and enthusiasm into the office they can … every day.
The Gift of the Goose, described in the book “Gung Ho!” means encouraging one another. All the geese are honking, not just the lead goose. This means that not only do managers cheer on team members; everyone can cheer each other on.
Ken and Lee don’t just cheer on their teams. They’re pumped to be here, and they want YOU to be, too.
They Preach Positivity.
Ken came to Datamax in 2002 as a Color Graphics Specialist. After graduating from Parkview High School in Little Rock and the University of Arkansas-Fayetteville, he worked as a manager at a one-hour film-processing lab. He opened stores in Tulsa, Jackson Hole, Wyoming, and many other spots, but was looking to both get away from retail and have a more stable, 8 to 5 career.
He entered the copier industry in 1998 with IKON Office Solutions, before reuniting with an old college roommate (David Holzhauer) and coming to Datamax.
He brought with him an infectious attitude of positivity and laughter.
“I think you wake up every morning, and you have a choice. You can be in a good mood or a bad mood. I choose to be positive,” Ken said. “Obviously, I like to make people laugh. But I try to make people feel good about what they’re doing. People should go home from the office every day feeling good about what they’ve accomplished that day.”
On a recent Saturday morning, Lee fired off a group text to Arkansas sales team members. It read, simply:
“How do YOU Saturday?”
Throughout the day, the texts and photos poured in. From cookouts to workouts, to events attended, to ongoing reactions to the Arkansas Razorbacks game, it was a great way to spread a little weekend camaraderie outside of the office.
“During the week, reps see numbers and a rep's name, but they know very little about that person. Ken and I wanted to develop a bond between the reps that had more to do than copiers, sales, quotas, notes, etc.,” Lee said.
Lee, a Texarkana native, was working for Glamour Shots for 11 years, moving around the country at a rapid pace. He decided it was time to get closer to home, so he contacted a Little Rock headhunter and landed at Datamax. He says he’s had only had three jobs since he graduated high school, and he wants Datamax to be “his last.” He loves it that much.
When Ken and Lee met at managers' meetings, the connection was imminent. Lee says he was drawn to Ken’s engaging, positive demeanor. So he emulated it.
“Ken always had a positive vibe about him; no matter what he was surrounded by. I’ve always made it a point to surround myself with positive people, and I knew I had to have Ken in my circle.”
They Practice 'Unselfish Conviction.'
Ken and Lee don’t see eye to eye on everything. Ken prefers to spend his time outside the office as a chef and a member of the coveted Kansas City Barbecue Society. Those who have tasted his work (or even seen photos) can attest to his prowess in the kitchen or in front of the barbecue pit.
Lee’s more of an outdoorsman. He spends his Saturdays at his family farm near Stamps in Southern Arkansas.
But there’s one thing they are perfectly in tune with. It’s not about them. Ken calls it “unselfish conviction.”
“Any good sales manager knows, it’s never about you. It’s always about your team. You live in the shadows, and it’s your job to encourage them to be their very best,” Ken says.
One example? When Account Manager Amanda Fox was creating her business plans for 2020, she mentioned to her manager that one major goal of hers that year was to buy a house.
Ken put together a plan. He outlined the necessary commission that she would need in able to do just that. The two tracked her progress. He kept encouraging her. And, yes, later that year, she and her husband purchased a house.
“Honestly I’m very blessed to have Ken as my manager. He’s always got my back,” she says. “He helped me get the commission I needed and I’m super grateful for that. But that’s just Ken’s nature. He’ll tell us out loud, ‘you know I love you.’ And we believe it.”
In the same spirit, Lee lives by a phrase he’s conjured up based on his own Biblical studies: “When you focus on doing more for others, you will find you have to focus less on doing for yourself”.
“It’s true in business. And it’s true for you as a person,” he says.
They Pump up Others.
Near the end of the recent “How do you Saturday?” text thread, Lee mentions an idea he’s had for a while now; one that’s been hampered by COVID for the past 18 months.
“When Oaklawn starts race season, I’ll book the Carousel! We’ll look at a gathering soon.”
Ken’s excited. Lee’s excited. Their infectious laughter, their sincerity, and their genuine love for where they work, and who they work with, spreads within the four office walls and beyond it.
After all, there’s a lot to be pumped about at Datamax. Whether it’s a Monday morning sales meeting, a text thread, or an impromptu gathering at Oaklawn, it’s their mission to get you excited, too.
