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shift they will be on. That is why our vice-president of production likes to bring them up in our culture. Their jobs are demanding, and they have to be flexible in the hours and jobs they are asked to do. They have to want to come to work. It is not an easy row to

hoe, so we try to spoil them. We take good care of our employees and feel like it has paid back in spades.” The company provides superior benefits, including top-line health insurance, profit sharing and 401(k) administration. Also, the company tries

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to make the workplace enjoyable for its employees by offering picnics and other activities throughout the year. Lawler Foods employs more than 400 people, and many of them often work around 50 hours a week. And because it takes care of its employees, the dessert manufacturer also can better serve its customers. “I’ve gotten phone calls on Friday afternoon, saying they need two truckloads of products now,” Mr. Lawler said. “And by Monday, they are on the road. Employees can be walking out on Friday thinking they have their weekend ahead, but we’ll say, ‘We need you to put two truckloads of product on the road in less than two days,’ and they do it. Our employees will go that extra mile to make sure we can do the same for our customers. We let our employees know that we appreciate that. “We spoil our employees, and we spoil our customers,” he added. “And it’s working because we’re getting double-digit sales growth every year.” INSIDE OPERATIONS. The original Building 1 is a labyrinth, and those unfamiliar with the operation could easily get lost in the many rooms where various processes take place. Although the 65,000-sq-ft plant may not feature the most efficient layout, the company uses this facility to make its most labor-intensive products: layer cakes. “Layer cakes go through so many stages,” Mr. Lawler said. “You mix, deposit, bake, cool and depan, and then all you have is a cake layer; you’re not even halfway through yet. You’ve still got to make the filling and icing and to assemble, decorate, cut and store the cake.” While the company has three distinct packaging lines in its plants, it is much more difficult to pin down an exact number of processing lines because many pieces of equipment are rolled in and out depending on the dessert being produced. Building 1 features a wide range of processing equipment, including many different

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Baking&Snack - April 2011

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