What was your first job in the newspaper business?

I was hired as a management trainee in the composing room of The Miami Herald in 1981. I also held a number of supervisory and management positions in many production departments at The Herald before being transferred to the Detroit Free Press in 1986. My experience at The Herald allowed me to work in a number of departments and gain a working knowledge of people, processes and equipment that prepared me for future assignments.

I became vice president of operations at the Free Press. With the approval of the joint operating agreement in 1989, I was selected as the vice president of operations for The Detroit News and Free Press. I was transferred to The Charlotte (N.C.) Observer in 1992 in a similar capacity and in 2003 was transferred to Philadelphia.

What do you like most about your job?

Working with a variety of people, technology, and ever-changing processes to print and distribute the best newspapers possible.

What do you like least?

Not achieving the desired results, which is usually caused by failure to properly plan, communicate and execute action plans at all levels in the organization.

What was The Philadelphia Inquirer’s most recent purchase/installation?

We are in the process of installing five GMA buffering systems. These systems will greatly streamline our production process. We have the ability to simultaneously wind press products and unwind them into our inserting equipment with minimal handling.

We chose GMA because it was a proven system, it fits well within the floor space of our plant, and we will be replacing 20-year-old systems that are at the end of their useful life.

What is the biggest challenge The Inquirer is facing in production?

Meeting the changing needs of the marketplace for our readers and advertisers. This runs the gamut of earlier delivery of the paper, later deadlines for the newsrooms, micro-zoning of preprints, all of which must be done while taking costs and inefficiencies out of production operations. Another issue is gathering the right group of people together to address these challenges and make the necessary changes to existing operations.

What trend are you keeping your eye on?

We are devoting a lot of attention to upgrading our press controls, inserting machine controls and the capture of actionable data to meet and exceed the needs of our customers while lowering costs.

We just completed our transition from 30-lb. to 27.6-lb. paper. Our rolls per break have declined and we need to work with our suppliers while evaluating our pressroom practices to improve this key production metric.

If you know anyone you think should be featured in Short Run, please contact Tara McMeekin at 303.575.9595 or by e-mail at: tmcmeekin@newsandtech.com.