Dan Glier, company president, with its trademark goetta. (Michael E. Keating photo) | ZOOM |

        The culmination of four years of soul-searching and team-building came last Monday for Glier's Specialty Haus.

        That's when the Covington company began producing and packaging microwaveable goetta, now headed for groceries in Greater Cincinnati.

        The products — a bun-sized link, sandwich slice and breakfast link — are the result of corporate introspection and redirection, a shift that began after a major customer told the company they would be buying their meat products from somebody else.

        That notice meant the firm's top line would take a 20 percent hit. It came as a clear signal to President Dan Glier that the company had to find a new business road map. His father founded the company that Dan took over in 1977.

        Embracing change, shuffling personnel and taking a chance on a new product line may be commonplace for some firms but not at this small meat company, which opened its doors in 1946. Until this year, the old way was always the better way.

        “The change in philosophy in corporate buying from this major customer took about three years overall but we could see revenues going down and down and down,” said Mr. Glier, who leads the company that employs 20 and has annual revenues of about $2 million.

        “We realized one of our choices was closing up the shop. It's always a choice — not one you like to think about — but it was there. So we took a look at what we had left — and realized that consumers' tastes had changed.”

        At that point, Mr. Glier called in business consultant Paul Coulter of Coulter Enterprises in Erlanger to figure out how this company could overcome fear and resistance — and change with the times.

        One of the first things that Mr. Coulter did was assess the company's staff.

        “I had to identify who were the leaders, who had the talent and who could I work with,” Mr. Coulter said. “But I knew that that didn't mean they would be cooperative.”

        Then came the task of building worker teams to lead the company into the future. One question echoes through all firms: what do we do really well?

        That answer was easy — make goetta. While the lunchmeat and other meat products were good, because most were sold through cafeterias or to distributors, those products were almost generic.

        But goetta? There is nothing generic about goetta.

        Glier sells about a million pounds of goetta each year, a mixture of beef, pork and spices usually served at breakfast. It is one of the original comfort foods for thousands of Greater Cincinnatians.

        Mr. Coulter, who has consulted for more than 80 small companies and 11 international firms in the past 25 years, put that finding on a shelf and resolved to come back to it.

        He had to figure out how talents of the people already at the company could enhance operations. “You have to focus on what you want for a company — not what the company is. If you focus on reality, you will create more reality,” he said.

        Within months, sales director Mark Balasa took on marketing duties. Cathy Henke was brought on board as accountant and bookkeeper, David Neltner became production manager from his assistant manager slot and Thomas Rabe, who started out two decades before as a truck driver, became the plant manager.

        Some were more willing than others to take to their new roles.

        Mr. Neltner, a significant resister, went to weekly classes with Mr. Coulter. “The biggest thing I heard from him was that you are either the problem or the solution,” Mr. Neltner said.

        “It took a lot of time.”

        Mr. Rabe welcomed his new job and helped create teams that could work as units. One group came up with the idea of creating a new line of goetta and developed the recipe that allows it to be cooked in a microwave.

        “Companies have to let their people get involved,” Mr. Rabe said. “When workers are involved in the direction of the company, you'll be surprised at what they can come up with.”

        What Mr. Coulter did was create a process, Mr. Balasa said. “What Paul taught me most was that you have to be patient,” Mr. Balasa said. “You take baby steps within the process and don't get depressed about the progress.”

        Mr. Balasa found his forte was in marketing — though it is impossible to divorce himself completely from sales — and today marketing and management books line a shelf in his office. A bulletin board there is covered with wrappers from sausage competitors.

        One wide niche for the company are the dozens of church and seasonal festivals in the region. As a result, the firm has developed a specialty line of customized sausages for vendors.

        The firm also realized that it was difficult, if not impossible, to develop a customer base outside Greater Cincinnati because the marketing cost to develop brand identity was prohibitive for a such small company, Mr. Balasa said.

        Why take it to communities unfamiliar with goetta — mid-sized cities in Kentucky, for instance — when the best customers are within driving distance of the Interstate 275 beltway?

        Traditionally, goetta sales spike in September and continue strong through the fall and winter. But with most people eating it on Saturday or Sunday mornings, sales were predictable and flat.

        The solution was to push for weekday consumption.

        “There are 21 meals in a week. If we can get each of our committed customers to eat goetta for one more meal each week, that alone would double our production,” Mr. Glier said.

        Finding a way to get goetta to cook in a microwave was a Holy Grail for the firm. Mr. Glier is confident that goetta lovers are going to welcome the opportunity to quickly prepare the food.

        “We've learned that change is not a bad thing, but a very necessary part of business,” he said. “We experienced how to identify real problems and remove obstacles.”

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