Ben Swanson :
I would like to wish my long standing colleague and friend Paul Whitehead all the very best, as he officially retired yesterday. I was delighted to get to spend most of the working day yesterday with a man who has taught me a great deal and has sculpted so much of what makes our current commercial set-up so successful.
Paul is a champion of customer advocacy, and is a firm believer in one of our strongest internal mantras – “sometimes we have to do things right, but sometimes, we have to do the right thing.” Paul would always look to do the right thing for the customer, and would always be the one to bring us back down to what the customer needs and wants.
Paul has a phenomenal technical voice, and has been a trusted advisor to so many current and past INTERTRONICS employees and countless customers, suppliers, partners and friends in the industry. His voice is trusted, and we will miss it.
So often when I am speaking with people in industry they will ask me, “does Paul Whitehead still work with you?” and it’s going to be very odd indeed to give a different answer to that question for the first time.
Peter Swanson:
I had on my list of things to do today “write a post about Paul” – but Ben says pretty much everything I wanted to say. I remain very grateful for the lucky decision I made 34 years ago to employ Paul – a decision that has paid back squillions of times over. His contribution to our business has been immeasurable, his dedication unwavering, and his friendship treasured.
Our team is finding this moment bittersweet – sad about losing a valued and respected colleague, but happy to wave him off to a relaxing retirement, with a bit more golf, walks with the dogs and the enjoyment of life, health and happiness alongside his wife and family. Go well!, say all of us.
