How Pleune Service Company has created a lasting legacy and core values
This article originally appeared on MLive.com on August 5, 2024. It is reprinted with permission.
Pleune Service Company is a commercial industrial and mechanical contractor. In addition to traditional HVAC and boiler work, Pleune also performs plumbing, electrical, pressure vessel repair and building automation.
Priding themselves on being a quality focused company while creatively meeting customer needs, Pleune is celebrating 50 years in the business and serving a diverse customer base across the lower peninsula of Michigan.
“Our focus is to deliver high quality service,” said Ken Misiewicz, CEO of Pleune Service Company. “The quality of workmanship, the positive attitude, the responsiveness, the competence levels – all are expected to be pretty high. It’s baked in our DNA that you need to be a professional operator regardless of your role.”
The success of the company? A strong foundation laid by John Pleune in 1974. Pleune wanted to provide a service that was different from his competitors and after being told he wouldn’t be successful, he did just that.
John Pleune also wanted the company to go from 30% to 100% company owned, which was made possible in 2002 after he sold the balance of his shares to the Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) which transferred control and instilled the core values into each employee and the company for good.
“He had made the decision [to go 100% employee-owned] in 1998,” said Misiewicz. “He directed the leadership team at that time to learn how to manage an ESOP. It was a major shift in 2002. It went from being employee-owned in name to employee-owned in fact.”
Because of the unique nature of an employee-owned company, the same expectations and values translate to the culture within. Hiring and development of the human capital is taken very seriously to set up each employee for success from hiring to retirement.
The philosophy of Pleune Service Company sets itself apart from other because of their commitment to long term success in service, employees and internal culture.
The journey of 50 years as a company, and for any company, is a rollercoaster of ups and downs. As an operationally focused company, Pleune has learned how to strategically utilize a technical sales approach to differentiate itself in the market.
But to Misiewicz, it’s been about building the face of the company and watching it grow and thrive to what it is today.
“We’re at a point now where it’s a highly functioning team,” said Misiewicz. “That really allows us to focus on providing what John originally started with – which is to consistently deliver high quality service. It’s becoming generational. The values have not changed.”
When you use Pleune Service Company for any of your service needs, it’s important for each employee to make sure you feel satisfied and pleased with the outcome. Regardless of the service or interaction, Pleune strives to make it worthwhile.
“Anything short of a positive, is a negative,” said Misiewicz. “This can be seen in different ways. For some it’s the quality of workmanship or responsiveness on a phone call or a high trust factor. At the end of all of that, we want the customer feeling positive about the relationship.”
To learn more about Pleune Service Company, visit pleuneservice.com
