Throughout the history of AM Technical Solutions (AM), we have faced difficult decisions as a company. Yet, when faced with adversity, we have focused on our three core values of delivering value to our people, our company, and our customers.
Our company has persevered by doing what’s right and not what is most profitable, and we are confident that maintaining high ethical standards will continue to strengthen us moving forward. We feel strongly that focusing on doing what’s right first and foremost is the most powerful way to bring value and maintain a sustainable company.
There are many examples of how we practice this in our business over the years. We’d like to share examples of how our approach to challenging circumstances has played out.
Our Company’s Core Values
Although we had applied for and received the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) Loan, our operations did not require the use of these funds. It would have been profitable for us to keep them, and yet we chose to return the funds. By holding true to our values, we wanted to make sure that we did return the funds. We believed this was the right thing to do for our company.
In another instance, our internal Finance team discovered that insufficient corporate taxes were paid several years back even though this had passed an external audit. We knew that this would not get identified, and yet it was not right. The right thing to do was to voluntarily send in the money to cover the difference, and we did.
Similarly, an example of bringing value to our employees is the company ownership stock options. Initially, the employee options were limited to a fixed period of time. However, we took the time to legally amend the bylaws to make options valid indefinitely. We wanted to provide benefits to our employees who have contributed to the company’s success through the years.
Consistent with that, we have also provided bonuses to our employees and gone beyond the normal practice when one of our employees left the company before the end of the year. Typically, the employee would not have been eligible for a year-end bonus, but we felt it was right to pay this individual a bonus. We felt it was important to acknowledge his contribution to the success of the company.
– There are many examples of how we have sought to do what’s right for our customers with project delivery. One example is a semiconductor fabrication decommission project.
The customer delayed the start of the decommissioning project but did not adjust the end date. This required us to increase the level of effort to compress the schedule, and the industry norm is that this represents a “Change Order” and an increase in cost.
Because of our commitment to delivering value and focusing on First-Time-Right, we wanted to deliver the project without impact to the cost, schedule, and budget. We did not charge a change order fee. And, we completed the project on time, with full safety, and of high quality.
As the semiconductor company was leasing this fab from another “Blue Chip” Tier 1 semi company, the Tier 1 semi company conducted a full system and site review to assure that the decommissioning met their high standards. That Tier 1 company gave us the highest compliment as they stated that we “delivered the project in less than half the time, and at a significantly lower cost than had ever been done on that site.”
“Even when painful, we have viewed decisions through the lens of our core beliefs because this is who we are, where we are going, and how we will get there,” says Kelly McAndrew, AM Chairman and CEO. “As these examples show, we are committed to holding true to our faith and ethics in all of our actions.”
– Learn more about our core values that guide how we support our people, customers, and company.