Talk about built to last. Eighty-five years ago, W. W. Clyde and Co. sprung up in Springville with a sturdy promise: “Our word is our bond.” And with each company they’ve constructed or acquired — Sunroc, Geneva Rock, Gorge Rock, Beehive Insurance and Clements Concrete (now all under the umbrella of Clyde Companies) — that promise has only gotten more powerful. “Businesses need to build on the foundation of character and integrity,” says Wilford W. Clyde, CEO of Clyde Companies and grandson to the founder of W. W. Clyde. “There’s no substitute for honesty.” And with 2,100 employees, $480,000,000 in 2009 sales and a rock-solid reputation, we couldn’t agree more.
My first job with Clyde was back in high school. I worked on the asphalt crew after school. But it was never my plan to work at Clyde long term. That’s why I went to school in accounting — I was going to be a public accountant and do my own thing.
But when I got to the end of school, there was an opportunity at Geneva Rock for a full-time accountant. So I started there in 1977, became general manager in 1987 and was made president in 1988.
It’s been a great career for me. It’s a lot of fun. I like coming to work every day, and I enjoy the people I work with. It also doesn’t hurt that there were great people before me who did all of the hard work. We have a lot to live up to.
In 1998, we decided to create a parent company called Clyde Companies. We had a number of businesses founded by my grandfather that were somewhat integrated but operating as separate entities. It just made sense to bring them together.
There were definitely challenges that came with getting all the companies to work as one. From centralizing the accounting to figuring out logistics and administrative issues, people had to make adjustments with the new policies and procedures. But with the change came a greater cohesiveness. It was definitely a big milestone for us.
It’s a huge responsibility to employ people and be responsible for their livelihood, and it’s something we take very seriously. I can’t stress how important it is to get the right people. It’s an absolute necessity. If you are going to be the best, you have to attract the best.
Our roots are firmly established in Utah County, and we feel privileged to have our headquarters here. This is a great place to live, and the quality of people is high. When you hire people in Utah County, you hire people who care.
We’ve been successful because we were founded on the value system of “our word is our bond.” My grandfather believed that. He believed in being financially strong and not overextending yourself. He believed in quality work and quality products and the idea that if you do it, you do it right. It doesn’t matter what type of business you own, those are the ingredients to success.
The vision for our company is building a better community. We build roads, we supply materials to buildings and we complete construction projects. But truly, our goal is to build a better community from the standpoint of providing employment for employees and contributing to this wonderful area. We’ve been involved with a number of universities in the state, specifically UVU and its construction management program, and making a difference in the lives of locals is the best thing we do.
The economy is tough right now. We’ve had to look at cutting back our expenses so we can compete. It’s going to be a tough two or three years, but we’ll survive because we work hard and stay conservative. That’s actually my No. 1 piece of advice to companies: You have to be conservative on your projections, because if you can be successful with conservative projections, you will be successful. Period.
There are so many things to look forward to, so you have to focus on the positive. Work hard, and look at the good around you. If you don’t dream the dream, the dream won’t come true.
When you hire people in Utah County, you hire people care.