Meet The Label Expert—Alex Henkel

Alex Henkel circa 2002 at a tradeshowAlex Henkel has been working at EIM since high school, when he frequently helped his father box up labels to ship out of their garage on school nights. Younger Alex even coded EIM’s first computer script to expedite shipping processes.

Today, Alex regularly interacts with every department at EIM as President and Co-Owner. A typical (pre-COVID-19) workday might find him:

EIM floor plan with Alex H's daily meetings.

When the extent of the COVID-19 pandemic became clear in March, half the company transitioned to remote work—including Alex. “That means I have a lot of video meetings, phone calls, and emails throughout the day. I meet with our entire management team, and then work individually with each manager throughout the week.”

Life at home has seen some changes as well. “Since my wife is also co-owner—plus we are home-schooling our ten-year old together—we take turns who is “on duty” for each role throughout the day, with less-urgent work shifted to evenings and weekends.” Alex Henkel sits at his desk and smiles

Alex admits it is a bit of a stretch to maintain relationships when most of us are working from home. “Some of the best work moments are informal—chatting at the coffeemaker with one of our digital print operators about their plans for the week, or taking a walk around our business park with a mix of individuals across departments. We’re still working on finding new ways to experience those moments in the new way we work.”

These days, Alex starts his days by rising early with his family (at least the ones who are awake!) and engaging in some early morning hiking. “We’re fortunate to live next to a protected area that is home to bobcat, bear, and nesting red-tail hawks, among other wildlife. Almost every morning, my family and I loop along an old logging road to see what we encounter, from salamanders to turkeys to deer.”

Ask a real personIn the summertime, Alex can also be found, “Helping my 20-year-old build his sailing skills—like skiing, he passed me in sailing skills quite a while ago!” Enjoying the great outdoors and supporting local businesses are a constant in Alex’s life. Other hobbies include building forts with his ten-year-old, skiing with his family on the same mountain he learned to ski on as a kid, getting trained by his Labradoodle, and acting as a new product taste-tester for a local bakery. Between homeschooling, meeting with the management team, and preparing EIM for future challenges, Alex is an incredibly busy Label Expert! Connect with Alex on LinkedIn!