Honored Leader: Diana Pohly, President
Company Name: Pohly & Partners, Inc.
Location: Kennewick, Mass.
Nature of Business: Customer communications company offering
consulting, online content, custom publishing and creative services.
Founded: 1998
Revenue: $6-10 million
Growth Rate (Over last five years): 17 percent
Number of Employees: 37
Average Tenure: 3 years
Pohly & Partners is a custom publishing company, which has proven remarkably resilient in a down economy. Nearly 40 percent of Pohly & Partner’s revenue comes from developing in-flight publications for the airline industry. In the aftermath of 9/11, passenger revenue dropped and with it came a decline in print media spending. As a result, the firm faced a significant decrease in revenue. The company was able to overcome this challenge without layoffs by sharing the pain: Diana Pohly cut all executives salaries, including her own, by 15 percent and reduced the staff’s by 10 percent. The organization has since turned the corner posting profits in each of the last two years. Pohly has helped maintain high morale during these difficult times by openly and honestly communicating business challenges and engaging employees in the problem-solving process. She has fostered a culture that always strives to beat customer expectations, a practice the organization refers to as the WOW factor.