Lisa Bryner

ANNIVERSARY PROFILE

Lisa Bryner

Name: Lisa Bryner

Newspaper: Delaware State News

Position: Corporate Credit Support Analyst

Number of years in the newspaper or printing business: 5

Job description: That’s too big of a list… lol

What I like best (about my job): Well I would have to say the people at INI. I feel like this is my second (or first) family!

Most memorable moment with INI: I really liked the move into our new building last spring, which finally brought all departments under one roof. INI is truly a growing company and I like that I’m growing right along with INI. (Really… I really do mean this) J

Hobbies/Interests: I enjoy gardening… (flowers not vegetables). But mostly I enjoy spending time with my family.

Fun fact (about myself): Well last year I built my own house which was pretty fun!! It took a long time but well worth it…

New Sussex County Profile unveiled at SCEDO luncheon

On Tuesday, January 16 Independent Newspapers and the Sussex County Economic Development Office unveiled the 2007 Sussex County Profile magazine at a lunch at the Sussex Pines County Club in Georgetown, Delaware.

INI and the SCEDO have worked together for 11 years to produce this economic profile for Sussex County. Ten thousand copies are published and used by the Economic Development Office and other local businesses and organizations to distribute to businesses, industries, individuals and professionals that are interested in locating to Sussex County.

The lunch was attended by approximately 80 business and community leaders and some of the Independent Newspaper’s team members who were key to the success of this publication: Heather Cregar, Angi Hicks, Katie Kazimir, Jenny Keim, Darel LaPrade, Nancy Niblett, Joyce Ramsey, Doris Shenton and Andy West. Those that were unable to attend the lunch but also played an important role in the success of this publication were Mark Baker, Jeff Carney, Dave Chambers, Barbara Drummer, Burkey Emmons, Gwen Guerke, Sharon Harvey, Toni Hewes, Daniel Korup, Jason Malago, Bill Mitchell, Glenn Rolfe, Sandi Stokes, and Bambi Williams.

The 2007 Sussex County Profile is online at www.sussexcountyprofile.com.

See photos from luncheon in next entry below.

Real Estate Publications continue growth

Tabloids add more color for advertisers by printing on the new KGB Colora presses at DPC in Dover

Florida Group’s Real Estate tabs' sales teams

Top photo: left to right, Mary Goldrick, Brenda Jaramillo, and Melissa Agee of the South Lake ad team. Bottom photo: left to right, Lisa Clements, Diana Whitehall, and Joy Parrish of the Okeechobee ad team.

By Tom Byrd
INI Florida

As has been reported recently in Presslines, the Florida INI operation has taken advantage of the strong growth in the Florida real estate sector to offer two monthly real estate magazines to our readers and advertisers. The original product serving our markets was the Okeechobee Real Estate Magazine. Following the success of the Okeechobee real estate publication, we launched a similar real estate tabloid targeting the areas to the south and west of Lake Okeechobee. The Hendry Glades Real Estate Magazine debuted in the summer of 2005.

Since then, both niche products have thrived. To be sure, the real estate market has softened considerably from the “sizzling” pace seen earlier. Despite this more challenging environment, we have continued to meet real estate marketers’ and readers’ needs with some significant enhancements to these publications. That’s especially true with the Okeechobee Real Estate Monthly, which has grown to 48 pages. Part of the enhancement and added appeal to customers has bee the addition of process color pages. The last edition of the Okeechobee Monthly contained 32 process color pages of real estate ads.

That’s a level of color far beyond the capacity of the current equipment at Florida’s Sunshine Newspaper Printing. The Sunshine team did a great job of getting the most out of their equipment, at one point printing a 40 page book in 5 sections (then reassembling by hand) to attempt to accommodate added process color. Following this, in an effort to offer more color opportunities to Florida real estate customers, we worked with Delaware Printing Company to negotiate printing of the two Florida real estate publications on the company’s new KBA Colora presses in Delaware. It was a challenge to coordinate, since it involves shipping the finished books to Florida, but the effort has paid off. The added pages of color have proved wildly popular with real estate agents and brokers, and the books have continued to thrive against aggressive competition.

Of course, like anything we do in our complex business, it is a truly a team effort from sales, to production, to distribution, to billing and beyond. In Okeechobee, the real estate “expert” and sales consultant is Kay Sheedy. Kay has been with our real estate books from their inception and has deep connections and excellent business relationships with the local real estate community. Kay acknowledges this, but knows that her job is get results for her customers.

Kay Sheedy

"I feel that a big part of the success of our Lake Okeechobee Real Estate Magazine is because I get to know my accounts and am able to help them in a friendly, yet professional way,” Kay said. I have grown to be friends with a lot of them and they trust my judgment which helps in selling them ads. I look for ways to bring them the best results possible for the money they are spending."

The ad service and graphics team works closely with Kay and the accounts to get things right, in addition to the entire Okeechobee sales staff. While Kay is the “specialist” the entire Okeechobee sales team pitches in on the monthly project. Lisa Clements, Diana Whitehall, and Joy Parrish all have played important rolls in working with clients.

There are a large number of complex ads to be built each month, and of course building GREAT ads and getting them done on time is the job of the ad building team. In Okeechobee, Ryan Hughes, Michelle Chandler and Kristina Schwartz make it happen each month. It has not always gone as smoothly as it is now, and this team is to be commended for the improvements they have made in our ad process -- not just for the real estate publications--but for our entire ad building effort.

Kristina Schwartz

Graphic Coordinator Ryan Hughes summed it up this way: "The biggest challenges for composition have been setting up a workflow that begins with how the agents submit their copy. Clear changes and layouts are submitted in a timely fashion at deadline. The sales people routinely check this copy to make sure all the pictures and text have been attached. After sales has thoroughly checked the new ad, it is forwarded to one of our composition team members. Typically, each member of composition has certain advertisers they work with every month. Although, from time to time, we will switch advertisers around so that each team member has a chance to work with different advertisers. "

"After copy has started to come in,” Ryan added, “ we begin to turn out proofs just as quickly. The more time the advertiser has to make sure all is right the better, preferably at least two days before the deadline to drop. We’ve met with numerous agents on different occasions on a one on one basis and walked them through proper copy submission, preferred image formats as well as details about image quality."

Ryan Hughes

While smaller in size, The Hendry-Glades Real Estate Magazine, presents the same challenges (and opportunities!) to the South Lake and Caloosa Belle sales and ad service teams. The entire team in each office contributes to the selling and producing the book on a monthly basis. That includes Caloosa Belle staffers Dale Conyers and Barbara Calfee, in addition to ad manager Brenda Jaramillo and ad service team members Mary Goldrick and Melissa Agee.

The real estate market was very fast growing especially in the LaBelle area, and Dale Conyers and Barbara Calfee “championed” our new product to area Realtors in LaBelle from the beginning. In South Lake, Mary Goldrick has been with a team for a relatively short time, but she quickly learned the importance of these real estate niche products for our overall efforts.

Barbara Calfee and Dale Conyers

Mary put it this way, summing up the feelings of the entire S. Lake and CB teams: “The Hendry Glades Real Estate Magazine has been a fixture in Florida’s Southlake office for about two years now, and has been a wonderful addition to the INI family. It offers our customers more visibility in their specific markets, by providing free access to a colorful, eye-catching, quality product that is informative and easy to read. This product is unique to our market, and the monthly themes keep the magazine interesting and fresh. The ads are available on the newszap.com website, and we offer discounted pricing to customers who sign yearly contracts with our newspapers. All around, the Real Estate Magazine has been a great boon to the community as well as the Southlake office.”

On the distribution side, circulation manager Janet Madray has lead the distribution efforts and worked with contractors to ensure that the vital distributions links and delivery gives us the best chance of success. At INI, “distribution” now includes online delivery, and the real estate editions also are published online and are posted by the webmaster and team each month out of the Delmarva office. The Sunshine inserting team still works diligently to insert the Okeechobee product into the daily edition of the Okeechobee News, where it is made available to subscribers of the Okeechobee News.

Delaware Printing Company Production Director Tom Bugbee has observed the progress and evolution of the books first hand as a “commercial” printer: “I would say that the Florida Real Estate Guides have certainly come a long way in both quality and page growth,” Tom said. “The color graphics are professionally done, the page layout is impressive and at DPC we always look forward to printing these fine publications. The Florida Real Estate Guides are become one of our leading 'show pieces' and we always send them out as samples to potential clients to advertise the type of high quality printing we can do at DPC on our new KBA Colora press. “

Judy Kasten, Florida Advertising Director, has nothing but praise for the collaborative efforts and accomplishments of the teams at both DPC and Florida.

“We are proud of both of our magazines,” Judy said. “Despite the tougher and more competitive conditions in real estate, the color sales have really taken off.”

While the Hendry Glades Magazine is new and still ramping up, Judy was understandably glowing in her praise and pride in the Okeechobee product. “To have a 48 page magazine with 32 pages of color is a real tribute to our staff, especially in softening real estate markets in a county the size of Okeechobee that only has 12 real estate agencies.”

“It’s a credit to our people here and in Delaware that we have grown in such a dynamic way.”

Mary Goldrick joins ad staff in Clewiston office

Mary Andrea Goldrick

By Jose Zaragoza

Mary Andrea Goldrick, the newest member of the advertising team in the South Lake office, is adjusting well to her new position in ad services. Having gotten a few months under her belt already, Mary seems to also be enjoying her new role.

Mary was born in Miami at the tail end of the 1970s. Her family moved soon after she was born to about as far as you can get from Miami, Eugene, Oregon.

“My parents didn’t want to raise their children in Miami, a scary place in 1979,” Mary said.

Oregon was perfect, and Mary still remembers how green everything was. It rained a lot, but “it’s beautiful,” she said.

The family moved again in 1997, when Mary’s father, a teacher in a private school, now a high school principal, decided he’d rather live in California. They moved to San Luis Obispo, Calif.

Pismo Beach, the eventual destination, was, “Closer to the ocean, warmer.” It rained less, too.

But the difference in climate wasn’t the only thing the move would yield. California was where Mary met her fiancé, Marcel De Maio (pronounced Duh-may-oh). The two are now planning a wedding for later this year, set for July 7, 2007.

Why the date?

“It’s a Saturday. It’ll be easy for me to remember, so I’ll be there,” Mary joked. The two lucky newlyweds will then be flying off to spend their honeymoon on a tour of Paris and London.

Until then, though, there’s work to do and Mary is having a good time in Florida.

Mary originally applied for a position in Okeechobee since she couldn’t find anything in Clewiston.

“I worked for Charlotte Sun-Herald,” Mary said. “I loved it. It was the best job ever, which is why I sought out a newspaper position when I got here.”

She got the job in December and is learning new things every week.

“I really enjoy the people here and the people that come in wanting to buy ads,” said Mary. “It’s neat getting to know the community. I enjoy that.”

She’s also acclimating fairly well to her new position, which is order entry for ads and providing follow up services and getting new accounts.

“I enjoy the detail-oriented nature of the work,” said Mary. “It’s challenging … talking to people who need to be convinced to advertise.”

In her spare time, Mary loves reading. She likes to find ways of resolving the sometimes hectic pace of the week with something relaxing, so she crotchets, since she is “probably not the world’s best cook.” She is a good cook, though.“It’s a good thing to keep my hands busy,” she said.

And trivia. Mary loves a good bit of trivia. She’s become somewhat of the office’s walking encyclopedia, offering everything from why a unripened banana left with ripened bananas will ripen, and why it may be that an ancient Mayan prophecy that a great disaster will occur in 12 years matches up with Al Gore’s guess that large glaciers will melt.

“Ultimately, I’d love to write,” Mary said. “I enjoy anything that has to do with people, particular people, personalities, and how they function in a small community.”

Rhonda Murphy on staff in Immokalee

Rhonda Murphy

Rhonda Murphy joined the INI family in February.

This Kentucky girl has been in Immokalee for about two years.

She attended schools in Kentucky and Florida. In just a few short weeks she has rolled up her sleeves and is working on some very interesting stories. She has a keen interest in the community and a commitment to helping make the Bulletin a necessity in every local home.

Photos from SCEDO luncheon launching new Sussex County Profile

Top left: Ad Services Specialist Joyce Ramsey poses with the “just revealed” cover of the 2007 Sussex County Profile. Joyce Ramsey handled the advertising sales in Western Sussex County for this magazine.

Top right: Vice President of Operations Darel LaPrade pages through the new, hefty Sussex County Profile magazine.

Center left: Advertising Development Director Heather Cregar and Managing Editor Andy West position themselves near the door to greet the local business people and government officials attending the unveiling of the 2007 Sussex County Profile.

Center right: Customer Service Specialist Nancy Niblett and Ad Services Specialist Joyce Ramsey and Doris Shenton take a moment to relax and “bask in the glory” of another successful publishing of the Sussex County Profile. In addition to Joyce’s sales efforts in Western Sussex County, Doris handled the sales in Central Sussex County and the Delaware Beaches and Nancy was key to the planning and implementing of the unveiling.

Lower left: Ad Services/Graphic Arts Specialist Jenny Keim, Vice President of Operations Darel LaPrade and Ad Manager Tim Gary enjoy lunch at the unveiling of the Sussex County Profile. Jenny Keim was a key coordinator of the project handling the design of the majority of the advertising.

Lower right: Graphic Artist Angi Hicks and News Services Specialist Katie Kazimir say “cheese” for the camera following the Sussex County Profile lunch. Angi designed the front cover for the 2007 edition of the magazine, coordinated production and designed many of the ads. Katie took several of the community photos featured throughout this year’s edition.

Have You Evaluated Your Boss Lately?

Many of Independent's team leaders occasionally invite their people to evaluate "the boss". I do it from time to time with the people I work with most closely, and have found their feedback to be invaluable.

This is to encourage you to use this questionnaire below as a “quick and easy” way to evaluate your team leader. The rules are simple:

a) Whenever you think your team leader deserves praise or needs some constructive criticism, fill out the form below and let him or her know what you think.

b) You can identify yourself if you wish, but anonymous comments are most welcome. (You can use email if you don’t mind being identified. If you want to remain anonymous, you can deliver your comments by whatever method you think is suitable.)

c) If you want your comments to go only to your team leader, that's fine. But if you want his or her leader to see your thoughts, send a copy to that person, too.

d) You can pick and choose among the questions provided below, or add your own.

Independent’s “Evaluate Your Boss” Form:

(On each of the following questions, use O for outstanding, SP for satisfactory plus, S for satisfactory, B for borderline and U for unsatisfactory. You can also add comments as you see fit.)

Date: _______________ Your Team Leader's Name: _________________________

1. Does your leader have a clear vision of success for the team that he or she communicates well to others?

2. Does your leader face up to problems and find practical solutions in a timely manner?

3. Before making direction-changing decisions, does your leader consult adequately with those who will be effected?

4. Does your leader accept responsibility for the team’s performance instead of blaming others?

5. Does your leader hold each individual on the team accountable for his or her performance, and face up to those who aren’t doing their fair share?

6. Does your leader recognize others when they've done an exceptional job?

7. Does your leader treat others fairly, honestly and courteously, even when under stress?

8. Does your leader fairly consider your opinions and ideas?

9. Does your leader encourage you to develop your skills and career to your full potential, and support and coach you in your efforts to be more successful?

10. Does your leader give you enough specific feedback --- both “pro” and “con” --- about your performance?

11. Does your leader insist that everybody be a self-manager who can be trusted to do the job, instead of looking over people’s shoulders and acting like a supervisor or baby-sitter?

12. What other comments about your leader would you like to add?

(Joe Smyth is the board chair and CEO of Independent. He can be reached by email at JoeSmyth@aol.com.)

John Hancock Financial Services

You can download a PDF file of the John Hancock pamphlet titled “The Benefits of Participating in the 401(k) Plan” at www2.newszap.com/JohnHancock/benefits.pdf.

In April 2004, Manulife Financial Corporation acquired John Hancock Financial Services, Inc. and decided to adopt the John Hancock brand in the United States. As a result of this acquisition, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company U.S.A. (Manulife USA) changed to John Hancock Life Insurance Company U.S.A. (John Hancock USA) name and adopted the John Hancock logo January 1, 2005.

At John Hancock USA, we understand the importance you place on your retirement. We also recognize that achieving your retirement dreams won't happen by accident. A comfortable retirement requires planning. Fortunately, John Hancock USA offers a wide range of helpful tools and services to help you along the way! Through John Hancock, Independent offers eligible participants over 50 investment fund through Lifestyle, Aggressive Growth, Growth, Growth & Income, Income and Conservative options.

Here are just a few examples of tools and services available to you.

Roll-In for Added Benefits

You may be able to 'roll in' your pension balances from previous employers directly to your current plan with John Hancock USA. By consolidating your balances, you'll have a 'big picture' view of all your retirement savings, so you can ensure your money is allocated to help meet your goals. You'll also have the added simplicity of dealing with one company which makes it easier to keep track of your retirement account portfolio.

Take Control - Set a Goal!

According to a survey by the Employee Benefit Research Institute**, participants who set retirement goals feel more confident and in control of their future. You can set your own retirement goal online at www.jhpensions.com or on paper with your Annual Review kit. Once you've set your goal, you'll receive a personalized Action Plan based on your objectives. Each year, you'll receive an updated Action Plan that tracks your progress toward retirement.

Your Online Toolkit

Take advantage of a host of handy tools, calculators and other resources on our website (www.jhpensions.com). With a simple click of the mouse, you can:

* Access your account balance

* Find out your risk tolerance profile with our Risk Quiz

* Rebalance your account holdings to reflect changes in your strategy

* View your complete transaction history

* Access your plan's investment options and performance information

John Hancock USA has created these tools to help you achieve your retirement dreams. Please take advantage of them - you'll be glad you did! If you have any questions about using these tools and services, please use the 'contact us' link available in the top right hand corner of our website.

**According to the EBRI Retirement Confidence Survey, 2005.