Keeping it in the Family: Long-term M. Holland Employee on the Value of Working with Family
For M. Holland Product Manager Brian Cimaglia a year-long interview process wasn’t a big deal—he was very intrigued by the idea of being part of the M. Holland family. “My dad was the third employee at the company; he joined in 1966 and was the warehouse manager for 31 years before he passed away. He was always happy; joining M. Holland seemed like a good move.”
Company founder Marvin Holland contacted Brian in 1993 about a potential opportunity. After six months of discussions, the role wasn’t going to pan out, but Brian wasn’t going to walk away quietly. “I was so excited about my conversation with Marvin and where the company was going, I couldn’t just ignore everything this company had to offer. Marvin had me start discussions with Ed.” At that time, Ed Holland was the Vice President of Sales and Sourcing. The discussions with Ed lasted another six months.
Brian ultimately joined as Marketing Analyst on September 1, 1994. “Things came together because Ed needed a great deal of help on the sourcing side of the business. I am happy I was patient; joining M. Holland was certainly worth the wait.”
Brian’s mother was also an M. Holland employee. She joined as the Warehouse Office Manager in 1976 and spent 26 years in that role before retiring. Brian always helped out at the warehouse. “At age five, I was sweeping floors and doing other small tasks. I’ve known Ed for 47 years,” he laughed. “While I didn’t join M. Holland purely because of my parents, based on the way leadership treated people joining M. Holland was a no-brainer. As cliché as it may sound, at M. Holland we really are one big family—regardless of what your last name is.”
“It was great being able to spend time with my parents. But sometimes the dinner conversation was a little tenuous; I would have to remind my dad at the dinner table I was not his employee—I was his son. We would all laugh…but he was harder on me than any other employee,” Brian laughs.
Brian was around the 40th employee that M. Holland hired. The company has grown and changed a great deal—but Brian has loved every minute of it. “Ed and his vision are the reasons why I’ve stayed for more than 20 years. Our core values are very simple but there are many people and businesses that don’t follow the values that we do.”
Brian was in his role as Marketing Analyst for six months before moving into the role of Manager of Customer Service and Planning. He spent two years in that position before moving to the Products team where he currently works. “At one point, I was managing almost every product we offered. It was great and I learned a lot.” Brian is currently the Product Manager for Polypropylene.
“I’m proud to be one of the longest serving M. Holland employees—there are only around five people who have been here longer than me. I think it says a lot about a company when people choose to stay as long as I have. I honestly can’t imagine working anywhere else.”
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