Earlier this year, 3M-ers were treated to a visit from P.J. Fleck, Gophers head football coach.
Fleck visited 3M’s corporate headquarters on May 31 as part of a half-day event held by the 3M Twin Cities Sales Connection, made up of area 3M sales professionals. More than 60 people attended to hear Fleck’s keynote talk.
“We usually try to do something motivational for one of the meetings each year,” explains Matt Garin, an industrial customer specialist at 3M and a former Gophers football player who helped organize the event. “We thought, who is more perfect at motivating people, most of whom are Minnesota fans, than Coach Fleck? He has such a good way of getting everyone fired up.”
Fleck spoke about building a team culture and perseverance in tough times, bringing in his “Row the Boat” never-give-up mantra. “3M has a strong corporate culture, and we’ve experienced change,” Garin says. “It was nice to have Coach Fleck tie in change, football, and life, and how to push through challenging experiences.”
As part of his visit, Fleck brought Paul Bunyan’s Axe, which is given to the winner of the Minnesota Golden Gophers and Wisconsin Badgers game. 3M employees enjoyed posing for photos with the trophy.
“Coach Fleck’s message was perfect for a 3M audience,” Garin says. “We received positive feedback from everyone in attendance.”