Any company’s culture is rooted in what people value
SOR Controls Group founder, Roy Dunlap, laid a firm foundation of values with an emphasis on putting people first. This central principle is carried on by the current owners, and especially by Linda Dunlap, our majority owner and chairman of the board.
Linda literally grew up with SOR, frequently accompanying her father to the shop, and hearing his values expressed time and again at the dinner table. It is that people-centered emphasis that helps make SOR a “family company.” For over seventy-five years the Dunlap family has not only owned the company but has stressed the importance of putting people first. Over the years, the company has attracted and retained employees who share this central value. In fact, many members of our workforce have been here for over twenty years, and we are honored to be able to say that several of our people are multi-generational SOR employees.
Expect Quality & Dependability
There is a tangible feeling of collaboration at SOR. We offer cross-training that not only helps employees advance in the organization, but also cultivates an atmosphere of partnership and cooperation throughout. We work at providing frequent opportunities for fun activities that help foster and maintain meaningful relationships among fellow employees.
Some roles come with more responsibility, but every role deserves equal respect. We encourage everyone, at every level, to work as if they own the company. This means making decisions like they run the place, and this will make it even better. We want people to be curious and to ask why. We believe that the status quo is no sacred cow, and actively invite people to encourage different ideas, and welcome challenges to their own.
Other central values are expressed in three important and equally foundational principles. They are Quality, Customer Service, and On-time delivery.
Colorfully expressed by our founder as the “three-legged milk stool,” we stand by and continually stress the importance of these three tenets. They are “baked in,” so to speak. This is vitally important because SOR’s emphasis on valuing people means all people. We value our customers and are committed to delivering the highest quality product in a timely way. Should there be a problem, our customer service team goes the extra mile to ensure that the customer is satisfied, not only with the product’s quality, but with the way their concerns are treated.
Company culture is always evolving, but our central values remain the same. These include:
Our Mission, which is to “leverage our ability and willingness to develop innovative engineered solutions from standard product platforms to create value for our customers.” With our in-house machine shop and our staff of experienced engineers, we work with our customers to develop innovative and creative solutions.
Our Vision, which is to “be our customers’ preferred partner for measurement and control.” Achieving this naturally circles around to the three-legged stool. When customers come to realize that our products are of the highest quality, that we will work with them to meet any challenges, and that they will receive their orders quickly, we are able to achieve this goal.
Finally, we are supported by our past with an eye on the future.
Another way to say that is: our values are old-fashioned, but our vision is not. As the industry grows and changes, we strive to not only keep up, but to anticipate and be ready for the challenges this brings.