Nick Kiefer, 35Vice President of SalesTouchstone, Mason, Ohio

His big break: I began my profes-sional career working at Aerotek sell-ing contract engineering right out of college. I worked at Aerotek for two years until I was recruited to Touchstone in the early growth phases of the company. Like most others, I had no prior knowledge of what the promotional products industry had to offer.

Why he loves the industry: [I love the] diversity, flexibility and fast pace. We support clients all over the world of various size, industry and focus. Our clients are all very unique, and we thrive on providing customer solutions with a focus on relevant product execution.

His backup career: I would more than likely own a tiki bar on an island in the Caribbean living it up in the tropics.

His leadership style: I lead by example and through positive re-inforcement. I understand what it takes to learn, navigate and build a

book of business in the promotional products Industry. I’ve spent my time in the trenches and now earn my sense of accomplishment by teaching and helping others achieve success of their own.

His biggest career infl uence: My boss and mentor, Andrew Backen. Andrew is now the executive vice president at Touchstone. Andrew hired me out of college in 2005 to come work for him at Aerotek. He introduced me to sales and taught me how to be [a] fundamental, systematic sales professional. To this day, I teach the same fundamentals that I learned almost 10 years ago.

His advice for those starting out: This is advice I give on a regular basis to all of my new hires: Start small and focus on the basics. Don’t allow yourself to become overwhelmed with the endless amount of suppliers, products and services available in the industry. I keep all of my new hires on a tight regiment of what they are exposed to and strategically allow them to expand out over time as they pro-gress in their development.

What he does for fun: I love the outdoors—boating, hiking, golf-ing, camping, snow boarding and surfing. My wife, Kristen, and dog, Leni, especially love to travel. We fully appreciate all of the beautiful scenery and landscapes the world has to offer.

Under40

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