Convincing a 20-year military man to boast about himself?
Yeah… it’s about as easy as pulling teeth.
But when we sat down with our favorite Navy Veteran, Steve Cannon, he gave us just enough information about himself so we could do the bragging for him.
Steve will tell you he’s a Warehouse Manager here at City Tile. But we’ll do him one better than that. Because in reality, he’s the captain of one large and complex ship. He’s a passionate team leader and a stickler for a tight organizational system. He’s the guy you want on every team — The guy who works with his head down and his vision set on serving others.
Rooted in hard work.
One quick glance at his past will tell you everything you need to know about Steve’s work ethic.
Growing up on a dairy farm in Mt. Juliet, Tennessee, Steve was first introduced to hard work when he was just 6 years old. And judging by who he is today, we can only assume that he looked hard work dead in the eye, shook its hand, and said, “let’s do this.”
“Cows don’t know about holidays or breaks. It was 365, twice per day. The military reinforced that work ethic in me, and it just carries on today.”
“Take care of the customer or somebody else will.”
A good work ethic gets the job done efficiently — and it keeps the customer first, even when the unexpected shows up at the door.
Managing a warehouse during a global pandemic is an obstacle in itself. But two years later, when the world continues to redefine normal and faces massive supply chain challenges, that hard work keeps the team motivated, the engine running, and the focus on the customer.
Anticipating the delay means ordering an excess of products to ensure shorter wait times for City Tile customers. But this excess product demands more square footage than the warehouse can cover.
That’s where Steve comes in.
With a get-it-done attitude and a background in military-grade organization, Steve developed an entirely new organizational system (complete with maps and daily updates of these maps) to store the excess product.
When it comes to staying organized, Steve really does mean business. He likes things in their proper place, so the team can save time and direct their focus to their number-one priority: customer service.
“The installers and customers who come to pick up the product — their time is money, and they’re my number-one customers. I don’t like them to wait. I like to load them up quickly and get them out the door. It gets them to the job quicker and they are making more money per hour instead of dragging their feet, waiting on me.”
Thanking God for all his blessings — and even his trials.
Much like in his professional world, Steve isn’t afraid of digging deep into the personal side of life. With sincere love and true vulnerability that can only be expressed by a father; Steve shared the story of his son’s passing — and how that experience shaped him into the man he is today.
“After going through that experience, I can honestly say the positives that came out of the loss of our son have put me where I am today, and in a much better place. It changed how I look at things, how I live, and what’s important. This is what God means for us to do. We face trials and storms so that we can help prepare the next person and share His love through our experiences and stories.”
Forever carrying that mindset along in his heart, Steve looks for every opportunity to continuously serve others. Even his woodworking and carpentry hobby is done with others in mind. In fact, his dream home would include a complete woodworking setup. There, he would build furniture and toys for families who don’t have the means to provide those things.
“The good Lord has blessed us with gifts and abilities. I realized a long time ago that mine is serving others. It doesn’t matter if it’s at work or at home — it’s nice to step back and watch people smile due to the help they’re receiving. But, in turn, you don’t toot your own whistle because you don’t get your reward here on earth — you get it in the eternal world.”
