Today at CTP, we celebrate 30 years since we opened our doors in a humble basement office in Reading. Three employees, four clients, a Mac, land line phones and a fax. No need to list the advances in technology over that time; suffice to say we no longer have a fax machine or a land line.
But ours is not a company built on technology; it’s one built on people, and what’s reflected in our Values around how we treat each other.
From the very beginning, we’ve encouraged each other to Seek Balance. The work matters, but so do the people doing it. We’re proud of the hundreds who have called CTP their home, and even when they move on we cheer their successes and take pride in seeing CTP on their LinkedIn profile. What makes us even prouder is those who have stayed with us for a decade or longer, dedicating significant portions of their career, and their life, to CTP. Watching them grow as people and professionals, become spouses, moms and dads, brings a satisfaction beyond any client win or profitable quarter.
We’ve always believed it’s important to Be Open. Open to new ideas, new challenges, and new relationships. That mindset has shaped the kind of partnerships we’ve built over the years. We’ve had hundreds of great clients, a bunch of whom have stayed with us for many years and through many leadership changes.
A moment that stands out is the day we sat in a small, temporary office at our soon-to-be new home at 77 North Washington Street and took a call from Joe Bartolotta at Eastern Bank, telling us we’d won their account, unseating Mullen no less. That 20-year partnership, rare in our business, transformed our agency forever. And along the way Joe B., Bob Rivers, Paul Alexander and so many other leaders at Eastern became more than clients. They became our friends.
Another constant is that we always want to Listen. Not just hearing what’s said, but understanding what’s needed. It’s why we’ve been fortunate to have clients who’ve trusted us across multiple companies. Without Mike Cikacz and Rick Stoddard (Health Tour, StarMed, TPS, IWP), there would be no CTP today.
And no client has been more loyal and more of a pleasure to work with than our friends at E.B. Horn. Michael, Richard and Doug Finn have been clients since Day 1 – when the jewelry in their print ads was illustrated, their logo was always too small, and we fought for position in the Sunday Globe against local jewelers that no longer exist.
Underlying all of this is the value that matters most. The one that ties everything together.
The Golden Rule. Treat others the way you want to be treated. Be honest. Help out. Keep it simple. See what you get in return.
It’s something I was taught at a young age, and it’s something that shows up every day at CTP. In how we treat our clients. In how we support each other. In the relationships that have lasted for so many years.
We constantly strive to be great partners, and our work will always be rooted in smart reasoning and creative thinking. But what has sustained us for 30 years, and what will carry us forward, is what we believe and how consistently we live it.
For that, I say thank you to every one of the CTPers I’ve had the privilege of working alongside for the past 30 years.No matter what happens tomorrow, next month, or in the 30 years to come, we can always “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”