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November 01, 2021

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Staffing Syneries + Menasha=success

By Melissa Lowery

When COVID-19 brought lockdowns and economic crises across the globe, Doug Crawley, president and CEO of Synasha LLC, leveraged a proven track record and established relationships to win business with Abbott Laboratories International Co., one of the leading makers of rapid testing kits.

“We had been talking with Abbott for more than four years and had established a prior relationship with the diversity representatives and upper-level management,” he said. “Due to the large demand for the test kits and the frequent changes required, Abbott needed a supplier that was agile, could ramp up quickly and distribute several million test kits per month. Because of Synasha’s access to multiple locations, expertise in staffing and our prior pharmaceutical packaging experience, we were able to become a collaborative partner with Abbott.”

The author of “Collaborate As If Your Life Depends on It: A Guide to Working Together to Be Better Together” (see sidebar), Crawley believes that working together produces superior results.

“By combining the resources and expertise of the two companies that form the joint venture, we had the skillset to do everything from the design of packaging and displays to the distribution of the assembled product,” he said. “Neither joint venture company, as a separate entity, would have been able to accomplish what we combined to do.”

Founded in 2015, Synasha is a joint venture between Staffing Synergies LLC and Menasha Packaging Co. LLC headquartered in Matawan, New Jersey. Crawley is president and CEO of Staffing Synergies, a minority business enterprise that provides staffing for companies specializing in contract packing, manufacturing, distribution centers, light industrial sites and new facilities. Menasha provides packaging and merchandising solutions to the world’s leading retailers and consumer packaged goods companies.

Together, the two companies formed Synasha, a full-service packaging and manufacturing firm.

“We offer everything from concept to completion,” he said. “We design and manufacture packaging for a variety of products, construct the displays and handle distribution. Our expertise in packaging and manufacturing combined with a proven track record of quality staffing sets Synasha apart from our competitors. We strive to be the merchandising services provider of choice to our customers and the employer of choice for our employees.”

Open for business

The partnership combines the resources and stability of a large company with the flexibility and customization of a small firm. With Crawley at the helm as majority owner, Synasha is also a certified minority- and veteran-owned enterprise. That certification was key to the formation of the joint venture.

“Menasha knew about Staffing Synergies through a company they acquired that we worked with,” he said. “They recognized that we did exceptional work and saw the opportunity to win more RFPs [requests for proposal] with a certified MBE.”

After detailed negotiations that ensured the validity of Synasha as an MBE, the joint venture was open for business. Six years later, the company is growing exponentially. Along with Abbott Labs, Synasha counts Johnson & Johnson, PepsiCo and CVS Health among its customers. Crawley reported that the company is on track to achieve revenues of $150 million in 2021.

Synasha is earning a sterling reputation within the marketplace as well. In 2018, the firm won Supplier of the Year from the New York & New Jersey Minority Supplier Development Council and Minority Veteran’s Business Enterprise® of the Year from the National Veteran Owned Business Association.

Customers will continue to receive the quality service and products they’ve come to expect from Synasha for years to come. When Crawley eventually retires, his son, Geoffrey Crawley, will take over as president of Synasha. [See related article on Page 112]. Currently serving as vice president, the younger Crawley is a firm believer in collaboration and relationship-building as a means to success.

“I believe that our greatest challenge continues to be developing the collaborative partnerships that will offer methodical and transformative growth,” Geoffrey Crawley said. “As the industry consolidates to suppliers that offer the scale, expertise and experience to properly service Fortune 100 companies, we must distinguish our capabilities by continuing to offer the innovations and solutions that will exceed their expectations and requirements. Every day, I schedule time to proactively identify opportunities with our current and potential customers. Understanding today’s landscape — as well as researching future trends — allows me to offer solutions and wisdom that build and expand our relationships.”

To learn more about Synasha, visit synasha.com.

To learn more about Doug Crawley's Staffing Soultions and his succession plan, visit https://mbnusa.biz/detail/crawley-uses-rich-or-rule-strategy-to-plan-theory-plan-succession.