Mark Rutter, chairman and CEO, GROUP360 Worldwide

FINALIST
GROUP360 Worldwide began life more than 50 years ago, providing color separations to the printing industry. Over the years, the company expanded through the acquisition of other businesses, such as publishing, packaging and large format printing. Each business ran as a completely separate unit with no combined efficiencies and no cross-selling of capabilities. Most significantly, there was no master plan and no vision to speak of.
In 2005, Mark Rutter became CEO of the strategic marketing services firm. Rutter, who is now chairman and CEO, has set the foundation of what would become a worldwide communications business that others would follow. When Rutter became CEO, the company at that point was struggling and ready to call it quits. Rutter, however, saw a way to transform product development and marketing in the fast-moving consumer goods business. In 2007, he bought GROUP360 with an unwavering belief in the capability of its people and a clear vision of the future of product marketing.
After the purchase, Rutter’s first order of business was to win the hearts and minds of the entire organization and get employees to see and believe in the vision. The vision was as simple as it was profound — link together all services under one roof, providing one point of contact and one markup. Not only could he save major corporations significant time in getting their products to the market, he could save them millions of dollars while doing it, providing a huge competitive advantage in the marketplace.
Now serving major retail chains throughout the U.S., GROUP360 Worldwide is at the forefront of the fastmoving store brand movement.
How to Reach: GROUP360 Worldwide, www.group360.com