Internal Gears Employee Spotlight - Mike Balchunas

How long have you been working at Industrial Tube & Steel Corporation, and what do you do here?

I am an inside salesman and the inside sales manager for the Cincinnati, OH location, and have been with the company for 7 years. As of today, I manage a team of 3 inside salesmen including myself whom I very much enjoy working with. Together my team and I identify qualified sales opportunities for new and existing customers. We take calls, create quotes, take orders, and make long-lasting relationships with our customers and provide them with any customer service they may need. I really enjoy coming into work every day and helping our customers find the products they need to get their job done while making it as easy as possible for them as well. I also very much enjoy working with my team and helping them be as successful as possible with their customers and their personal sales goals.

What are the three career lessons you’ve learned so far?

(1) Communication is the key to getting the job done correctly. I can remember so many situations where things were more difficult than they needed to be because the whole story or all the details were improperly communicated. The biggest, yet most simple thing I have learned in my career is never assume something when you can just open a dialogue and find out what you need to know by communicating.

(2) Failure is a part of success. I would not be where I am today if I had not made the mistakes I have made. It is never fun to fail, but as long as you learn from your mistakes you are better equipped with knowing how not to make those same mistakes again in the future.

(3) Knowledge never ends. I learn something new every day and the more I learn the more I grow as a person and have a better perspective on life and the world around me.

If you could learn a new skill, what would it be?

When I was younger, I learned how to build my own computer and I have been doing that ever since. However, I have never learned how to create my own applications/programs. If I had to choose a new “advanced” skill to learn right now it would be how to write computer programming code. I think it’s amazing how people can create an application and the next thing you know, it’s a billion-dollar company. 

As for other skills, I would love to learn how to operate a motorcycle, speak a second language, learn carpentry and metalsmithing, and much more. I have a lot of interests and am always open to learning new things.

Describe your ideal day outside of the office?

An ideal day for me would be spending the day with my family, my soon to be wife Stephanie, and my 3-year-old son Colson. We recently bought our first home in a small town right outside of Lebanon Ohio, and I am most happy there with them. We spend a lot of time outside together having fun and being active. I love being a dad and husband and teaching my son new things every day. If I have some time to myself, I enjoy spending it playing video games, watching movies/shows, playing guitar, and skateboarding. If I can fit all of that into one day that is very much ideal for me.

What is your favorite childhood memory?

I had an amazing childhood with many great memories. A lot of them consist of being outside with neighborhood friends. Almost every day we had huge games of 15-20 kids playing football, basketball, street hockey, capture the flag, you name it. My childhood neighborhood was awesome for a kid growing up and there was always a ton of fun to have and I’ll never forget those days.

What are you reading/watching/listening to right now?

Right now, I am watching the show “Vikings” for the second time, and “The Walking Dead” for about the 5^th time. Those are two of my favorites and I like to watch long shows like that multiple times. I’m also currently playing a video game called “The Last of Us – Part 2” which has a story that’s just as good as any TV show. I highly recommend all three.