Hundreds of current and retired Team Members, Shoen family members, a Phoenix councilmember, and a U.S. Representative gathered July 31 at the Shoen Family Conference and Fitness Center on the U-Haul Midtown Campus to mark a milestone that few executives can claim: 50 years of leadership from U-Haul Chairman and CEO Joe Shoen.
The celebration was equal parts family reunion, U-Haul history lesson, and a deserved tribute to a leader described again and again by colleagues as someone who “throws in his heart” rather than simply “throwing in his hat.”
Family Business to Industry Leader
Shoen officially joined the Company on May 10, 1976.
U-Haul Chief Financial Officer Jason Berg put the scale of the growth under Shoen in numbers. Since Shoen succeeded his father as chairman more than 40 years ago, the Company’s assets have grown more than 20 times over and annual net cashflow has climbed 34-fold. U-Haul stock has averaged roughly 13% annual growth since the Company went public in 1994, outperforming the average returns of S&P 500 peers over that 32-year stretch.
But Berg was quick to note that the numbers only tell part of the story.
“On every financial measurement that I can think of, Joe’s been an extremely successful CEO,” Berg told the crowd. “But these measurements are very superficial in taking into account what it actually does” for customers and Team Members.
Berg pointed to Shoen’s leadership style built on reinvesting in the company rather than pulling money out of it. “I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a more optimistic person in the world than Joe Shoen,” Berg added. “You wouldn’t go through all of this effort if you didn’t think that there was something better.”
Phone Number Heard ‘Round the World
No story captures the U-Haul customer-first culture like the one almost every speaker returned to: in 2008, Shoen gave out his personal cell number on national TV, telling customers to call him directly if they had an issue.
“Your phone absolutely exploded,” Jessica Lopez, U-Haul Chief of Staff, said to Shoen. “Some people even called just to see if it was really you.” What impressed her most wasn’t that Shoen gave out his number, but that he answered the calls. “You returned every voicemail, every single one,” Lopez noted. “That is leadership.”
That same year, as companies across the country were handing out pink slips during the financial crisis, Shoen shared an entirely different message with Team U-Haul: “If you want to work, we have plenty of it.”
Since Shoen’s official start date, U-Haul has employed 761,805 Team Members across the U.S. and Canada — and nearly 1,200 current Team Members have logged 25-plus years with the Company, a statistic that drew a show of hands across the gymnasium.
Stories from Seasoned Performers
Longtime colleagues traded stories that stretched back decades. Ron Frank, Dean of U-Haul University, recalled meeting Shoen while working in New Orleans and watching him take off his tie and jacket to help unload a monthly supply truck.
U-Haul International President J.T. Taylor recounted a work trip to a converted manufacturing facility in South Philadelphia where a locked stairwell left the two men stranded on a roof — until Shoen instructed him to climb on scaffolding and swing through a window so he could pull him inside.
“Joe in all things — he’s the real deal,” Taylor said.
Bob Wesson, U–Haul Vice President of Center and MCO Operations, described watching the Company’s turnaround under Joe, Mark and Jim Shoen within months of them assuming leadership. Wesson noted Shoen’s habit of genuinely listening — especially to complaints. “He can get an email from a dealer who was closed this week,” Wesson said. “They’re hoping to offend him, (but) what they’re really telling him is how we can do better. Joe doesn’t get defensive.”
Congressional Honor Bestowed
U.S. Rep. Greg Stanton, who worked with Shoen first as a city councilmember and later as Phoenix’s mayor, was in attedance to present Shoen with a Certificate of Congressional Recognition.
In doing so, Stanton playfully remarked the honor received support “from Democrats and Republicans alike,” which earned a laugh from the crowd.
“U-Haul is an iconic American company, and we are so blessed and lucky that this amazing company is headquartered right here in the heart of Phoenix, Arizona,” Stanton said.
Shoen’s Words of Wisdom
True to form, Shoen turned much of his speech outward, thanking his wife, Sylvia, and his children Sam, Stuart, Royal, Carty and Joseph, all of whom have worked at U-Haul at some point. He also thanked his brothers Mark and Jim, and his longtime friend and colleague J.T. Taylor. Shoen paused to pay tribute to the U-Haul pioneers and Team Members no longer with us, including his father, U-Haul founder L.S. Shoen.
Joe Shoen credited a simple mindset for the last five decades: “As it says on my shirt, you become what you think about. I chose to think about U-Haul, and I kind of became U-Haul in an odd way.” He closed with a quote he attributed to the late U-Haul pioneer Tom Safford: “Work is life. Good work is a good life.”
Shoen stated he was “going to continue working for a while” and made it clear the celebration wasn’t really about him, but about the family of Team Members that make up U-Haul and the customers we strive to serve.
Congratulations to Joe Shoen on 50 years of leadership at U-Haul.
