1 in a MIL: Millennium’s Influential Leaders – Jeremy Schintgen

Our 1 in a MIL spotlight recognizes Jeremy Schintgen of Millennium.

Millennium’s Influential Leaders (aka 1 in a MIL) help inspire people to be the best versions of themselves while helping drive the business forward. Their goals include both people and results; they create circles of influence and lead by inspiring people around them to be better. They aren’t necessarily managers or have direct reports. However, they contribute to the overall success of Millennium by the way they carry themselves, support the organization, and overall contribute to our culture. They are caring and curious. They are dependable and passionate. They are one in a Millennium.

Today we are excited to turn that spotlight on Jeremy Schintgen. Jeremy has been with Millennium for almost 7 years. Jeremy started at Millennium fresh out of high school. You could say he “grew up in the business” and has become a trusted resource for both his co-workers and clients. Jeremy is the ultimate team player.  He will jump in to help you find a product, understand a solution, or talk you through a process. And a lot of this is all from memory as he is driving to a client visit! Jeremy takes what he has learned and brings it to his clients and prospect with such enthusiasm. You can’t help but enjoy working with him.

We sat down with Jeremy to get to know him a little better and to learn about his experiences working for Millennium and what he is passionate about outside of work.

What brought you to Millennium?

It had to be my somewhat amusing humor that landed me this opportunity. I ran into James Kyle at my old high school job at a marina and he said my name wrong. I promptly corrected him. After questioning to accept his apology, I told him that he has my permission to call me by that name from now on. So, he threw me to the wolves in the warehouse for a couple of months.

Tell us a little about how you’ve personally grown from being a part of Millennium?

You guys really start these questions off HOT. I love it. The amount I’ve been able to personally grow with Millennium, honestly, is immeasurable. In my case, I was a young, dumb 19-year-old kid freshly out of high school with life rapidly changing directions every single day. I had zero “real life” experiences. Regardless of my experience, I knew I was hungry for opportunity and I was ready to do anything it took to take what was mine. From starting in the warehouse, shipping & receiving, to my first sales role, followed by renting my very first apartment, to moving across the country to live in a place I’ve only visited briefly. Millennium and the Millennium family have been there and truly have seen me grow from a kid into an adult. There are many more personal growth experiences I wish I could share, but that list would be far too long. I can proudly say Millennium is a direct influence on who I am today and how I conduct myself every day and I wouldn’t wish for it any other way.

What inspires you to wake up every day and bring the best version of yourself to Millennium?

Being better than myself yesterday is a goal I strive for every day, inside and outside of work. Millennium acts as a large catalyst to that. The satisfaction I get from helping an ISP/Contractor connect their community is unmatched. Now, I can’t forget about my teammates. Ones close to home and the ones far away, they are a huge part of who I am today and how I see myself in the future. Being young and unweathered in this market when I first started, I had no idea what I was getting myself into. Everyone, and I mean everyone, was always happy to help me when I asked and I want to show those that helped me how far their help has gone and how far it will go. I love the people around me and I want to take care, lift up and help the people I love. I’ve hit a point in my career where I’m now the person that people reach out to to ask questions. It’s one of the greatest feelings, in my opinion, to help someone who deals with similar problems you used to have and help them avoid the obstacles that you dealt with.

Is there someone at Millennium who has helped you grow personally and professionally and what did they see in you to help you?

Absolutely I do. Becky Haynes. Becky was my very first leader and manager when I dipped my toes into sales. I had gone into sales without selling a single thing in my life besides maybe some Pokemon cards in middle school. It was clear that I was very green at selling, or as I came to learn, providing solutions. Not knowing much about the environment of sales, I always thought, if I wasn’t selling a lot, I was a burden to the team, the weakest link, a bird with a broken wing. I felt like this way more often than I should’ve. Instead of micro-managing me or always saying “go sell something”, Becky understood what I was going through and asked me, “How can I help?”. It was at that moment when it started clicking for me. From that simple question, I understood what it meant to be a part of the Millennium family. We take care of the people around us and provide solutions to problems we can help solve. May it be personal or professional. To our clients, family members or coworkers, it didn’t matter. I will never look at a “sales” position the same and I plan to be a solution provider for the rest of my life.

Tell us about an accomplishment that you’re proud of?

This has always been something I wanted to do since starting with Millennium. A couple of years ago, I was bidding on a project near where I lived to help provide materials. I was awarded a chunk of the phase that was near my home. I got to witness the contractors install the infrastructure from my front window and I eventually was able to sign up for that service. To this day, it was the best internet experience I’ve had in my home. Not biased or anything.

What’s a goal you have for yourself that you want to accomplish in the next year?

I used to run cross country in high school. Running anywhere from 6-12 miles a day. Now… I can barely run for a whole mile. A personal goal of mine this year is to get back into running shape and to run at least one race.

What are you happiest doing when you’re not working?

Golfing with the boys. Nothing beats being on the luscious green grass on a beautiful day with your close friends whacking some golf balls into the trees.

Tell us something surprising about yourself or something unique about you. 

I used to eat Taco Bell twice a day and to this day, I am not ashamed.

What cause do you care about?

This. I love this 1 in a MIL program. Being able to highlight people for their accomplishments and asking great questions like these is a huge confidence booster in my opinion. I seriously had so much fun answering these questions and taking a look back at how far I’ve come. The way something like this made me feel, I can only imagine how other people have felt. It’s things like this that can be a turning point for someone and I want to support that every way I can. I am honored to be a part of this and thank you so much for nominating me. This has been a blast. I don’t know who looks at these, but *clink* Cheers!!  ________________________________

Way to go, Jeremy – Thank you for making Millennium a great place to work and for keeping it real!