Answering the call: After two-month retirement, former UPS executive John Hindman took job leading state's economic development efforts

BYLINE: John R. Karman III

On June 1, his first day as secretary of the Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development, John Hindman didn't even make it to the office.

Intercepted via cell phone on his commute from his Louisville home to Frankfort, he was told to get to Capital City Airport and fly out to meet officials with a company considering an expansion project in the state.

A few days later, Hindman again found himself on an airplane.

This time, he was flying to Asia with Kentucky Gov. Ernie Fletcher and other state economic development officials to meet with government and corporate leaders in Japan and China in the hopes of generating business leads and new opportunities for Kentucky-based companies and entrepreneurs.

Not a bad first week of work for the longtime employee of United Parcel Service Inc., who retired earlier this year at age 56 only to be recruited to the state cabinet post vacated by retiring Gene Strong.



Setting priorities

And Hindman has stayed busy since then.

Although it took a while, he eventually managed to make it to his office, where he got a little more acclimated to his new position and met many of the 111 employees who work for the Cabinet for Economic Development.

He has since visited Paducah in the western part of the state and Prestonsburg in the eastern part in an attempt to learn about the economic needs of the people in those areas and the opportunities available outside of Kentucky's largest population centers.

He also has started an assessment of the state's various tax-incentive programs, which are aimed at attracting and retaining jobs and expanding business opportunities across Kentucky. And he has begun setting his own priorities for the cabinet, including an emphasis on building a high-tech job base.

"Technology is what's shrinking the globe, and so you'll see me pushing the new economy initiatives out front more," he said. "I want the commonwealth to know what state government is doing in those areas."



No stranger to negotiations

Hindman is no stranger to how the economic development game is played in the state.

As vice president of strategic communications and public affairs for UPS Airlines, he was an integral member of the team that negotiated the initial construction of the UPS Worldport hub at Louisville International Airport.

Last year, he again was a major player at the table when UPS reached an agreement with state and local officials on an incentive package for a $1 billion Worldport expansion.

Even in intense negotiations, Hindman always is "calm, cool and collected," said Joe Reagan, president and CEO of Greater Louisville Inc., the metro chamber of commerce.

"He's a guy who doesn't lose his head even when people around him might be losing their heads," he said. "He always keeps his focus on what the outcome should be. He steers himself and others through to that outcome."

Fletcher said Hindman's experience was one of the main factors he considered when choosing the former UPS executive for the state's top economic-development post.

The governor described the soft-spoken, low-key Hindman as well versed in the negotiation process.

"That's important because when you're sitting across the table from a business that you're trying to attract to the commonwealth, it's good to ... have an idea of what it feels like to walk in their shoes," Fletcher said.

"John's got the right communications skills, the right knowledge and ... the right personality," the governor added. "He's somebody who is quick to grasp what's important and what's not."



Job offer came 'out of the blue'

Hindman was content to enjoy the good life after ending his 33-year UPS career on March 31. He was doing consulting and volunteer work and serving as an economic-development adviser to GLI when he received a phone call "out of the blue" from a national search firm.

Initially, Hindman said, he wasn't interested in replacing longtime cabinet secretary Strong, who left the post in January.

But state officials, including the governor, persisted, and Hindman became increasingly intrigued at the prospect of helping businesses expand and bring new jobs not only to Louisville and the state's largest cities but also to its rural communities.



New challenge comes out of 'failed retirement'

Hindman's wife of 34 years, the former Donna Proctor, said one of the things her husband is looking forward to most is the opportunity to provide assistance and spark growth in Kentucky's small cities and towns, especially because most of his prior work has focused on Louisville.

He enjoys visiting with people from the rural communities and is trying to learn more about them by reading local newspapers and assessing area needs.

"He just loves the challenge," said Donna Hindman, a paralegal with Louisville real estate development firm Nicklies & Co. "He really reads people well. I'm always amazed at his insights after he meets people."

Though less than three months into his new position, Hindman considers his decision to come out of a "failed retirement" a good one and said he looks forward to the task at hand.

"I'm finding it very exciting," he said, adding that he believes few things are more rewarding than the opportunity to bring jobs and economic prosperity to communities throughout the state.



Out of Ottumwa

Both John and Donna Hindman are natives of Ottumwa, Iowa, hometown of actor Tom Arnold and Radar O'Reilly, the fictional company clerk from the long-running television series "MASH."

The couple met following John Hindman's graduation from high school, while the then-Donna Proctor was a senior.

The Hindmans married in 1973 and lived in several cities in southeast Iowa before John Hindman's job with United Parcel Service Inc. brought the couple to Louisville 12 years ago.

The Hindmans have lived in the Lake Forest subdivision since their arrival here. They have two grown daughters: Mackenzie Hindman Woodward, 27, who works for Greater Louisville Inc., the metro chamber of commerce, and Kim Hindman, 25, a third-year veterinary medicine student at Auburn University.

John Hindman said he and his wife are more likely to stay at home than enjoy a night on the town. When they do go out, they prefer a pizza joint to a more pretentious dining scene.

On occasion, they will take advantage of some of the city's amenities, including the arts or a museum.

"This community has something going on all the time," John Hindman said. "You can never be bored. If you want to get out and go do something, there are opportunities to do something."



Bleeding Brown

Prior to taking the job as secretary of the Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development, John Hindman spent his entire adult working life -- 33 years -- with United Parcel Service Inc.

He started as a student, unloading and washing vehicles, and later drove a delivery truck for the Atlanta-based shipping giant.

Steadily, Hindman moved up the ranks at UPS, a company that traditionally has promoted from within.

In his last position with the company, he was vice president of strategic communications and public affairs for UPS Airlines.

In that role, he handled not only media relations and internal communications but also government relations and negotiations on such deals as the incentive package tied to the expansion of the company's Worldport hub at Louisville International Airport.

Hindman called UPS "a fantastic company" and said the Worldport deal was a "milestone" of his career.



John Hindman

Secretary, Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development Born: March 18, 1951 Wife: Donna Hindman Daughters: Mackenzie Hindman Woodward, 27; Kim Hindman, 25 Hometown: Ottumwa, Iowa Residence: Lake Forest Education: Bachelor's degree in art and education, 1975, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa Hobbies: Photography; hunting and fishing in his younger days