Donald E. Morris’s leadership as CEO of Morris Group International has infused the company with the swiftness and efficiency of Formula 1 cars, inspiring his team to bring that same focus and dedication to running the enterprise. This approach to business is where single-mindedness and speed make a difference in winning and coming in second.

Morris Group International is a company that embodies excellence, originality, and enterprise. In a candid dialogue with PHCPPros’s Chairman, Tom Brown, Morris shares his tactical drive and high-octane business attitude. Morris’s story is a testament to the company’s commitment to driving excellence and remaining dogged in pursuing their dream—a thriving family business open to evolving, growing, and competing. 

Inaugural

Morris Group International (MGI) evokes images of a heritage-rich, family-operated manufacturing powerhouse. In the driver’s seat, Chief Executive Officer Donald E. Morris champions innovation and design, paralleling his fascination with the elegance and vigor of sports cars — a testament to aesthetics, swiftness, and competence.

 In a candid dialogue this January, PHCPPros’s Chairman, Tom Brown, engaged with Morris, his friend, as they unraveled stories of Morris’s start-up, his approach to mentorship and leadership, and how design and creation are the core of MGI. Just as it takes focus for a professional driver to stay on the racetrack, so does a CEO need focus to run their company. Morris’s narrative is a testament to MGI’s commitment to pioneering and designing with skill and foresight.

Getting On the Track

 Morris’s father, Chairman Earl L. Morris, started ELMCO® Sales and Acorn Engineering Company. One secret to Earl Morris’s success as a representative and later a manufacturer was that he understood the need to find his lane and drive fast. Earl Morris found his road working with the industry’s engineers and offering specified products. “One of Dad’s basic rules is not having many product lines because he wanted to be No. 1 with all the lines he represented,” explains Morris. “If you are number one with everyone you represent, you will probably not get fired on a 30-day contract.” 

 Manufacturers’ representatives work on 30-day agreements with most brands they represent. Winning and keeping the brand or product line is based on increasing sales, adding value to the manufacturer, and having a succession plan. After all, the representatives’ potential is also the manufacturer’s future. The representative can be released from the team if they fail on sales, value, and succession. 

“Dad had nothing; he came out of nothing,” Morris explains. “What Dad always had was an entrepreneurial spirit. He went to work six days a week. Hard work was just normal for him. And he drove that into my generation.”

In 1954, Earl Morris established Acorn Engineering Co., manufacturing a full line of floor sinks and prefabricated stainless-steel shower equipment. He would represent Acorn under the ELMCO umbrella and drive product sales through the specified engineer. It would be the first of many companies under the MGI corporate umbrella. 

Donald E. Morris later joined the company as a salesman, excelling at connecting with engineers. Taking his father’s lead, the company would add value by consistently introducing new products on his sales calls — always having something new to show the engineering community, to write specifications, and to help what would one day grow into Morris Group International flourish. 

Morris quickly advanced within the company and soon became general manager of Acorn Engineering Company. Even as he was getting started, he would undoubtedly be at the finish line. 

Over time, Acorn Engineering grew by acquiring companies and branching out, which would result in the formation of Morris Group International, a family-owned and -operated corporation now in its third generation, with Donald Morris as the company’s CEO. According to the confident statement on its corporate website, “With this extensive range and reach, Morris Group International is a true manufacturer with the capability to create just about anything.” And the opportunities are endless. 

 A Family Business Working as a Team

Creativity, design, and innovation are fundamental to MGI, and it focuses on products specified by the engineer. Donald Morris channels his enthusiasm for sports cars into the group, leading with the same intensity to steer a performance-focused team.

“I move fast — I like to win,” he says, a glimpse into his personality and DNA. Like a race driver, preparing for the contest is more critical than running the race; one cannot win if one is not ready to compete and has the confidence to know one can win. With all the meticulous work that goes into MGI research and development, Morris can move fast with confidence and his eye on the prize.

MGI began with Acorn Engineering Co. and, through natural growth and acquisitions, expanded to include over 28 divisional brands, eight global sales and distribution locations, and more than 2,000 team members. The company portfolio hosts drainage, plumbing fixtures, water controls, and fire protection divisions. 

As a privately held company, MGI grows by finding companies that manufacture products that align with its core products and brands and have generational leadership that no longer wants to develop their business. “What I’ve learned with the years in the business is if the products don’t fit in our distribution system and manufacturing talents, and if they don’t go through our manufacturers’ rep network or our fire protection network, I’m not interested in acquiring these businesses,” Morris says. 

His vision is to take these traditional legacy companies, manage them with the existing leaders, and then phase them into Morris Group International. Preserving the culture of the brands is paramount.

“You won’t find me buying a company that buys its products offshore and brand those goods,” Morris explains. “I like to make my products or source them to MGI requirements. Our goods are manufactured in the US and Mexico, and we partner with international suppliers. When I buy a company, you won’t find me closing up plants.” It comes back to excellence, people, and culture. Morris Group International fabricates, manufactures, and assembles most of its products in North America. The wealth of specialized teams nationwide is a particular point of pride for MGI.

At the heartbeat of MGI are the employees. “We are privately held, and we’re damn proud of it; we do not need to embrace the same values as other firms,” Morris explains. “There is a big difference between us and other entities. I believe employees feel the difference. They have more freedom to create, experiment, and lead.

“We can’t do that if I don’t have a succession plan,” he says. And that he does: his daughter Kristin Kahle, president of Whitehall Mfg., is celebrating 30 years with the company; son Randall Morris, president of the Fire Protection Division and Elmdor Access Doors, is celebrating 26 years; and son Barrett Morris, president of Acorn Engineering Co. and Jay R. Smith Mfg. Co. is celebrating 20 years with the company. 

Another addition to the succession plan is Morris’s 10-year-old son Skyler, who is already setting his destiny into motion. “Skyler recently told me he wants to be a salesman,” smiles Morris, acknowledging that Skyler Morris already has picked up on generational leadership, just like his grandfather who instilled in his father’s head, “If you don’t sell something, the rest doesn’t mean anything.” 

 Team-Centric Collaboration

Morris encourages open communication, emotional safety, and a culture where people strive to achieve more. This allows team members to learn from mistakes, voice their opinions, and contribute ideas without fear of retribution.

Donald Morris entrusts the individual business units with autonomy, akin to handing over the keys of a high-performance vehicle. And the employees feel the difference. “Under our management structure, I like to give them the keys to the business and their units, and they report back to either me or the presidents of their division,” he explains. “They report on profit, wins, loss, and other metrics—where are we in the industry, what’s our position, and where is our growth?” 

It’s about setting long-term goals and delivering on his father’s motto: “There is No Substitute for Quality.” It’s the bigger picture that defines the whole. This system values the speed of decision-making, precision in strategy, and flexibility to navigate challenges—qualities that define the essence of racing. Morris’s favorite sports car is his Ferrari SF90 Spider with the 1,000 CV Plug-in Hybrid System. The Ferrari goes from 0 to 60 in 2.5 seconds, just like Morris.

Allowing employees to design, create, and push the limits on opportunities allows the creative drive and entrepreneurial spirit to flourish. “You must treat people with respect,” Morris says, “and I’ll never tell anyone what to do; I’ll give suggestions.” He notes that employees often will come back and tell him they tried something their way, it worked, and he was wrong. However, he is okay with that because he values his employees taking ownership of their projects and progressing toward their goals. 

The Morris Group International divisions manufacture and assemble most of their products in North America, and Mexico is vital to its accomplishments. Recently, a long-term employee passed away: Bill Upchurch, the VP and general manager of the company’s Mexican operation, who had been with the company for 38 years. 

Morris notes: “Bill was a fabulous guy. When we built the Mexican plant, we had nothing; we built it from the ground up. Bill had the keys; I never had the keys. I had to ask him for the keys to go to the plant. I never wanted the keys; I wanted Bill to open it and lock it at the end of the day. It was his plant. Technically, I owned it, but it was his, and he ran it like it was his.

“If you take ownership of your brand, you are compensated well, and if your brand makes money and you are progressing, you will do well at this company,” he adds. Trusting managers to take ownership of their brands is how to be at the top of the game. With the governing structure in place, this approach allows MGI to be nimble and agile in product advancement and growth.

When asked how the company develops so many products, Morris answers: “Trial and error. While some may never sell, a few come out and are real winners.” It starts with ideas from the team; occasionally, arguments arise. “We keep it within bounds and respectful for all sides,” he adds, “When you operate based on trust, collaboration, and respect, then research and development of new products is fun.” 

It’s all product innovation and durability. “I know that if I developed a product, and developed it systematically, that product will last 20, 30, 50, 100 years in our industry,” Morris says. “We’re positioned for the fastest growth we have probably ever experienced.” 

A critical factor that drives growth in the product line comes from direct feedback MGI receives from its reps, the boots on the ground. As the manufacturers’ representatives talk with engineers, wholesalers, contractors, and customers daily, they take their concerns and suggestions back to MGI, where conversations ensue to either build a new product or develop a better product for the market. “It doesn’t do me any good to talk and not listen,” Morris explains. “If I listen to our reps and talk with them, I learn much more. If you don’t stop and listen, you will miss it. I listen to our reps!”

Innovative Spirit

“Competition is the driving force of innovation. If you can dream it, you can do it.” — Enzo Ferrari, the founder of Ferrari.

“I like the word competitive,” Morris says with a smile. He has many passionate interests, yet two stand at the forefront of his charm and character: a devotion to sports cars and invention. 

When Morris talks about the creation and origination of products, he says: “I like to be in the hunt. I like to be on the floor with the R&D process. When Elon Musk said he sleeps on a cot in the factory — I don’t sleep in the factory; I’m too old for that. However, I’m virtually the same in the factory, watching the hands-on part of the operation. Hearing everybody talk, let’s do it this way. Let’s do it that way.” The passion in his voice is only underscored by the magnitude of the process and how quickly they can bring a product to life. 

Morris sees a horizon full of fresh ideas with the pedal down. Creating new product categories and first-to-market advances, rather than only incrementally improving existing products like many competitors, MGI is in perpetual motion in Morris’s hands. The man and the enterprise are focused on chasing the dream ever onward.

Innovation and the entrepreneurial spirit are always in sync with Donald Morris and the companies under the MGI umbrella. “If you wait for the bureaucracy to develop new products, they don’t come,” he says. A good example is when the world went through COVID-19. The Murdock® and Acorn® brands swiftly responded by developing a line of hand-washing units—some portable, some permanent fixtures. “We had the whole product developed within 90 to 120 days,” he notes. The swiftness and agility of going from concept to the production line in that time showcases ingenuity, originality, and determination. 

When MGI creates products, it never imitates what is on the market. “I like to innovate and change things a little,” Morris says. He outlines how anyone can copy a product; however, with the MGI team, it’s all about revolutionizing and patenting the process. “The patented products that are unique and value-added is the key,” he says. The company holds patents on many of its products and rapidly reacts regarding patent infringement. “I believe a specified product has to add value to the specification community,” Morris notes. 

Soon, MGI will launch Acorn-Sinks® commercial stainless-steel sinks under the Acorn Engineering Co. brand. Traditionally, the company focused on heavy industrial spaces like prisons, hospitals, and laboratories; now, with industry consolidation, Acorn felt confident its products would fill a void in the market. The company’s confidence partly came from the feedback from their manufacturers’ representatives, who viewed an unfulfilled need for commercial stainless-steel sinks to go along with the success of Murdock (indoor and outdoor) drinking fountains, water coolers, and bottle fillers. 

“The sinks give us the specified package,” Morris explains. “You must know your niche and when you are good at something.” MGI knows stainless steel and fabrication, and sinks fit the Acorn brand. 

The new brands and product lines keep coming from MGI. Soon, MGI ConTrols® will announce pressure-reducing valves (PRVs), followed by a backflow preventer product line (in development). Morris and the MGI team are excited. A complete line of pressure-reducing valves will debut under the MGI ConTrols brand, and, like its other products, they are geared toward the specifier. It’s a big undertaking for MGI, yet the company, in true groundbreaking fashion, looked at what was currently in the market and realized that adding pressure-reducing valves was needed to round out its water control valve offerings. 

Backflow preventers are the most significant product development venture in recent years and have been developing for nearly three years. A few years back, MGI invested millions of dollars into the Morris Group Innovation Center (MGIC) in Chino, CA; Chicago, IL; and Montgomery, AL. The MGIC hubs research, develop, and test products for all 28 MGI brands. MGI ConTrols backflow preventers are being created and engineered at the Chino Morris Group Innovation Center, California.

“We hired numerous engineers who have had their nose to the grindstone for about three years already,” Morris explains. “I’m not coming into this business with the same old.” And with numerous patents already created for this new line, the excitement of launching it is enormous — for many reasons. He notes: “We’ve got ConTrols PRVs coming out this year, and within two years, we’ll have MGI ConTrols backflow products. Those businesses are bigger than the combined business we already play in.” 

Morris Group International is “without limits” regarding ingenuity, creativity, and driving new products to market. “We want to add value for ourselves, the representatives, and our customers,” asserts Morris. 

 Continuous Improvement

 Morris Group International is an environment that is all about details, constantly pushing the boundaries and trying to extract every ounce of performance from the machine that drives new product advances. The MGI internal teams relentlessly focus on continuously improving to meet the needs of customers and representatives.

Morris Group International heavily invests in plant automation and production to maintain strict quality standards. Over the past five years, operations, manufacturing, and warehousing have expanded in Montgomery, AL, Industry, CA, Chicago, IL, Tijuana, MX, and Minneapolis, MN—the diversity of the operations is at the core of effectiveness.

MGI’s vision for the future includes a robust succession plan, with Morris’ progeny at the helm. There is no slowing down for the patriarch, who has more energy and ambition than men half his age. When asked if retirement or slowing down was in Morris’ future, he quickly responded: “That word is not in my vocabulary. When it’s over, it’s over, but until then, I will keep having fun.” 

In the meantime, his older children are deeply involved, and the young Skyler Morris is already learning the ropes. The fourth generation — Morris’s grandchildren — are also joining the company. This family-centric approach is not just traditional; it’s strategic and reflected in the generations of employees with Morris Group International. This tenet safeguards the company’s values, perpetuated across generations. With succession in place and mentored by a driven CEO, MGI is poised for continued achievement.

Morris Group International invites you to follow their journey in the Chasing the Dream blog and video series coming to Morris Group International’s website at morrisgroupint.com or follow them on social media. They invite you to share your reactions on social media using the hashtag #chasingthedream.