The following was an excerpt posted from Gulfshore Business and written by Melanie Pagan.  Click here to read the full article with features of the other nominations of the area’s Best Bosses.

2017 Best Bosses- Gulfshore Business 

When you’re running a business with multiple locations and hundreds of workers, it’s easy to let employee satisfaction slip through the cracks. Michael Wynn, however, doesn’t let that happen. The Sunshine Ace Hardware president has implemented a number of programs and learning opportunities to keep 300-plus employees engaged, including a “future leaders” program, which identifies and trains future talent. Key management and staff members of the eight-location operation are also encouraged to build soft skills with the 11-week Dale Carnegie “Effective Communication and Human Relation Skills” course, and company leaders meet with associates each month to discuss goals, opportunities, and concerns.

Each year, Wynn leads the business in a Team Appreciation Week that honors associates with daily events, food, prizes, games, and raffles. Associates are also treated to company picnics, tailgate parties, and holiday gatherings. Then there are the smaller routines, like ending the day with a game of charades or starting the morning off with a bad joke—a ritual that began in one store and filtered through the others.

The activities sound typical of family gatherings, which makes sense because Sunshine Ace is family-owned (Wynn’s grandfather, Don, founded the company). Wynn works to uphold a culture that represents the company’s original core ethics and values and encourages staff to support charitable causes through company-wide and independent initiatives. The business has helped the Uncommon Friends Foundation, Muscular Dystrophy Association, American Cancer Society, Susan G. Komen, Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida, Shelter for Abused Women & Children, Habitat for Humanity of Collier County and more.

Wynn has been married to his high school sweetheart, Paula, for 26 years, and has two daughters, Sydney and Olivia. His favorite hobby is fishing.