STAR Employee Spotlight: Chandler Rogers
Meet Chandler Rogers, Inside Sales at our Athens Lumber Yard and our STAR Employee for September! Chandler is a young professional who is already making a big impact at Harbin with his hard work, customer-first attitude, and bright personality.
Chandler’s journey with Harbin began while he was still in college. He first joined as a striker, later drove the box truck, and eventually found his way into Inside Sales. After a short time away, he returned because of the people and the culture at Harbin, something that makes this team feel more like family than just a workplace. Today, Chandler spends his days helping customers at the front counter, answering phone calls, writing up orders, and handling credits. In his words, “anybody that walks in, I try to get them taken care of.
When asked what he enjoys most about Harbin, Chandler does not hesitate. “It’s the people,” he says. He especially values the close-knit atmosphere at the Athens yard and credits his coworker Ricky Smith as both a mentor and a friend. Their daily lunch breaks are as important as their work conversations, and Chandler appreciates having someone to lean on as he continues to grow. To him, Harbin is more than a job. It is a supportive place to learn, grow, and build lasting connections.
Chandler’s path to Harbin was shaped by his education and his love for sports. He earned his degree in Business Management from the University of North Georgia after also attending South Georgia State and USC Aiken, where he played baseball as a shortstop. Though he does not often bring it up, that team-player mindset is clear in how he approaches his role today, always ready to help and focused on doing what is best for the customer.
“Solid as a Rock” is how I would describe Chandler Rogers. Since joining Harbin Lumber Co.’s Athens Lumberyard at the age of 19 during his summers when he was home from college and playing baseball, Chandler has grown from his 1st role as a Driver Helper, to a Non-CDL Box Truck Driver, to an Inside Sales Rep and has excelled at everything he has done. In early 2022, after giving a job at another company in a totally different line of work a try for 7 months, Chandler realized that he wanted to return to Harbin Lumber Company where he has been a fixture at the Athens front counter for over 3 years. In addition to the normal Inside Sales duties of assisting walk-in customers and vendor truck drivers, and answering incoming phone calls, Chandler has the thankless task of researching invoices in order to issue credits to our customers who return materials to us. He has also become a very good problem solver and has learned how to figure a lot of things out when presented with a task such as a delivery truck driver who comes in without a PO that matches our paperwork. Instead of complaining or just passing things like this off to someone else, he enjoys working through a problem or situation until a resolution is found. As the old saying goes, He has “it”, whatever “it” is when it comes to working in our business. I have enjoyed watching Chandler change and grow from being a pretty introverted young man to now being a very outgoing “old” married man and the proud father of a 4 month old daughter.” – Todd Lord, General Manager of the Athens Lumber Yard
Outside of work, Chandler is all about family. He and his wife, Samantha, have been married for three years and recently welcomed their daughter, Oaklynn Mae, who just turned four months old. These days, Chandler admits that most of his free time is happily spent at home with his baby girl. He is also a proud dog dad to two pit mixes, Nala and Luna, and a lifelong golfer thanks to his dad introducing him to the sport at a young age.
Chandler’s dedication and positive attitude are what truly make him shine as a STAR Employee. He leads by example through his willingness to serve others, his commitment to growth, and the way he treats every customer with care and respect. Chandler embodies Harbin’s core values of hard work, integrity, and teamwork, and he sets the standard for what it means to be part of the Harbin family. We are grateful for his contributions and excited to see all that he will accomplish in the years ahead.