People Feature
When Eugenio Cervantez joined Worthington Steel in 2021 as an inside sales representative, he was stepping into his first corporate role. Four years later, he manages one of the Company’s largest accounts and mentors new team members – growth he credits to a culture that invests in its people.
An Unexpected Path
As the oldest of six children, Cervantez always felt a responsibility to set a precedent.
Growing up between Los Angeles and Texas, he learned early on that hard work mattered. He still remembers the pride his family felt when he earned a perfect score on a second-grade spelling test, a small moment that stuck with him.
“I always placed an emphasis on my grades,” Cervantez said. “I remember getting that perfect score and how proud my family was.”
There was never outside pressure to pursue a specific path, and college was not initially part of his plan. By his senior year of high school, Cervantez intended to enter the workforce as an automotive technician. But when a last-minute opportunity arose to try out for the soccer team at McPherson College in Kansas, the opportunity was too good to pass up.
Cervantez, left, playing soccer at McPherson College.
"They Said My Name Properly"
After graduating from college in 2021, he took a job that brought him to Columbus, Ohio. Soon after, he was introduced to Worthington Steel. He read about the culture and decided to apply for an inside sales role. One moment really stood out to him during a phone call with a recruiter.
“[The recruiter] said my name properly,” Cervantez said. “It isn’t a huge thing and being from Texas, I’m used to people butchering it. But when I answered the phone and she said it correctly, I kind of stopped in my tracks. I still think about that a lot.”
For someone accustomed to hearing his name mispronounced, that simple gesture was an immediate positive indicator for how he’d be treated at Worthington Steel.
He joined the Company in August 2021, at a time when Covid measures were still in place. Even with limited face-to-face interaction, coworkers made an effort to connect.
“When they sent out the new hire email, people actually read it and took an interest in me,” Cervantez said. “Someone would mention that I played soccer in college, and I’d be like, ‘How did you remember that?’”
Within weeks, he realized the Company’s culture of care was genuine.
“Everyone talks about being a family,” Cervantez said. “I always took that with a grain of salt. But within a month, I was looking around thinking, ‘No, this is real.’ People go out of their way to help you.”
Proving Himself - and Paying it Forward
As a first-generation college graduate and the first in his family to start a role in a corporate environment, Cervantez approached his career the same way he approached school – with his head down, acquiring the necessary skills to make it further in his field.
He started as an inside sales representative, quickly mastering the fundamentals and taking on additional responsibility. After a year, he entered the associate territory manager program and later earned a role as a territory manager.
Throughout that journey, mentorship played a defining role. As Cervantez handled the complexity of major accounts, his assigned mentor helped him navigate the steep learning curve and build up his confidence.
Because of that experience, Cervantez volunteered to mentor new inside sales representatives himself.
“I wanted to be part of the people getting assigned to train new hires,” he said. “If I had best practices that set me up for success, I wanted to share those.”
Seeing former trainees thrive is one of the most rewarding parts of his job.
Eugenio Cervantez, Territory Manager
[The recruiter] said my name properly. It isn’t a huge thing and being from Texas, I’m used to people butchering it. But when I answered the phone and she said it correctly, I kind of stopped in my tracks. I still think about that a lot.”
Building Strong Foundations
Now, Cervantez uses his Mexican heritage and Spanish fluency to build strong relationships and bridge cultural gaps with one of the Company’s largest accounts, a Mexico-based customer.
He’s also considering using Worthington Steel’s tuition reimbursement program to pursue his MBA.
But for him, the most satisfying part of his job is problem-solving.
“My customers are people who are just trying to go home to their families and not have stress. If I can mitigate that stress, I feel like I’m doing them a service.”
His experience at Worthington Steel not only shaped his own career but also set a precedent for his siblings. His younger brother now works in banking, and his sister leads a retail team — paths that reflect the example he hoped to model.
For Cervantez, each milestone has never been a finish line. It has been a starting point.
“Graduating from high school. Graduating from college. Getting the job,” he said. “It was always, ‘OK. What’s next?’”
At Worthington Steel, each “first” has become a starting point for what comes next.