As a service provider, you have to always be looking for ways to help your customers be more efficient. How do you help your customers save money and time? Because while the economy is on the uptick, a lot of businesses have concluded it won’t last forever, Putt says.
“We always talk about finding the yes. We get lots and lots of requests to do things in a new or different way for our customers, and our goal is to figure out how to answer those questions with a yes and deliver what they’re looking for, especially on the technology side,” he says. “IT guys love to say no, right? I was an IT guy once upon a time. That’s the greatest, easiest answer in the world.”
Takeaways:
- Make your customers part of the R&D process.
- Stepping back can be the best way to speed things up.
- Don’t get comfortable. You’re aiming for an ever-moving target.
The file:
Name: Bryan Putt
Title: CEO
Company: Aires
Born: Indiana, Pa.
Education: Attended Indiana University of Pennsylvania and studied information systems
What did you want to do when you were a kid? I wanted to drive race cars and be a fighter pilot. The adrenaline junkie thing was definitely there. The fighter pilot dream ended abruptly when I did my physical and my left eye was outside of the range of what was permissible to fly in the military. And race car driving was a little outside of the realm of anything my parents were about to permit.
So instead, I ended up doing IT for a while, and then getting involved in business. I grew to love it and discovered that there’s an adrenaline rush in running a really good business.
What was the hardest management skill for you to learn? Why? Probably empathy. I’m the old-school Type A, results-oriented, analytic guy at times. I want to get things done and there are times when that intense drive and how I’m managing it can affect people around me and cause collateral damage. Sometimes being aware of how your team feels and what they’re thinking is more important than what you think the goals are.
Where would someone most likely find you on the weekend? It would depend on the weekend. I do dabble a little bit at the racetrack, so once in a while people find me at a racetrack. Other than that, now they would probably find me out in the woods hiking with my wife and my dog.
Who do you most admire, either professionally or personally? First and foremost, my father because he’s the guy who opened the door and got my head wrapped around business. The second is Jeff Wangler, our president, who is a very empathetic guy. He’s helped me see the value in being more empathetic and understanding people and being aware. And then a consultant that we worked with, Buddy Hobart from Solutions 21, who spent a tremendous amount of time helping me be a better me.
