Terry Davis: Managing hundreds of employees effectively takes leading by example
As CEO of a nonprofit with nearly 500 employees, my primary objective is to provide great services to the individuals entrusted to our care. Over time, it has become very apparent to me that one of the major keys to our agency’s success has been my ability to maximize employee productivity. Nearly 30 years of […]
Jerry Burris is driving continuous improvement methods to create better building products at Associated Materials
When Jerry Burris came to Associated Materials LLC as its new president and CEO in 2011, he joked that he didn’t care whether employees used duct tape, primer or Band-Aids to improve the company’s products, so long as improvements were made. As a certified Six Sigma black belt and Lean practitioner, Burris would never want […]
Luis Proenza: Creating synergy to grow the NEO economy takes partnerships
“America’s colleges and universities have gotten the entrepreneurial bug.” So says a recent report from the U.S. Department of Commerce titled, “The Innovative and Entrepreneurial University.” From my vantage point on various national boards and committees related to our nation’s economic competitiveness, I wonder why it is that business and industry are either unaware of, […]
2014 Medical Mutual Pillar Awards for Community Service — Nonprofit Board Executive Awards
Rick ChouteauPresidentAdopt A Class Board of Directorswww.aacfoundation.com Making connections Rick Chouteau makes sure students have positive role models through Adopt A Class Foundation Under his leadership as the first president of the board of directors of Adopt A Class Foundation, Rick Chouteau has overseen the group’s growth from three members in 2008 to 12. But […]
2014 Medical Mutual Pillar Awards for Community Service — SHARE Award
Stuart AitkenCEOdunnhumbyUSAwww.dunnhumby.com/us Leading the pack How employees get energized to help the needy at dunnhumbyUSA Philanthropy is a worldwide commitment for dunnhumbyUSA and employees get to decide where the effort to meet that commitment is directed. Each fall, through the science company’s Helping Hands program, everyone gets together to decide which nonprofits dunnhumby will […]
Weighing in on health care reform: Akron
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, often called the Affordable Care Act represents some of the most far-reaching government overhaul of the U.S. healthcare system since 1965 when Medicare and Medicaid came into being. It will be phased in over time, but a number of changes have been delayed and won’t be in effect […]
Staying true to the core – How Alan Jaffa has doubled the growth at Safeguard Properties
The recent real estate crisis has left cities, towns and neighborhoods with real potential as well as real problems. Alan Jaffa and Safeguard Properties see both the potential and problems as growing business opportunities. Founded in 1990 by Robert Klein, Safeguard Properties has grown from a regional preservation company with a few employees and a […]
Jim Beck helped Nature’s Best make a fresh start that set the company on a new path to growth
This wasn’t the same company Jim Beck had joined right out of high school back in 1972. Beck had married into Nature’s Best, a distributor of vitamins and health and beauty aids. It was owned by the family of Beck’s wife and he went right to work as the company’s technology guy. “I was responsible […]
Bjorn Rebney – Be ready for anything at your next big event
Each year, we produce and promote 25 nationally and internationally televised mixed martial arts events to more than 125 countries around the world that are seen live here in the U.S. on Spike TV in 100 million homes. In the complex world of live sports event production, everything that comes before the actual event produces […]
Deborah Sweeney – Four tips to help give your business a clearer direction in 2014
It’s still 2013 as I’m writing this, but by the time everyone else reads it, we’ll be closing in on 2014 and kicking off the New Year, working to make good on the resolutions and plans we promised our businesses. What’s one area to take a closer look at? The company mission statement. Typically defined […]