We're happy to present you with the seventh installment in our Next Level Leadership Series, where we speak with TAB members about the challenges small business owners face in today's world. Through this series of interviews, we discover how various small business owners have risen above and beyond to become our Next Level Leaders.

This week we present Rich Rossiello Sr., founder and owner of The Perfect Shift in Henryville, PA. For the Rossiellos, home is truly where the heart (of the business) is: the business began in the family's garage back in 1990, before growing to a separate shop that sells transmission parts, torque converters, overhaul kits and much more, both storefront and online. Rich Jr. would come home and help out at the shop after school, and more than 20 years later, continues his passion for the family business, working side by side with his father at The Perfect Shift.

When was The Perfect Shift founded? Did you start the business, or was it someone in your family?

1990. It was me that started it. I actually started it out of my garage, started buying torque converters from other manufacturers, and eventually we bought the equipment and started manufacturing our own.

Who in your family is involved at the shop? How long have they been part of your work team?

We’re a family business. My son works here, [laughs] since about 1990 also. He would work after school. He’s been with me the whole time.

What roles does he play?

My son [Rich Jr.] answers the telephones. People get us confused [on the phone]; they say we sound alike. We basically do everything. He works in the back with the guys, welds, and works in the rebuilding process. He’s hands-on with most of the things in the back.

What is one of the biggest challenges that you face when your family is working with you in your business?

Because you’re with each other all day, you tend to have less time together for family functions.

And he’s a good kid. If I need work done around the house, he’ll always help.

What are some of [is one] of the greatest benefits?

Just the fact that [Rich Jr. is] so hands-on, and so conscientious. When the phone rings, people want to talk to him because he’s so knowledgeable, so involved in the business. His concern is in the business: he’s always looking for something to improve, to make better.

Will you keep the business in the family when you retire?

I’m hoping that he takes it over, when the time comes. Right now, it seems that way but you never know what’s going to happen.

Does work come up at the kitchen table?

In some degree, it does come up. We do try to leave it out. I have a brother who is also in the automotive business, so in some way or another we wind up talking about cars.

What is your favorite part of being a member of The Alternative Board?

I like getting with other owners and discussing the problems together. Even though we may not be in the same field, we can still get ideas for our different problems.

Welcome to the sixth installment of our Next Level Leadership series! Here, we interview TAB members about issues facing industry leaders in today's business world. The members with whom we speak have risen to various challenges, proving themselves to be true Next Level Leaders.

Today we share our interview with Chuck Roberts, President and CEO of Ames, a leading supplier of elastomeric design solutions to international, high-tech customers who require molded components, protective coatings and dispensed gaskets that meet high-quality standards. After taking over as President/CEO in 2004, Chuck has helped implement team building strategies to develop a stronger culture of workers dedicated to common goals. Since its inception in 1949, Ames has committed itself to the importance of teaming, from leadership to language: employees have been called "Teammates" since 1986, and as Chuck says, "We always consider ourselves 'the Ames family'."

When was Ames founded? When did you take over as President/CEO?

Ames was founded in 1949.

I’ve been with Ames since 1976, so I have more than 35 years with the company holding positions in areas of the company over that time.  I became President and CEO in July 2004.

Did you have any prior training in team building?

Yes.  Ames has approximately 200 employees.  We always consider ourselves “the Ames family”.  We’ve considered ourselves a team since 1949.

In 1986 we entered into a new era of Quality at Ames, beginning our Total Quality journey.  In preparing for this journey we delivered much more training to the Ames Team.  Part of the training was focused on team building.

While we did a lot of teaming prior to embarking on our Total Quality journey, the Total Quality Process forced us to look at the need for more and deeper training.  We needed to help our Teammates learn how to be better team members and Teammates by showing them how to interact in a team setting, helping them improve their inter-personal skills. [For example], how to ask good questions, or if a team member is dominating a meeting how to shut that Teammate down. On the flip side of that coin, if a teammate is quiet and not contributing, how to draw them into the meeting by asking them questions.

How did you come to develop your style of coaching and motivating employees?

All of us who are part of the teaming process go through the same training and for those of us who were more involved in the training process, we became good at the techniques and become good at facilitation.  You learn those teaming skills through practice and facilitation.

Coaching and mentoring are different from teaming, but are core to building a team at any level. The more coaching I do with my direct reports, the better they understand the company vision and mission and what is required of them.  They in turn are better prepared meet with and coach and mentor their subordinates, build continuity of our vision and mission throughout the company.

At Ames, you use the term “teammates” instead of “coworkers”, “associates”, or “employees”. Why is that?

Common today are the words “associates” or “partners” when referring to a company’s employees.

We adopted the use of Teammates in 1986.  Our president at that time was a graduate of Northwestern [University], and played football for them.  He understood the importance of teams and working together for a common goal.  He wasn’t comfortable with employee or associate that were in common use at that time.  He really felt we were a family and with his likening what we do to that of a football team, he believed we were truly Teammates and that has stuck for 25 years.

We have been and are the Ames family and as I see it the Ames Team and Teammates fits very nicely together with the unity of the Ames family.  When I’m communicating with the team, I always refer to them as the Ames Team, or Teammates.  It’s an important part of the past, present and future language and culture.

The “Teammate Pledge Card”

Each year we give all Ames Teammate an Ames Pledge Card.  The Pledge Card contains key pieces of information about the company such as our Vision, Mission, and Quality Policy.  Teammates can use the information used on the card to assist in answering questions during an audit or in referring to goals and objectives. 

The card also contains a Teammate Pledge which begins:  “As an Ames Teammate I recognize that I am committed to the Vision, Mission, and Goals and Objectives of the company, I share in and constantly practice the company’s values, I strive for customer satisfaction in everything I do, I have a stake in the company success, I believe the company’s success is my success. …”

At the end of each year, I go around and ask all Teammates to sign the Pledge Card which I sign also.  The Pledge Cards are collected and entered into a drawing where the winners (15 or so Teammates) receive a $100 gift card.

Ames follows Lean Manufacturing and Six Sigma practices – does this affect your approach to Teammate motivation and/or team building?

We are reinventing Ames and in support of the new Ames creating a new culture based on execution, urgency, and accountability, the elements that will be key to our  future success in this ever-changing international business environment..

To create a new culture we need to better educate and engage our entire Team.  Today, our training has some elements of Lean and Six Sigma.  However, what is included today in these areas and others is not sufficient and why we are actively revising all our training materials.

Does Ames recognize it Teammates for their contribution to the company’s success?

Yes, we offer both individual and team awards.  These awards range from a simple written acknowledge of a Teammates effort - an “attaboy” to various levels of financial reward.

What do you like most about being a member of The Alternative Board and/or personal coaching?

It’s the input, the thoughts and perspectives of fellow TAB members, of how they see my business.  Sometime I’m too deep in the trees, not able to see the forest, and my fellow TAB members quickly see that and are able to offer an outside perspective, helping me regain the right level of focus and making all the difference.

I am a big fan of reading and education.  I enjoy reading books and then passing the education onto my Teammates and fellow TAB members.  Helping and receiving help from fellow TAB members is very rewarding and reinforces the concept of peer groups.

We're happy to bring you the fifth interview in our Next Level Leadership Series, where we speak with industry leaders about different issues small businesses face. Here, we explore the ways various TAB members have risen to challenges to prove themselves as Next Level Leaders.

This week we present Ron Fischer, President of Redemption Processing Representatives, Inc. RPR uses its extensive knowledge of the coupon industry to enhance the effectiveness of the coupon process for its clients, providing manufacturing, retailer and consulting services. Ron generously shared his story, from how he came to serve such a niche market to how RPR has weathered changes and challenges over the last 17 years.

When was RPR (Redemption Processing Representatives, Inc.) founded?

June 1994.

Did you set out with a clear definition of what your market would be?

Well, I came from a manufacturing background, working for Unilever. [Unilever] went through a reorganization. . . While I had a new management position, I really enjoyed managing the coupon operations, and I thought, “I could do this myself.” I was saving them millions of dollars.

When I walked away, I had a few things in my pocket. A few of my colleagues knew I was leaving. But I had never been an entrepreneur before. I was 48 when I walked away.

I rolled with the punches – I knew I could do this in the industry, and carved out the business as I went along.

You provide manufacturer, retailer and consulting services. Did you begin serving all of these markets, or did you begin with just one?

I started with the manufacturers. One of the things I was very successful with at Unilever was coupon deduction. (Large retailers will deduct non payment back from  the retailer invoice). So I introduced that Coupon Deduction Mangagement services. My plan was to build my clientele, then sell the business to a collection company.

One of the major manufacturer vendors didn’t like my approach and I got black balled. They revised their third party agreement which would not allow me compete with the industry.

I started this service with Ocean Spray in 1996. They left in 2000 to try another vendor and came back to RPR in 2004. We picked up Kimberley Clark in 2000 and worked with them for seven years. Once Kimberley Clark changed management, we lost the agreement.

Then we started in consulting primarily to introduce electronic processing. In 1999 I started with Cunningham Electronics which ended in early 2001. In 2002 with a start up company that didn’t make it, then in 2004 with First Data Corp. The coupon industry is regulated by voluntary recommended guidelines. Long-standing vendors would lose business if electronic processing were put in place. While the First Data test successful and approved by several major CPG companies, they were not able to introduce it as a revenue producing department. In 2006, we got into the retail industry by provide coupon processing.

Where does RPR focus the majority of its services?

Majority is in the retailers. We have thousands of retailers, from Mom and Pop places to chains with up to 300 stores. Sometimes a chain will submit under the corporate chain, sometimes under the store.

I was very proud to set up a very ethical process. [We’re] not trying to milk the industry, not passing any  fees back to retailers. Just be straightforward. [We’re] trying to grow, to be successful, but it’s a very small revenue stream we work off of.

How have you developed your clientele in this rather niche market? (Networking, advertising, marketing, etc.)

I guess it’s mostly through networking. We belong to state associations. Three states recommend their retailers use our program. We work nation-wide.

I do selling. [Some of our business] is based on the Web site. It’s been slow growth. We’re working on bringing in larger retailers.

Anything else special you would like to share on working in a niche market?

Because I started when I was so young [laughs], when I worked with Unilever, the manufacturers really controlled the industry.

I’m a sole survivor, I really have extensive knowledge of the industry. I was an expert witness in a lawsuit case. I really enjoy what I do; really enjoy the process. I’d like to shake up the industry. I think the industry really needs some rules and regulations. I’m Chairman of the Guidelines Committee [of the Association of Coupon Professionals].

I was a dyslexic child, went to five high schools in four years, and learned to overcome failure. I have good common sense. I enjoy what I do; it’s so important – you spend so much of your time at work. I have a small, nice group of people working for me. We’re trying to improve the mousetrap so that everybody is successful.

What do you like most about The Alternative Board and/or personal coaching you get?

They’re a great way to get some guidance. Sometimes there are things that you should be doing, but you forget to do them.

[I like] the overall structure: sharing your ideas with others, getting guidance from non-competitors. I get overwhelmed with personal life and business . . . [TAB is] a good way to set goals, move along and carve out areas you’d like to work on.