Solutions 1 Transport LLC specializes in transporting temperature sensitive products throughout the United States.   They move produce, meats, dairy products and other refrigerated products for some of the nation’s largest food growers, processors and sellers. The company operates by using a combination of company-owned vehicles as well as utilizing owner operators.

Timothy and Aseania Jones, both United States Army veterans, started the business 7 years ago as owner operator with a single truck.  They had a vision of hundred of trucks with the “Solutions 1 Transport” logo on every major highway. Although the dream has been modified, their hard work and dedication has not.

Timothy Jones contacted SBDC at UCF consultant Pauline Davis at the recommendation of his banker.  Although Mr. Jones had worked hard and built the business from the ground up, there were some skills he needed to develop to take the business to the next level. In addition, the economy was changing and so was the overall trucking industry.

Pauline Davis worked with Mr. Jones on in-depth financial analysis, cash flow projections, and budgeting.  She also recommended, and the company utilized, several services of the SBDC such as the Advisory Board Council, Small Business Institute®, Marketing, and website analysis.

Utilizing his excellent business acumen and the SBDC’s recommendations, Timothy and his wife Aseania are seeing the business strategy finally paying off.  They are now better prepared to take the business to heights not previously thought of.   According to Mr. Jones, “I have come to see and fully appreciate the value of my business. I no longer make decision without careful cash flow analysis, and fully embrace the phrase ‘cash is king’.”  He is very optimistic about the future of his business and believes he will exceed his 2012 sales projections.  He truly appreciates the assistance of the SBDC.

The decision to start a business was an easy one for Tom Bird, an experienced installer of shower glass, decorative glass, sliding doors and mirrors. Finding customers proved more challenging.

By the time Bird visited the Small Business   Development Center at University of Central Florida’s office in Palm Coast last May, he was feeling discouraged about the future of his business,Benchmark Glass. “Nothing seemed to be working in finding customers, so I thought it couldn’t hurt to seek another point of view,” Bird said.

“Tom was questioning his own commitment to his business and was having difficulty finding customers, and by the end of our session, Tom seemed overwhelmed at the tasks at hand,” said Joe Roy, area manager of both the SBDC at UCF and the Palm Coast Business Assistance Center (BAC), of their first meeting.

Benchmark Glass’ problem was not one of growth, but rather one of survival. That day, Roy outlined the steps Bird needed to take. Six weeks later, Bird returned to the SBDC at UCF with more information. Benchmark Glass was having some difficulty understanding job costing, selling strategies and value for service. It was clear Bird was offering a quality product and service, Roy said; hence, “there was a good foundation on which to build this business.”

By early July 2012, Bird returned again to the SBDC at UCF, now fully committed to building his business by providing quality products and service at affordable pricing. Bird began to understand how his costs affected his selling price. Rather than raise prices, Bird found ways to reduce his costs while increasing his productivity – allowing him to keep his selling price very competitive.

Working with the SBDC at UCF, Bird created a sales strategy to increase his success rate of quotes provided to customers. Now better equipped to understand his costs, Bird increased his customer quote success rate from 3 per 10 quotes to 6 per 10 quotes – a 100-percent increase.

Benchmark Glass has added one part-time position and is on track to grow sales revenues by 50 percent compared to 2011. Since meeting with the SDBC at UCF, Benchmark Glass has developed a business plan including a marketing and sales strategy.

“I’m now better equipped to grow my business,” said Bird. “I’m far more focused on my costs and my customers than at any time in my business. I can’t believe how much working with the SBDC at UCF has changed my outlook on daily operations.”

Benchmark Glass represents both the challenges and opportunities of our small business community, said Roy. “Tom has turned a corner and is now growing a competitive business providing exceptional quality products and service. You can see his passion in his eyes and it’s translating into a great customer experience at very competitive pricing,” he said.

If you have a question about your business, stop by the SBDC at UCF and meet with Roy. Like Benchmark Glass, your “Journey to Business Excellence” begins at the Palm Coast BAC and the SBDC at UCF.

Exporting has been part of the business plan at Hernon Manufacturing, a custom formulator of adhesives, sealants, and precision dispensing and curing systems, since 1999. The company’s president, Harry Arnon, believed there was unrealized potential in international markets, however, and recently decided to refocus company efforts and make exporting a top priority for Hernon’s growth strategy.

To find and effectively enter the right foreign markets, Mr. Arnon turned to the Small Business Development Center at UCF for assistance with an aggressive international growth strategy, and was matched with an opportunity to participate in the Export Marketing Plan Services, which had launched in September 2011, due in large part to the State Trade and Export Promotion (STEP) grant that was awarded to Enterprise Florida, Inc. by the U.S. Small Business Administration.  Enterprise Florida partnered with the SBDC at UCF to offer customized export marketing plans to Florida manufacturers and professional service providers.

 

After meeting with SBDC at UCF’s International Trade Specialist, Nerine Elattar, planning commenced immediately, and soon after the export marketing plan was delivered to Mr. Arnon.  The plan provided the full gamut of necessary information for successful international market entry: a thorough export readiness assessment, an industry analysis, a market analysis with target market recommendations for Hernon’s products, a review of overseas trade opportunities, and an action plan.“FSBDC export marketing plan has been instrumental in the success of Hernon Manufacturing. Small business has neither the budget nor the experience that the Export Marketing Plan and SBDC can offer. For Hernon Manufacturing the export marketing plan laid out the road map translating in best return on investment concentrating where more business potential is available for our products,” commented Mr. Arnon.

Along with the plan, the company was eligible to receive a grant for a single standalone Gold Key with the U.S. Commercial Service.  The company decided to utilize the Gold Key in Italy and also added France, two recommended markets from the plan, and in early 2013 traveled to those countries for one-on-one meetings with pre-screened, qualified buyers.  The company reported $1.37 million in export sales worldwide as a result of the Gold Key Matching Service.  “The Gold Key offered us opportunities that would not otherwise materialize for Hernon Manufacturing Inc.  We would not have participated without the grant.  We met with 2 companies in France and 6 companies in Italy.  The consulates were immensely helpful in selecting suitable companies that match up well with us and with setting up appointments and simple translation services.  Sales in these 2 countries can increase our production staff significantly,” commented Mr. Arnon.  Hernon anticipates total export sales through the next 24 months to be $3.226 million.  Hernon’s products are now found in over 27 countries worldwide and the company has been recognized for its exporting efforts, most recently winning the 2013 SBA Small Business Exporter of the Year Award and the 2012 Exporter of the Year award by ThinkGlobal, Inc.  Mr. Arnon looks forward to continuing to work with the SBDC at UCF to further expand internationally.

For more information on the SBDC at UCF’s Export Marketing Plan Services, visit www.sbdcorlando.com/exportmarketing.

Being a small business owner or leader can have many rewards — professional independence, individual accomplishment, financial success to name a few. But it also has many challenges, including limited opportunities for skill development, a circumstantially-narrowed business perspective and the isolation that comes from being alone at the top — all of which can negatively affect the business results and success of the small business entrepreneur.

Building on a growing body of research that has shown the value that peer group coaching brings to developing the skills and effectiveness of entrepreneur business leaders, in 2010 the Small Business Development Center at the University of Central Florida (SBDC at UCF) launched the CEO XChange program, a monthly executive roundtable serving progressive chief executives and business owners that offers a confidential setting for top executives to discuss vital business issues, opportunities and trends with a group of peers. Designed for those at established, second stage companies, CEO XChange brings together successful entrepreneurs eager to increase their effectiveness as leaders and grow their companies. It offers top executives the opportunity to broaden their perspective and gain new knowledge by engaging in collaborative thinking and problem-solving – giving them the ability to more effective lead their companies.

The monthly CEO XChange meeting is organized and run by L. Harrison ‘Hal’ Thayer, a professional facilitator with extensive business and small business consulting experience. With a BA from Amherst, an MBA from Columbia Business School and facilitation training at General Electric’s Crotonville, NY executive training center, Thayer is a marketing professional who has held corporate positions at Time Warner, GE and Liberty Mutual. More recently, he has worked as a general manager for and consulted to small business. Beyond strong facilitation skills, he has a breadth and depth of business experience and knowledge that enables him to add value in many ways to the CEO XChange conversation and process.

Collective Problem Solving and Knowledge Expansion

The CEO XChange process is straight forward, and is strengthened by its simplicity. A group of CEO XChange’s chief executives come together for a presentation of an issue, challenge or opportunity facing one of their peers. Over the course of the meeting, all of the attendees contribute by brainstorming and problem solving together, all with a goal of solution identification. Over the course of the meeting, and as a result of the diverse points of view around the table, there is an inevitable expansion of member’s knowledge and understanding. Everyone benefits from leveraging the experiences of other CEO XChange members and having a multi-talented sounding board to bounce ideas off of. Freed of their own day-to-day concerns, the leaders avail themselves of the opportunity to think outside their box and engage in an often rewarding creative thought and analysis process.

As one CEO XChange member, the president of a hi-tech, multi-million dollar security firm commented recently about the knowledge gained in the meetings, “The CEO XChange aggregates decades of professional experience into a single, dynamic resource. The safe environment promotes both relationship and rather candid discussion, so the movement from issue to solution is catalyzed dramatically. The healthy group setting is cathartic for peers and, regardless of our respective ability to teach around an issue, we always learn”.

Another CEO XChange member, the president of a multi-million dollar educational services company who has been recognized by the Small Business Administration as the Regional (8-state southern region) Winner of the 2012 Entrepreneurial Success Award, focused on the problem solving assistance he gains from the CEO XChange program when he said, “Many times I’ve been able to share challenges faced by my companies with the CEO XChange, and I’ve always received real world peer feedback from members that has revealed the solutions needed for my companies to grow so quickly.”

Camaraderie and Decision-making Confidence

Beyond the benefits of collaborative problem solving and knowledge expansion, members of the CEO XChange also profit from the camaraderie and mutual support that comes from the relationships and network that evolve over time in the meetings. They learn that they are not alone in the challenges they face. This in turn has contributed to building the executives’ confidence in their decision making and validation of their strategies. As one member, president of training company has said about the CEO XChange, “It’s given me a wider perspective about the issues facing not just me, but the small business community in general. It’s also given me confidence and some new business connections.” Or, as another member, the owner of a product assembly and manufacturing company, has said of the CEO XChange, “When I first started out a few years back I was very apprehensive that the decisions I was making were really going to get our business somewhere. To know that you’re on the right track really is a load off your back”.

Better Business Results

By helping small business owners and leaders solve problems, broaden their perspectives and build confidence in their decision making, the CEO XChange program has helped its members better manage their companies and optimize their business results. For FY 2011, the 16 member companies in the CEO XChange saw their revenues increase by more than $10.5 million, created and/or retained 24 jobs, raised almost $3.4 million in capital and won more than $6.8 million in government contracts. For FY 2012, member companies saw their revenues increase by more than $8.9 million, created and/or retained 1121 jobs, raised almost $4.9 million in capital and won more than $9.7 million in government contracts.

The SBDC at UCF’s CEO XChange program does indeed connect executives, cultivate leaders and help its members improve business results. A further, significant indication of the value its members place in the CEO XChange is the almost 90% of members who renew with the program year-over-year.

The CEO XChange program currently has memberships available and welcomes applications. For information about qualifications for the program and administrative details, please visit our website at www.sbdcorlando.com/CEOXchange. For questions, please feel free to contact Hal Thayer, CEO XChange program manager, at 407.420.4850 or email at hthayer@bus.ucf.edu.