Interview with Diversified Energy

Met with Dave Thompson, CEO and President of Divesified Energy in Gilbert. Dave was the founder of Spectrum Astro in Gilbert. He built the company into a medium sized venture that ultimately was bought out by General Dynamics. Dave was also the recipient of Enterpreneur of the year at the national level. A wealth of information, wisdom and valuable insight that needs to be shared with my students this coming year, Dave will be visiting one of my business classes in fall... More in the final analysis.

Two Interviews!!

WOW.. a busy day for sure. In the morning I spent over an hour getting to hear an inspiring entrepreneurial story from Phil Hoffman, CEO and President of Alphagraphics in Chandler. At first, I thought, big deal, a copy shop on a larger scale, just like Kinko's... wait, what happened to Kinko's? FED-EX happened. Anyway, I digress. Phil offered a wealth of information on starting a business, what it takes to succeed and how he has managed to create an impressive group of businesses that work very well together. With family members involved in the business, Phil has a great story.

In the afternoon, I had the pleasure of meeting James and Jeannette Duffield of Western Air International in Gilbert. What an amazing husband and wife team. Over 40 years of a successful marriage and a string of business successes that today's entrepreneurs can only dream of. A strong believer in the wisdom of Warren Buffet, James shared his insight and knowledge of what it takes to be successful in life and in business. Both love sharing their expertise and their life experiences and both opened their doors wide open for me to see what has made them so hugely successful, not just in their various business ventures but in their marriage, in the community and in the world. Tomorrow, I get to meet a friend of the Duffields, Dave Thompson of Diversified Energy. More tomorrow.

Interview with Steve Mora...

The interview with Steve Mora of Valley of the Sun Mortuary on Friday was excellent. I learned a great deal about the industry, competition, how those that operate and succeed have learned to do business very differently... major focus on customer service and amazingly, we spent most of the time talking about how this business involved with "the living" as opposed to what I figured we'd be dicussing. Valley of the Sun focuses on educating potential clients about the need for planning ahead and what's involved in ensuring that loved ones aren't burdened when someone dies. What was interesting is the various programs aimed at high school students aimed at "keeping them from becoming clients." Fascinating discussions and great insight. We also spent quite a bit of time on what makes this business successful. In a word, excellent customer service.

Great Interview with Mary Contreras of State Farm

Amazing discussion with Mary Contreras, Owner/Agent of a State Farm Office. Talk about energy, ideas, enthusiasm and drive. Smart woman who reached the glass ceiling in corporate, packed it up and started her own agency 15 years ago and has become a powerful force in the local business community. We spent an hour talking about her background, personal philosophy about success, business, entrepreneurship and lots of other topics. She's truly passionate about helping others and it shows in how she runs her business, the people she hires, decisions she's made along the way. Great suggestions for students who want to learn more about entrepreneurship and owning their own small business. Excellent discussion on reasons why businesses fail... lots of good common sense that will show up in my final analysis.

On the way out, she introduced me to a fellow with another interesting entrepreneurial story. I'll write about that one soon when we meet next week. Great progress today. Tomorrow, two more interviews with some very interesting folks --- Phil Hoffman of Alphagraphics and James Duffield of Western Air.