EO Detroit April Accelerator Spotlight: Jacki Smith, Coventry Creations

Meet Jacki Smith, EO Accelerator and Enchantress, Magic Maker, and President at Coventry Creations! She’s this month’s Accelerator Spotlight! Get to know more about Jacki, her company and her experience with Accererator!

What has been the most important thing you have taken away from the program?

Definitely. We are organized, moving forward and doing it consciously. In the past, success felt like a crap game but now we have stabilized our place in our market and know how to widen it.

Have you noticed a change in your business so far?  

Yes. We have taken significant time to define our values, culture, mission etc., for practical use in creating a deliberate recruitment & hiring process as well as employee evaluation process. We are already using it when interviewing potential new hires, and it is helping us make better hiring decisions.

What were your biggest fears going into the program? how have you dealt with those fears? 

My biggest fear was wasting money I couldn’t afford to spend in the first place. There were no credit cards to tap or rainy day funds to tip into – personally or business wise.  I literally took the EOA membership fees from my operating budget. I knew I needed to do something different because what I had going on was making me crazy. I faced my fears by deciding that I was going to get every last little morsel out of my time in EOA, nothing was to be wasted. I engaged myself in all aspects of the training and asked lots of questions. When I felt I was not getting my money’s worth, I complained and was responded to in a constructive way.

What advice do you have for future accelerants?  

Get thee to training days, networking days, event days and accountability days. Build relationships, introduce yourself, open your mind and butt into conversations, because there is no other place in the world where you can tap into the vast amount of collective knowledge that pertains to you. There will always be another client meeting, staff meeting, lunch with the ladies, but this opportunity is finite.

What has been your favorite exercise your group has participated in?  

My favorite exercise is a repeating one – training days. It’s all about ME those days, there are no employees, clients or vendors looking for a piece of me.  I get to explore ideas, laugh and try on information.

The cost of stress on your business

As a business owner, have you thought about the the cost of stress on your business? If you find yourself stressed, you can bet your staff is feeling the pressure too. Check out this infographic to see for yourself!

Closing the generation gap

Baby Boomers are stubborn.

Millennials are self-entitled.

Generation X is apathetic.

Posts are…wait, what’s a post?

Stereotypes have their place, but the office isn’t one of them. We’ve all heard the above statements about our fellow employees and employers. Some might even be true, but it’s important not to dwell on them, as workplace harmony is crucial. Ageism aside, how can you make the most of the many generations that populate your office?

Listen – This goes for the oldest of the Baby Boomers to the youngest Millennial. For an office to run efficiently, all parties must listen to one another. If a company has been operating on the same frequency for decades, a Millennial might spot something that could be done to streamline the process. In the same respect, a particular process might be set in place for a reason. Millennials and younger Generation X-ers could benefit from the experience of a Boomer, and would be wise to listen up.

Engage – A great manager knows how to engage his or her employees, and it can get tricky when dealing with three different generations. One way to combat the generation gap would be to engage employees different. Baby Boomers prefer a team-oriented workplace. If you notice a younger person in your company sharing this characteristic, consider integrating that team member with an existing team. Another way to engage your employees is to ask them what motivates them. While the trend follows that Baby Boomers don’t expect praise while Generation X-ers and Millennials prefer instant gratification, this may not hold true for all team members. See what they want and adjust accordingly.

Play to strengths – The best part of having a multi-generational workplace is the myriad skill sets each group possesses. You have over 60 years of experiences to draw inspiration and motivation from. It’s already good practice to encourage employees to play to their strengths, but what if you took it one step further? Find out the nuances of each generation – your employees will thank you for it. This chart from Fairleigh Dickinson University will serve a good starting point:

EO Detroit April Member Spotlight: Brian Marr, National Wholesale Printing Corporation

Meet Brian Marr, EO Detroit Member and President of National Wholesale Printing Corporation. He’s this month’s member spotlight and he’s filled with insight. Get to know Brian, his company, and his experience with EO and entrepreneurship!

What would you say are the top three skills needed to be a successful entrepreneur? 

1. Vision combined with commitment

2. The ability to recognize your best skills and  focus on them

3. Flexibility

How do you generate new ideas?

I meet and talk with people everywhere I go – ask a lot of questions (then I listen, really listen).

Name one business failure and what have you learned from it?

Biggest failure would be letting someone into my world that doesn’t belong. I’ve learned that when the right people surround me I am at my best.

What is your greatest business fear, and how do you manage it?

Boredom. When I catch myself becoming bored I push myself to start being creative again. Change things up or start something new. I typically disagree with the saying, “Don’t fix it if it’s not broke.” I tend to believe that if it’s left alone long enough it probably is broke or worst yet some other bored entrepreneur will fix it first!

How do you define success?

Easy one. Every morning I wake up (off to a good start already) open one eye then the other and say, “Thank god that was only a dream I was having. I‘m back to my real life and I love it! What’s next?”

What has been your most satisfying moment in business?

Paying off the bank

What is one thing that no one knows about you?

Can’t tell you – then everybody would know!

Truth is, there is very little that people don’t know about me – I’m a pretty open kind of guy. I love to tell my story and love hearing yours.

Secrets just aren’t much fun!

Excluding yours, what company or business do you admire the most?

A lot of my clients run charitable type businesses. I get a firsthand look at how dedicated they are to helping others. Their success is usually measured in how much they can give not make.

What is your favorite EO memory?

So many…tough one. Too many to choose just one.

But I can say that I really enjoy our Forum Retreats – In our forum, it’s where life-long friendships are made.

What is your favorite thing or place in Detroit?

Red Wing Hockey

In one word, characterize your life as an entrepreneur.

Wow!