Lee is having some trouble with his eyesight right now, so he asked me to answer the questions that he chooses to answer. I'll remind you that he's a very private man, and you won't get all of these questions answered, but out of respect to you and the MB members, he'll answer a few and add some other comments - Jim
-How did you get into this industry?
This story could take pages, so I'll answer it briefly and allow your readers to ask for any specific details if they wish.
I had a variety of jobs in my young adult years, including working in the steel industry, furniture manufacturing industry, and in a clothing store I then managed a dry cleaning plant, that I later purchased.
In the 60's dry cleaners were some of the first people to get into "on location carpet cleaning" (a term we used because most cleaning in those days was still "in plant rug cleaning"), so to augment my small business I diversified first into carpet cleaning, then restoration, joined and left Servicemaster as a franchisee, became an instructor, a distributor, and was involved with the early development of the then IICUC, now known as the IICRC. Contrary to some popular belief, I was not a founding shareholder, but did purchase my own shares early on in its development.
I
-Please give us a few good juicy SCT/Ed York stories that this crowd has not heard.
I probably know less of them that do many of your readers. Ed York and I had a professional, but distant relationship. He changed the face of this industry more than any one single man could have, and most of what any of you do on a daily basis is likely in some way something he influenced.
-Are you happy with where and how your shop is running today? What changes have you made in order to deal with the current state of affairs?
I'm happy, but never content. The potential that exists in this industry, whether for my business in the supply/training end or yours in the cleaning/restoration end, has so much more opportunity than any of us have time to completely explore. Jim and I are embarking on a new series of training workshops for 2010 and I am still working diligently to bring "Distance Learning", including on line certification, to our industry.
Regarding the state of affairs we all live in: If I could predict EXACTLY what will happen next, and when, I'd be a very wealthy man. All I can do is look back to the closest (but surely not identical) time that our industry previously went through that is somewhat like this one. The changes we have made (and all of you should consider) is more careful control of credit, more efficiency of labor, and keeping a sharp eye on which parts of your business are profitable and which are not. In good times and bad, I have always been very fiscally conservative.
-Where would this industry be if the internet was around in the 1970s?
I have always been frustrated that the access to facts and interaction with others reached me at this late stage of my business career. When I reflect on the massive changes in the 1970's, including the industry activism and trade association growth that came during the "In Plant vs On Location" and the "Steam vs Shampoo" wars, as well as the then VERY antagonistic relationship (if it can even be called that) between the carpet and fiber producers and the carpet cleaning industry, it would have brought us light years ahead of where we are today.
Give credit to the (then) IICUC, Ed York,Glen Twist, Jeff Bishop, Mike West, Ron Toney, Ralph Bloss, Bob Hughes (founder of Chemspec), Howard Olansky (ICS editor) Bill Bane for working so diligently in those days to support trade associations and to share their knowledge of the industry. What they and men like them were able to do with the limited media and communication that existed at that time was amazing in retrospect.
-Are you heartbroken you wont have to eat that horrible food at Winterfest next year?
I'm sorry you didn't enjoy the food Mike. I worked personally with the caterer to have a menu that everyone will enjoy. I hadn't previously known you had a complaint about my hospitality.
-If you had the power to do what ever you to wanted with the
IICRC today, what would we be looking forward too next month?
On line certification for most subjects, but with mandatory documentation of hands on training or mentoring that combines the "book knowledge" with the "field skills" so that those who are certified are not just better informed, but also have proven that they can perform the tasks that they have been educated in with good workmanship.
-I hear you were really tough on Jimmy as a kid. Was he just an obnoxious brat or did he just need a firm hand to keep him on the straight and narrow? What ever you did worked, congratulations. Is it true he cleans a mean toilet?
Thank you for the compliment about Jim in his behalf. He was easier to raise than I was for my stepfather. I did start him working in my janitorial division, and required him to clean toilets and other "menial" tasks to teach him that any work, however distasteful, should be done with pride. It was also a lesson in humility as the "bosses son" that he had to do the least desirable and lowest paid tasks in the company and work his way up from there like anyone else.
-If you had to spend the rest of your life on a desert island with any 4 people (any point of time in history) who would they be and what 3 CD/Albums would the five of you dance to every night? (bring lots of batteries)
That's difficult to answer. Jim is far more the historian than I am. I chide him that he studies the past where I study the trends and the future. I'll instead tell you the names of a few men who have enriched my life and helped me in my business. I would enjoy spending time with these men: Jim Roden (founder of Prochem), Ken Hines (founder of Sunbelt USA), James Smith (Co-owner of Dalworth, no slight intended to Jim Smith the instructor, who Jim Pemberton knows better than do I), and the late Earl Nightengale. Finding music we'd mutually enjoy would be challenging, I'm sure, so I'll leave that unanswered.
Thanks Lee!
