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Targeting Tick-Borne Disease in Central New York

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By: Katy Mena-Berkley
Man showing group object

The Central New York Lyme and Tick-Borne Disease Alliance is on a mission to eradicate increasingly prevalent tick-borne illnesses that have historically gone undetected in Central New York.

A year and a half ago, career strategist and coach Anne Messenger was experiencing unusual fatigue, a symptom her provider attributed to sleep apnea when she went in for a routine annual physical.

“I yawned all the way through that appointment,” Messenger says. “But Ialso had other symptoms that were affecting my quality of life.”

 

 

In addition to the debilitating exhaustion, Messenger had heart palpitations, pain in her left foot, a strange tickling sensation in the back of her neck and brain fog that interfered with her ability to remember something as simple as the current score during a game of tennis.

It would take the counsel of another medical professional whose children were devastatingly impacted by Lyme disease to finally offer a possible explanation — Messenger may have Lyme disease herself.

To get to a definitive diagnosis, Messenger consulted Kristopher Paolino, MD, Assistant Professor in the Department of Medicine at State University of New York Upstate Medical University.

“Dr. Paolino is Upstate’s Lyme person,” Messenger says. “He figured out my diagnosis and invited me to a research conference at Cornell University.”

At that conference, the Central New York Lyme and Tick-Borne Disease Alliance began to take shape in the minds of people who could make a difference. Clinicians, researchers, scientists and higher education executives from Cornell University, Binghamton University, SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry and Upstate Medical University were gathered together, investigating opportunities for translational research and collaboration.

“Multiple times in multiple ways, I heard scientists in the back of the room say they needed patients to observe,” Messenger says. “That happened again and again.”

Syracuse resident Royale Scuderi came to Messenger’s mind as she brainstormed about an organization that could effectively address the challenges of tick-borne disease.

Life with Lyme Disease

Diagnosed with late stage Lyme disease in March 2011 and with another tick-borne disease known as Babesia just four months later, Scuderi knew first-hand about the life-changing consequences of not having the right information at a critical time.

“I did not see a tick, nor did I have the bull’s eye rash,” Scuderi says. “Consequently, there is no way to discern how long I was infected with those diseases prior to my diagnosis. I do not remember when the symptoms started, but if I had the typical flu-like symptoms, we dismissed them as just that, flu or a virus. Lyme was not something that I or my doctors even considered.”

For months before her diagnosis, Scuderi experienced a widening range of debilitating symptoms, among them recurring headaches, nausea, joint pain, severe fatigue, and neck and back pain. She also began to develop fever, chills, shortness of breath, heart palpitations, stiff neck, insomnia, mental fogginess, difficulty concentrating and problems recalling words.

“As my health declined, I visited doctor after doctor,” she recalls. “I was tested for autoimmune diseases, cardiac conditions, pulmonary complications and allergies, along with an MRI to look for multiple sclerosis or neurological causes. I was misdiagnosed with arthritis and fibromyalgia. I was told repeatedly that the test results all looked normal and they could find nothing wrong with me.”

A local clinician finally tested Scuderi for Lyme and treated her with doxycycline. But relief of her symptoms was brief, as the Babesia co-infection further compromised Scuderi’s health.

After consultations with a specialist in Long Island, and another year of treatments, Scuderi finally began to find some relief, but only after the tick-borne diseases cost her significant time, money and wellness. It was three years before Scuderi could return to her normal daily activities.

“The toll of this long journey caused enormous hardship and suffering for myself and my family, along with years of lost wages and the end of a career as a freelance writer, as I could no longer form coherent thoughts,” Scuderi says. “It took several more years to eliminate the substantial debt incurred as a result of lost wages, treatments not covered by insurance and extensive travel.”

Scuderi says that when Messenger approached her during summer 2019 with the concept of an organization that would bring together clinicians, patients, researchers and advocates in an effort to solve the mysteries of tick-borne disease, she was eager to get involved. Today, Scuderi has turned her experience into action and serves as Executive Director for the Central New York Lyme and Tick-Borne Disease Alliance.

“The hope is that we can help attack the Lyme and tick-borne illnesses in our region through education and outreach to medical providers and to the community at large,” says Dr. Paolino, who is one of the founding members of the Central New York Lyme and Tick-Borne Disease Alliance. “We will also approach the problem via research initiatives that target environmental factors to help with prevention, as well as laboratory and clinical studies.”

Addressing a Growing Concern

Investigating the rapid rise of tick-borne disease is one of the chief objectives of researchers like Brian F. Leydet Jr., MPH, PhD, Assistant Professor of Epidemiology & Disease Ecology in the Department of Environmental and Forest Biology at SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry. In his research, Dr. Leydet, who is also on the board of the Central New York Lyme and Tick-Borne Disease Alliance, saw a spike in tick-borne disease in the region in 2008, an uptick that has not slowed.

“If we don’t think about stopping the spread of ticks in this area, then eventually, they are going to be everywhere,” Dr. Leydet says “We will also see increases in cases of tick-borne diseases, like Lyme disease, Babesia and anaplasmosis, unless we can figure out vaccines or some miracle method to wipe out the entire tick population. Once ticks are established, they are very hard to get rid of. We need to stop these ticks from spreading, because that is what is bringing disease into new areas.”

In partnership with area infectious-disease clinicians and scientists also involved with the Alliance, Dr. Leydet is working to advance diagnostics and vaccines for tick-borne diseases.

“I cannot think of a place where this would work better than in Syracuse,” Dr. Leydet says. “All I do is study tick-borne disease. The infectious disease clinicians are doing so many different things with patients and the local university experts have important insight into what is going on in the community. The Alliance will be a source of very unique information for patients and clinicians alike.”

A Resource for the Underserved

Due to lack of access to financial and medical resources, tick-borne disease has historically gone undetected and untreated in underserved communities such as the inner city, another challenge that the Alliance is seeking to address.

“So many families do not have access to the care they need, and when they are finally diagnosed, they are not covered by insurance,” says Kathy Ruscitto, Vice Chair of the Central New York Lyme and Tick-Borne Disease Alliance. “Early treatment is essential.”

Brandiss Pearson, RN, Director of Community Engagement at Saint Joseph’s Health Hospital, was recruited to join the Alliance as a board member and to closely connect with inner-city communities.

“Underserved individuals are often not able to get the support they need,” Pearson says. “My role gives me the opportunity to speak about Lyme in a way that I would not have been able to before.”

One of the earliest initiatives of the Alliance is a grant for outreach to those in the region’s underserved neighborhoods.

“It is perplexing to me that we fight mosquitos, treat EEE, yet we have no strategy for tick control, eradication or treatment,” Ruscitto says. “Our goal in the Alliance is to help connect research, education, and treatment to help the residents of New York.”

Investigating the Offender

Saravanan Thangamani, PhD, Professor of Microbiology and Immunology at State University of New York Upstate Medical University and Director of the SUNY Center for Environmental Health and Medicine, leads a tick-submission program for patients who find a tick on their bodies. Through the Citizen Science Tick Testing Program, those patients may send the tick in so that Dr. Thangamani and his team can assess the tick for pathogens and gather data to better understand the threat presented by these arachnids.

This robust gathering of information has already helped identify where ticks are most prevalent and offers patients vital information about whether they have contracted infections, including Lyme disease, Babesia and Ehrlichia.

To learn more about Lyme education for healthcare professionals, visit globallymealliance.org/education-awareness/physicians-training-program.

To track the emergence of ticks and tick-borne diseases in New York, visit www.thangamani-lab.com.

Earl Hall: Syracuse Builders Exchange ; A leader is only as good as his team

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By: Martha E. Conway

Earl Hall headshot
Syracuse Builders Exchange logo

The Syracuse Builders Exchange was founded on April 30, 1872, and was known as the Builders Board of Trade.  In 1900, the organization changed its name to the Syracuse Builders Exchange.  The Syracuse Builders Exchange is the largest Builders Exchange in New York State, serving 950 diverse member firms, and is affiliated with the Building Industry Employers of New York State, which was founded in 1895.  As the oldest Builders Exchange in the United States, the Syracuse Builders Exchange has evolved over the past 136 years to become the regional industry leader in gathering and disseminating of important construction information to construction industry employers.

The mission of the Builders Exchange is to further the best intentions of the building and construction industry in Central and Upstate New York; to uphold wholesome relationships among all constituents of the building and construction industry and the public which they serve; to foster and encourage just and equitable principles for the conduct of business within the building and construction industry; and to acquire and disseminate information and materials which are useful and beneficial to the building and construction industry.

For more information, visit syrabex.com/, email Lisa at lisa@syrabex.com or call 315.437.9936.

 

“Make plans, engage your teammates and create the vision where you want the organization to be. Identify the skill sets of your team that will allow you and them to lead best. Take your experienced and talented people … promote buy-in, and lean on them for collaboration and advice … Most importantly, don’t be afraid of failing.”

 

Syracuse Builders Exchange Executive Director Earl R. Hall, 53, has a hard time taking sole credit for his nearly three-decades-long career; he said he surrounds himself with good people and encourages them to play to their strengths.

Hall was born and raised in Central New York. He has ties to Syracuse and Brewerton and graduated from Liverpool High School. He attended Syracuse University’s School of Business Management and enjoyed being a part of its National Championship lacrosse teams in his junior and senior years.

Hall was president of the Liverpool Youth Lacrosse League until the younger of his two daughters aged out of the program. His eldest, Cassidy, a senior at Wagner College in New York City, was recently named co-captain of the Wagner women’s lacrosse team this year. Kendra, a junior at Liverpool, has committed to playing lacrosse for Wagner, as well.

Hall said his lacrosse experience didn’t give him a lot of insight into performing under pressure or learning how to lead; he said he felt there were far better people on his team than he.

“I learned from the strengths and weaknesses of my teammates,” Hall said. “There are people better than you, and everyone brings different strengths and skill sets to the team. These are the same things that make an organization successful.”

Hall said he didn’t fully realize this on his own.

“Coach Roy Simmons, Jr. was the architect of that environment, and I learned from him,” Hall said.

His team now is made up of the officers, board of directors and staff at the Syracuse Builders Exchange, as well as professionals such as its accountants and attorneys. Hall said playing the strengths and experience of his team drives the success of the association.

“That’s the playing experience I bring to the business world,” Hall said.

Hall said as a young boy, he loved athletics and was on the path to a career in sports business. He said he did an internship at the United States Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colo. He joked he learned the internship was more important than the paycheck.

During this time, Hall’s father was the executive director of the Syracuse Builders Exchange, and Officers were talking about a succession plan down the road. Hall said he was brought in at a very low-level position in spring 1992.

“It was supposed to be a very short-term sort of thing before I went off to conquer the world of athletics,” Hall said. Fast-forward 27 years, and I’m still here, just in a different capacity.”

He said his father, the officers and board of directors gave him the opportunity to prove himself; he said he learned there were amazing people and opportunities in construction.

“They provided the skills and experience for me to eventually succeed my father,” Hall said.

He said he was trusted and given confidence to work to his potential and earn respect for his own abilities and not be seen as riding his father’s coattails.

“I was concerned with how that could be viewed by the general public and by the members we serve,” Hall said.

He said the officers, board and his father allowed him to transition into the position over time, groomed by those leaders and mentors, eliminating any transition hiccups or surprises. Hall said he was a part of the launch of the virtual plan room and said he was allowed the opportunity to mold and manage the association to his vision and wasn’t micro-managed, something that might be expected by a younger employee.

“They gave me their confidence and trust, judging me on my own merits,” Hall said. “I had the support of a team working in the best interest of the organization.”

Hall said the definition of success can be widely debated, even within the association. He said as a not-for-profit organization, the Syracuse Builders Exchange should be judged on the range of services delivered to members, growing and retaining membership during challenging times, delivering as much value as possible for every member dollar, developing team members toward their own strengths and encouraging them to lead in their own areas.

 

“Who are we serving?” Hall asked. “Are we growing as an organization? Are we growing our membership? Are we growing our services?”

Hall said he believes the Syracuse Builders Exchange is the largest in the state.

“We have morphed our traditional marketing and sales efforts into those more modeled after for-profit firms,” Hall said. “We’ve undertaken an internet marketing campaign, social media marketing campaign, as well as traditional marketing and sales strategies to attract as many potential members as possible.”

He said the Syracuse Builders Exchange covers an 18-county area and remains in that footprint to avoid crossing into regions covered by other associations.

“We’re constantly working to attract new firms and following up with the human element throughout the year,” Hall said, listing off a host of social events, education and training opportunities for member firms and their employees. “When members get their annual dues notice, they have time to reflect on the numerous human interactions we’ve had during the year.”

In addition to providing access to comprehensive construction bidding documents, the association provides information on projects that are in the planning stages, safety training and other educational training – including state-mandated trainings on a variety of subjects, social outings and group purchasing power – the economy of scale for even the smallest member outfit – for things such as medical and dental insurances, cellular phones, fuel and workers compensation insurance.

Hall said he thinks the association is heading into a challenging time because of the projected construction boom the next five years. As a past president of the International Builders Exchange Executives, he said he was struck by the different markets around the country.

“History has shown in other regions of the country that members may not need their local association when they’re busy,” Hall said. “We’re in a good economic environment, and there are a lot of opportunities for contractors throughout the region. I think it’s going to be increasing the next five years out.”

Hall said his team will meet that challenge by stepping up human interactions with members and additional training opportunities while continuing to be leaders in project bidding documents and those in the planning stages, right down to the town, city and county levels.

“Delivering services when our members are extremely busy is the most pressing challenge we will face as we enter 2020,” Hall said. “The Syracuse Builders Exchange was the first such association in the country, founded in 1872. We have a rich history working with construction firms, industry professionals and project owners; we will continue delivering bidding documents to contractors and identifying projects in the planning stages going forward.

“We will continue making contractors’ business lives easier by offering more training opportunities and making sure members continue to be able to review bidding documents and other project information in the ePlanroom daily,” he said. “We are a one-stop shop for contractors who rely upon a wide variety of industry services.”

Hall said he hopes the personal communication with existing and new members provides them with a thorough orientation of all the association has to offer. Identifying what contractors will need in the future will lead to a broader vision five and 10 years down the road, and finding that blend of services and technology will be critical to enhance members’ experiences, he said.

“Our vision for the next five to 10 years is a little different,” Hall said, explaining that peer associations across the state will meet early next year to collaborate what potentially new services they may offer members. What technology will be important and how can it be delivered in a cost-effective manner?

He said some big considerations are adapting to increases in state mandates, as well as developing a more diversified workforce that can meet the requirements for minority- and woman-owned business enterprises, particularly in demand for public works projects.

“We are heavily engaged in developing outreach to cultivate a diverse workforce,” Hall said. “How do we attract the next generation of construction industry workers? There is a labor shortage predicted. And employers want engaged workers. Where do we find them and how do we entice them into the industry?”

Hall said he is proud of the volunteer work he does with the Syracuse City School District’s Career and Technical Education Advisory Board.

“I get to work with the city school district officials and educators, and identify students who do not want to go to college, but instead want a construction career pathway program,” Hall said. “I think I take the greatest pride in that capacity and have the most impact, albeit small, on development of a much-needed diverse workforce.”

Hall said he is proud of the other impacts, involved, as well.

“I think it may help in a small way to address the poverty issue impacting particular segments of our society,” Hall said. “While addressing labor needs, the most meaningful piece of that board is working with students in the Pathway Program who want a construction career, who want a way out of poverty, who want to work.

“If we can capture that diversity for the workforce, various segments of society will be engaged, and those engaged citizens are just what our community and the state want to see in our communities, not just in construction.”

Hall’s advice to those seeking to be – or finding themselves in – leadership roles is to think big.

“Look at the big picture of what the industry needs,” he said. “Make plans, engage your teammates and create the vision where you want the organization to be. Identify the skill sets of your team that will allow you and them to lead best. Take your experienced and talented people and allow them to lead in their own areas; promote buy-in, and lean on them for collaboration and advice. Be open to change if the change makes sense. Most importantly, don’t be afraid of failing.”

On leaving a legacy at the Syracuse Builders Exchange, Hall said he doesn’t really think of it that way.

“The Syracuse Builders Exchange is a very strong membership association for the construction industry,” he said. “I’m just the fiduciary of the association. The only thing I would hope for is to leave it even better than when I took over. It’s a great team effort, working in the interests of members and the organization in general. The association has adapted over the past 147 years and it will continue to do so with or without me.

“I think long after I’m gone, the Syracuse Builders Exchange will continue to adapt to changing times, hire good people and thrive due to the dedication of the Board of Directors and Officers. It will be in really good hands for decades to come.”

From CNY C-Suite V1-N1

Pierre Morrisseau: OneGroup; Let’s help each other out

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By: Sarah Hall
Pierre Morrisseau focus with workers in background

You might think you know Pierre Morrisseau’s family’s roots.

You’d be wrong.

“I’m not French,” he said. “Our name is actually Scottish. When [my ancestors] went to France they put the ‘eau’ at the end of it. My father was very eccentric and just decided to give us all French first names for the fun of it.”

The story is rather on-brand for Morrisseau, the CEO of OneGroup. The company is, by the most basic definition, an insurance firm. But it’s also an advisory group, a public policy maker, a small business incubator, a community partner, a leadership academy, and so much more.

 

“The premise of [OneGroup is] ‘insurance is a lot more than insurance,’” Morrisseau said. “The company is built around getting people to think broader and bigger and engage in it on another level.”

Morrisseau spent several years in the insurance industry before launching an entrepreneurial endeavor with two colleagues, focusing on what he calls “performance-based risk management.”

“How do we take safety, which is a don’t-do-this thing, to actually a performance-based culture?” he said. “So if you think about football, you can’t not tackle. So what’s better? Let’s teach them how to tackle effectively and efficiently so they’re not hurting themselves.”

It was that idea of performance-based risk management that followed Morrisseau as he climbed the ladder at OneGroup. In his day-to-day business, he spoke with many companies whose executives were struggling on so many fronts from technology, finding qualified workers, environmental, ergonomics, indoor air quality and more. In order to address those needs — to mitigate the risks faced by these companies — he came to believe it was necessary to assemble a team with diverse knowledge. Now, OneGroup and its affiliates are able to provide everything from financial planning, to business planning, to retirement planning, to estate planning and many of the services needed for each along the way.

In helping other businesses to grow to their full potential, OneGroup has soared, as well. When Morrisseau joined the firm 16 years ago, it had just 35 employees and $3.5 million in revenue. Now, revenue is up to $32 million, with more than 200 employees in 19 locations, and current growth projections suggest it will double in size over the next five to eight years.

‘More than insurance’

So what is “risk management?”

“It’s kind of one of those overused terms, right?” Morrisseau said. “In reality, insurance is just what’s called risk financing. So if something bad happens, there will be cash flow to get me through that.”

Among OneGroup’s offerings is personal insurance. Especially if one owns a business, it is critical that their personal insurance protection is properly planned to insulate their business from personal risks. In personal insurance, OneGroup’s experts are available to speak to clients to understand their goals and determine proper coverage.

“The number one problem in personal insurance is people don’t know whether they’re getting the right coverage or not,” Morrisseau said.

But OneGroup’s true bailiwick is helping businesses: human resources, workers’ compensation, employee benefits, business insurance and cyber liability insurance. Just as they do with personal insurance clients, OneGroup’s experts work to help their business clients figure out what coverage they need and how it will best benefit them.

“Keeping your business going is risk management,” Morrisseau said. “So part of it is having game plans to deal with [catastrophe]. We help people with everything from sales risks, receivable risks, fiduciary risks. All these things you never think about in everyday life, and yet, if something happens and then maybe only one in a thousand chances it can happen. But if it does, you’re done.”

Unfortunately, not all risks are insurable. The vast majority — 80 percent — are not. But that’s where the planning comes in. Often, he said, such planning helps businesses to grow.

“I had a client [with whom] we would go down this exercise and said, ‘You can’t “what if” everything,” he said. “So let’s just start with the big ones, right? What’s a big worry? What if your building burns down? How are you going to go out and take six months?’ I said, ‘So, can we diversify where everything is so that at least, you have half of your stuff somewhere else?’ They go, ‘You know, we’re just thinking about expanding into other states.’ So they then did and now, they have three or four locations. So risk management is moves away from being this thing you have to do, to something that actually can help you grow your business.”

OneGroup also works with a number of start-ups, Morrisseau said, where they begin by asking “better questions.”

“How would [your business] work?” he said. “What would happen if…? How could we mitigate that if it does happen? How could we have a plan B or plan C? Believe it or not, they are applied to all big, small, or large. The thing is no one takes the time to ask. No one takes the time to slow down a minute and give that benefit, especially if you’re a small business.”

‘All we need is the question to be asked’

Morrisseau said OneGroup’s team of advisors are there to ask those questions, and to answer any clients may have.

“What we can really bring to the table is our willingness to take the time and really understand who you are and what you’re trying to achieve,” he said.

What makes the firm unique is that it’s a kind of one-stop shop for business owners and executives where all advisors and services can coordinate together to determine what’s best for the business, allowing them to consider a broad range of options and saving on overhead costs. OneGroup has over 200 experts with backgrounds in law, human resources, business, engineering, occupational therapy, geology, marketing, accounting, sales, wealth management, health, human resources and, of course, insurance, among other fields.

“It’s fascinating to really understand how many different types of professions work here,” Morrisseau said. “We’re seeing so many different things from different angles that we can take the experience of one and bring it over to another. So all we needed is the question to be asked.”

As evidenced by their enthusiasm for entrepreneurship, OneGroup doesn’t shy away from the unknown.

“We don’t necessarily know the answer, but we really know how to figure stuff out,” Morrisseau said. “We don’t really run away from anything.”

Indeed, OneGroup is delving into uncharted territory. The firm is working with Nuair, one of six companies around Central New York working on drone technology. OneGroup has provided financial backing as well as a space for the tech start-up to work on its initiative.

Drone technology introduces a host of new questions for OneGroup’s advisors.

“The reality is we have to look at what’s unknown, and the unknown risk that we face right now is very, very high,” Morrisseau said. “All of us work up really weird questions that we don’t know how to answer yet. We’re actually on the forefront of trying to help people define public policy.”

A holistic approach

OneGroup is also trying to redefine employment. No more does each staff member take on a specific task, then pass on the file, assembly-line style. Instead, each client’s case is handled cooperatively.

“If you think about the industrial age, we love the concept of, ‘I’ll just do my piece and pass it on,’” Morrisseau said.  “But the reality is we really need to think more holistically about things.”

Morrisseau said this way of thinking marks a major shift in the business paradigm, but it’s one that clearly benefits OneGroup’s clients, as well as its employees.

“We tend to think of it like, ‘Hey, it’s working. Why will we break it?’” he said. “We really believe in breaking it all the time. As a matter of fact, every year we break stuff… it creates a very higher purpose type of culture.”

Also contributing to that sense of higher purpose is OneGroup’s dedication to promoting leadership and personal development among its staff. The firm has launched initiatives like a Day of Giving to replace holiday parties and retreats, where employees pick a nonprofit to work with, as well as OneGroup Day of Learning, where the agency will rent out the OnCenter and run a day-and-a-half-long conference and allow employees to pick whatever learning and personal development tracks they choose and run it like any other career conference.

Morrisseau said he sees OneGroup as being in the idea sharing business, and it’s important that leadership be cultivated internally.

“Ideas come from everywhere,” he said. “We don’t care what your role is. Everyone is really important to us. Everyone should be learning. Everyone should be contributing.”

And leadership internally, he said, contributes to leadership in the community.

“I think the world requires more community,” he said. “How can we help each other out? Because at the end of the day, is that not what insurance is? Helping each other out?”

From  CNY C-Suite V1-N1

Craig Zinserling: CRAL Contracting, Inc. ; Treat people better than you treat yourself

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By: Martha E. Conway
Craig Zinserling headshot
David's Refuge logo

The breadth and culture of CRAL Contracting, Inc., has been in a state of continual metamorphosis since its inception 16 years ago. Starting as a one-man operation with help from friends and family, Craig Zinserling, 52, has built up the business to employ nearly 30 full-time staff and multiple support entities. The service coverage area has expanded, with field offices as needed, starting with just Upstate New York and expanding to service the entire state.

Services also expanded as demand rose starting with asbestos abatement and now encompassing mold remediation, lead stabilization and many other environmental-related services. He said multiple crews totaling 25 to 50 employees head out to the field daily, supplemented with contract environmental laborers for the larger projects.

Zinserling was born, raised and educated in Liverpool, graduating from Liverpool High School.

“I was drawn to business, as my dad had his own business for many years,” Zinserling said, adding that he studied and played percussion in high school and college, and continues to play in his church.

Beginning in high school, he worked summers for Cordelle Development in Manlius, a home building outfit that builds homes in eastern Onondaga County. He learned the business from the ground up – from digging trenches to closing new home building property deals. He stuck with it through college, gaining six years of business experience.

“You know, they start these homes with a hole,” Zinserling said. “Into that hole, they dumped 16 yards of No. 1 stone. I spent a lot of time in a 90-degree hole shoveling and spreading out stone.”

Zinserling worked for Cordelle after graduating with a Bachelor of Science in business/economics from Wheaton College in Illinois, moving from there to MARCOR Environmental, where he learned the business operations end of environmental projects.

But those experiences were not what formed his leadership style.

“My mom and dad always taught me to treat people better than I treat myself,” Zinserling said. “That’s where my leadership style comes from.”

With his motivation for independence, he envisioned starting his own business and began planning to do that.

“I really had an itch to go into business for myself,” Zinserling said.

“The first thing I had to do was to calm my wife down,” he said, laughing. “But I’m not kidding, really. We had three kids, a mortgage, two cars in the garage and no paycheck. With a couple of years of planning, setting up a budget and developing a market plan already in the works, he used unconventional means to start by not borrowing from a bank and came through okay at the end of the day.”

Zinserling said there were a couple of years early on where things were touch-and-go, and he spent his fair share of nights in the office working and sometimes sleeping there as the daily commute between Rochester and Syracuse can get treacherous at times.

“I started with abatement,” he said, “and I was responsible for finding the jobs, selling myself to clients and then actually doing the work. My first job was an asbestos abatement project at Crucible Specialty Metals in Solvay.

“Asbestos abatement was a logical place to start the business. The emerging awareness of the dangers of mold exposure and opportunities that existed with controlling exposure is what really started the business concept.”

 

“Everyone knows someone who is afflicted with asthma or allergies; many relating to healthy indoor air quality and mold exposure.”

Understanding that the mold remediation field was going to be expansive, he made it his mission to learn everything he could about the subject, right down to the spores, attending all the professional conferences he could and working to obtain the pertinent credentials.

“That meant a good volume of work, and I knew I could get jobs,” Zinserling said. “With that, lead abatement, pigeon/bat droppings remediation and other services followed; it was a solid base.”

Zinserling said he was lucky to not get broadsided by any self-employment-related surprises.

“I was seasoned enough that I knew what to expect at the onset of the business; some people pay you when you work, and some don’t.”

Zinserling redefines success on a minute-by-minute basis, with no firm definition, and no established milestone. It’s not about achieving perfection, but more about a drive to always be improving.

“I’ve never really thought about there being a single measure of success,” he said. “I always think there’s more I could be doing. I will never get ‘there.’ Continual improvement is at the heart of how I view life and business.”

“To me, I see success in the expressions on the faces of the people whose lives we’ve touched, from compassionate employees, grateful customers, loyal colleagues and friends and family,” Zinserling said. “I do get excited that my mom and dad come to our company Christmas party each year, and my mom gets to brag about me. This is where you see the effects of this leadership style; as those around you prosper.”

Zinserling said he advises those who want to own or lead a business or organization one day to take their time planning to do it right.

“Line up your resources and find good people you can rely upon,” he said, “and treat people better than you treat yourself.”

One of the tenets of that philosophy is giving to help those in need. Zinserling said that one of his proudest affiliations is that of his involvement with David’s Refuge, a non-profit focused on support and caring for those tasked with being 24/7 caregivers.

“My wife suggested we volunteer on Valentine’s Day one year for an event aimed at giving special needs kids a fun time carnival so that their parents could have a few hours to themselves,” he said. “I was struck by the reality that marriage is hard and raising kids is hard, and these couples have the additional challenge of raising children who require 24-hour, round-the-clock care.”

“The impact a small respite has on their lives made a tremendous impact on ours. We set up games and activities in the gymnasium, the kids had a blast and the parents appreciation was incredible. We fell in love with the organization and its mission. David’s Refuge is so wonderful, I am so grateful for the privilege of participating and proud of helping it grow.”

Zinserling said the needs of the organization far outweigh its resources.

“They need resources such as volunteers and funding,” he said. “In fostering this mission, we’re now partnering with the Syracuse Builders Exchange. I’ve talked to [Syracuse Builders Exchange Executive Director] Earl Hall, and we’re looking at available opportunities to adopt this mission and help this group, including adding a link to the SYRABEX website. Leadership by example is a trusted and true endeavor. These leadership philosophies aren’t just ideas, they are action words. Treat people better than you treat yourself.”

Zinserling’s plan for the next five to 10 years is to continue slow and steady growth, hopefully doubling the current volume in five years. He said one of his intentions when starting the business was to develop something he could pass on to his children, now aged 23, 21 and 19.

“They have other interests, and that’s fine,” Zinserling said. “My dad wanted me to do better than he did, and I want my children to do better than me.”

He said CRAL Contracting is a small family-run business, and everyone there cares very much about each other. He said that dynamic is fostered through orientation into the business and reinforced by the actions and modeled by the behavior of everyone there.

“No one is more important than anyone else,” Zinserling said. “From the guys out in the field to me, we are all equal – we just have different roles.”

For more information on CRAL Contracting, Inc., visit cralinc.com. For more information about David’s Refuge, visit davidsrefuge.org.

 

From CNY C-Suite V1-N1

At Crouse Health, Every Moment Matters

Posted on by admin
By: Sarah Hall
Seth Kronenberg headshot
Kimberly Crouse headshot
Seth Kronenberg_Kimberly Boynton picture

Crouse Health: Mission, Vision Values – Not Just Words on Paper

Throughout its more than 130-year history, Crouse Health has remained true to the basic fundamentals that have been the foundation of its success: Quality care delivered by compassionate people in an environment that fosters healing, innovation and wellness.

Mission

To provide the best in patient care and to promote community health.

Vision

To be a leading healthcare provider in Central New York by…

Service excellence: Anticipating and exceeding expectations of all we serve: our patients and their families, providers, employees, students, volunteers and other partners;

Dynamic work environment: Fostering an environment where all are valued and respected, and passion and opportunities for professional growth are encouraged;

Building on centers of clinical and organizational excellence: Doing the right thing by focusing on evidence-based patient- and family-centered care, a commitment to safety, the importance of learning and our mission, vision and values;

Innovation and collaboration: Building/fostering partnerships to enhance care, meet community need and anticipate the demands of a dynamic healthcare environment;

Financial and resource stewardship: Keeping Crouse strong through the responsible use of financial and human resources.

Values

In early 2004, a team of committed, engaged and passionate employees from all levels of the organization came together in focus group sessions to identify values and behaviors that would form the foundation for the hospital’s culture. The Crouse values are not just words on paper – they provide the framework for how Crouse as a team provides care and services to its community. They are tools to help the organization to work as a team and help guide, problem solve and challenge each other constructively with one focus always at the forefront: mission.

Community – working together
Respect – honor, dignity and trust
Open and honest communication
Undivided commitment to quality
Service to our patients, physicians and employees
Excellence through innovation and creativity

“Whether it’s OB or robotics or neurosciences or cardiology, the strength of Crouse comes from the strength of the physicians.” Seth Kronenberg, MD, Chief Medical Officer/Chief Operating Officer

Studies have shown a direct connection between a hospital’s organizational culture and overall patient satisfaction with their healthcare provider. Nowhere is this more evident than at Crouse Health, where senior leadership maintains a sharp focus on culture and its impact on the patient experience. “We firmly believe that the culture at Crouse Health sets us apart in the marketplace and drives our mission of providing the best in patient care and promoting community health,” says Crouse President and Chief Executive Officer Kimberly Boynton.

A key foundational element of that culture is collaboration, says Seth Kronenberg, MD, Crouse’s Chief Operating Officer and Chief Medical Officer.  “When everybody has a voice – and it’s a collaborative discussion – we see that the institution is moving forward.”  Boynton echoes the sentiment, adding that she, Kronenberg and the rest of the senior leadership team, operate as a unit.

“We work as a team,” she said. “When staff see that they’ll reach out to their peers and their directors and their managers and start to talk to them differently. Instead of making a decision that is linear, they’ll start to look across the organization and say, ‘Okay, this is going to affect multiple people. We should bring them in from the beginning.’”

Boynton, a Syracuse native, has been at Crouse for 20 years, having started in an entry-level position, working her way up in the Finance Department and taking over as CEO in January of 2014. Kronenberg is an internal medicine specialist from Fayetteville who has been in his leadership role for five years. Both say they never make important decisions about the hospital without the other. 

“People know that if you’re talking to one of us, you’re talking to the other,” Kronenberg said. “It’s not important who gets the credit. We all make mistakes. When we make a mistake, it’s not about who to blame. It’s ‘How do we learn from the mistake and go forward?”     

A culture of caring

Boynton and Kronenberg both say said they strive to foster a culture where all employees understand the role they play in providing a quality patient experience. “All healthcare institutions are striving for the same thing — high quality care,” Boynton said. “At Crouse, the most important thing is our culture, and making sure that every person who works here understands the value they bring to the patient care experience — whether that’s the bedside nurse or the valet attendant — and that they know the importance of their role.”

Boynton said Crouse encourages an environment in which every employee, regardless of their role or where they work in the organization, should feel comfortable working side by side. “Our culture sets the tone for how patient care is going to be provided,” she said. “So a nurse feels comfortable approaching a doctor and saying, ‘Here’s what I’m seeing, here is what is going on.’ That collaboration is going to lead to better quality. And that is what sets Crouse apart.”

Kronenberg said that while the culture is modeled at the top, it’s not merely a directive that comes from the administration.  “The culture is driven by engaged employees and engaged physicians,” he said. “We don’t set the culture at the administrative level. The culture is a function of how engaged employees are.”

That level of engagement starts with the hiring process. When prospective employees apply for a position at Crouse, the hospital’s website clearly conveys the mission, vision and values of the organization (see sidebar). And in addition to more traditional procedures, Crouse also does peer interviewing. “It’s not just about your supervisor, it’s about how you relate to the other individuals in your department,” Boynton said.

Once an employee is hired, they have plenty of opportunities to interface with administration. There’s a two-day orientation for all new employees. Every few weeks, employees get a CEO update via email.  There are also quarterly ‘formal update’ meetings, as well as quarterly “Coffee with Kimberly,” informal sessions where employees can meet with Boynton to discuss any Crouse-related topic or issue they may have, including potential improvements in patient care. There is no pre-set agenda for this forum. And after 90 days, new employees are welcomed to a new employee breakfast with Boynton where they can suggest improvements to the orientation process.

All these efforts ensure that Crouse functions seamlessly as an institution. “Everybody feels free to collaborate with each other, with no barriers,” Kronenberg said. “That’s where you get the best quality outcomes. That environment, where everybody functions as a team, is what separates us from other institutions.”

Crouse also prides itself on being a “physician-friendly” organization. “When we’re making decisions about anything — from care plans to budgets to service lines, there’s always a physician piece incorporated into it,” Boynton said.

Kronenberg said the administration is always transparent with the medical staff. “We’re open and honest with all the decisions,” he said. “Every decision made is based on what is best for patient care. So when you have that as the foundation physicians are engaged from the start.”  

The best in patient care

Since patient care is at the heart of everything Crouse does, Kronenberg said the hospital has been working with its 3,300-member staff on improving the patient experience. “We’ve done a lot of work speaking with our employees about what the patient experience is,” he said. “It doesn’t mean that everybody is satisfied all the time. It means that we are there to serve the patient. And if there are issues, to correct them as best as we can.” In the last year, all Crouse employees have undergone specific training to learn about Crouse’s strategic initiative to improve the patient experience. The effort is paying off — patient satisfaction and engagement scores are improving, particularly in nursing.

“It raises the bar for all of us,” Kronenberg said.  The efforts tie into Crouse’s internal motto of “Every moment matters,” Kronenberg said. “It’s every role, every person, every experience,” he said. “We can take the best care of the patient and can have a great outcome, and if the valet attendant is not attentive, or they have a negative experience with environmental services, we haven’t done our job.”

That motto, says Kronenberg, means every Crouse employee needs to step up and provide help to patients and their families, whenever they see a need. “Again, it doesn’t matter what your role is here,” Boynton said. “When management is doing and working and seeing and talking to patients and families in the same manner that we want our employees to, they know it’s the right thing to do.”

And employees have risen to the occasion. “Some of the best stories we hear are about experiences that patients have had involving what previously would be considered ancillary support — environmental services, engineering or the barista,” Kronenberg said. “One of the things we do to recognize them is go to their department unannounced — almost like a mini ‘flash mob.’ We’ll read the letter, post it, blast it out on social media. It’s a great way to recognize staff who probably don’t get as much recognition as they deserve.”

It’s not just little things that Crouse is doing to improve patient care; the hospital is undertaking major initiatives to make the experience better, as well.  “One of the things we’ve been working on is a ‘quiet initiative’,” Boynton said.  Noise on the units presents an opportunity for improvement and Crouse is working on different things to make the patient and family experience better when it comes to maintaining a quiet environment. This includes dimming the lights, providing patients who are watching TV with earbuds and working on the overall quietness of the floor to foster a more calming and healing environment.

Kronenberg reiterates that the patient experience is a major strategic focus for Crouse. “We have developed a five-year strategic plan and have been educating all employees on the patient experience and why it’s important. As part of this, we have put in place action items on specific areas — clean and quiet, nursing communication, physician communication, and all of these have specific action plans that involve staff at all levels, from nurses, physicians and other clinicians, to engineering, food services, volunteer services and housekeeping.” All these efforts — and the fact that everyone within Crouse Health is working together to ensure their success — contribute to a better experience for the patient during their stay, which, Kronenberg noted, is important to the patient’s overall health. “There’s a lot of literature that patient outcomes and patient experiences are linked,” he said. “So the better the patient experience is, the better the patient outcome.”

“In the end, ideally, we want patients to trust us by saying ‘Take me to Crouse,’” Boynton added.

 

A family of physicians — and more

Crouse is affiliated with some of the most talented and highly regarded physicians in Central New York, which, as Boynton points out, are “of the utmost importance to the success of the organization.”

 

“Whether it’s OB or robotics or neurosciences or cardiology, the strength of Crouse comes from the strength of the physicians,” Kronenberg said. “We’re here to provide the environment where physicians who choose to practice here can excel.”

Crouse’s providers are on the front lines of providing patient care, as well as helping to set the tone for the culture of the institution. “They drive that culture by how they treat each other and how they treat the nursing staff and how they interact with other support areas,” Kronenberg said. “The physicians who work here really believe in that teamwork.”

Kronenberg said the staff refers to Crouse as having “a family environment.” Boynton said the Crouse community is very supportive of one another. “One of our cardiologists tells a wonderful story about a situation that took place in the catheterization lab. It was a very difficult day for the staff,” she said. “And everyone saw that and knew it. And an environmental services worker approached one of our cardiologists at the end of the day, put her hand on his back and said, ‘Doc, how are you doing?’ It’s that sort of support that takes place here every day.”

Embracing inclusion

Doing the right thing is important to Boynton, and it’s an important part of Crouse’s mission, vision and values. That’s why, when Boynton took over as CEO and several employees approached her with concerns about the institution’s lack of diversity, she jumped into action. “When you looked across the management team, it wasn’t diverse. When you looked across the organization, you could see pockets of diversity, but it wasn’t throughout,” she said. “And we wanted to make a difference there.”

Over the next few years, the hospital launched new initiatives to increase diversity among its staff and to better equip workers to address the needs of a diverse population. Chief among those was the establishment of the Diversity and Inclusion Committee. This group of more than 20 employees has created an annual training that all employees must complete, as well as one that new employees undergo during orientation. The committee also organizes celebrations surrounding events, holidays and historical observations like Black History Month or, more recently, National Coming Out Day, inviting speakers from within the organization as well as the surrounding community to share their experiences with the staff. They’ve also helped to inform Crouse’s marketing and recruitment strategies so that the hospital is attracting more diverse candidates.

Kronenberg said the D&I effort has been successful because it’s become such an integral part of the culture at Crouse. “It’s reflected in human resources when they’re hiring. It’s in new employee orientation. It’s in recruitment and retention. The initiative also represents personal opportunity for every member of the staff, starting with the CEO.  “I didn’t grow up in a diverse environment. I grew up in an Irish Catholic family and thought everybody in the world was Irish Catholic until I got to college,” Boynton said. “I had my own learning and growth to do.”

While at first some employees may have viewed the initiative as an additional burden, Boynton said she made it clear she was taking this seriously and expected them to, as well. “We made it clear from the beginning that this wasn’t just a training session, where you could simply check a box,” she said. “It’s not a separate thing that has a beginning and an end. It just becomes part of the organization, part of the culture.”

Both Boynton and Kronenberg said they’re proud to be part of an institution that genuinely encourages and supports such a culture while providing excellent care to thousands of Central New Yorkers every year.

“I’m very proud of the work that we do here,” Boynton said. “We see Crouse as an asset of the community and we’re just entrusted with it for a short period of time to make sure that it’s here for many, many years in the future. We have a rich history, and our job is to carry that history into the next generation.”

From CNY C-Suite V1-N1

Taking Command of Your Internal Controls

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By: Benjamin A. Sumner, CPA, Partner, Dannible & McKee, LLP
Ben Sumner headshot

Internal controls are an essential part of every business to help reduce misstatements in finances due to fraud or error.  Construction companies are vulnerable to this threat because they are often reactive to incidents that occur, as opposed to proactive in putting controls in place to prevent incidents from taking place.  It can also be very difficult to implement internal controls without a management team with expertise in the area.  The factors that can lead to fraud are opportunity, incentive, rationalization, and capability.  The only factor that a company can control is opportunity.  Good internal control implementation will lead to minimal opportunity for fraud to occur.

There Are Several Important Internal Controls That Every Company Should Have in Place

  • Monthly review of financial activity– Monthly review allows for the identification of significant errors or other issues in a timely manner. An example would be comparing the balance sheet and income statement from the prior month to the current month, budgeted amounts or to the same month in the prior year.
  • Use of checks and balances– Dividing responsibility of sensitive tasks between multiple individuals can preserve the integrity of the information. An example would be having a bank reconciliation performed by someone who isn’t normally responsible for the bank account transactions.  Also, rotating responsibility can achieve the same result.
  • Limitations on user access– Requiring the use of strong passwords and regularly changing passwords, restricting user access (both physically and logically) to only those that need access to perform their regular work duties, and installation of security cameras can help to protect sensitive information and assets.
  • Segregation of duties– The three duties that should always be segregated are: recording transactions, authorizing transactions, and custody of cash/signed checks. Although this can be difficult with limited staff, it is an area that needs continuous attention as circumstances within a company change over time.  Poor segregation of duties creates opportunity for rationalization leading to fraud.

What Are Some Steps to Implementing Great Internal Controls?

  • Tone at the top – Top level management and ownership should take implementation seriously and stress the importance to employees.
  • Document current policies and procedures for every significant transaction cycle. Examples are revenue recognition and cash receipts, expenses and cash disbursements, payroll process, etc. Use of checklists and user control matrices can be helpful.
  • Identify current control weaknesses, gaps and incompatible duties. Think critically about how someone might try to manipulate financial data or steal assets and implement changes to the current policies to address those issues.

How Can Your Accountant Help?

Accounting Services:

Transaction level or higher‑level services like regular meetings, outsourcing accounting services can help smaller companies to produce timely financial information. This is especially helpful for companies that lack management expertise or the resources to hire someone who does.

Financial Statement Engagements:

Audit– Provides “reasonable assurance” whether the financial statements are free from material misstatements through various procedures such as observing physical inventory counts, gaining an understanding of internal controls in place, confirmation of balances with outside parties and testing of transactions to source documents.  A management letter will provide recommendations about internal controls that can be implemented.

Review– Provides “limited assurance” through the inquiry of management and analytical procedures on your financial data.  This type of engagement is less in scope than an audit but will provide a closer look through your finances than a compilation engagement.

Compilation– Provides no assurance on the accuracy of financial data, however, will organize management’s financial information into a standard format under Generally Accepted Accounting Principles in the US (GAAP).  Significant errors may be recognized and corrected during a compilation engagement, but generally this type of engagement shouldn’t be relied on to find errors or fraud.

Other Services or Engagements:

Agreed-Upon Procedures– Specific procedures are performed on an account, class of transactions, or internal controls that are agreed upon in advance by management or a third‑party requesting these procedures.  An example is if a construction company only wants to test their work‑in‑progress accounts.  Agreed‑upon procedures provide a more cost‑effective way to gain comfort on a specific account balance without having an entire financial statement audit performed.

Internal Control Consulting– Consulting engagement where the organization’s internal controls are documented, and limited testing is performed to provide recommendations on improvement to management.  This can be a great way to develop better procedures and to objectively reassign duties.

Service Organization Control (SOC) Audit– SOC for Service Organizations audit reports are designed to help service organizations that provide services to other entities, build trust and confidence in the service performed and controls related to the services through a report by an independent CPA.  Each type of SOC for Service Organizations report is designed to help service organizations meet specific user needs whether it be reporting on internal controls surrounding financial reporting or internal controls related to security, availability, and processing integrity of the systems the service organization uses to process users’ data and the confidentiality and privacy of the information processed by these systems.

Protecting your company’s assets should be among the highest priorities for organizations of all sizes and stages.  While internal controls may not be able to completely prevent errors and fraud from occurring, a strong system of controls will reduce the opportunity for these issues to transpire.

Benjamin Sumner, CPA, is an audit partner and has over ten years of experience providing auditing, accounting and consulting services to a wide variety of privately-held businesses. Ben concentrates in the construction industry and specializes in providing audits of employee benefit plans.

From Construction Contractor – Spring 2020

 

B.R. Johnson, LLC Supports Workforce Development in Local Schools

Posted on by admin
By: Joel LaPuma
Tom Resch headshot
Woman welding

Ask a manager at any construction or manufacturing business in New York State and they’ll tell you that one of the biggest challenges is finding young employees. Attracting new trade graduates is urgent in the face of an aging workforce, but lack of awareness of these industries has created a lack of new students. One of the best ways to create this awareness, and corresponding graduates, is by implementing trade education in high school.

 

Recognizing this need, businesses like B.R. Johnson, LLC have invested in Career & Technical Education (CTE) Pathways programs at schools, which help students achieve the training and certification needed to begin a trade career. The company’s recent partnership with the Syracuse City School District (SCSD) is the next step in its ongoing commitment to building the next generation of skilled trade employees.

 

B.R. Johnson is a distributor and installer of commercial windows, doors, and hardware, as well as specialty building products. In its fourth generation of ownership, the company is “always looking for ways to strengthen our business as well as others through creative partnerships,” says Tom Resch, General Manager of the Commercial Door Frame and Hardware Business Line. It was Resch who spotted the opportunities CTE programs could create for B.R. Johnson during a tour of the Onondaga-Cortland-Madison Counties BOCES facility: “The welding programs instructor was extremely receptive to the idea of collaborating with us for internships [and] post education job placement, and we were equally excited for them to tour our facility, work on our material in the classroom and let our welders visit the classroom to speak to real world practices.” This relationship proved so beneficial that Resch joined the BOCES CTE advisory committee.

 

The BOCES CTE Pathways program has already helped B.R. Johnson grow its workforce: the company hired Jordan Simon, a BOCES graduate, as a welder for its Buffalo location, and she has “done well right out of the gate,” according to Resch, which “shows the promise of looking to programs like this for employees.” The experience has been valuable for Jordan, who has even accompanied Resch to classroom visits at BOCES to “share how she’s using what she learned in the workplace.” Of her CTE program experience, Jordan says, “Welding has opened up amazing opportunities for me…  The welding program really helped boost my confidence in my capabilities.”

 

There’s evidence this is a common experience for students in CTE programs. “[T]hese programs are reducing missed school days and are helping to raise graduation rates,” says Resch. The CTE Pathways programs have been so successful the district has begun introducing them to students as early as the 8th grade. Resch says the company plans on expanding its involvement with the SCSD program by “continuing to sit on advisory committees, sharing with business partners the existence and importance of these programs as well as lending other time and resources.”

 

 

 

Resch views this involvement as not only an investment in B.R. Johnson, but in the community. “Being a resident of the City of Syracuse I see great opportunity for both the community and the students,” he says. “After all, the students are our community… If we really want Syracuse to flourish, we need to pay attention to the workforce needs and how to best set up our students for success three, four and five years down the road. That is exactly what this program aims to do.”

From Construction Contractor – Spring 2020

Couch White, LLP ; Harvey Talks MWBE Certification

Posted on by admin
By: Sarah Hall
Jennifer K. Harvey headshot

Jennifer Kavney Harvey, Partner

Woman working at desk with papers around
Woman talking to man at desk

Becoming a Minority- or Women-owned Business Enterprise in New York state requires more than just having a woman own a majority share of the business.

 

Just ask Jennifer Kavney Harvey, an attorney specializing in construction law at Couch White, LLC, in Albany. About a third of her practice focuses on minority and women-owned business enterprises (MWBEs) from the perspectives of the MWBEs and the contractors that hire them.

 

MWBEs and certification

“Certification is a very granular task and a company seeking certification must go through an extensive process in order to get certified, including providing a whole host of information,” Harvey said. “It’s a vast amount of data that, I think, a lot of people don’t expect when they consider applying. Once a potential MWBE starts the process, many find it extremely overwhelming. For example, they must prepare detailed resumes for themselves, for the owners, for all the key people in the company and submit those. It’s tax returns. It’s vehicle registrations. It’s leases. It’s really quite an avalanche of paper.”

The process can also be extremely lengthy. State regulations presently say that any applicants are to be provided with notice of any deficiencies in an application within 21 days of submission and that all applications will be processed within 45 days of submission of a final completed application. But in reality, the volume of applications and the apparent lack of adequate staffing are such that it takes as much as two years for a submitted MWBE application to even be assigned an analyst.

From there, the process is no less rigorous. What comes next is an interview, typically by phone, with the business owners where the analyst from the Division of Minority and Women’s Business Development, within Empire State Development, go over the application with a fine-tooth comb.

“For example, I had one WBE applicant that did office supply fitups, and the questions that they were asking her were pretty specific,” Harvey said. “The person from the Division really had a good working knowledge of her industry. ‘What lines do you carry? Are you a distributor?’ Very, very specific questions that were technical and appropriate to understanding whether the applicant had good knowledge of the area in which she was seeking certification.”

Harvey said it’s imperative that applicants have a good understanding of the technical side of their business and the ability to assess cost estimates on projects. She always advises clients to take courses in whatever segment of the industry they’re in, including estimating or blueprint reading, when they are preparing to apply for certification.

Harvey said people often come to her after they’ve had their application denied.

“It gets tricky from there,” she said. “Although a denial can be appealed, you can’t reapply for two years after a denial under the regulations.”

However, if there’s been a change in circumstances since the original application that corrects the issues raised in the denial — for example, one applicant was denied because of an issue with the company’s bylaws, and following the denial the bylaws were amended to address and correct the issue — the applicant can get around the two-year waiting period and resubmit early with the permission of the Division.  

 

 

“If the reasons for the denial are address, the Division will typically grant a request to reapply early based on changed circumstances,” Harvey said. “And it’s possible to do that and get approved, too, actually, quite quickly, because they’ve just looked at your application.”

But Harvey said she prefers it when clients come to her when they’re just starting the process.

“I enjoy it when folks come in and they talk to me about, ‘Oh, do you think that my business would work as an MWBE as a certified entity?’ And we talk about it,” she said. “It’s a better approach to start with a strong application from the beginning as opposed to trying to repair it after denial.”

Contractors and MWBEs

Harvey said about a third of her practice centers around MWBEs. About half of those clients are contractors who work with MWBEs and are struggling with subcontractor and supplier goal issues, including waivers. She said this is a very specific and often tricky area of law.

“For example, did you know that contractors are often expected to pay a premium to an MWBE subcontractor over a quote from a non-MWBE?” she said. “That’s one of the challenges. What will happen is that a contractor will get a quote from MWBE that might be, perhaps 30 percent higher than the quote from a non-MWBE, and they have to assess whether that markup is excessive or commercially unreasonable… and if they guess wrong, they could be subject to some extremely severe penalties.”

Harvey’s job is to help contractors create and implement MWBE policies to ensure compliance. She said she’s provided guidance for a number of contractors of varying sizes, as well as training for administrators, estimators and project managers.

“That’s rewarding,” she said. “I enjoy doing that because I feel it’s protective to contractors and avoids issues.”

A changeable industry

One of Harvey’s biggest responsibilities as an attorney is to keep track of changes in legislation, to be able to advise trade associations and individual clients.

“This is really a rapidly changing part of the construction industry,” she said. “There were a number of changes in the statute that went into effect last month. But it’s also changeable because the guidance changes, and once the guidance to the state agencies changes, everything can change, so there’s a lot a lot to watch here.”

In the recent round of changes, New York state is trying to cut some of the red tape in order to streamline the application process. They’ve also changed the recertification process so that MWBEs can go five years between recertifications instead of three, which helps cut down on paperwork and stabilizes the status of MWBEs.

“That doesn’t sound like a big deal, but it’s huge for both MWBEs and the contractors who subcontract with them,” Harvey said.

But in recent months, Harvey said she’s seen more and more businesses that had been certified, in some cases for many years, as WBEs being denied when they go to get that recertification.

“And they’re not being decertified for some new circumstance, they’re being decertified because it looks like the department is like reaching back to their original certification which may have been from many years prior,” she said.

“To my mind, that’s going to be an industry problem at some point,” she said. “Legally from my standpoint, I think it’s very arbitrary and capricious for the department to reach back, especially to something that doesn’t form a part of the recertification application, and to make a different determination without some sort of change in circumstances or facts that rides along with that.”

Harvey said the trend could discourage people from applying in the first place.

“I’ve spoken with a number people that are qualified to be certified and aren’t being certified because they feel that the program is too much hassle and introduces other risks that they just don’t want any a part of,” she said. “And that’s kind of disappointing in a way because I know of contractors who are struggling to meet their goals and the more folks we have that are in the directory that are available and capable of performing the work, the better it is for everyone.”

Civil rights compliance

Harvey doesn’t just focus on MWBEs. Since a lot of her clients are heavy highway contractors and work with state and municipal agencies, she does a lot of work in civil rights compliance, which is particularly required by the federal government. She said this is an area in which contractors need to keep meticulous records.

“It’s enormously important, because it’s a true audit,” Harvey said. “The representatives from the public letting agency come on the job site.”

And those representatives, she said, will want to see project bulletin boards, subcontracts, hiring notices and records, policies and notices. So that they can ensure that equal employment and affirmative action requirements have been met during the project.

“For example, they may say, ‘You hired six people for this project. And all of them are males,’” Harvey said. “’Did your hiring notices contain proper EEO language?  Did you have any female applicants? And why didn’t you hire them?’ Things like that.’”

Harvey said contractors should be keeping track not only of who they hire, but who they don’t and why.

“It’s really easy if you have the data and compliant policies in place that are being followed. It is really hard, if not impossible, if you don’t,” she said. “Things like that are becoming increasingly more important from a defensive operational standpoint just because it’s strategically necessary to have complete project documentation. You may not need it. But if you do, boy, you’ve saved yourself some time and effort.”

MWBE and small business

 “One of the really interesting things about New York’s procurement policies in general is this longstanding goal of integrating small business and allowing it to participate in the huge amount of government procurement that goes on,” she said. “So it’s not it just these enormous companies. State procurement is supposed to also be inclusive of local, smaller companies, and to my mind the MWBEs, are a special category of those companies to a large extent.”

The use of MWBE goals on a large heavy-highway contract will result in subcontracting and supplier purchases from MWBEs that would not otherwise exist, but for the goals.

While the MWBE program is not perfect, Harvey said it’s a valuable program.

“I think everyone agrees that the program is a good one and it’s helpful for society,” she said. “It’s just a question of how best to implement it, and most effectively to properly implement it to achieve the goals that the program supposed to be achieving.”

Harvey said she hopes some of the changes that went into effect this year will make the application process less cumbersome for businesses. 
“I feel like the program is morphing,” she said. “I’m hopeful that it’s improving. Hopefully we’re going to see improvements in terms of processing time and consistent procedures going forward that will alleviate the frustration that many applicants feel. It just takes time and patience.”

From Construction Contractor – Spring 2020

Mary Shepherd at the Top and Close to Home with her own business; BGM Supply.

Posted on by admin
By Martha E. Conway

Mary Shepherd didn’t have to go far from home to rise to the top; the 55-year-old owner of BGM Supply in Utica, a New York state-certified woman-owned business, was born and raised in Westmoreland, graduated from high school there and still lives there today.

After Shepherd earned her two-year accounting degree from Mohawk Valley Community College, she got a job working at a bakery then later moved into a job at a car dealership before realizing she’d reached her potential with the degree she had.

“I couldn’t move up in the workforce, so I went back to school,” Shepherd said, explaining she put her four-year accounting degree to work at a major non-profit. “Then I came here.”

Shepherd said when she worked for the dealership, she said she handled all the warranty work and traveled with the owner to all its locations to get their systems in order to correctly keep track of things.

“Again, I went as far as I could go,” she said. “I knew I had what it took to go somewhere else.”

That was about 1994, she said, and she’s spent nearly three decades looking at every opportunity to realize her vision of success for BGM. Her husband was a driver for the business, and the owner used to suggest she join the team.

“It was supposed to be a little part-time thing,” Shepherd said, adding that she soon learned the business was struggling to grapple with the business end of operating a business, explaining businesses can lose big money without proper tracking systems in place. “I wanted to turn it around.”

Shepherd said she implemented proper recordkeeping systems, streamlined everything she could and started working to grow BGM’s customer base. Dec. 31, 2015, she finalized The Shepherd Group, LLC, with a DBA for BGM Supply, and it was all hers.

“I’m good with people and connect well with them,” she said. “Why not take on what you’ve helped build to success?”

Two months after taking ownership of the business, Shepherd wound up gravely ill. Hospitalized and not expected to survive, her son, Eric, 27, quit his job and stepped in to help out.

She helped him run the business by telephone from her hospital bed after about a week. About two weeks later, Shepherd was able to show up in person to explain what needed to be done, and eventually returned to full-stride.

“My son is really good on the tech stuff,” Shepherd said, and she’s working to bring him in on all facets of the business should he ever have to step in again. “I want to make sure the business keeps going if anything happens.”

Shepherd said she wouldn’t have considered starting a new business.

“Here, everything was already started, already in place,” she said. “People knew me, and I had good relationships.”

Customers had already worked with her, she said, and they trusted her and respected her knowledge and experience.

“I’ve made lots of changes,” Shepherd said. “I’ve invested a lot of money into the business. I’ve worked to improve organizational and structural things, cleaned up the place a lot and doubled the staff.”

In addition, she raised employee salaries and offered them a good benefits package, she said.

“I want to take care of my employees,” Shepherd said. “I want to retain them.”

 She said the thing that surprised her most when she took over was writing and signing paychecks.

“That had a very different feel to it,” Shepherd said of the additional responsibilities.

Shepherd said she had run into challenges that men typically wouldn’t encounter, starting with the woman-owned certification process itself.

“This is a male-dominated business,” Shepherd said. “When I was going through the process to get certificatied, people would ask, ‘How can you ever run that kind of business?’ I’ve been questioned about my abilities, and I think that’s just because I’m a woman. Women can bring a whole host of other skills and abilities to the table – organization, for one – and a different perspective.”

The certification process was arduous, she said.

“It took me about three years to get my certification,” Shepherd said. “I knew as soon as I bought the business, I wanted to start the process because I knew it would be to my advantage to have it.”

I was denied at first, but I pursued it, won the appeal and earned the certification April 6, 2018.

Shepherd said she understands women may be reluctant to put themselves out there to work toward their dreams.

“If you put your mind to it, you can do anything,” Shepherd said. “Get good people behind you. This is a tough business, and there’s a lot to manage. You need to learn to delegate and not try to do everything yourself.

“As an owner, you have to put yourself out there and make things happen – show them by actions. There are stereotypes, to be sure, but you have to get past them with your actions and prove yourself. Look for other women in business and connect with them … network.”

Shepherd said she takes time over the holidays to call customers and say ‘happy holidays,’ and thank them for their business.

“You have to give a little of yourself,” she said. “People will do business with people they have relationships with. If they need something and I’m closed, I will come in. That’s the way it should be.”

Shepherd heads the finances for her church, and she said there have been times when parishioners have had no heat and no resources.

“If someone is in need and has no heat, we can make that happen,” Shepherd said.

She is proud of BGM’s ability to help others.

“I’m the full-time caretaker for my dad, and I have an aide who helps with him,” she said. “She was flooded and we helped her get her heat back on. In another case, my son installed a boiler, which shortly after also was ruined in the floods. The homeowner had a disabled daughter who needed hot baths. We were able to work with the supplier to get a new boiler at a discount.

“We do a lot with the community, and if someone is in trouble, I know a lot of people, so we have avenues to help.”

Shepherd said after her personal experience with the process, she has helped other women by being a sounding board for them as they pursue certification.

“I try to help them out whenever I can,” she said.

Shepherd said women need to work on their self-promotion and be more confident.

“Come out of your shell,” she said. “I know fear gets in the way. Go beyond it; take a chance, take a risk and let down your guard.”

Shepherd continues working to build something great that Eric can someday step into.

“I’ve sent my son to business and accounting classes to prepare him to one day take over,” she said. “I want to get him cross-trained, so he can step in. You can’t leave yourself the only person who knows what’s going on. If something happens, the business keeps going.”

Shepherd said hers is very much a family-owned and -operated operation.

“It’s unique in this field,” she said. “There are a lot of chains out there.”

Shepherd said she’s got a young, tech-savvy crew who can find whatever people need.

“People can walk in and ask us anything,” she said.

According to Shepherd, she thinks there is a perception BGM Supply is strictly a commercial outfit.

“We have a very wide range of stock – I think more than anyone around,” Shepherd said. “We do wholesale and retail, and our total service and delivery, I’m told, are better than anyone else out there.

“We have just about everything for plumbing, mechanical and water systems, and more,” Shepherd said.

Shepherd said it can be a little tricky to find BGM Supply on the state’s website for certified women-owned businesses, but she’s right there under The Shepherd Group, LLC.

“That’s really frustrating because public projects require using state-certified woman-owned businesses,” she said. “Roofers who need insulation for school projects, for instance, can come to us for that.”

Shepherd said her vision for the next five to 10 years includes continued expansion of product lines to broaden offerings, as well as continuing to grow her customer base.

Geography isn’t a consideration, either, she said.

“A lot of our jobs are packages we put together to be drop-shipped,” Shepherd said. “Our radius is quite large. We serve the city of Buffalo – corrections and parks – and Battery Park in New York City. I can cover any area that needs to be covered.”

“We stand out because we’re more personable and offer more collective knowledge,” Shepherd said.

 

From Construction Contractor – Winter 2020

Kondra-DeFuria Puts the ‘Pizzazz’ in Potter Heating & Air Conditioning/Perrone Plumbing

Posted on by admin
By: Tami Scott
Potter Heating A/C
Potter Heating & AC vans

In life and in business, Suzanne Kondra-DeFuria runs on passion and pure energy.

   As the president and sole owner of Potter Heating & Air Conditioning and Perrone Plumbing Services, she climbed her way to the top of a male-dominated industry with spunk, pizzazz, and a can-do attitude.

These characteristics, be them innate or learned, were showcased as young as 10 years old, when during the winter, she would shovel all her neighbors’ sidewalks.

   “I just had this energy,” she remarked.

   Then she met her father’s boss — a woman, who was the president of a trucking company, another male-dominated field.

   “I remember her always saying, ‘Suzy, you can do anything you want,” said Kondra-DeFuria, who spoke of the times she would watch her dad’s boss at the office, dressed in suits, interacting with her team — and loved it.  “Honestly, I think the seed was planted way back then. I really was into doing what I want to do.”

The beginnings

   Potter Heating & Air Conditioning was already well-established years before Kondra-DeFuria and her husband 

at the time, David Kondra, came into the picture. The company, founded in 1944 by Homer Potter, began as a one-person operation based in Fayetteville. Over the years, the company grew in size and relocated several times. But Potter’s health was failing, and he was preparing to sell his business.

 “We knew the Potters,” said Kondra-DeFuria, noting the Potters had tried for a few years to persuade Suzanne and David to buy the business. Finally, after giving the idea more consideration, Kondra-DeFuria spoke up and said: “Let’s take the risk.”

   In June 1981, the keys changed hands. Potter remained an active participant in the company he nurtured for nearly four decades, until his death in 1986. That same year, the Kondras acquired Perrone Plumbing.

   More changes occurred in the years following. When the Kondras acquired the small business, they had less than a handful of employees, Kondra-DeFuria said, and Potter Heating & Air Conditioning/Perrone Plumbing generated an average $100,000 in work. As typical of most businesses, the numbers fluctuated, and internal reforms were made. Suzanne and David divorced in 1995, but they remained business partners for another 15 years, until she bought him out in 2012.

   “It was a good move because then I really expanded the business,” specifically as a 100% Women’s Business Enterprise (WBE), she said.

   Prior to the buyout, however, she still made notable strides. In 2006, she was certified as an 8A contractor with the Federal government and remained one for a period of nine years.

   “When people first found out that I obtained the designation, they’d say, ‘How did this happen?’ To get it, you have [to prove] discrimination, and I just happened to have [experienced] some major discrimination, especially [as] a woman in my business, because there were no women in my business back in the ‘80s.”

    Kondra-DeFuria’s biggest challenge to overcome in the industry was, as a woman, being able to convince customers — and counterparts — that she was knowledgeable in the mechanical field.

   She shared a story about the company’s first big job — it was $200,000. The contractor, who was from Albany, thought he had put Kondras-DeFuria on hold over the phone. He didn’t. And she heard firsthand some choice words about what he thought it would be like working with her.

   “Then all of a sudden, he realized I wasn’t on hold and he says, ‘Hello?’ And I said, ‘You know what? Why don’t you wait and see how I am before you make judgments.’”

   When the job was complete, the contractor made a point to express his final impression. He sent flowers and told her it was the most well-run job he had with a contractor and would have never thought that, she said. “I never forgot that.” 

  Also, In the ‘80s, Kondra-DeFuria was the only person who completed the Syracuse Builders Exchange Mentorship program for Minority and Women-owned businesses.

   “I still have a working relationship with my mentor at SAI and we are in our second five-year MATOC at Fort Drum,” she said.

   Kondra-DeFuria didn’t wait for change; she made it happen. “I was constantly trying to drum up business” by going to events and constantly meeting new people, she said. “I learned to do things on my own because if you wait for other people to go with you, it just doesn’t work.” 

   Today, the company thrives, bringing in millions annually. Potter Heating and Air Conditioning offers services for residential, commercial, and institutional/federal clients. Heating services include installation of gas furnaces, radiant heat systems, and hot water steam systems and boilers. Cooling services include air conditioning and improving indoor air quality. Perrone Plumbing is known for its expertise in repairs and installation; clogged sinks, drains, and toilets; new sewers and water services; faucet repairs and replacements; water heaters; pumps; grease traps; gas lines; and thawing frozen pipes.

  Kondra-DeFuria, 72, admits she likes being different. She is one of two women in Syracuse with a heating license. She was the first woman appointed to the City of Syracuse Mechanical Board in 79 years, then reappointed this year for another four-year term. In 2013, Governor Cuomo appointed her to the State Workforce Investment Board. Kondra-DeFuria was also the first woman elected president of the Syracuse Heating and Air Conditioning Contractors Association, serving four terms as president. She was the second woman recently elected as president of the Subcontractors Association of Central New York.

   In addition to her industry achievements, Kondra-DeFuria has been a volunteer at St. Joseph’s Hospital for 45 years and serves on numerous civic boards.

   Not one to ever stop, even when diagnosed with cancer more than 10 years ago, Kondra-DeFuria is a living legacy of her own making.

   “A positive outlook makes a big difference. You can’t let it take you down,” she said.

   Indeed, her diagnosis and subsequent treatment did not slow her down in either her personal accomplishments (as a former active crew member with the Syracuse Chargers, she still participated in Nationals) or business, as evidenced by the company’s double digit growth during that period and continued volunteer contributions.

   American author Earl Nightingale is quoted as saying, “The key that unlocks energy is desire. It’s also the key to a long and interesting life. If we expect to create any drive, any real force within ourselves, we have to get excited.”

   For Kondra-DeFuria, those first sparks of child-focused energy, interest, and exposure to independent thinking from a woman who was way ahead of her time, created a lasting and productive excitement that continues to this day.

 

From Construction Contractor – Winter 202