Two WPO Chicago Rockstars

The Edward Lowe Foundation rocks but not just because they feature some of our WPO Chicago members on their website.  (Yes, that's nice too!)  Rather, it's because they offer a wonderful program for second-stage business owners that helps them create empowering workplaces.

Below are two recent Rockstar interviews.  One on Alison Gutterman (top left; Jelmar) and the other on Michelle Vondrasek (Von Technologies).

•  On the same wavelength:  Von Technologies
•  Green, clean dynasty:  Jelmar LLC

Green and Clean: Jelmar LLC

Becoming more environmentally friendly is an initiative Alison Gutterman (pictured), President and CEO of Skokie, Illinois-based Jelmar LLC, spearheaded in 2006 for her company.  You might recognize two of Jelmar's more famous brands:  Tarn-X Tarnish Remover and CLR brand of calcium, lime and rust remover.  Today nearly 70 percent of the company’s SKUs bear the Safer Choice label.  Ideally, Gutterman would like all Jelmar products to be green.

Read the entire article:  Green, clean dynasty:  Jelmar LLC

Screenshot courtesy:  Edward Lowe Foundation

Article of Interest: Characteristics of Second-Stage Growth Companies

Are you experiencing second-stage growth pains? Many Women Presidents' Organization members are. The signs are usually very telling. According to our partner, Edward Lowe Foundation, the characteristics are as follows:

1. Many people are not aware of what others are doing.
2. People lack an understanding of the firm's ultimate goals.
3. A precipitous drop in product quality occurs for unknown reasons.
4. Turnover increases sharply, just when the company needs more personnel.
5. You wake up worrying about operational tasks that someone else ought to be handling.
6. All your customers want to meet with you, but finding the time to do so seems impossible.

Learn more about second-stage growth for a business and what to do about it.

Characteristics of Second-Stage Growth Business Owners

Posted by:  Women Presidents' Organization Chicago 

Event of Interest: Edward Lowe Foundation at Big Rock Valley

Having just completed an enlightening business leadership retreat at the Edward Lowe Foundation (ELF) with WPO Chicago downtown III chapter members, it only seems fitting to bring attention to what ELF at Big Rock Valley is most known for: helping business owners reach second-stage growth.

How do you define second-stage growth?

Second-stage companies are those that have grown past the startup stage but have not grown to maturity. They have enough employees to exceed the comfortable control span of one owner/CEO and benefit from adding professional managers, but they do not yet have a full-scale professional management team.

A business typically begins to enter its second stage when it approaches $1 million in total receipts. The transition process can continue until it hits $100 million in receipts, although for most companies $50 million represents the upper limit of second stage. By $100 million, a firm will have to be professionally managed in order to continue to thrive and grow and be in its third stage of development. Employee numbers and revenue ranges vary by industry, but the population of firms with 10 to 100 employees and/or $750,000 to $50 million in receipts includes the vast majority of second-stage companies.

Beyond this, there are other signs that indicate to a CEO that second stage is at hand.

Read about them here.

Where is your business at? What have you done lately to take yourself out of your business and reflect on "next-level thinking" with your peers?

Photo credit: Laurel Delaney, WPO Chicago Chapter Chair