Archived News

Great Start to A New Year


Kicking off the Badge Project

By the second day of CEO, the students were working on their first group assignment, the badge project.  Everyone did a great job listening attentively to each other and sharing their thoughts about how to execute the project. They nominated Mahlik Good as the project leader for this first endeavor.  Several students volunteered to research prices and create documents for next week's work day. 


Teambuilding with Vertical Performance

President & Founder Jim Schneider & Vice President Lynn Clapp

On Wednesday, Mr. James Schneider and Mr. Lynn Clapp from Vertical Performance did some teambuilding exercises with the students.  The theme of the day was "Be Bold and Be Inclusive!"  They shared with the students that no matter how strong they are individually, they still will not be successful unless they are strong as a group.  The exercises helped the students get to know each other better through communication and struggle and in turn helped them start building those connections with each other.  Thank you, Mr. Schneider and Mr. Clapp, for spending the morning with us. 


Holland Construction - Built with Integrity

President Mike Marchal

On Thursday, the Belleville CEO students visited President Mike Marchal at Holland Construction.  Mr. Marchal greeted the students and gave them a quick tour of the office.  Mr. Marchal shared with the students about his 23 years in the construction industry and his 20 years at Holland Construction. Holland Construction has grown to a $200 million company with over 100 employees.  Mr. Marchal shared his thoughts about his management and leadership style since becoming president 7 years ago.  Thank you, Mr. Marchal, for your hospitality and sharing your knowledge with us. 


Finding Your Passion

President & COO Dave Zura & Senior Vice President Richard Plass

The Belleville CEO students met with President and COO Dave Zura and Senior VP Rich PLass at Belleville Professional Center where the majority of the Allsup employees actually work.  Mr. Zura shared his story of being a serial entrepreneur.  He told the students that they need to find their passion and then find out how they can make money at it.  Along with Mr. Plass who also joined Allsup at the same time in May 2016, they shared how they have changed the culture at Allsup which has led to a 9% growth and 29% increase in profits.  Thank you Mr. Zura and Mr. Plass for sharing your expertise with us on Friday. 


CEO Orientation in July

Back on July 27, Belleville CEO hosted an orientation for the incoming students and parents.  Prior to the meeting, the new Belleville CEO students and parents visited with investors, community leaders, board members, administrators, Belleville CEO alumni and the facilitator.  The evening was a time of sharing how CEO and Belleville CEO got started, understanding the class structure, and laying out the class expectations.  


Student Journal Highlights for this week

 This week has been the beginning of a new experience for me. From what I have already experienced in the first week of the CEO program, I can tell that this will be a great experience for me. This class makes it feel like it's not a “class” but more like a meeting. Which I enjoy because it's teaching us something in a totally different way, rather than the 7 hour a day lectures I am accustomed to. The class lets us teach ourselves in away, and also from professionals. Things such as business etiquette, is something that I would have really needed to become the business man I inspire to be.

My favorite part of the week had to be on Wednesday when we worked with the team builders that came in. They helped open things up with one another. The first day most of the people I knew there were mainly people from my school. I wasn't very influenced to speak out in front of the class or try to lead in a discussion, like the one we had the day prior. I’d only want talk to the people I knew because that's who I was comfortable with, until we did the team building exercise. This made me, and I would assume, everyone else more comfortable with each other. After we were finished I felt that we could communicate better with each other. Now we can only continue to grow our relationships with each other and progress further to get the best of this class. 

I know I will learn many skills and virtues from this class that will help me in life and the business world. Visiting to people who own businesses, such as Mike Marchal from Holland Construction, are examples of how we will learn many things. He had a list of many things that makes him so successful. I'm sure on our other visits they will tell us how they made it and this will make us better. I am really looking forward to the rest of this class and I hope to get the best out of it.

Cam Wicks

Cam Wicks
Friday, August 25, 2017Learn More About Cam

At the beginning of the week when we started our first group project, I realized how much I enjoyed working and collaborating with a group. It brought out our group’s personalities, and showed what kind of dynamics people have to offer. Being in a new environment with people we do not know or normally interact with, I think we were able to productively begin to construct a plan for our Badge Project. I am excited to continue to work on it more soon and see how well it will turn out.

When Vertical Performance came and helped us with our team building, they taught us how important working together is. Listening to everyone’s ideas is key, and being open to improvements and suggestions is always useful. I learned that I need to work on being more attentive while listening. During one of the activities, one of the members introduced themselves to me and afterward, I realized I completely did not catch their name, even though we were making eye contact while speaking to each other. By the end of the session, I felt that as a whole, we all felt more comfortable around each other.

I especially enjoyed our visit to Holland because I have been considering a degree in architecture which coincides with construction. Mr. Marchal offered lots of good leadership advice, and one of my favorite points was that if you are presented with an opportunity to rise to the occasion, take it. I know I struggle with doing this now, and I want to push myself to practice this. I am also grateful for his input on the questions I asked him concerning architecture because now I think I have a better understanding of the career path I want to take. Coming into the presentation I did not realize how similar his job is to the one I might be going into, so it was very helpful to hear from him.

“Be yourself, and stay humble.” These words really stuck with me when hearing Mike Marchal say this quote out his mouth. I began to think about what Mike Marchal really meant by the words he said. Then I instantly came up with a solution and broke down the words. “Be Yourself” means to not act like somebody you are not or to try to change the way you act or the person your are for anybody. Stay the person you always once was and never change. The second set of words Mike Marchal said was “stay humble.” What does stay humble really mean? Well my own terminology of “stay humble” means to stay modest and stay grateful for the opportunities that you have in life. There are a lot of people who brag on what they have or how successful they are. When we should be lifting each other up as a whole. I asked Mike a question about what would be the best piece of advice to be a good leader. He thought about it for a couple of seconds and narrowed it down to two answers. The first answer he said was that you have to take care of other people. That means treating them right and insetting confidence in them so that they can perform their job well. The last answer he gave me was to choose a positive attitude. That means try to always have an up-lifting mood when coming into a work space. Because if everyone see’s that you have a negative mood then they will most likely have that same mood. You want to try to have a positive mood each and every day so people will feed off of that positive mood.

 Dave Zura is the president of Allsup and in our conference with him he talked about how this CEO class of ours was to really teach us if we wanted to be an entrepreneur or not. I remember the story he told us of how he thought of being a doctor once. Then he went and saw what doctors really do and he knew instantly that being a doctor was not the job for him. Basically what he was saying was to experience every career and cross off the ones that you know you do not want to do in the long-run.

Arriving at Allsup on the first day, I felt a sense of nervousness, though I'm sure that was a common thing between all of us there. However, after listening to everyone’s introductions and then giving my own, I decided that there was not much for me to be nervous about. On the second day when we had to discuss our plans involving out first project, I noticed those who were more prominent in the discussions and how I was not involved that much myself. I will need to work on that in the near future. Ice breaker and team building exercises are nothing new to me. However, I never took part in activities that were so close and personal. Though some activities were more awkward than others, especially the one where we had to all fit in a small area, all around they were fun to do. I feel as if I was actually able to become more comfortable with my peers, and pick up a few names, though there are more I still need to work on. I learned that team work, cooperation, and communication are all aspects that are important when dealing with others and trying to complete tasks both effectively and efficiently.

The seminar that the president of Holland, Mike Marchal, hosted was a very insightful experience. Prior to this visit, I had not come into contact with any leaders who had the type of personality or ideals that Mr. Marchal had. Unlike most others I knew, he emphasized on empathy and trust. He taught that taking care of others, being a great listener, and surrounding yourself with smarter people are the best qualities for being a leader. Through this experience, I was able to come to the understanding that you do not always have to be the stereotypically “cold” type of leader, but can be a more emotional one. On a side note, it was both surprising and pretty cool to see that this company built the building in which I work, the St. Clair Country Club.

Taking a tour around the Professional Center gave me insight into what a workplace is like. Dave Zura seemed like a really thoughtful and hardworking leader. The stories of his past experiences provided great advice for me, including how it is important to find out what you absolutely don’t want to do, and to enjoy your work. It’s a bonus that his stories were as interesting as they were helpful. I appreciate his plans for improving the workplaces of his employees, as I would love to have a game or rest area at my job. All in all, I’ve already met some great leaders and I’m looking forward to meeting more next week and the weeks to come. 

This week in Belleville CEO, we had a lot of new beginnings. From friendships to even some possible partnerships, new bonds were formed between I and many other people. On our first day, Mrs. Julie Siebers did a fantastic job of making all of the students feel welcomed into the program. Each student had to stand up in front of everyone in the room, and talk about themselves, which can be difficult for some. This was already teaching us the skill of being personable, and just being a more opening and honest person when it comes to the business world. On our second day we were already jumping into our first big project. Mahlik Good, a student in the class, gave us some really good insight into ideas and finding ways to approach companies and ask for their sponsorship. He talked about how he has been in that type of field for years now, and he really showed that he could be a strong asset and leader in our CEO group.

The next day, Vertical Performance came in to our classroom and did a wonderful job of bringing us closer. Going into that class, I expected it to be uncomfortable icebreakers, and I thought that it would be a waste of time. In fact Vertical Performance did the total opposite for us. By the end of the class, I had already memorized everybody's names and found out interesting info about people as well. One example that stuck out to me is that Daniel Stovey skydives, and I think that takes a lot of courage, which could pay off greatly in the business world.

On our last two days of the week we visited Holland Construction, and one of the main buildings for Allsup. I found both very informative and I really enjoyed the Holland Construction PowerPoint he did. I found it very related to our class, and he gave some great insight on how to be a better leader among fellow workers. I am excited to see how next week will go. I have some high expectations after this first week.

John Lewis

John Lewis
Friday, August 25, 2017Learn More About John

Choose a positive attitude, but face reality. The greatest word of advice that stuck out to me this week was that message. Not every day is going to be the best. We go through various hardships and situations in life where we may not be smiling and happy in the inside. However, as the head of a business you have to understand that people do look up to you and negativity can spread throughout. So it's best to try to be positive and have an encouraging attitude while at work.

Michael Marchal, President of Holland Construction taught me that. As he presented a little background about himself, the company he works for as well as key points in which will help you in the business world. It was interesting to hear Mr. Marchal’s story and how he got to where he is today. The overall message I took from his presentation was to keep your head down, work hard..hoping that your work gets recognized and that’s exactly what happened in his situation.

Going into the first week of CEO has been great, with the help of Vertical Performance my class and I have gotten a little closer. We’ve found out a little bit more about ourselves as well as who could be considered a leader upon our group. It was good to perform the multiple tasks and challenges with everyone. The activities forced us to communicate as a group as well as solve problems that we faced within the activities. Also, it was a relief to finally not have to wear those business clothes everyday.

In addition, I cannot forget the talk and tour we had with Dave Zura, president of Allsup. Learning how the business got back on its feet with more organization was interesting. They were at at very low point and just knowing that now they are doing some remodeling and they’re at such a great place is very exciting! I would love to just visit at the end of the year just to see their progress.

Overall, our few visits with some of the great people talked about above made me so excited for what's to come with the CEO class. I am ready to continue with my wonderful class and meet new people and business owners along the way! This was just week one, I am excited for the year.

Teonna Davis

Teonna Davis
Friday, August 25, 2017Learn More About Teonna

This class seems to be promising. We are a large group, so I believe we will have significant contributors. In addition, some of us already have business experience and connections with local entrepreneurs. These advantages should be very helpful for our first project, and eventually the class business.

When we watched the video entitled "Producing the Wow," one fact stood out to me: it is clear that Belleville CEO is held to a high standard. In addition, we must maintain it, which I believe we will do. While the objective for our badge project is the beginning of October, I considered our start to be very productive. I'm thankful for the comfortable deadline, but I think we should beat it if we continue on pace.                 

Team building went very well. The men from Vertical Performance had a lot of experience with their job, and quickly got us to work together. Thanks to them, I finally learned everyone's names. We passed every activity, which they said most teams could not do. We were close to failing our last drill, but I helped our team succeed. I had realized picking up the rugs would be easier for me with my long arms, and decided to go last. I recognized one of my strengths today, which I don't really do often. This course is already teaching me to look for the positives in myself.

I found the Holland Presentation to be very informative. Mr. Marchal shared that it is possible to lead a company and be very profitable while still showing great care and sensitivity for your customers and employees. I believe these policies helped the company grow fourfold and continue to be successful today. He also explained that construction is a field currently demanding more workers, which means that the salaries have increased over the years, making the field opportune for young people. In his presentation, Mr. Marchal also shared many tips not just for leading and managing others in the workplace, but also for leading a well-rounded life and overall career.

I was very impressed with Mr. Zura's presentation at the Belleville Professional Center. He shared his story of getting into business, and made it sound very enjoyable. I particularly liked how he described his initial business as "playing the game" and that he used what he enjoyed to make money. I've always believed the philosophy of doing what you love isn't really work at all. Another aspect of Allsup that stood out to me was the record keeping they did for every hour of phone calls. They had their preferences down to a science for all the employees to see, which gives them all a common goal to work for. He also shared Mr. Marchal’s philosophy of investing in the employee’s happiness. They were pouring over $600,000 into remodeling the work and break areas for the employees. This first week has already shown me a lot, and has left me looking forward to the rest of the year.

Jacob Gall

Jacob Gall
Friday, August 25, 2017Learn More About Jacob


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