Throughout its 20-year history, Ernst & Young’s Entrepreneur Of The Year Award program has honored the most successful entrepreneurs.
Next month, as part of the 20th anniversary celebration, Ernst & Young will honor three of its alumni — Hyland Software (2001), Swagelok (1995) and RPM Inc. (2003)
All three companies are run by CEOs other than those honored by Ernst & Young, but the entrepreneurial spirit remains alive and well at each. Here’s what’s been happening at these dynamic firms in the years since they were honored.
Hyland Software
In 2001, Hyland Software stood tall among the dot-com crash survivors. When the bubble burst in 2000, many software companies folded their tents or drastically scaled back operations. But not Hyland. Under the direction of co-founder Packy Hyland, the company was 120 employees strong and offered approximately 20 to 30 software modules under its OnBase document management umbrella.
Hyland turned over the company reins to his brother, A.J. Hyland, in 2001, and today, Hyland Software boasts more than 525 employees and 80 software modules.
“It’s been prolific growth,” says A.J. Hyland. “We’ve used a channel partner approach for distribution and laser focused ourselves on vertical expertise.”
That’s a dramatic difference from five years ago, when the company sold its software across nearly every industry. Today, Hyland focuses on just five industries — financial services, health care, insurance, government and education.
“We’ve aligned the company to specific expertise,” says Hyland. “A lot of our growth is now working with our customer base in those verticals and developing new modules to fit their needs.”
The company has also expanded in the international market. Hyland staffs offices in London and Brazil, and by year-end, it will open an office in Japan.
Swagelok Co.
When Joe Callahan was honored in 1995 as an Entrepreneur Of The Year, he had spent more than three decades building a legacy of innovation at Swagelok Co. In 2000, Callahan retired and was replaced by president and CEO Art Anton, who is helping transform Swagelok from a traditional manufacturer of high-quality fittings and valves to a more responsive organization dedicated to helping customers solve difficult problems.
Under Anton, the 3,300 employee, $1 billion private company has been adapting to the global economy and a global customer base. Swagelok is expanding not only its product lines but also its order fulfillment strategies, says Anton.
The company is transitioning from a make-to-stock fulfillment model based on stainless steel components to one that responds faster through make-to-order, configure-to-order and engineer-to-order products, including plastics
Anton’s strategy was enabled by the company’s recent investment in a new center in Solon, which houses assembly, finished goods warehousing, customer service and order fulfillment.
“The new order fulfillment center is part of our overall strategy to reduce costs and increase speed to market,” he says.
As part of its new vision to truly understand the needs of the customer and act on them, Swagelok is also enhancing the service offerings of about 200 authorized Swagelok sales and service centers. These services include on-line quoting and ordering, punchouts and technical support for product selection and application decisions.
RPM Inc.
When Thomas Sullivan was honored with an Entrepreneur Of The Year Award in 2003, his company was in the midst of changes. He had stepped down as CEO of the venerable company two years earlier, and his son, Frank, had assumed the reins and begun a major corporate restructuring.
Today, under Frank Sullivan, RPM has completed that restructuring, which included consolidating its number of business units from 30 to six. A spate of acquisitions had created too many units reporting to RPM, and Sullivan shuffled his deck to organize the companies into six segments that allowed for better management.
RPM, which built a reputation for its aggressive acquisition strategy and years of profitable earnings, continues to do both.
Recent acquisitions include Illbruck Sealant Systems, Tamm’s Industries and Custom Building Products’ ready-to-use patch and repair product line to bolster the company’s DAP product line. Last year, RPM closed its books with just over $2.5 billion in sales and profit of $105 million.
So far this year, Sullivan says the company remains on track to increase both of those numbers.
In April, RPM announced record third-quarter sales of $612.5 million, an 18 percent increase over the previous year. And, in the quarter that is traditionally RPM’s weakest, its third quarter net loss was $2.7 million, nearly 44 percent better than the previous year.
“We continue to be encouraged by what we’re seeing in our top line,” says Sullivan. “Strong demand continues to drive organic sales throughout the business, producing 10 percent of our growth this quarter. Acquisition growth was 9 percent, reflecting mainly the purchase of Illbruck Sealant Systems. With strong sales momentum carrying into our fourth quarter, we expect to achieve record sales and earnings for the full fiscal year.”
How to reach: Hyland Software, www.onbase.com; Swagelok Co., www.swagelok.com; RPM Inc., www.rpminc.com
