Unlock the Full Potential of Your Investment Through People

Hey guys,

I wanted to take a few days to reflect and absorb the training and see how some of the suggestions and realizations from last week played out once I was back in “the real world”, before sending this email to you. I won’t lie and tell you that I did not come into this training with a certain amount of skepticism. I have done a few of these types of things over my career before and quite frankly, I thought they were a great way for the people presenting to make a living. I mean, you get to stand up in front of a room full of people and tell them how to be a better (fill in the blank here), and how to contribute to their companies in a more effective manner. And get payed for it!

A few things that I observed to help make this a different dynamic are as follows.

1. You all sat at the same level as us.
   • There wasn’t any feeling of this being a PRESENTATION. It truly felt like a discussion. Which I’m sure was by design. It made it so comfortable to actually share thoughts and ideas. It’s much easier to check out when you are being “talked to”.
     1. I have tried to be mindful of my body language and positioning when I have had discussions with team members, co-workers, or family.
2. You allowed us to have different goals.
   • What I mean by this is, you allowed us to have different end games for this training. I know some of the team wanted to try to reach problem employees or be a better manager, while some others wanted to focus on how to be a better husband, father or friend. As well as the evolution of that goal. Some of the statements about the takeaways at the end were not in line with what they thought they would get out of it.
     1. No names, but several folks that said they wanted to be a better manager or better leader at the end talked about not being real or open with personal relationships versus the professional aspect. I think the correlation between who you are outside of work, as a person, and who your team thinks you are was eye opening. At least it was to me!!
     2. I have made a concerted effort to try to make sure that I am sensitive to the fact that different people want/need different things. And that’s OK!
3. You were real!
   • This is huge for me. I like to think that I have a pretty good B.S. meter and the minute the needle starts to move; I tend to shut down and just get through the interaction as quickly and painlessly as possible.
     1. From the second we came in, you all had big smiles and warm invite
     2. You shared personal stories that left you out there, vulnerable. This helped me be real and open.

I can’t tell you how much warmth and genuine compassion I felt from all of you during the training. I know my goodwill score is 96, which I’m sure contributes to me being a bit sappy at times, but I was a bit surprised that I got emotional in a room full of strangers when I talked about how I want to make things better with my family. I know that is a direct result of the environment that you ALL built over the course of the 3 days.

Not to keep going on, but I wanted to share a couple things that I have already done differently that I know was appreciated, even though nobody said a word. The first was as my family sat down for our weekly board game night, I made sure that I was the one to make sure that everyone had drinks, snacks whatever we needed before we started. That has always just been handled by Michelle, my wife. There is NO reason that she needs to be the last one to sit down, even if she doesn’t complain. Another thing is we were going to the grocery store and I turned the radio station to the one that my family likes. The world stopped for a minute…LOL . I despise 95% of the music on “their” station! I mean how can you go wrong with listening to Boston or Van Morrison??? But in that moment of pain and despair of listening to the latest and greatest from, whatever the flavor of the week was, I noticed all 3 of them kind of bounce their heads a bit to the rhythm. That was cool. I mean really, why should I get to decide what music we listen to ALL THE TIME? Just because I happen to be the one driving, which oh by the way, I don’t want anyone else to drive but me??? To quote a very wise man…that’s BAD, BAD, BAD. STOP IT! Haha, I must have heard Rick say that 40 times last week!!

Seriously guys, thank you all for the love and compassion that I felt from all of you. It means more than I can tell you! I look forward to speaking with you soon. Take care.

—Ernie Edgell, Manager C&I Field Sales: IGS Energy

I can remember thinking that Ross and the team were attempting to assimilate me into this perfect robot teenager, but it was not that at all. They did an amazing job of individualizing their advice to each of us. They recognized where our strengths were and found our weaknesses, but only sought to improve them. I am not perfect, and never will be. What I continue to take away from my experience with Giombetti Associates is that there is always room for improvement.

—Will Ryan

So you want to be a superstar? This assessment is not only accurate, it’s fun! I now know my own behavior in personal and professional communications. It has been extremely helpful in sales and conflict management with fellow team members and business associates.

—Ken Stacey, Sales Engineer: Belt Technologies

Most definitely a life changing training session. My personal life relationships have already improved. The relationship between me and my wife and parents have improved already. The experience of being in a room with 30 high energy high productivity people was breath taking. It helped build my self-confidence and opened my mind to many perspectives. The trainers were strong enough to manage this group, keep everybody on topic and still managed to make it a personal improvement discussion.

—Rui Parracho, Sales Technical Service Manager: Bixby International Corporation

My experience shows through in my everyday life. I came to realize my patience level was beneficial in school during group projects, and that I needed to strengthen my dominance to assert my needs. Overall, this program has given me skills and valuable lessons that brought me to the success I have today.

—Grace Beaupre

I was unsure what this training could do for me and afterwards it is life changing. A true self development assessment that applies to every aspect of life.

—Timothy Gilbert, Production Manager: ProTech Industries

A one-hour conversation with Rick revealed more about my management style than I had learned in five years of management experience.

—Rick Lamb, Plant Manager: Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc.

This assessment has not only helped our organization immensely, but it has done great things for the personal development of some very talented people.

—Steve Mitus, Executive V.P. and CFO: Balise Motor Sales Company

They did an amazing job of individualizing their advice to each of us. They recognized where our strengths were and found our weaknesses, but only sought to improve them.

—Will Ryan

Great experience! Gives you tools to improve your effectiveness. Provided the opportunity to role play and interact with peers who are faced with similar challenges to be effective with our personnel. I learned that collaboration and communication are important skills to use to solve any problem. Rick Giombetti and his staff created a challenging and fun packed seminar.

—David Cistoldi, President: FLN-MAR Rubber & Plastics, Inc.

I have had the privilege of working with Giombetti Associates for the past 20+ years. One of the reasons I continue to use their services is because I believe in their products.

As a leader in my organization, I have been entrusted with many responsibilities; however, nothing I do is more important than hiring and developing people. The assessment tools (Pre-Employment Assessments, Performance Dynamics, 360◦ Review and Leadership Development Training) provided by Giombetti Associates enable me to make better-informed decisions with respect to acquiring talent; while simultaneously delivering important insight to facilitate talent development.

The founder of Giombetti Associates, Rick Giombetti, once told me that “Leadership is a team sport.” Fortunately, the tools utilized by Giombetti Associates have created a win-win situation for their clients and their associates.

—Jim Porcaro, Vice President of Operations: Inline Plastics Corps.

I would not think of hiring for a key position without utilizing the Performance Dynamics® assessment. The process is so enlightening for all parties involved.

—Nan Hurlburt, CEO: DesignWorks

I have great admiration for what you and Rick do because you DO change lives. I hope at some point I have shown the proper gratitude, but if not let me thank you for all that you have done for me in the past because you have helped me tremendously. I am thankful that Baich brought you into IGS when he did because a cloud has been lifted off me that I didn’t even know was there! Self-deception is a tricky thing in that it is easily hidden behind a high paced environment and even “success.” Although I have a long way to go, I wouldn’t have started without Giombetti, and a company that cares enough to take this path. I look forward to continuing our relationship. You need to take my wife and I to one of your Italian restaurants in Boston.

—Stu Arthur, Vice President of Sales: IGS Energy

ComDoc has had the privilege of working with Giombetti Associates for over 20+ years. Initially, our intent was to incorporate their behavioral testing tools to identify talent and add an element of science to our recruiting process. Although these behavioral assessments and tools have provided a foundation for decision making on incoming personnel as well as our existing talent, the real value has gone well beyond these basic tools. As an organization, personal and professional development has become an integral strategy to the growth of our business which has allowed us to retain our leadership team, and in turn, our organization’s talent at all levels.

The impact that Ross Giombetti and his team has had relative to succession planning, leadership development, and improvements in teaching and coaching have all contributed to our exceptional growth in both revenue and profitability. Currently, our organization is undergoing a tremendous amount of change and transition. Our relationship with Giombetti Associates will help us navigate through these challenging times and provide outside perspective that reinforces how important leadership and development are to an organizations’ success.

One very specific example is a tool identified as the “User Manual” in which approximately twelve of our senior leaders have developed and refined in an effort to improve the strength of our team. This tool, developed by Giombetti, is a roadmap that our leaders can share with their teams to provide a very transparent picture of their leader’s style, strengths, vulnerabilities, and expectations. This tool has stimulated tremendous dialog with our leadership team and reinforces the value of servant leadership and provides a very clear picture of what it takes to be a successful leader at ComDoc. Having Giombetti facilitate these tools and provide face-to-face feedback to our leadership group, along with senior leadership involvement, has been instrumental.

Our partnership has strengthened over the years with Giombetti due to their ability to add tangible and measurable outcomes for our leadership team and our entire organization. I want to share my personal thanks to Ross and his entire team for adding tremendous value to the most important ingredient to our success, and that is our people!

—Stu Wise, Regional President: ComDoc, A Xerox Company

This program provided me valuable and honest feedback about myself that has allowed me to excel in all aspects of my life. As cliché as it sounds, this program has changed my life, and without this program, I would not be as successful as I am today.

—Kristin Rheault

I’d recommend this course for anyone in management or preparing for management or working on teams.

—Jack Kennedy, Senior Director: Biosurgery R&D, U.S. Surgical

For me personally it was a wonderful experience. It was an eye opening, life changing, team building exercise. I could go on and on about the positive impact it has had on ME, my team and my family.

Please see below a few things from me and my team:

• I mark the time spent with Ross and Giombetti Associates as truly life-changing. To have clarity about my core values, to understand what makes me tick, to have tools to manage work and life situations – these are gifts. I’m grateful that MORSCO invested in me, and in all of us.
• Spending time with Ross and his team was truly a life-changing experience! Because of my time with Giombetti Associates, I have a greater self-awareness than I ever could have hoped for. This has put me is position to be a more impactful leader for my team, a stronger team member for my company, and a better leader for my family
• Ross and the entire team at Giombetti created a very direct, and self-reflecting approach to personal improvement.  I was struck by the correlation between personal and work. There are certainly things that I continue to struggle with, but I am very aware of my impact on people today. That was not the case in the past. The personal relationship that your team develops with their customer is second to none. I would also recommend the 360 review for any manager or leader. This was incredibly impactful to me on the things that I do that are both good and bad. I learned more about myself and the perception that others have of me. I will always value this time, and hope to continue my path of learning with the Giombetti group moving forward.

Thanks to the entire group for creating a customer for life.

—Nick Colletti, Regional Vice President: MORSCO

For nearly 30 years, our team at Riverlake Partners has engaged Giombetti & Associates to help improve our odds of success for key hires across our portfolio companies nationwide. As we build executive teams, we rely on Giombetti’s Performance Dynamics® to assess the qualities and characteristics of each leader, with the goal of assembling highly functional teams where individual strengths and weaknesses complement one another.

One of the first steps in building our leadership teams is the implementation of Giombetti’s 360 Degree Review process, beginning with the CEO and expanding from there. This approach creates buy-in, encourages honest feedback and provides real data to address challenges and build on strengths. Without real feedback, credibility—and ultimately success—is difficult to achieve.

—Erik Krieger, Partner: Riverlake Partners

I was introduced to Rick by a college buddy I was meeting for dinner. During dinner Rick was asking me way too many questions and I responded, “have you finished analyzing me yet?” Rick responded yes and proceeded to tell me about his company, Giombetti Associates, and offered to do a complete analysis on myself to show how the program worked.

That was in 2005. Afterwards I was so impressed with the process I immediately put my entire senior management team through the process. Everyone was amazed at how thorough the process was and how helpful it was to better understand themselves as leaders and a much clearer understanding of their strengths and weaknesses. I then had Rick put them all together and had him coach me as to how I could be a better leader by knowing how to interpret my skill set against theirs.

That session has been a key to my long and successful career as the President and now CEO of Savage Arms. It was also instrumental in helping us understand the contributing factors to our company culture. Since then we have not hired a single salaried employee without having an assessment done. Although not a perfect system it has really helped us from making many hiring mistakes. If I received a commission on all my referrals over the years I would be retired with Rick. I have never had a referral complaint.

—Al Kasper, President/CEO: Savage Arms

The Giombetti Associates 360 Degree Review process provides real insight into the difference between how your leadership is viewed and received versus how it looks to you. This perspective is difficult to obtain, yet vital to the development of serious leaders. If you are ready to receive an honest ‘grade’ on your leadership from the people who matter most, say yes to the 360 Degree Review and close the gap between you and your team.

—Sam Smith, Owner : Grower Direct Farms

I hope you are well. I just wanted to take a minute and let you know how much I truly appreciate the opportunity you gave me. Not only were you a fantastic, energetic and knowledgeable teacher but you became a person that I have much respect and admiration for. You have many things I am working towards, including what seems to be the perfect balance between career, life and fun. I won’t lie, at times hearing and then accepting some of the characteristics I possess was VERY hard, but how can I change those things without being aware of them? I can honestly say that within the last month I feel as if I am an entirely new person. I will never change the energy or good spirit I feel I have but I have taken serious notice when I begin to just give in or hold back what I REALLY want. There are days that I feel as if a gigantic weight has been lifted from my shoulders. I am much more aware of who I am as an individual now. It is beyond refreshing. I will always remember the things I learned in class as well as in the leadership program. This program has given me the chance to become a leader now. I am able to give my opinion and not worry about if everyone in the world is happy with it. It has made me aware of changes I need to make to be more successful. The lessons are unforgettable, and I hope that I can pass even a small bit of what I took in on to others. So – again, thank you millions for providing me such an amazing opportunity and a chance to start living truly happy. Cheers to you and your father!

—Heather Caisse, participant in Leadership Development Training and a graduate student in Ross’s Organizational Leadership class