Testimonials

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

Very effective tool for evaluating candidates. Extremely helpful in creating expectations for those hired. It is helpful to understand individual strengths and weaknesses as well as providing direction for goals and improvement. We will not hire any new key employees without having them evaluated through a Performance Dynamics® assessment.

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

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

In addition to recommending and placing A+ leaders within our organization, Giombetti Associates has also provided our leadership team with the tools, structure, and guidance which has helped enable us to successfully scale our organization to meet an increased customer demand for our products and services. Our relationship with Giombetti Associates is now into its 7^th year and continues today due to not only their expertise and breadth of services, but also the manner in which they provide their services. The GA staff is always friendly, outgoing, and energetic. Their honest and personal approach that they take with their clients is something that sets them apart from the ‘fly-by-night’ and internet competition. It is because of these that we hope to continue our relationship for years to come!

—Bobby O’Neil, Director of Operations: Aegis Energy Services

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

We have been working with Giombetti Associates for the past eight years partnering with them both on candidate selection and development. The candidate selection process provides us a deeper level of evaluation of each candidate and insight into how the candidate may perform and behave. The assessment results enhance our ability to dig in deeper to ensure we are selecting the right candidate for the role. In addition, the Giombetti team has become an important part in the continued development of our people.

We work with Ross and Amanda to understand the potential of each person and to determine how to manage and guide them through their individual development needs. Our employees appreciate the feedback, even though it is tough at times. This feedback allows them to become more self-aware of their tendencies and behaviors and adjust accordingly.

Giombetti has also been instrumental in teambuilding within our business and facilitates sessions focused on team dynamics and performance. This provides the atmosphere for people to have raw conversations, get to know each other on a deeper level and increase trust and respect. Giombetti has been a great partner to IGS and an asset to our people.

—Jenni Kovach, Chief People Officer: IGS Energy

The Giombetti Leadership program has changed my life and helped me discover who I am. As I look back on this experience, this program helped me be a better team player, a happier person and overall a better leader in all aspects of my life. The team members create an atmosphere that allows you to improve yourself and truly discover who you are.

—Katie Acciardo

Sometimes it takes someone you know and trust to figuratively smack you across the face to “wake you up” and make you realize your personal weaknesses are affecting your level of overall success. That’s what Ross did for me one day right as I started down a path to lead our family business. Five years later, he has proved to be more of a life coach than anything, which helped me in my personal relations and in turn allowed me to better succeed as a leader in our company. Without Ross, it is clear that my personal and professional relationships would not be as strong as they are today and for that I am forever indebted to him and his team.

—David French, President: Tri- W Group

The programs offered by Giombetti Associates were beneficial in both my personal life and my career in human resources. If I could have changed only one thing, it would be to have participated in this program much earlier in my life.

—Deborah Beauchemin, Human Resources Supervisor: Atlas Copco Compressors, Inc.

Ideally, there aren’t huge surprises in these reviews. Even without major blind spots, there were a few takeaways that changed how I work with my team. The Giombetti review process validated that I remain calm under pressure, something I’ve always been proud of. What I learned, however, is that at times my calmness created doubt about whether I recognized situational urgency or would take necessary action. I also learned I wouldn’t lose credibility as a stoic leader if I occasionally expressed more direct and immediate feedback about things that can’t be tolerated.

We are all the masters of our intentions, but we can’t control how we’re perceived. Taking time to reflect on the gap between how we intend to show up and what others actually observe is important.

—Caleb Messer, Executive Chairman: GME Supply

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

The three-day seminar was perfect for me. I needed that deep dive into understanding how each trait is developed, displayed and used to understand me and the impact I have on others. The side benefit is that you get to understand both sides of the coin and that turns the lights on when thinking about how other people in your life create, deal with or flee from circumstances.  If we are to seek to understand rather than be understood, this is a great place to begin by understanding yourself.

—Vance Mauldin, Vice President: Team Fishel

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

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.

—Stu Arthur, Vice President of Sales: Interstate Gas Supply, Inc.

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

At Incline and across our portfolio companies, we operate at a fast pace and hold teams to a very high standard. Giombetti’s 360 Degree Review program gives us a clear, well-rounded view of how our leaders are showing up across the organization—not just what they deliver, but how they lead. That perspective is invaluable for focused coaching and for building aligned, high-performing teams in demanding environments.

—Jack Glover, Managing Partner: Incline Equity Partners

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

Over many years we have relied heavily on GA to be an integral part of building teams that are transparent, vulnerable, and self-aware which has been a foundation to long-term business success. As a leader, Ross and his team have played a significant role in my journey and development.

—Jason Moore, CEO: IGS Energy Home Services: CEO of IGS Home Warranty & Vice President of IGS Energy

We have used the Giombetti pre-employment assessment and Leadership Development classes for our management positions for several years. The assessment is so simple yet so accurate, I am always astonished at how deeply they can understand a person by having them answer just a few questions. The feedback sessions are probing, educational and most important, supportive. The assessment provides invaluable information that helps put the right person in their best role so both they and the organization see success. It is also a great tool for leaders/coaches to help guide and develop their team members, building on each person’s individual strengths. The Leadership Development classes get high marks from those who attend. They create a fun and safe environment to look inward, everyone leaves with skills to help them be a better person, co-worker, coach, leader.

—Kelly Turley, SVP Operations & Administration: W.W. Williams

I had an incredibly positive experience working with Ross and the rest of his team while I was in high school, so I pushed for my younger sister Julia to go as well, knowing now the positive impact it can have on your future.

—Liz Mastrio

Our company, particularly upper management, put a lot of stock in the Performance Dynamics® assessment. It is fast becoming a crucial criterion for selection to executive positions in our company. We are also beginning to utilize the PDA for selection of new managers, as well.

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