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A ccutech N orthw est is a com
puter netw orking and sales com
pany that services the govern
m ent and large corporations. It is
based in SW Portland.
H on’ did yo u r business g et
started?
■ Steve M auzey actually started
I it in 1987 and I joined him in
1993 W e had been in the com
puter field since 1979. W e got
tired o f w orking for large corpo-
rations. A t som e point in m y ca
reer, I decided that w orking for
m y self w ould be the only w ay I
could determ ine my future.
H h a t was im portant to you
in choosing a business
partner?
V
It’s extrem ely rare to find
som eone that you can totally trust
your w hole livelihood and life
with. Trust has to be the m ost
im portant thing that goes both
w ays. A lso, there shouldn’t be
any personality conflicts.
Y ou have to w ork as hard as
the other partner. Business part
nerships d o n ’t last w hen you’re
not on the sam e page. I see a
clash there.
W hat were y o u r com pany's
grow th challenges?
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460-3830
I 11
Q U A L I T Y A T L O W P R IC E S
Native American business owner, Larry Lugo and Steve Mauzey o f Accutech Northwest
It’s been steady growth. W e are at
tim es ready to hire another person,
but w e’re kind o f conservative about
doing that. W e w ant anyone who
w orks here to have a jo b for as long
as they w ish if they continue to work
hard. Laying o ff people is som ething
w e d o n ’t w ant to do.
W ew eren't spending enough busi
ness hours on large corporations and
governm ent. We now have about 100
O w ing and operating your ow n
business offers many exciting chal
lenges: being your own boss, the
prospect o f earning a lot ofm oney, or
sim ply ju st doing things “your w ay” .
It also presents other, serious chal
lenges, w hich not everyone is up to.
A re you up to these challenges?
Slipping in any one o f the areas
m entioned below could do the oppo
site o f w hat you w anted in the begin
ning. It can bring a loss in investm ent
m oney, loss o f face, and big-tim e
depression. 1 he sad truth is that more
individuals or groups fail in the startup
and long-term m anagem ent o f a busi
f
B E S T G R E E N S IN P O R T L A N D
businesses?
T he best thing to do in the
service industry is that you have
to be an expert in w hat you do
first. If y o u ’re not, you c a n ’t
survive. It’s extrem ely com peti
tive in this field. T here are lots
o f very good people out there.
Being m ediocre in this industry
is not good enough. Be an ex
pert first.
♦
♦
♦
♦
il
cess really h hinges
on your ability and
capacity to deal w ith m any, different
individuals, including em ployees as
w ell as customers.
6. Pace Y o u r G ro w th : D oing
everything else correctly can lead to
unexpected success and overw helm
you w ith dem and for your product or
service.
C ontinued T o P age
Kirby Fox, founder o f EXCELL
picture in your m ind o f w hat you
w ant your future to look like), and
stating w hat kind o f business y o u ’ll
be in to get there. Follow ing this, you
♦take an inventory o f w here you
1. P ro d u c t o r S ervice: You may
think your product or serv ice will sell
w ith ease. H ow ever, that s far differ
ent from know ing it will. Fundam en
tally, eith erth e m arket w anted it, and
buys it, or, w hen you open your doors
for business you sim ply w on’t make
sales. No one will need or want what
are now,
♦model or design w hat you’ll need
you have to offer.
2. S ales, Im ag e to M a rk e t an d
M a rk e tin g : N othing happens until
you sell som ething, no m atter how
good your product o r service. You
m ust be able to ask for the order, and
5. P eople Skills: Everything gets
done TH RO U GH people. Y ou m ust
respect them, be sensitive to their
to get w here you w ant to go,
♦and lastly, you produce an action
plan (with specific tim elines and who
is to do what) to m ove you from
w here you are to w here you w ant to
be.
♦
1
Business: (503) 283-0201
Fax: (503) 283-0203
Mv Brother’s Bar-BQ
C15
Dad’s Oil Servie
as w ell, potential custom ers m ust
conclude from the w ritten m aterials
that you provide to the m arket, that
you are an organization ofsubstance,
capable and w illing to provide the
best quality value anyw here for their
@
to pay.
A n y advice f o r m inority-ow ned
1 1 J __ _
needs and 1 never . talk
dow n to them.
T reat them no differently than you
w ould w ant to be treated. Rem em ber
that they grow and change along with
your business. As a business owner,
you m ust invest in their ongoing de
velopm ent. This area, far m ore than
anything else I have experienced,
presents the greatest num ber and
variety o f problem s in business. Suc
K irby F ox
ceed.
e
large customers. T hat’s about it.
What cou ld you have done
differently to expan d yo u r
business?
W e could have probably done
m ore governm ent sales. It requires a
larger cash flow. The federal govern
m ent doesn’t pay quickly. Five years
ago, it w ould take them 3 to 6 m onths
Eddie Richey
Josie Richey
ness than succeed.
Forgive me ifthese insights below
seem negative. T hey are intended to
alert you to the dangers that await
you so you can avoid them and suc
f
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5 1 2 8 NORTH ALBINA STREET (AT SUMNER)
Beginning And Successfully
Operating A New Business
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BIG CITY PRODUCE
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Opea
Salutes
M in o rity Business W e e k
Specializing in good down-home
southern style cooking
We appreciate Minority Business
& Salute Minority Business Week
Bring My Brothers Bar-BQ catering to your next.
Picnic
Special Event
Grand Opening
Every occassion deserves to be catered by...
My Brother's Bar-BQ
If this sauce doesn't send you ,
you have nowhere to go.
heating oils
7339 N.E. Martin Luther King Blvd.
Portland, OR 97211
Best Cash Prices Speedy
104 NE Russel
_ Service
Portland, OR 97212
.
282-5111
F" e" d'y
Call For
Quote
VISA
EWEB
T h e E u g e n e W a te r & E le ctric B o a rd
money.
3. Q u a lity a n d C u s to m e r S e r
vice: Q uality is the w ord for today.
C ustom ers expect it as w ell as low est
prices. Y ou m ust be prepared to offer
your very best, at the low est possible
price, w hile m eeting all expectations
o f your custom ers in a courteous,
tim ely, respectful w ay. A nd if they
are not satisfied, you m ust be pre
pared to accept returns, or re-per-
form your service. O bviously, it
do esn ’t m ake sense to be placed in a
position to accept returns and p er
form a service a second tim e. Y ou
w o n ’t m ake any money. T herefore,
do it right the first tim e, all the time.
4. P lan n in g : If you d o n ’t plan to
get w here you w ant to go, you 11
never get there. T he journey to busi
ness success is full o f potholes. I he
process begins w ith understanding
w hat is im portant to you (your val
ues), w riting dow n your vision (the
(E W E B ) L o c a te d In E u g e n e , O re g o n A
a
p ro v id e r O f E le c tric , W a te r & S te a m
M
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S e rv ic e s To T h e C itiz e n s O f E u g e n e /
S p rin g fie ld S a lu te s “ M in o rity B u s in e s s
W e e k ” . E W E B V a lu e s D iv e rs ity In T h e W o rk F o rc e A n d
l
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Is A n E q u a l O p p o rtu n ity E m plo yer. To L e a rn M o re
A b o u t E W E B , V is it O u r W e b S ite A t W W W .E W E B .O R G .
7 518 NE M arli» Lather K iig J r. B iv i.
P• r11 a■d , Orego« 8 72 1 1
(503) 218-5303
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