Face to Face - February 2001

Face to Face

Name: John Deane

Title: Founder and Managing Partner

Company: The Alta Group

Location: Incline Village

Type of Business: A consulting and advising group specializing in equipment leasing and lending services throughout the world.

Years in Nevada: 21

Years with Company: 9

Building a professional, global consulting and advising business from scratch, and maintaining an average growth rate of 35 percent per year. Our clients are financial institutions such as Citibank and The World Bank, and also manufacturers or vendors of equipment. We can help them develop financing programs, and show them how to make their programs competitive or enter new markets.

Being elected chairman of the Equipment Leasing Association of America. I was elected by the membership to serve a two-year term from 1991 to 1993. I have been working with financial institutions since 1974, and was formerly president of Nevada National Bank.

The inability to keep Nevada National Leasing Company going as an independent business concern. I helped set it up in 1974, and in 1982 it was sold to Great Western Financial and continued as Great Western Leasing. When it was sold to Citibank in 1987, it was effectively dissolved.

Most Valuable Lesson Learned:

People really are the difference between success and failure. Treat them with respect, whether they are employees or customers.

To continue to grow rapidly without losing the value we bring to our client relationships.

Two words: Stay focused.

Name: Kassie Smith

Title: Owner and President

Company: Design Center West

Location: Las Vegas

Type of Business: Interior design – a retail showroom (Your Home Expressions), a contract and model home division and a builder design center for high-end turnkey projects.

Years in Nevada: 16

Years with Company: 7

Establishing an interior design company with the limited resources available in Las Vegas has been difficult. It was also a challenge to establish credibility and build up a client base in a saturated market.

Being chosen by the city of Henderson as a consultant for the interior design of its 214,000-square-foot City Hall expansion project, which breaks ground this spring. I was approved by the City Council to advise on the furniture, fixtures, interior surfaces and color scheme.

Looking back on when I first started my business, I realize I really didn’t have the tools I needed to impress prospective clients. I didn’t actually fail, but I could have grown more quickly if I had had the tools I do now, such as a professional portfolio, nice photos and a good presentation package.

I have always trusted people and been fair to my clients, but I have learned the hard way that I do not always get fairness in return, so I have to be a little less trusting and keep my eyes open.

I want to do more turnkey projects for our high-end interior design clients, possibly expanding into other states, and also expand our model home division.

To be successful as a woman in business, you have to be 10 times as aggressive as a man, and you have to learn to stand your ground.

Name: William Allen Kaercher

Title: President/CEO

Company: Kaercher Insurance Agency

Location: Las Vegas

Type of Business: Insurance Brokers for commercial and personal lines, risk management, bonds, benefits and life insurance

Years in Nevada: 50 (Las Vegas native)

Years with Company: Family-owned business

Operating a family-owned business presents unique challenges. The merger of my father’s business with my business was difficult. The difference in education and technology due to the generation gap created a divergence in communication and philosophy.

I received a Certificate of Special Recognition from the U.S. Senate for my involvement with the annual Juvenile Diabetes Foundation golf tournament, along with the Institute of Management Accountants. I am also proud that my agency was chosen over many national firms as the broker for the Nevada Test Site workers compensation coverage.

I look at a failure as just another learning experience, so I don’t think the word "worst" applies. However, the occasions when I have lost an account have been painful. It always hurts to lose a client, no matter what I learned from it.

I have learned that your most valuable assets in life are your loved ones, family and friends. Material wealth cannot replace those "true life assets." So remember who you actually work for.

My firm wants to be known as one of the insurance leaders, providing quality, highly-sophisticated, high-tech brokerage services in Nevada. We want to be the company people can trust to display integrity and give excellent service.

First, give to your community and you shall receive from it. Second, plan some time each day for personal growth.

Name: John Peter Lee

Title: Partner

Company: John Peter Lee, Ltd.

Location: Las Vegas

Type of Business: Law firm, handling civil litigation in all state and federal courts

Years in Nevada: 45

Years with Company: 30

Keeping up with the growth and change in Las Vegas can be very challenging. Along with the growth come changes in the economy, lifestyles and in the legal profession. What may have been considered top legal matters at one time could be less popular today.

I relish the ability to keep pace with the growing sophistication of the legal profession. This has been a true accomplishment, especially when one considers the ongoing changes in current laws and the amount of stamina needed to understand these laws and provide the utmost representation to clients.

I didn’t accept the opportunity to become a Rhodes Scholar. For an attorney, following through with such an opportunity is a great achievement and very prestigious.

I have learned not to underestimate the abilities of my co-professionals. The attorneys at my firm are hardworking, intelligent and knowledgeable in a vast array of legal areas. Our clients and I can rely on them to give 100 percent of their efforts.

My goal has always been to succeed by serving. Without serving the clients and those we represent, our business would not have flourished and grown throughout the years.

The best guarantee of success in any business or profession is to take a personal interest in those you represent and help them to the best of your abilities.