Continue reading »]]> I wrote this customer testimonial letter for Holly Bonderson of American Classifieds in May 2009. To this very day even though we don’t advertise much, she still checks in with us.

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To Whom It May Concern:

I first became acquainted with Holly a few years ago when she first worked at the customer service desk at American Classifieds. During this time I worked with another Sales Representative and became disenchanted because of inconsistent service and sloppy work where he made mistakes on our ads.

During this time, Holly was promoted to a Sales Representative and I was recommended to her.  I specifically asked for someone who was going to be competent as a replacement because we were regular advertisers of American Classifieds and needed reliable service.  The office recommended Holly for our account.

I am happy to say Holly has been and continues to be a delight to work with.  She is conscientious, competent, and mindful in her care of our account. She makes my life so easy with her pleasant, easy demeanor.  She is diligent in her weekly email reminders that I do not miss deadlines because every week passes by so quickly.

Even when I occasionally forget the email reminder, she makes a friendly reminder phone call to me personally.  I often regard her as my “right hand” person when it comes to ensuring that my advertising requirements through the American Classifieds are properly executed.

For the foreseeable future, I want Holly to continue being our Sales Representative.  And if anyone at her office ever decided to take her off of our account, I can honestly say I would quickly become unhappy by such a decision.

Holly is truly a credit and valuable asset to American Classifieds. I highly recommend her to more demanding clients that need a friendly and capable Sales Representative to handle and care for their account.

Sincerely,

Matthew Chan
OwnerFinanceHomes.com

Continue reading »]]> It isn’t often I write a letter like this for a group of people but I was happy to do it.

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May 13, 2011

James M. Wells III, Chairman & CEO
William H. Rogers, Jr., President & COO
c/o Suntrust Banks, Inc.
303 Peachtree Street NE
Atlanta, GA 30308

Mr. Wells & Mr. Rogers:

I wanted to take a moment to do something a bit unorthodox. I am making a formal compliment by writing this unsolicited letter to give high and proper recognition to the staff of the Bradley Park Publix branch in Columbus, Georgia.

The current branch manager is headed by Patrick O’hara. The current assistant branch manager is Kim Guzman. I would also like to recognize the prior assistant manager, Joe Theriault, who has since moved on to another Suntrust branch but fully deserves recognition for his tenure at Bradley Park Publix. The tellers/customer service staff include: Glorimar Irizarry, Amy Mills, and Kim Wilkes.

The reason I have taken the time to write this unorthodox letter is that too often complaints rule the day. I believe it is quite infrequent for someone, especially a customer, to say “good job each and every time I see you” in a meaningful and impactful way. I know enough about the banking business to know that being on the “front lines” can often be a thankless job for them which is one reason why there is so much turnover in the industry.

But for this distinguished staff at Bradley Park Publix, you need to know that at least one of their business customers cares enough to write about them and appreciates what they do day in and day out without fail. Working at a Suntrust Publix branch can be challenging due to their limited workspace and the high amount of walk-by traffic. They are, without fail, always “onstage” compared to their traditional branch counterparts. Even when there are no customers in line, they are still being indirectly observed from afar by virtue of the Publix store environment.

As a general rule, I try to conduct my business respectfully and fairly. I am friendly but generally stay removed and distant. Having said that, I do not think the staff knows they have won me over during their individual and collective tenures there. I truly like each of these individual employees as people and I respect them for who they are.

I remember most of my first meetings with them and have watched them grow and evolve wonderfully. For example, when Patrick assumed his position as branch manager, I remember him reaching out to call me and leave me a voicemail to come and meet him. I remember how a fellow staff member spoke highly of Kim Guzman when she first came over from another branch. I remember Glorimar Irizarry during her initial training and how she has since evolved to be a very capable and confident teller. I remember teasing Kim Wilkes how there are just too many Kim’s at this branch to keep track of. I remember Amy for her confidence.

Recently, I was happy with the decision to promote Kim Guzman internally as replacement for the departure of Joe Theriault. As for Joe, he has since departed the branch but he was tremendously upbeat and always of great service attitude. His enthusiasm is infectious.

As a team, I think they are phenomenal and they seem to exude this magical work chemistry when they are together. If they have disagreements or conflict with one another, they conceal them well and I am unaware of them. They are all friendly and respectful to one another and that work chemistry seems to translate well to their customer interactions.

As far as I can remember in my recent business history, I consider them my banking “dream team” in that I feel that if I call any of them, they know and recognize me. I feel they take me seriously and treat my requests or issues with priority and importance. The fact that they work in such close quarters to one another but also so close in physical proximity to their customers appears to work for them. In most cases, I would expect that close quarters and close proximity to customers would, in fact, make them more stressed in their positions.

As I conclude this letter, I respectfully request that my letter be considered for any future career opportunities your employees may seek. I would also request that you pass a copy of this letter on to them. In the spirit of giving formal recognition, I feel that Patrick O’hara, Joe Theriault, Kim Guzman, Glorimar Irizarry, Amy Mills, and Kim Wilkes (individually and as a team) should be recognized for their ongoing, outstanding customer service. I appreciate them very much.

In the meantime, I look forward to continuing to visiting them in my normal course of business as I always do several times per month.

Respectfully,

Matthew Chan
President

Cc: Allen Taber, Area President

Continue reading »]]> Supposedly, 2011 is the year for when BRAC arrives full force into Columbus, Georgia (GA). Below, are the latest links to articles regarding BRAC and its possible impact on Columbus, GA and the surrounding areas. The most recent articles are listed at the top.

• Chattahoochee Valley schools brace for BRAC, budget cuts

• Benning’s boost from BRAC expected to impact surrounding housing, retail sectors

• People boom from BRAC at Fort Benning about to be seen

• Demand for water rises with BRAC

• BRAC by the numbers

• FT BENNING GROWTH ESTIMATES & TIMELINE

• FT BENNING MONTHLY BRAC UPDATE

Note: This post will be updated in the weeks and months leading to September 15, 2011, the final deadline.

Continue reading »]]> I am happy to announce that Martha Leverett (who has managed my office and accounting for nearly half a decade) and I have decided to join forces to launch Intrepid Bookkeeping Services, a brand-new accounting and bookkeeping service firm in the Columbus, Georgia area.

We have worked quite well over the years and have complementary skills sets. We felt there was a need for a more progressive bookkeeping and accounting firm in our area. It has been my experience that many current firms are not technologically progressive and very conservative in how they operate.

Having embraced used and implemented technology in very creative ways in our own accounting operation, we felt other businesses in our area could benefit from our experience. Since we have a good business reputation and established track record in our area, we are optimistic in finding some great new clients to work with.

The sales description of Intrepid Bookkeeping Services is listed below.

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We provide expert and accurate accounting and bookkeeping services to small businesses in Columbus Georgia (GA) and surrounding areas.

We provide the following bookkeeping and accounting services:

• “After-the-fact” bookkeeping & reports
• Clean up “shoe-box” accounting receipts/paperwork
• Year-end accounting & reports
• Multi-company / multi-business accounting
• Multi-industry accounting expertise
• Payroll check generation and payroll reporting
• QuickBooks & Microsoft Excel accounting & support
• Training & Consulting
• Remote & Long-distance client support
• Small business startup support
• Small business office computer and network setup
• Off-site accounting data backup

We have multi-industry accounting experience!

Look at the wide variety of industries our clients come from:

• Real estate agency accounting
• Property management and landlord accounting
• Building & construction accounting
• Attorney/Lawyer & law firm accounting
• City/Municipal accounting
• Retail & point-of-sale accounting
• Ecommerce & Internet business accounting
• Auto Dealership accounting
• Furniture retail store accounting
• Senior accounting (Accounting for senior citizens & the elderly)
• Trucking accounting
• Storage shed retail and rentals accounting
• Publishing & book sales accounting

Continue reading »]]> I am happy to announce that my friend and real estate business partner, Wes Weaver, got engaged to Brandy Sheffield.  I am very happy for the couple.  I think they will make a great couple.  I was honored and privileged to have been invited and attended the private family and close friends event at his parents house in Midland, GA.

I look forward to their wedding whenever they decide it should be.

Continue reading »]]> Last Thursday, I attended the 2nd Annual Poverty Symposium organized by Enrichment Services Program Inc., a Georgia non-profit organization.

It was interesting that I had received an invitation to this free event. It turns out that I received an invitation because of my prior attendance of last year’s Jim Blanchard Leadership Forum. In that event, it attracted many people from both the private and public sectors who had an interest in leadership and the future of business.

I was impressed that someone would create an event and assemble an interesting roster of attendees to discuss the issue local poverty.  Local politicians, representatives, public agencies, and non-profit organizations appeared to be the target audience.  Whereas I, representing small business in the private sector, seemed to be in the small minority.

Although the Poverty issue is certainly not the most exciting or inspiring subject to learn and think about, I am not oblivious of its impact locally, regionally, nationally, and even globally.  Poverty affects everyone even the affluent, wealthy, and the rich.

Unlike presidential candidate John Edwards, who made it a major issue in his campaign, I do not think that government and non-profit organizations can themselves solve this problem.  They can provide some funding and services to assist in the effort and deal with the symptoms but fundamentally, businesses and private sector must ultimately get involved to make a huge difference.

Danny Bivins of The Fanning Institute at the University of Georgia in Athens was the opening moderator of a Panel Discussion that included representatives from the Housing Authority of Columbus GA, United Way, Columbus Public Library, and Open Door Community House.

It was interesting because I have interacted with each of these agencies to various degrees through my normal course of business.  I listened as to what their opinions were regarding the local poverty issue.

A big part of the Panel discussion was finding and acknowledging the “root causes” of poverty, not simply the symptoms.  Issues such as high school education, affordable housing, diversity, home ownership, teen pregnancy, and marriage were all touched upon as “so-called” root causes.

In my mind, I agreed with much of what they said but I also disagreed with a good portion of it.  Most of the issues were politically-correct discussions that avoided the central and politically-charged issue:  the Culture of Poverty.

In the audience, were a few people that were beneficiaries of government programs and non-profit organization services.  So much of the day’s discussion focused on what the government, non-profit organizations, legistlation, and social programs could do help.  There was almost NO discussion on what the private sector and businesses could do to help.  There was also almost NO discussion of personal responsibility of what people in poverty needed to do to pull themselves out of poverty.

In the Poverty Symposium attendee folder, the Shriver Center included a packet that supposedly graded politicians and their performance in fighting poverty.  Not surprisingly, Republicans got failing grades and Democrats got excellent grades.  It was based on voting records on what the Shriver Center perceives as important bills to combat poverty.  From what I could see, there was little regard to the costs of each social program.  I have no doubt each bill have merit but I thought to myself, who pays for every single program that is going to be proposed?

In any case, it quickly appeared to me that the packet by the Shriver Center was clearly Democrat-leaning.  For the record, I classify myself as an Independent.  I cannot classify myself as a traditional Republican or a traditional Democrat.  I disagree enough with both parties to keep myself Independent.

Although Congressmen and Senators were invited, none attended in person.  Young representatives of each politician’s office were there to make their presence known.

Deborah Weinstein of the Coalition on Human Needs, concluded the day with her perspective on the national level. Admittedly, she said each community must do their part to deal with the poverty issue.  Not everything could be handled on the national level.  I agreed with her. But in her presentation, there appeared to be a “hole” in her presentation.

Like her non-profit peers, the focus seems to provide more services and more government programs.  Being patient for most of the day, I finally tried to ask a question regarding why there was no discussion about how businesses and the private sector could be involved in a way that didn’t always require donating money.  It seems that all businesses and private sector are good for are money donations which somewhat offended my sensibilities.

I also desperately wanted to know why no one wanted to tackle the Culture of Poverty and the Poverty Mindset which is ultimately what keeps many people poor, not necessarily the lack of services or opportunity.

Ultimately, a woman who came from poverty and a beneficiary of non-profit services got more “air-time” than others who had resources and fresh ideas to offer.

After the program ended, I had the opportunity to speak to Junie Christian who was a Host of the Poverty Symposium and Belva Dorsey, Executive Director of Enrichment Services Program.  I asked about why there was almost no discussion of the Culture of Poverty issue.

I brought up the well-known saying “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.”  Quite simply, I wondered why there are not more educational programs that deal with this.

I also shared the well-known tales of lottery winners who come into a lot of money through their winnings but ultimately run their lives into the ground.  They do so not because they never had the chance to get money, they do so because they fundamentally are poverty-cultured.

They were surprisingly pleasant and engaged my discussion.  I told them I was also concerned about the poverty issue but my “small business” and entrepreneurial perspective vastly differed from the non-profit sector’s approach. Nevertheless, I told them I was willing to keep an open mind to any information they might have since I cannot claim to be an expert on the poverty issue.

All in all, I did not regret my time at the Poverty Symposium.  It did give me a different perspective on the poverty issue and it gave me time to reflect on how I might do my part to help.  But I did know that I wasn’t going to simply throw money on the problem.

It should be interesting to see what happens now going forward

Continue reading »]]> Today was a crazy day. Since I moved to Georgia in 1997, I have never seen this much snow. The snowfall and snow flurries I saw today were scenes I only saw when I visited places like Wisconsin, Minnesota, New York, and Colorado.

It was just crazy seeing my car buried in the snow. I know my Northern friends thinks this is funny since they get this type of snow almost everyday during the winter. But for us down here in the South, it is unusual.

It was so unusual, I decided to become a CNN iReporter and submitted my videos and photos to CNN’s iReport. Surprisingly, it has received many views.

Continue reading »]]> Last week, I had the great pleasure to attend the 3rd annual Jim Blanchard Leadership Forum here in Columbus, GA.  It isn’t often there is a collection of high-profile speakers and authors that come into the local area.  When I found out about it the Friday before the Monday-Tuesday event, I jumped on it.

The speakers were:  Dr. & Congressman Newt Gingrich, General Russel Honore, Daniel Pink, Thomas Friedman, John Maxwell, and GA Chief Justice Leah Sears.

I have to say each person made an impact on me in their own special way.  On Day One, I was impressed by how knowledgeable Newt Gingrich was in his presentation.  He went past political arguments to present his case on improving the health care system.

General Russel Honore of Hurricane Katrina fame gave a funny, entertaining but also very serious speech on preparedness.  I felt that more government officials should have heard his speech.  He gave me a perspective of public service that was inspiring.

On Day Two, GA Chief Justice Leah Sears gave a short speech on familes and education.  Her speech was much shorter than anticipated which led to an extended break.

Daniel Pink of “A Whole New Mind” was dynamic and brought a youthful energy into the presentations.  I loved his book which continues to resonate and impact me as I do business.

John Maxwell who has written many titles on Leadership (of which I have several in my bookshelf) gave his view of the 5-levels of leadership.  Those 5-levels made me reflect where I stood in my leadership abilities.

Finally, Thomas Friedman of “The World is Flat” and “The Lexus & Olive Tree” fame presented material from his new book “Hot, Flat, and Crowded”.  His talk was sweepingly huge and had global proportions.  He talked about “global weirding”, a flat world, that is growing in population exponentially.  I enjoyed his thoughtful and low-key approach.

The event was a success with around 800 people in attendance.  They provided two hot lunches and a hot breakfast as part of the event.  The part I did not like was that neither day were full days.  They were only partial days.  However, the 2-day event was only $299 which was a bargain for me especially since I did not have to travel as I normally do.

As the Leadership Forum ended, an announcement was made that Colin Powell would head next year’s line-up.  Colin Powell is an amazing role model, a tremendous thinker, and diplomat.  I will definitely be there for next year’s event.