Posts by admin
B.R. Johnson, LLC Supports Workforce Development in Local Schools
By: Joel LaPuma
Ask a manager at any construction or manufacturing business in New York State and they’ll tell you that one of the biggest challenges is finding young employees. Attracting new trade graduates is urgent in the face of an aging workforce, but lack of awareness of these industries has created a lack of new students. One of the best ways to create this awareness, and corresponding graduates, is by implementing trade education in high school.
Recognizing this need, businesses like B.R. Johnson, LLC have invested in Career & Technical Education (CTE) Pathways programs at schools, which help students achieve the training and certification needed to begin a trade career. The company’s recent partnership with the Syracuse City School District (SCSD) is the next step in its ongoing commitment to building the next generation of skilled trade employees.
B.R. Johnson is a distributor and installer of commercial windows, doors, and hardware, as well as specialty building products. In its fourth generation of ownership, the company is “always looking for ways to strengthen our business as well as others through creative partnerships,” says Tom Resch, General Manager of the Commercial Door Frame and Hardware Business Line. It was Resch who spotted the opportunities CTE programs could create for B.R. Johnson during a tour of the Onondaga-Cortland-Madison Counties BOCES facility:
“The welding programs instructor was extremely receptive to the idea of collaborating with us for internships [and] post education job placement, and we were equally excited for them to tour our facility, work on our material in the classroom and let our welders visit the classroom to speak to real world practices.” This relationship proved so beneficial that Resch joined the BOCES CTE advisory committee.
The BOCES CTE Pathways program has already helped B.R. Johnson grow its workforce: the company hired Jordan Simon, a BOCES graduate, as a welder for its Buffalo location, and she has “done well right out of the gate,” according to Resch, which “shows the promise of looking to programs like this for employees.” The experience has been valuable for Jordan, who has even accompanied Resch to classroom visits at BOCES to “share how she’s using what she learned in the workplace.” Of her CTE program experience, Jordan says, “Welding has opened up amazing opportunities for me… The welding program really helped boost my confidence in my capabilities.”
There’s evidence this is a common experience for students in CTE programs. “[T]hese programs are reducing missed school days and are helping to raise graduation rates,” says Resch. The CTE Pathways programs have been so successful the district has begun introducing them to students as early as the 8th grade. Resch says the company plans on expanding its involvement with the SCSD program by “continuing to sit on advisory committees, sharing with business partners the existence and importance of these programs as well as lending other time and resources.”
Resch views this involvement as not only an investment in B.R. Johnson, but in the community. “Being a resident of the City of Syracuse I see great opportunity for both the community and the students,” he says. “After all, the students are our community… If we really want Syracuse to flourish, we need to pay attention to the workforce needs and how to best set up our students for success three, four and five years down the road. That is exactly what this program aims to do.”
Kondra-DeFuria Puts the ‘Pizzazz’ in Potter Heating & Air Conditioning/Perrone Plumbing
By: Tami Scott
In life and in business, Suzanne Kondra-DeFuria runs on passion and pure energy.
As the president and sole owner of Potter Heating & Air Conditioning and Perrone Plumbing Services, she climbed her way to the top of a male-dominated industry with spunk, pizzazz, and a can-do attitude.
These characteristics, be them innate or learned, were showcased as young as 10 years old, when during the winter, she would shovel all her neighbors’ sidewalks.
“I just had this energy,” she remarked.
Then she met her father’s boss — a woman, who was the president of a trucking company, another male-dominated field.
“I remember her always saying, ‘Suzy, you can do anything you want,” said Kondra-DeFuria, who spoke of the times she would watch her dad’s boss at the office, dressed in suits, interacting with her team — and loved it. “Honestly, I think the seed was planted way back then. I really was into doing what I want to do.”
The beginnings
Potter Heating & Air Conditioning was already well-established years before Kondra-DeFuria and her husband at the time, David Kondra, came into the picture. The company, founded in 1944 by Homer Potter, began as a one-person operation based in Fayetteville. Over the years, the company grew in size and relocated several times. But Potter’s health was failing, and he was preparing to sell his business.
“We knew the Potters,” said Kondra-DeFuria, noting the Potters had tried for a few years to persuade Suzanne and David to buy the business. Finally, after giving the idea more consideration, Kondra-DeFuria spoke up and said: “Let’s take the risk.”
In June 1981, the keys changed hands. Potter remained an active participant in the company he nurtured for nearly four decades, until his death in 1986. That same year, the Kondras acquired Perrone Plumbing.
More changes occurred in the years following. When the Kondras acquired the small business, they had less than a handful of employees, Kondra-DeFuria said, and Potter Heating & Air Conditioning/Perrone Plumbing generated an average $100,000 in work. As typical of most businesses, the numbers fluctuated, and internal reforms were made. Suzanne and David divorced in 1995, but they remained business partners for another 15 years, until she bought him out in 2012.
“It was a good move because then I really expanded the business,” specifically as a 100% Women’s Business Enterprise (WBE), she said.
Prior to the buyout, however, she still made notable strides. In 2006, she was certified as an 8A contractor with the Federal government and remained one for a period of nine years.
“When people first found out that I obtained the designation, they’d say, ‘How did this happen?’ To get it, you have [to prove] discrimination, and I just happened to have [experienced] some major discrimination, especially [as] a woman in my business, because there were no women in my business back in the ‘80s.”
Kondra-DeFuria’s biggest challenge to overcome in the industry was, as a woman, being able to convince customers — and counterparts — that she was knowledgeable in the mechanical field.
She shared a story about the company’s first big job — it was $200,000. The contractor, who was from Albany, thought he had put Kondras-DeFuria on hold over the phone. He didn’t. And she heard firsthand some choice words about what he thought it would be like working with her.
“Then all of a sudden, he realized I wasn’t on hold and he says, ‘Hello?’ And I said, ‘You know what? Why don’t you wait and see how I am before you make judgments.’”
When the job was complete, the contractor made a point to express his final impression. He sent flowers and told her it was the most well-run job he had with a contractor and would have never thought that, she said. “I never forgot that.”
Also, In the ‘80s, Kondra-DeFuria was the only person who completed the Syracuse Builders Exchange Mentorship program for Minority and Women-owned businesses.
“I still have a working relationship with my mentor at SAI and we are in our second five-year MATOC at Fort Drum,” she said.
Kondra-DeFuria didn’t wait for change; she made it happen. “I was constantly trying to drum up business” by going to events and constantly meeting new people, she said. “I learned to do things on my own because if you wait for other people to go with you, it just doesn’t work.”
Today, the company thrives, bringing in millions annually. Potter Heating and Air Conditioning offers services for residential, commercial, and institutional/federal clients. Heating services include installation of gas furnaces, radiant heat systems, and hot water steam systems and boilers. Cooling services include air conditioning and improving indoor air quality. Perrone Plumbing is known for its expertise in repairs and installation; clogged sinks, drains, and toilets; new sewers and water services; faucet repairs and replacements; water heaters; pumps; grease traps; gas lines; and thawing frozen pipes.
Kondra-DeFuria, 72, admits she likes being different. She is one of two women in Syracuse with a heating license. She was the first woman appointed to the City of Syracuse Mechanical Board in 79 years, then reappointed this year for another four-year term. In 2013, Governor Cuomo appointed her to the State Workforce Investment Board. Kondra-DeFuria was also the first woman elected president of the Syracuse Heating and Air Conditioning Contractors Association, serving four terms as president. She was the second woman recently elected as president of the Subcontractors Association of Central New York.
In addition to her industry achievements, Kondra-DeFuria has been a volunteer at St. Joseph’s Hospital for 45 years and serves on numerous civic boards.
Not one to ever stop, even when diagnosed with cancer more than 10 years ago, Kondra-DeFuria is a living legacy of her own making.
“A positive outlook makes a big difference. You can’t let it take you down,” she said.
Indeed, her diagnosis and subsequent treatment did not slow her down in either her personal accomplishments (as a former active crew member with the Syracuse Chargers, she still participated in Nationals) or business, as evidenced by the company’s double digit growth during that period and continued volunteer contributions.
American author Earl Nightingale is quoted as saying, “The key that unlocks energy is desire. It’s also the key to a long and interesting life. If we expect to create any drive, any real force within ourselves, we have to get excited.”
For Kondra-DeFuria, those first sparks of child-focused energy, interest, and exposure to independent thinking from a woman who was way ahead of her time, created a lasting and productive excitement that continues to this day.
Taking Command of Your Internal Controls
By: Benjamin A. Sumner, CPA, Partner, Dannible & McKee, LLP
Internal controls are an essential part of every business to help reduce misstatements in finances due to fraud or error. Construction companies are vulnerable to this threat because they are often reactive to incidents that occur, as opposed to proactive in putting controls in place to prevent incidents from taking place. It can also be very difficult to implement internal controls without a management team with expertise in the area. The factors that can lead to fraud are opportunity, incentive, rationalization, and capability. The only factor that a company can control is opportunity. Good internal control implementation will lead to minimal opportunity for fraud to occur.
There Are Several Important Internal Controls That Every Company Should Have in Place
- Monthly review of financial activity– Monthly review allows for the identification of significant errors or other issues in a timely manner. An example would be comparing the balance sheet and income statement from the prior month to the current month, budgeted amounts or to the same month in the prior year.
- Use of checks and balances– Dividing responsibility of sensitive tasks between multiple individuals can preserve the integrity of the information. An example would be having a bank reconciliation performed by someone who isn’t normally responsible for the bank account transactions. Also, rotating responsibility can achieve the same result.
- Limitations on user access– Requiring the use of strong passwords and regularly changing passwords, restricting user access (both physically and logically) to only those that need access to perform their regular work duties, and installation of security cameras can help to protect sensitive information and assets.
- Segregation of duties– The three duties that should always be segregated are: recording transactions, authorizing transactions, and custody of cash/signed checks. Although this can be difficult with limited staff, it is an area that needs continuous attention as circumstances within a company change over time. Poor segregation of duties creates opportunity for rationalization leading to fraud.
What Are Some Steps to Implementing Great Internal Controls?
- Tone at the top – Top level management and ownership should take implementation seriously and stress the importance to employees.
- Document current policies and procedures for every significant transaction cycle. Examples are revenue recognition and cash receipts, expenses and cash disbursements, payroll process, etc. Use of checklists and user control matrices can be helpful.
- Identify current control weaknesses, gaps and incompatible duties. Think critically about how someone might try to manipulate financial data or steal assets and implement changes to the current policies to address those issues.
How Can Your Accountant Help?
Accounting Services:
Transaction level or higher‑level services like regular meetings, outsourcing accounting services can help smaller companies to produce timely financial information. This is especially helpful for companies that lack management expertise or the resources to hire someone who does.
Financial Statement Engagements:
Audit– Provides “reasonable assurance” whether the financial statements are free from material misstatements through various procedures such as observing physical inventory counts, gaining an understanding of internal controls in place, confirmation of balances with outside parties and testing of transactions to source documents. A management letter will provide recommendations about internal controls that can be implemented.
Review– Provides “limited assurance” through the inquiry of management and analytical procedures on your financial data. This type of engagement is less in scope than an audit but will provide a closer look through your finances than a compilation engagement.
Compilation– Provides no assurance on the accuracy of financial data, however, will organize management’s financial information into a standard format under Generally Accepted Accounting Principles in the US (GAAP). Significant errors may be recognized and corrected during a compilation engagement, but generally this type of engagement shouldn’t be relied on to find errors or fraud.
Other Services or Engagements:
Agreed-Upon Procedures– Specific procedures are performed on an account, class of transactions, or internal controls that are agreed upon in advance by management or a third‑party requesting these procedures. An example is if a construction company only wants to test their work‑in‑progress accounts. Agreed‑upon procedures provide a more cost‑effective way to gain comfort on a specific account balance without having an entire financial statement audit performed.
Internal Control Consulting– Consulting engagement where the organization’s internal controls are documented, and limited testing is performed to provide recommendations on improvement to management. This can be a great way to develop better procedures and to objectively reassign duties.
Service Organization Control (SOC) Audit– SOC for Service Organizations audit reports are designed to help service organizations that provide services to other entities, build trust and confidence in the service performed and controls related to the services through a report by an independent CPA. Each type of SOC for Service Organizations report is designed to help service organizations meet specific user needs whether it be reporting on internal controls surrounding financial reporting or internal controls related to security, availability, and processing integrity of the systems the service organization uses to process users’ data and the confidentiality and privacy of the information processed by these systems.
Protecting your company’s assets should be among the highest priorities for organizations of all sizes and stages. While internal controls may not be able to completely prevent errors and fraud from occurring, a strong system of controls will reduce the opportunity for these issues to transpire.
Benjamin Sumner, CPA, is an audit partner and has over ten years of experience providing auditing, accounting and consulting services to a wide variety of privately-held businesses. Ben concentrates in the construction industry and specializes in providing audits of employee benefit plans.
Mary Shepherd at the Top and Close to Home with her own business; BGM Supply.
By Martha E. Conway
Mary Shepherd didn’t have to go far from home to rise to the top; the 55-year-old owner of BGM Supply in Utica, a New York state-certified woman-owned business, was born and raised in Westmoreland, graduated from high school there and still lives there today.
After Shepherd earned her two-year accounting degree from Mohawk Valley Community College, she got a job working at a bakery then later moved into a job at a car dealership before realizing she’d reached her potential with the degree she had.
“I couldn’t move up in the workforce, so I went back to school,” Shepherd said, explaining she put her four-year accounting degree to work at a major non-profit. “Then I came here.”
Shepherd said when she worked for the dealership, she said she handled all the warranty work and traveled with the owner to all its locations to get their systems in order to correctly keep track of things.
“Again, I went as far as I could go,” she said. “I knew I had what it took to go somewhere else.”
That was about 1994, she said, and she’s spent nearly three decades looking at every opportunity to realize her vision of success for BGM. Her husband was a driver for the business, and the owner used to suggest she join the team.
“It was supposed to be a little part-time thing,” Shepherd said, adding that she soon learned the business was struggling to grapple with the business end of operating a business, explaining businesses can lose big money without proper tracking systems in place. “I wanted to turn it around.”
Shepherd said she implemented proper recordkeeping systems, streamlined everything she could and started working to grow BGM’s customer base. Dec. 31, 2015, she finalized The Shepherd Group, LLC, with a DBA for BGM Supply, and it was all hers.
“I’m good with people and connect well with them,” she said. “Why not take on what you’ve helped build to success?”
Two months after taking ownership of the business, Shepherd wound up gravely ill. Hospitalized and not expected to survive, her son, Eric, 27, quit his job and stepped in to help out.
She helped him run the business by telephone from her hospital bed after about a week. About two weeks later, Shepherd was able to show up in person to explain what needed to be done, and eventually returned to full-stride.
“My son is really good on the tech stuff,” Shepherd said, and she’s working to bring him in on all facets of the business should he ever have to step in again. “I want to make sure the business keeps going if anything happens.”
Shepherd said she wouldn’t have considered starting a new business.
“Here, everything was already started, already in place,” she said. “People knew me, and I had good relationships.”
Customers had already worked with her, she said, and they trusted her and respected her knowledge and experience.
“I’ve made lots of changes,” Shepherd said. “I’ve invested a lot of money into the business. I’ve worked to improve organizational and structural things, cleaned up the place a lot and doubled the staff.”
In addition, she raised employee salaries and offered them a good benefits package, she said.
“I want to take care of my employees,” Shepherd said. “I want to retain them.”
She said the thing that surprised her most when she took over was writing and signing paychecks.
“That had a very different feel to it,” Shepherd said of the additional responsibilities.
Shepherd said she had run into challenges that men typically wouldn’t encounter, starting with the woman-owned certification process itself.
“This is a male-dominated business,” Shepherd said. “When I was going through the process to get certificatied, people would ask, ‘How can you ever run that kind of business?’ I’ve been questioned about my abilities, and I think that’s just because I’m a woman. Women can bring a whole host of other skills and abilities to the table – organization, for one – and a different perspective.”
The certification process was arduous, she said.
“It took me about three years to get my certification,” Shepherd said. “I knew as soon as I bought the business, I wanted to start the process because I knew it would be to my advantage to have it.”
I was denied at first, but I pursued it, won the appeal and earned the certification April 6, 2018.
Shepherd said she understands women may be reluctant to put themselves out there to work toward their dreams.
“If you put your mind to it, you can do anything,” Shepherd said. “Get good people behind you. This is a tough business, and there’s a lot to manage. You need to learn to delegate and not try to do everything yourself.
“As an owner, you have to put yourself out there and make things happen – show them by actions. There are stereotypes, to be sure, but you have to get past them with your actions and prove yourself. Look for other women in business and connect with them … network.”
Shepherd said she takes time over the holidays to call customers and say ‘happy holidays,’ and thank them for their business.
“You have to give a little of yourself,” she said. “People will do business with people they have relationships with. If they need something and I’m closed, I will come in. That’s the way it should be.”
Shepherd heads the finances for her church, and she said there have been times when parishioners have had no heat and no resources.
“If someone is in need and has no heat, we can make that happen,” Shepherd said.
She is proud of BGM’s ability to help others.
“I’m the full-time caretaker for my dad, and I have an aide who helps with him,” she said. “She was flooded and we helped her get her heat back on. In another case, my son installed a boiler, which shortly after also was ruined in the floods. The homeowner had a disabled daughter who needed hot baths. We were able to work with the supplier to get a new boiler at a discount.
“We do a lot with the community, and if someone is in trouble, I know a lot of people, so we have avenues to help.”
Shepherd said after her personal experience with the process, she has helped other women by being a sounding board for them as they pursue certification.
“I try to help them out whenever I can,” she said.
Shepherd said women need to work on their self-promotion and be more confident.
“Come out of your shell,” she said. “I know fear gets in the way. Go beyond it; take a chance, take a risk and let down your guard.”
Shepherd continues working to build something great that Eric can someday step into.
“I’ve sent my son to business and accounting classes to prepare him to one day take over,” she said. “I want to get him cross-trained, so he can step in. You can’t leave yourself the only person who knows what’s going on. If something happens, the business keeps going.”
Shepherd said hers is very much a family-owned and -operated operation.
“It’s unique in this field,” she said. “There are a lot of chains out there.”
Shepherd said she’s got a young, tech-savvy crew who can find whatever people need.
“People can walk in and ask us anything,” she said.
According to Shepherd, she thinks there is a perception BGM Supply is strictly a commercial outfit.
“We have a very wide range of stock – I think more than anyone around,” Shepherd said. “We do wholesale and retail, and our total service and delivery, I’m told, are better than anyone else out there.
“We have just about everything for plumbing, mechanical and water systems, and more,” Shepherd said.
Shepherd said it can be a little tricky to find BGM Supply on the state’s website for certified women-owned businesses, but she’s right there under The Shepherd Group, LLC.
“That’s really frustrating because public projects require using state-certified woman-owned businesses,” she said. “Roofers who need insulation for school projects, for instance, can come to us for that.”
Shepherd said her vision for the next five to 10 years includes continued expansion of product lines to broaden offerings, as well as continuing to grow her customer base.
Geography isn’t a consideration, either, she said.
“A lot of our jobs are packages we put together to be drop-shipped,” Shepherd said. “Our radius is quite large. We serve the city of Buffalo – corrections and parks – and Battery Park in New York City. I can cover any area that needs to be covered.”
“We stand out because we’re more personable and offer more collective knowledge,” Shepherd said.