Mark Medley

This week we went to CTI (Control Technology, Inc.) and heard from Mark Medley. CTI makes instruments helpful in automating machines and plants. The idea behind CTI is to help people do what people are good at, and machines do what machines are good at. At plants Mark had previously visited, automation was implemented to improve quality and productivity, not to reduce labor costs.

We went on a tour of his facilities, where he shared with us many of the ins and outs of his manufacturing business. There were separate machines that placed soldering paste on the boards, placed parts on the boards, checked for defects, heated the boards to solidify the solder, and to wash the boards. One thing I noticed was the prevalence of checks and balances in the facilities. The boards are run through several tests and are checked several times in order to ensure that they function properly. Because of this, the company has very few unsatisfied customers.

Mark felt a desire to start his own business from watching his dad. He claimed that his father was a good engineer, but was afraid to gamble his success. Though he never regretted his decisions to have a steady job, there was always a sense of "what if" that seemed to bug him. Mark decided that he wouldn't accept living with thoughts of "what if," and at age 27, he decided to jump into business. He thought this age was appropriate because if he failed, he would still have a chance to start over. He advised us that if we wanted to start our own businesses, we should start within the first five years after we leave school, because it would get much harder after that. Mark and five of his good friends started CTI.

CTI is unique among the businesses we had visited so far in that it did not get its start with SBIR grants. They borrowed all the money they could from friends and family, and got bank financing to help them along. While six founding members of a company seems like a lot, it worked well for CTI. All six trusted and covered for each other. Mark also stressed that it was very important to be selective about who you go into business with.

The original idea for CTI was to supplement TI and other big names in the industry by finding holes or weaknesses in their products and developing a solution to improve them. In this way, they weren't competing directly with them, but did good business for a small company. Eventually, though, they began competing with big companies instead of complimenting them. This happened mostly because they were approached by big-name clients who desired a self-developed and processed PLC from CTI.

Soon though, Siemens sued the company, claiming that they had stolen Siemens designs. After attending federal court in Nashville and battling over intellectual property claims, the courts ruled in their favor. This gave them the ability to develop and manufacture their PLCs knowing that their ideas were original.

Mark offered some advice to young engineers/entrepreneurs at the end of his presentation. Below are some of his wise words.

-When starting a company, it's very important that you do what you say you'll do. You need to keep people informed, and they will be more likely to trust you and work with you.
-Don't govern your business with rules, if possible. Govern with general policies. Don't punish everyone for the mistakes of one or two employees.
-Profit is not an independent variable. It depends on whether or not you can compete in all areas you're competing in.
-Time management is key, both time & business and time & life.
-It is very important as you go through your life to try to find balance. When you start your business, you're way out of whack. That's okay for a little while, but not very long.

I like that Mark stressed the importance of life outside of business. If you business consumes your life, you won't be fulfilled.

Mark seemed like he was happy with his journey. He knew what he wanted in life and knew what he didn't want. He took risks, but they paid off. I can only hope that one day I'll be just as successful as Mark.