How to prepare for a presidential visit
(and survive secret service security)

by Carolyn Jentzen Taylor Renninger, Ed '64, small-town factory owner

1. Take it seriously. When your congressman asks if you'd like to host a visit by President Bush next week, do not assume he is joking. Fortunately, in February of last year I said that we'd be honored and privileged. After all, how many times does a small company have such an opportunity?

2. Be willing to make a few changes. Be open to things such as truckloads of sand being dumped in your storage area to deflect any bombs, machinery being moved around to make space for visitors, 60 extra telephone lines being installed for the press and putting everyone through a security check.

3. Prepare to become secure. When the Secret Service, press corps, CNN and NBC all drove in, I was on my cell phone with the White House. They were circling our parking lot, just like in the movies. We had guard dogs sniffing for bombs, high-powered rifles on the roof, no working phone lines and shrouded ground-level windows. Our road was closed, as well as a nearby section of the Ohio River. All 360 visitors had to go through security, and once they came in, they could not leave.

4. Don't worry about details. The White House will be in constant contact. Everything will be "staged" for you. We were told how to greet the president at the door, and they even marked on the floor where we were to stand. It was handled very professionally.

5. Enjoy yourself. Basically, I was asked to tell how the company was formed. I was very nervous. I didn't want to embarrass the president or myself. He is such a gentleman. As we went up to the podium, he grabbed my hand, and that really put me at ease. And he kissed me on the cheek, so that didn't hurt, either.

6. Be willing to return the visit. You may be invited to the White House. We were treated royally at a big Christmas reception. We had our picture taken with the president in front of a tall tree decorated with ornaments from all the states, enjoyed music by the Marine Band and feasted on absolutely wonderful hors d'oeuvres and desserts. Among the guests we recognized were Tom Daschle and Jerry Falwell.

Renninger is CEO of Control Concepts, a small manufacturer of control devices in Beaver, Pa. The UC grad and her son Geoff Taylor, company president, took over the business after her husband's death in 1996. In 2000, Control Concepts was one of three Pennsylvania recipients of the Ben Franklin Entrepreneur Award. The prize money was donated to a foundation to promote reading in area schools.

Link:

Control Concepts (now called c3controls) Web site

Joseph Santangelo began his concert production career working with his late brother, Dino (A&S '56), one of the founders of the Ohio Valley Jazz festival. He produces the annual summer event, now called the Cincinnati Jazz Festival, which showcases popular R&B acts. The event was canceled this year for the first time in 40 years after corporate sponsors backed out during the boycott in Cincinnati. Santangelo has taught economics as an adjunct at UC and is an accomplished classical pianist and church organist.

Links:

Artists' recordings are available on these Amazon.com pages:
1, Frankie Beverly & Maze, 2. Aretha Franklin, 3.Gladys Knight, 4. Michael Jackson, 5. Luther Vandross, 6. The Temptations, 7. Patti LaBelle, 8. Marvin Gaye

UC alum Jim Dintaman is president and CEO of Nestle's Ice Cream Partners USA, a joint venture formed in '99 between Nestle and Pillsbury's Häagen-Dazs frozen desserts. Previously, he had been president of the Nestle Frozen Food Co. and executive VP of the Nestle Carnation Food Co., all based in California.

Links:

Recipes from Nestle USA Web site

Häagen-Dazs Web site

If you thought luxury box seats were scarce, try getting yourself aboard one of Goodyear's four airships. There is room for only a half-dozen passengers, yet here are a few tips for trying to secure your spot:

Buy a few million tires. Goodyear's best customers get the royal treatment on board one of the most recognized corporate symbols on the planet.

Donate the most cash to charity. Goodyear is known for taking the winners of local charity auctions for the ride of their lives.

Get a job as a blimp pilot or as part of the crew. It is a busy schedule with a chance to see the world from a thousand feet at 35 mph. The graceful giants cover about 300 television events and log more than 400,000 air miles per year.

Become queen of the Tournament of Roses. In addition to reigning over the New Year's Rose Parade in Pasadena, Calif., her highness also gets a lift in the helium-filled chariot. By the way, you'll need the right combination of poise, personality, public-speaking ability and scholastic achievement. Not to mention a pretty dress.

Work in Goodyear's corporate office, and be in the right place at the right time. I was in Long Beach, Calif., to work on a lawsuit, and the pilot told me the blimp was available for a 45-minute ride. I told some old friends that I needed them to split from work to ride in the blimp. They didn't believe me. It was outstanding. My son, some friends and I had the whole blimp to ourselves. It was really like sailing on air. You can set a drink on the table, and it will never even vibrate. It is the smoothest thing you will ever do.

UC alum David King writes patents for Goodyear's tires and equipment. He took the position with the corporation based in Akron, Ohio, soon after graduating from law school.

How to turn Russians into capitalists

by Rodger Henn, CAS '70 and '80, international business adviser

Recognize what is happening. Russians are turning themselves into capitalists. Since the fall of communism, they're soaking up all the business knowledge they can get, like a sponge. I experienced it as a short-term volunteer for nonprofit U.S.-supported organizations that send business advisers to Eastern Europe. It's so much fun to help them with their businesses and see how eager they are to try new ideas.

Teach basic business sense. The owner of a hair salon in Nizhny Novgorod, near St. Petersburg, asked me to coach his employees in ways to make the business more customer-oriented. I had them do a comparison of services they offered and those available from the competition. The owner also wanted to expand, maybe even buy out one of his competitors. We compared financing costs with the revenue he might expect and estimated how soon he would be out of debt. He realized it would be smarter to enlarge his original shop and postpone opening other locations.

Kindle the entrepreneurial urge. Entrepreneurs are melting the ice, even in the eastern Siberian city of Magadan, where daylight may last only six hours and snow falls almost every day. Where Stalin once banished political foes, I taught entrepreneurs how to write their business plans. My assignment at the Russian-American business education center also included working with the city and banking system to pull financing together.

Spread the word next door. Russia's neighbors are looking for help, too. My most recent trip was to the Azerbaijan capital, Baku. I gave strategic planning advice to a company that buys and sells oil-drilling equipment. We talked about ways to reduce costs and some possibilities for making more money. They have little knowledge of marketing and no real advertising avenues, so I could give them lots of suggestions.

Rodger Henn, a Cinergy retiree, is owner of Import Specialist, a business offering Russian fine art and unusual collectibles, including 100,000-year-old mammoth tusks and hair. He has made more than 30 trips to Russia in the past 10 years, some on behalf of his business and the rest on assignment as a volunteer for ACDE/ VOCA or the Citizens Democracy Corps.

Links:

Check out Henn's Web site and find out more about two organizations that
send U.S. volunteers to Eastern Europe (www.acdivoca.org and www.cdc.org).

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