Editor’s Note: CNY Executive Q&A is a feature appearing regularly (about every month) in The Central New York Business Journal, authored by guest writer Jeff Knauss who is president of his own digital-marketing firm. In each edition, Jeff chats with a different executive at a Central New York business or nonprofit, with the interview transcript appearing in a conversational Q&A format.

 

In this edition, I speak with Tim Duffy, vice president at TERACAI, where he is responsible for all aspects of sales, product management, solutions architecture, and services delivery. TERACAI, which spun off from CXtec in 2009, says it provides businesses with core-networking infrastructures, which enable virtualization, unified communications, and cloud applications. The company is headquartered at 217 Lawrence Road East in the town of Salina. Duffy lives in Camillus with his wife, Renee.

 

JEFF: How did you end up at TERACAI and in the position you are right now?

 

TIM: I’ve been with TERACAI since 2010, and was working for our sister company CXtec for 6 years before that. Prior to that, I was in a management position working for a retailer. I had resigned from that job, and my roommate at that time was working for CXtec. I applied for a sales position at CXtec, got the job, and 12 years later, I’m here.

 

JEFF: Did you have a background in information technology? 

 

TIM: No, I joked with the people that interviewed me that I had to be the worst interview that they had ever done but luckily, I＊m a sales guy. I didn＊t have any experience selling IT. It was something that I＊ve always been interested in but it＊s a sales job, so it＊s about building relationships, being able to talk to people, making connections, and being able to build a business.

 

I think I was in a sales role for around nine months and then I progressed into sales management. I was responsible for a team of 10 salespeople covering the Midwest. After that, I picked up the local sales team and then the engineering resources.

 

JEFF: That’s a pretty quick rise to management. What do you think your superiors saw in you to place that kind of faith in your leadership skills?

 

TIM: I’m definitely a driver type personality, but coming into the organization, I had 15 years of sales management experience. I was managing eight locations between Syracuse and Rochester with dozens of employees in each location. Managing people was not new to me and I do have to thank my old bosses. They were very much numbers-driven people. I needed to know my sales numbers every day, so it was natural for me from the time that I got here to want to know what was going on. I knew my forecast, and I knew the forecast of every person on my team. I think part of my success is also just being in the right place at the right time.

 

JEFF: What do you feel really differentiates TERACAI from its competitors?

 

TIM: It’s our approach and our interactions with customers. It’s not about selling them the next coolest or a brand new piece of technology here. We focus on trying to understand their issues, what they are trying to solve in their organizations, and show how certain technologies could help them achieve those goals. Those goals could include enabling a sales force that’s mobile, fostering better communication between multiple locations, or explaining how to take a piece of technology that they may not have used before, but can start using in a very purposeful way.

 

It’s really looking at the business process and trying to understand what someone is trying to accomplish. It＊s more than talking to just the technical people. We want to know what issues the sales department is having. What issues do the finance or other operational groups within that organization have and how do they want to better interact to drive revenue for that company?

 

JEFF: How many people does TERACAI employ?

 

TIM: About 40.

 

JEFF: What do you look for when you’re hiring employees?

 

TIM: I may have some engineering roles open as well as sales. From an engineering perspective, they have to be technically competent in the areas that we would need them to support. They also have to be able to have conversations with business-level leaders in a fashion that＊s not all technical. You have to be able to bridge the gap so that people can understand what they are discussing.

 

From a sales perspective, I＊d like to hire four more people in 2015. I’m a perfect example of somebody that has been able to come into the organization and be successful without understanding the technology at first. They have to be able to understand what business drivers are and then be able to connect it back. You have to be able to think on your feet and have a proven track record of success in sales. We＊re also looking for people that have some connections and can network. Being a good networker is a must.

 

JEFF: How would you describe your leadership style and how has that evolved over the years through the course of your career?

 

TIM: My leadership style is probably more hands off. I know what’s going on and I set expectations for my people, but I expect them to take ownership and drive forward. I’m here to support them. How has it evolved? In the past, I probably did more micromanaging of people than assisting them. I would try to show people, This is the way you＊’ve got to do it.§ Now, I’ve learned you have to let your team make decisions and execute. 

 

JEFF: Have you taken any major career risks? 

 

TIM: Well, the first one was my transition here. It was time for a move and I left my prior job before I had another job. Today, I＊m not sure many people would do that. I’d say the biggest transition since I＊ve been with TERACAI was probably leaving the sales-management role and going into a strictly technical-management role. I’m not an engineer by trade. I understand enough to be dangerous when it comes to that stuff, but I was managing a bunch of engineering resources and to me, it was about managing the people. Probably, the bigger leap was outside of TERACAI and some things that I’m doing personally to try to raise money for good causes. That was more of a leap for me than it was for what I do at work.

 

JEFF: That’s a great transition. I know that both TERACAI and you personally are very passionate about different causes and nonprofits. Please tell us about TERACAI’s charitable activities, as well as your own.

 

TIM: From a TERACAI perspective, one of our core values is being committed to our community. We believe strongly in helping our employees get involved with local organizations. It doesn’t have to be financial. It could be volunteering time, but we want people out, engaged in the community and giving back. We see great benefit in that. We＊ve worked with organizations like the Salvation Army and the Samaritan Center. 

 

I’ve always kind of had that same belief. I think it grew more and more as I’ve worked here and seen how involved we were in the community. Four years ago, my wife Renee and I founded an event locally, called Philanthropic Foodies. The event ties together things that we enjoy, food and a good glass of wine, to giving back. The message there is eat, drink, and give back. It’s a one-day event for four hours, this year held on Aug. 2 at SKY Armory. We bring in multiple chefs for a tasting experience. Each chef is paired with a spirit — wine, beer, and other items. All of the proceeds go back to local charities. The goal is to assist smaller, underserved charities that don’t necessarily have large staffs or large budgets. They are helping in the community, but don’t have hundreds of thousands of dollars rolling in for them to deliver the services they are trying to deliver. This year, we’ve selected three charities for the event: Friends of Dorothy House, the First Tee of Syracuse, and Stupid Dumb Breast Cancer.

 

JEFF: What does this year look like for TERACAI and Tim Duffy?

 

TIM: It’s definitely a growth year for TERACAI. We＊re looking to grow the organization and grow the number of people working here. For me, as the vice president of the group, I’m really tied to that growth. From a work perspective, success for me is making sure that we’re achieving the goals that we set forth and the people that are working here are successful.                    

 

About the author: Jeff Knauss is managing partner & president of a digital marketing firm, DigitalHyve.com, and has always been interested in hearing successful executives’ stories. He lives in Camillus with his wife Heta and son Max. For more, check out his blog at www.CnyCeo.org

 

 

SYRACUSE — Chris McCarthy, CEO of Volu, Inc., is on a nationwide road trip spreading the word and seeking feedback about the company that he and his business partner are working to build at the Syracuse Tech Garden.

 

McCarthy and COO Anthony (AJ) Richichi launched Volu, Inc., a business that’s building a volunteer-management platform, in January.

 

“What we’re really trying to do is not reinvent the volunteering process, but use technology to make it more efficient and make volunteer coordinators’ jobs … easier,” says McCarthy.

 

Both McCarthy and Richichi spoke with CNYBJ on April 29 at the Syracuse Tech Garden.

 

Both men co-own the firm, but McCarthy is the majority owner. They declined to disclose their respective ownership shares. 

 

Volu currently has seven part-time employees, including the owners.

 

Richichi also operates Chronicle Me (CMe) in the same venue, and McCarthy has served as the chief technology officer for that firm since June 2014.

 

ChronicleMe is a social network that allows users to post anonymously and only receive positive feedback from other users.

 

They were both working on Chronicle Me when they started pursuing the idea for Volu.

 

“[Volu] still today is [a] nights and weekends project,” says Richichi.

 

Road trip

McCarthy started his 100-day road trip with his dog on May 1 in Albany, then traveled up to Maine. 

 

From there, the trip includes visits to cities along the East Coast and Florida. The trip then shifts to the west with stops in New Orleans and communities in Texas and Colorado. 

 

His drive will continue to Southern California with visits in communities along the Pacific Coast.

 

“We’re going to meet with nonprofit organizations and attend volunteer events,” says McCarthy. 

 

The trip is not a “sales” trip, he notes.

 

“We’re really looking to get feedback and find out how we can best serve these organizations and build the best possible product,” McCarthy says.

 

Financing

Volu on April 11 won $5,000 through Syracuse University’s (SU) Raymond von Dran IDEA competition, which “will cover most of the cost of the trip,” says McCarthy.

 

IDEA is short for Innovation and Disruptive Entrepreneurship Accelerator, according to SU’s IDEA website.

 

McCarthy says he is also an “avid” backpacker and camper, so Volu will “keep costs low” by avoiding hotels and motels.

 

The Volu idea has also generated funding from other contests.

 

Volu recently won a first-prize award of $10,000 in the New York Business Plan Competition. 

 

“We would like to put most of that toward hiring additional developers to build the platform, but in the case that … it rains more than I expected [during the trip]… that’ll be our rainy-day fund,” he adds.

 

CenterState CEO on May 11 announced Volu is among the first group of companies admitted to the Germinator business competition. Volu begins the contest with a $10,000 investment.

 

When asked about the startup’s fundraising effort, McCarthy contended that it’s “going really, really well.”

 

“We do not anticipate having to secure additional funding for at least the next six months to a year,” he added.

 

He declined to name any specific investors or companies that are supporting Volu’s effort.

 

Origin

Nonprofit organizations that McCarthy and Richichi had worked with a local civic-engagement task force approached the pair as they were having a “hard time” managing their volunteers, says McCarthy.

 

“[The nonprofits] knew that we had experience working with web technology and mobile applications,” says McCarthy.

 

They did some research and didn’t find any platforms that focused on the problem. The business partners also talked with area nonprofits and “discovered where 

the real need was,” says McCarthy.

 

“These organizations spend a lot of time and administrative overhead trying to get a hold of volunteers, trying to recruit volunteers, follow-up with volunteers, and eventually record the hours that they end up volunteering,” he adds.

 

They also spoke with Marianne Ferris, director of leadership development at the United Way of Central New York, who gave them a list of United Ways across the country that she recommended they contact.

 

“We’ve probably met with over 20 organizations so far,” says Richichi, speaking on April 29.

 

Most are located in Central New York, but he’s also spoken with people familiar with nonprofits operating in Baltimore, McCarthy adds.

 

Volu is useable as of now in its online form, says McCarthy, noting that decision was “calculated” because it’s a business-to-business model. 

 

They figure people will use it at their desks and the volunteer coordinators who will use it the most are older and may not use mobile phones as much as younger people.

 

Volu wants to have a mobile platform in six months to a year, which will “streamline” the most frequently used tasks.

 

About the owners

McCarthy grew up in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania (near Philadelphia) and graduated from Syracuse University (SU) in 2009 with a bachelor’s degree in psychology.

 

He started working at Upstate Medical University, including a job analyzing images of the brain, he says. He’s currently pursuing a master’s degree in information management and data sciences from SU.

 

McCarthy started working with Chronicle Me last summer.

 

Richichi, a Skaneateles native, graduated from Phillips Exeter Academy in Exeter, New Hampshire. While a student there, Richichi worked in the office of U.S. Senator Kelly Ayotte (R–N.H.) and also secured funding that helped him launch Chronicle Me. Richichi didn’t pursue a college education, he says.        

 

 

 

SYRACUSE — CenterState CEO has announced the initial group of six teams that will compete in Germinator, which it calls the region’s “largest and most comprehensive annual business competition.”

 

The organization on May 11 awarded each team $10,000 in initial funding. 

 

Over the next two years, the six teams will compete for additional funding at four different demo days, with one winner earning a total of $250,000 of investment over the course of the program.

 

Syracuse–based CenterState CEO, the region’s primary economic-development organization, represents 2,000 members in a 12-county area of Central New York.

 

The teams

The teams include Euphony Inc., which specializes in “natural-sounding text-to-speech synthesis software.” The firm is applying its technologies to speech-therapy applications and speech simulation, CenterState CEO said in a news release.

 

The second team is Life Source Health, Inc., a company that offers “real time vital health information to emergency responders in order to better assist them in saving patients.”

 

Another competitor is Sarita’s, a sister company to Sarita’s food truck, which will expand its business with a line of frozen empanadas available in grocery stores.

 

Trainer Engine will also compete for funding. The company works on a platform that allows personal trainers to practice their trade “virtually, managing and assigning goals to clients with a robust software platform.”

 

The group also includes Volu, Inc., a “volunteer-engagement” platform for nonprofit organizations and volunteers.

 

The sixth participant is VossVertical, a company creating new technology that “expands the distance and endurance of unmanned-aerial systems.”

 

“We are excited to welcome these finalists to the next phase of the competition,” Brian Anderson, lead economic developer at National Grid and Germinator-competition judge, said in the release. “National Grid supports innovation through programs like the Germinator to provide emerging start-ups with an opportunity to grow in Central New York and succeed in a thriving entrepreneurial ecosystem.”

 

National Grid is the competition’s presenting sponsor, according to CenterState CEO. CenterState CEO and Buffalo–based M&T Bank (NYSE: MTB) are the Germinator’s lead sponsors. 

 

“We look forward to seeing these teams grow, learn and succeed as they begin the first round of the competition,” Timothy McDevitt, vice president of commercial lending at M&T Bank and Germinator-competition judge, said. 

 

About the program

The Germinator is a two-year competition for startups with funding rounds every six months. 

 

Industry experts will also train the teams on topics that include marketing, intellectual property, sales, financing, and fundraising. 

 

Participants will have one-on-one mentoring with The Tech Garden’s team of experts and access to the DevBox, a team of in-house software developers that can assist in building software and application products.

 

Six months from now, teams will compete in the first of a series of “Greenhouse” pitch competitions. 

 

Judges and sponsors will rate the teams’ progress and “potential for success” before choosing the teams that will earn additional funding and continue through the next round of the competition, CenterState CEO explained.

 

The teams that are eliminated from each “Greenhouse” during the judging process will have “additional opportunities” to develop their business ventures through the Germinator program.

 

The opportunities include obtaining space in The Tech Garden and support through its portfolio of service and networking opportunities. 

 

They will also have a chance to compete for a “Best of the Rest” $50,000 investment during the final “Greenhouse” competition, when two teams battle for the investment grand prize of $100,000.        

 

 

SYRACUSE — MedTech Association, a Syracuse–based bioscience and medical-technology (bio/med) trade association for New York firms, will work with a downstate organization to “further develop” the bio/med industry statewide. 

 

The association is partnering with NY BioHud Valley on both message promotion and advocacy, MedTech announced in a news release issued April 20.

 

NY BioHud Valley is a cluster-development initiative that Hudson Valley Economic Development Corp. formed to establish the Hudson Valley corridor as a “global leader” in the life sciences, pharmaceutical, and medical-device industries.

 

Hudson Valley Economic Development Corp. and NY BioHud Valley are located in New Windsor in Orange County, according to their websites.

 

The organizations will coordinate advocacy interests for state and federal priorities, cross-promote efforts to expand awareness of the industry, and involve each other in future programming, specifically in the Capital Region and the downstate area. 

 

MedTech works to connect New York state’s bio/med sector through collaboration, education, and advocacy, the trade association said. 

 

MedTech and NY BioHud Valley will work on “cross promotion of messaging, events, and programming,” which could include collaboration on MedTech’s 2016 conference, which it is planning for Albany, says Jessica Crawford, president of MedTech.

 

Crawford spoke with CNYBJ on May 12.

 

They’ll also work on bio/med industry advocacy, Crawford added.

 

“We both understand that the industry is a significant part of the economy here in New York state, but it’s important that we have one voice that represents the interests of that industry and advocates on behalf of the industry with our delegation, so working together to do that and working with our companies to try to support some of those efforts … so that’s another area that we are looking … to work together on,” says Crawford.

 

Tarrytown, N.Y.–based Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: REGN), which is associated with both MedTech and NY BioHud Valley, “connected the two organizations,” says Crawford.

 

 “It was a conversation that I had with Regeneron that … moved things forward,” she added. 

 

Regeneron has an “Upstate presence,” with a manufacturing facility in Rensselaer, near Albany, she added.

 

“Building a stronger life sciences cluster in the Hudson Valley requires tearing down the artificial borders separating regions in order to form compelling alliances with like-minded organizations seeking to accelerate [New York’s] growth in this critical sector,” Laurence Gottlieb, president & CEO of Hudson Valley Economic Development and founder of NY BioHud Valley, said in the MedTech news release. 

 

The downstate region — including the New York City, Long Island, and the Mid-Hudson areas — employs nearly 46,000 in direct bioscience jobs. 

 

Those jobs, through “indirect and induced effects,” contribute about 128,000 total jobs across the state’s economy. 

 

“I think it’s really important that we leverage those assets and try to work together as one to advance our industry,” says Crawford.

 

Industry report

MedTech cites its own industry report, “Bio/Med Breakthroughs: 2014 Bio/Med Industry Report,” in providing the bioscience-job figures, according to its news release.

 

The trade association released the report at its MedTech2014 conference, says Crawford. It held the event Sept. 15 in Albany and Sept. 16 in nearby Troy.

 

MedTech describes drugs and pharmaceuticals as the “most prevalent industry subsector in New York” with a concentration “that is 8 percent greater than that seen nationally.”

 

The association cites upstate New York, where the medical-device sector is 26 percent more “concentrated” than the national average.

 

Statewide, the more than 75,000 bioscience workers earned $5.7 billion in total wages and salaries in 2012, which translates into an average annual wage of $76,112, MedTech said.

 

The bio/med sector in New York has a total compensation impact of $16.8 billion (including direct, indirect and induced impacts), producing $62.6 billion toward the gross state product, the association added.