Bob’s Job Blog

Unmanned drones have been a key technology in the war in Iraq. The allow surveillance of dangerous territory before sending live troops into the area.

Depending on the configuration, an unmanned vehicle can also be used for other missions in which small, silent aerial craft would be useful, such as border and sea patrol and law enforcement. Outside of government use, they can be used to establish communications in sparse or even overloaded areas.

Cyber Defense Systems makes Unmanned Aerial Vehicles and Airships. They’ve been developing their technology for a several years, and are now apparently ramping up for some serious sales and manufacturing. Their key products are the Cyberbug, the larger Cyberscout (seen in the picture above) which also has helicopter-like capabilities, and three models of airships, which are to remain fairly stationary following deployment. They’ve won several awards for their designs and technologies.

The company’s CEO, William Robinson, will be stepping down, but will remain with the company to “strengthen the balance sheet, raise capital, and generate new revenues” for the company. Sounds like he’s going to be more hands on when it comes to sales.

Needless to say, they will need someone to run the shop on a day to day basis. They are expanding their facilities in two states and eyeing international markets. I can bring my expertise in dealing with government entities and officials to the table as Cyber Defense Systems negotiates tax and other incentives. There will also be an opportunity to assist less developed nations as they consider using some of the technology to upgrade their communications infrastructure.

Not only that! But my 6 Sigma certification will be of great value in reducing defects in manufacturing and other systems.

In addition to all that, I have experience in construction and deployment of unmanned craft. Indeed! Once, I very nearly blew up my car with a model rocket.

I love cheeseburgers. And I have the cholesterol tests to prove it.

The best cheeseburger I’ve ever had was at Shari’s Drive-In at 2650 North First Avenue in Tucson, Arizona. Now that you know the address, you must go there and have lunch. Or supper. Or both.

But alas. For me, Shari’s is 1000 miles away. Hamburger Barn, here in Fort Smith, AR, is pretty tasty. But it’s not Shari’s.

But there is a national chain that makes burgers nearly as good! Steak N Shake, the home of the Steakburger. SnS is also known for its hand-dipped shakes. Steak N Shake is one of the first national burger chains, having its start in 1934. This picture is of the first restaurant (courtesy steaknshake.com).

The company has fallen onto hard times in recent years. Profits are down significantly, they’ve had to close several stores, and they are cutting back their hours at many restaurants (they are currently open 24 in most markets). CEO Peter Dunn has stepped down to “pursue other interests.” As I noted in my cover letter, Steak N Shake is in need of “visionary leadership.”

My goal, at first, would be to increase profits and shareholder value. I believe a key to that would be to re-evaluate the existing menu to see what items could be enhanced. While Steak N Shake is the best tasting
burger of the national chains, I think the burgers themselves could stand to be beefed up, so to speak.

From a marketing standpoint, I would like to reposition the restaurants as less expensive alternatives to full service restaurants, while maintaining the image of speedy service. I would also consider entering into new
market locations with potentially high yields, such as malls and large office buildings.

Just as there are no Pizza Inns where I live, there are no Steak N Shakes either. I’ll have to get that taken care of.

That makes two (!) restaurant jobs I’ve applied for this week. As any good stockbroker will tell you, I need to diversify.

Whoops! I went to lunch yesterday at my local Pizza Inn and discovered I no longer have a local Pizza Inn. It recently closed. That’s why it wasn’t listed on the company website. We used to have two of them. Now we have none. When Pizza Inn chooses me to be their next CEO, I’ll have to make sure that gets rectified.

When you think of pizza, what restaurant comes to mind? Pizza Hut? Dominos? Papa John’s? How about Pizza Inn?

Pizza Inn has always been one of the stalwarts of the pizza industry. They’re always there, they’re always tasty, but they just don’t have the top of mind awareness of the others. Oddly, the company’s website doesn’t even list my friendly neighborhood Pizza Inn. According to the website, the nearest Pizza Inn is over 60 miles away! I don’t think they deliver this far.

Tim Taft is leaving Pizza Inn as CEO after about two and a half years to “pursue other interests.” He’s credited with increasing sales, profitability, and revitalization of the franchise system. Not bad for a couple years on the job. But I think it can do better.

From my cover letter:

“Even with it’s strong brand identity, Pizza Inn, frankly, does not have the top of mind awareness of other national chains. My primary goal, at first, would be to pull Pizza Inn into one of the top two, if not the top, pizza franchises. This would be a multi-tiered approach by expanding the number of franchised and owned restaurants, updating the marketing imaging, an aggressive national advertising campaign, street level promotions, and expansion into the delivery market.”

The website lists the favorite pizzas for the top executives for the company. Since it appears to be a Securities and Exchange Commission Disclosure Requirement mine is pepperoni with jalapenos and onions.

I know there are many of you who are wondering just where I’ve been the last couple of months. I could go into a lengthy dissertation, but it would sound like all the other lame excuses people make for not updating their blogs. So, we’ll just pick up with where we left off.

Paul Wolfowitz has finally given up the ghost and resigned. I personally think he got railroaded, but at the same time the appearance of impropriety can be damaging enough in itself. Now that he’s stepping down, that means there’s going to be a way cool opportunity for employment, and I do have some experience in financial management!

The World Bank was initially formed to help European nations rebuild from the devastation of World War II. It’s scope has broadened significantly since then, and it now aids developing nations in building or strengthening their economies. It’s primary goal is to eliminate poverty. Among other things it has a program to reduce the debt load on heavily indebted nations. The program includes requirements that must be met in order for debt to be reduce or eliminated. There are some, Jubilee USA among them, that want debt cancelled without requirements. I’m somewhere in the middle. I think we need to find a way to accelerate the debt relief, but I don’t think outright cancellation is very prudent.

There’s a sense of urgency to replace Wolfowitz. He’ll be stepping down June 30th, which is the end of the bank’s fiscal year.

Many years ago, I worked for the local office of a large securities firm. I was a financial counselor helping people with establishing their retirement goals and ensuring they were able to live comfortably in their golden years. As you can see, I am uniquely qualified for the job of World Bank President.

From my cover letter: : I strongly believe that the path to economic strength is through education, and would work to strengthen even further the education development efforts the World Bank is already involved in. Proper education and information in developing countries will empower all residents to improve their lives, hold their leaders accountable, and increase a nation’s economic growth.”

Now if I can just get my checkbook to balance.

One of my favorite grocery stores is the Felpausch store in Albion, MI. It’s a little bit more expensive than the Meijer and Walmart supercenters just a few minutes away in Jackson, but I liked it more. I was there so often, it wasn’t unusual for other customers to think I was an employee and ask if the packzis had come in yet.

Royal Ahold is a big international grocer based in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Among the stores they own here in the U.S. are Stop and Shop, Giant Food Stores, and Tops. They are in the process of selling U.S. Foodservice, which serves restaurants, hospitals, and schools. Among their European holdings are Albert Heijn supermarkets, Hypernova, which is similar to U.S. supercenters, and health and beauty care retailer Etos.

Their CEO, Anders Moberg, is resigning to head up a Dubai, United Arab Emirates based shopping mall developer. Moberg is credited with turning the company’s fortunes around following an accounting scandal, and the company’s stock is now listed as “investment grade” for the first time since 2003. Meanwhile, two investments firms that are considered primary shareholders want Ahold to sell off all it’s U.S. assets.

“As the Walmart juggernaut continues to expand into newer markets, it will be important to carefully weigh the strengths and weaknesses of global and local operations to compete and win. Primarily, I desire to maximize shareholder value by maximizing customer value and improving the shopping experience at local stores. I would also be giving consideration to whether shareholders and customers would best be served by spinning off existing holdings.”

Amsterdam. City of canals and bicycles. Wooden shoes. A rich history. Home of Anne Frank. And headquarters of my possible next job.

There’s nothing quite like being out on the water. The sun on your skin. The wind in your hair. The Asian snakehead carp jumping in your boat. I love the lakes, ponds, rivers. I’m not real big on fishing. I just like the water.

Water doesn’t get much bigger than the Pacific Ocean. If you’re a boater, then chances are likely you know about Dana Point Harbor, roughly halfway between Los Angeles and San Diego. It’s Director, George Caravalho, is resigning. While he hasn’t specifically said so, he’s suggested that he’s resigning because of the rising costs of a massive renovation project that boaters aren’t too keen about in the first place. It’s now estimated to cost $85 million dollars, more than twice the original estimate.

“As the renovations of the harbor prepare to enter the next phase, it will be quite important for the director to carefully weigh the issues, costs, and benefits, and maintain the vision for future growth.

I believe I can easily ensure long-term viability for the county’s investment while accommodating the needs of private and commercial boaters, as well as marina businesses. My primary goal will be to make Dana Point Harbor the premiere marina in the nation, if not the world.”

If there’s one thing in my life that’s missing
It’s the time that I spend alone
Sailing on the cool and bright clear waters
It’s kind of a special feeling
When you’re out on the sea alone
Staring at the full moon like a lover
Time for a cool change…

“Cool Change” The Little River Band, which by the way is still an active and touring group.

Water will normally spill out of a shower head at about 80 pounds per square inch (PSI). Now imagine water shooting out of a hole less than one-hundredth of an inch at 87,000 PSI. Ouch! That has got to sting!

Flow International makes waterjet cutting systems. They use these high-powered devices to cut anything from glass to metal up to eight inches thick. In fact, their FAQs say if you put your finger in it, it will get cut. Probably sliced clean off. But they didn’t say that.

The company says their waterjets are better than lasers, because they don’t generate heat; better than milling, because it’s faster and cheaper; and better than plasma or oxy fuel, again because they don’t generate heat, but also because the abrasive waterjet (which use sandpaper-type grit) doesn’t have the same thickness limitations.

But wait! There’s more! You can also process food with some models of their waterjets. They say food processed at up to 100,000 PSI will retain its freshness longer and can achieve pasteurization without heat. If Ron Popeil could find a way to sell them for four easy payments of $19.95 plus shipping and handling, he’d be hawking them on TV this weekend.

Check out this Applications Overview movie from Flow International. It is indeed pretty cool.

Flow International holds about 60 percent of the worldwide market for waterjet and abrasive waterjet systems. President and CEO Stephen Light is planning on retiring, although there doesn’t appear to be a rush to name his successor.

Meanwhile! One of Flow’s principal shareholders now wants to buy out the company. Not only does investment firm Third Point want to own the company outright, Third Point’s Dan Loeb has indicated he doesn’t have any confidence in the existing board of directors for Flow. PLUS! There have been some accounting irregularities that have delayed earnings reports, although these irregularities are not expected to have a significant impact on the company’s finances.

Wow! What a soap opera! Who knew that reading SEC filings would be so much fun?

As CEO, I would need to build and expand on Flow’s market dominance and explore opportunities in new or emerging market sectors. I would also like to create some stability while the company struggles through the ownership issues.

I am probably the only person to ever have used chocolate as an example of a Six Sigma process. Six Sigma is a business program designed to help quantify stuff and use critical thinking to determine the best solution to a problem. I am Six Sigma qualified. At the lowest levels, but I am qualified

Enter Heidrick and Struggles. They are an executive search firm. They find people to either lead companies or be members of their boards. They use big important sounding phrases like “Six Sigma” and “Thought Leadership,” and “Intellectual Capital.” It boils down to “We’re looking for really smart folks. “

Thomas Friel is retiring at the next board meeting, which is set for May 24th. He’s been with the company for 28 years, rising from a manager of a local office to CEO, the job he is retiring from. He has been with the company as it grew from a, in his words, “U.S.-centric, founder-driven culture… [to] our current course as an integrated global professional services company.”

Heidrick and Struggles is seeking the best seeker they can find. And here I am.

I’m a reporter, which is a person who looks for things. I’m Six Sigma Certified. I think my dissertation on chocolate proved my “Thought Leadership.” I may be a little short of “Intellectual Capital,” but I’m sure I can borrow some at a low interest rate. I already have a business relationship with them since I became a member of their candidate pool for other positions about a year ago.

From my cover letter: “It will take a person with unique vision to compete in the global business climate. Among other things, I would like to create a new business unit that would specialize in mid-level management. While that business sector is served quite well with regional executive search firms, I believe the mid-level companies could be served even better with the resources available at Heidrick & Struggles.”