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Randy
CONLEY
Vice President
New Business Development
Facilisgroup
Breckenridge, Colorado
Nominators and distributor
partners:
Ron Baellow, president,
Bright Ideas LLC; Peter Bunker, business
development, Shads Advertising
Co.; Jules Fabbri, president, South
Paw Canada; Tim O’Neill, president/
CEO, Image Masters; Rick Bowman,
president, ProCorp Images, Inc.; Pat
Hughes, president, Custom Specialties; Geoffrey Patack, partner, Broadway Marketing Ltd.; Tom Wagner,
owner, Quality Concepts, Inc.; Scott Moscow, owner, Booke Promotions; James Greaves, CEO, Brand Makers
Working in true partnership with his
distributor clients is a goal Randy Conley
takes seriously—and the qualities and
practices he brings to the role have made a
lasting impression on his clients. Facilisgroup
is an industry business services company
focused on providing distributor clients with
industry expertise, practical leading‑edge
technology and efficient processes through
an integrated end‑to‑end model that includes
software, business automation, buying
leverage and more. Conley has been with the
company for eight years and in that time has
sharply honed his skills and forged lasting
relationships with a number of clients.
“Partnering with Randy, along with the
whole Facilis team, has been a game changer
for our company,” says James Greaves, CEO
of Brand Makers, who joined Facilis in 2012.
“We have had one good experience after
another. He is genuinely interested in our
success and is extremely responsive to even
our most difficult challenges. He is there in
good times and bad times.”
Quality Concepts, Inc. Owner Tom
Wagner says he’s been working with Conley
for the past five years and in that time Conley
has been instrumental in providing business
analysis and suggestions on how to improve
the bottom line. “He has been able to digest
my company’s economic data and provide
concrete suggestions on streamlining my
business practices to increase profitability.”
He adds that Conley has not only been
someone he can turn to for industry guidance
but he’s become a friend as well.
Geoffrey Patack, partner with Broadway
Marketing Ltd., says Conley provides great
advice from experience, not opinions, and
he’s always available and responsive. Pat
Hughes, president of Custom Specialties,
also likes Conley’s diligent follow‑up
and follow‑throughs—and something
else. “Randy will never cross lines of
confidentiality of supplier or distributor
information,” says Hughes. “I had an issue
with a competitor a few years ago and
Randy skillfully provided his opinion on the
matter without crossing any ethical lines.”
Tim O’Neill, president/CEO of Image
Masters, is another who salutes Randy’s
effective style. “Randy truly models
professional sales behavior,” he says, adding
that when Conley was recruiting O’Neill’s
company to join Facilis he was respectful
of his prospect’s time. South Paw Canada
President Jules Fabbri calls Conley a
constant mentor. “He never turns away from
assisting or providing advice when called
upon. He didn’t just sell us on the system
and walk away. He is with us every step of the
way to ensure we meet my expectations.”
58
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DECEMBER 2016
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FEATURE
|
Powerful Partners
What are the most
important qualities in a
good business partner?
Trust (you can’t be a partner
without this), respect (their
time, knowledge and success);
listen (this is how you learn);
value (you have to add it
in every conversation).
What do you do that sets
you apart from others in the
way you work with clients?
I tell them what I think and not
what they want to hear. For
distributor owners, it can be
lonely at the top. They often
need a sounding board when
dealing with management
challenges and can’t go to staff,
and don’t always want to take
the work issues home with them.
So they can call me and have
a conversation with someone
who has been in their shoes
and understands the issues.
But they don’t want to be
pandered to—they want to
know what I think even if it goes
against what they were thinking.
This type of relationship is what
true business partnership is
all about. I get them thinking
and then get out of the way.
My job is to add value by
making them think about
their options. They know their
business the best and are
very successful but often they
want to be challenged to either
confirm their thoughts or to
consider another direction. So
I tell them what I think, review
what others have done in the
past and often refer them to
other Facilisgroup distributors
to get different opinions and
discuss the topic further.
RANDY CONLEY ON PARTNERSHIPS