May Watering Hole - The CEC will hold yet another Watering Hole on Thursday, May 5, 2005, at the Captain's Lounge (upstairs) at the Bluewater Grill.

The CEC's leadership continues to explore the potential for a regional entrepreneurial conference in the 2005-2006 time frame. Current efforts focus on partnering with other...

The North Carolina Electronics and Information Technology Association (NCEITA) has changed its name.

CEC Silver Sponsor PPD announced its support of Coratus Genetics Phase II b gene therapy trial focused 404 patients with severe angina .... CEC member Ed Addison teams with John Hopkin's Lawrence Husick to present "Managing Innovation," a seminar on May 16-17, 2005, at the Holiday Inn Sunspree.... Details at www.edistein.org..... See Vivek Wadha's "Hollywood, Meet Wilmington" in BusinessWeek Online .... Local entrepreneur Dave Julius uses technology to produce Hollywood-quality TV at Bollywood prices.

Another CEC Success Story

Jay Taylor, owner of Jay Taylor Exterminating, Inc. (JTE), first met Bo Burch, chief principal at Human Capital Solutions (HCS), at the CEC's Opportunity 2004 conference. Bo learned that Jay's business was going well, but that the entrepreneur saw room for significant improvements, if he could sort out some key issues. Bo suggested that he and his team might be able to help.

It didn't take long before Bo and Jay came up with a plan that incorporated a SWOT analysis as well as human resources and environmental, health, and safety audits to clarify the situation at JTE. The results proved gratifying to say the least. With Bo's help, Jay redefined and communicated his company's values and key performance indicators. He set up an appraisal system tied to a clear and structured compensation schedule. At Bo's encouragement, Jay also conducted an employee opinion poll, set up idea-generating meetings, and fostered employee buy-in to new quality and customer relations initiatives.

The result, according to Jay, was "a more competent, well-trained, and happier work force with higher customer retention and very low employee turnover."

Bo Burch notes that HCS also helped JTE with a number of process improvements, all of which contributed to greater operational efficiency and effectiveness. Bo observed, "Together, I think we helped build a whole new culture at JTE-one that made a good company even better." For his part, Jay had this to say: "Bo and his group have had a big impact on our bottom line. I'm glad we met at last year's CEC meeting; that was a meeting that made a difference."

For more information on Jay Taylor Exterminating, visit www.jaytaylorexterminating.com; to learn more about Human Capital Solutions, click on www.humancs.com.