Your Compass for Success
Robert "Bob" Graham
Robert H. Graham is the founder of Robert Graham Associates, LLC, a consulting firm dealing with process improvement and optimization. He has held positions in a Fortune 50 company in areas of quality assurance and manufacturing management, technical sales, new venture management, R&D and the manufacturing development of new materials and products in support of the national space program.
In addition, he has held an executive management position in a privately held materials manufacturing company that developed and produced advanced technology components for worldwide electronic applications.
Bob has served as the Director of Development for an inner-city, non-profit, K-12 educational organization and also has experience as an adjunct professor in a university business school coordinating and teaching a business consulting course for graduate students in their MBA program.
He is a graduate of the FastTrac® program and is a certified facilitator for the Kauffman Foundation in Kansas City, MO. Bob holds a B.S. and M.S. in Metallurgical Engineering from the University of Missouri – Rolla.
Bill Ringle
For over 20 years, Bill Ringle, President of System Ringle, has served as a trusted business advisor for owners and leaders of family businesses and privately held companies. Before launching System Ringle Bill built Pittsburgh Flatroll, a startup company, from a closed steel mill into a $10-million producer of aerospace alloys. Following that, he was president of a titanium processing company. He led this business to achieve 52 consecutively profitable months and extended the company’s market reach domestically and internationally.
Bill helps owners and leaders to achieve their business goals. In one-on-one, collaborative relationships with Bill, they learn how to broaden their roles as business owners who work on their business rather than just in their business. Bill helps them develop and then implement systems and procedures that enable their company to deliver its products or services consistently well. Systems, are documented procedures that run a business and the people follow the systems.
When the time inevitably comes for an owner to slow down, retire or transition the company to a next generation, Bill facilitates a professional valuation for the company. Only then can an owner accurately know what the company is worth. From there, Bill advises on the options an owner has to transition the business and assists with the transition.
Bill Ringle
David Fair
David L. Fair: Fair is the former President & CEO of the SMC Business Councils. In this capacity, he provided strategic leadership and overall direction for the trade association. His forty-year career has been exclusively in manufacturing, with diverse assignments in operations, R&D, engineering, sales, and business management. He has worked for Fortune 100 firms, and family-owned businesses, and created several ventures on his own.
Recognized as a leader and team builder, Fair has directed all aspects of a business – operations; staff; organizational development; and finance. He has worked in a wide range of industries including chemicals, metals, electronics, materials testing, and biotechnology. This experience includes domestic and international activities.
Fair is the founder of D2 Business and Manufacturing Solutions, LLC, a consulting firm that helps small and medium-sized businesses reach their full potential through strategic planning, management, and leadership counseling. As a principal with The Callidus Group, a certified mentor with SCORE, and an Executive-in-Residence with PowerLink, David has helped guide entrepreneurs through both the start-up and the early growth phases of their ventures.
Fair is an active board member of Propel Schools Foundation and Valley Care Association, a division of Lutheran Senior Life. David has a B.S. in chemical engineering from Lehigh University and an M.S. in management from National Louis University. He is also a certified facilitator for the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation’s FastTrac® entrepreneurial education program. He holds 10 U.S. and foreign patents.