Is Success in Business Really ?Who You Know??

Young business people have long heard the axiom, “it’s all about who you know.” Twelve accomplished business leaders in Northwest Arkansas say that simply isn’t so.

In fact, the Northwest Arkansas Business Journal’s Forty Under 40 All-Decade Honorees rated “connections” the least important component when posed the question: “Is it who you know, what you know or just hard work?”

The group was surveyed on a variety of topics in conjunction with the 10th anniversary of the publication’s Forty Under 40 issue. The program annually honors 40 up-and-coming professionals under the age of 40 for their contributions at work and in the community.

The Business Journal subjectively chose its All-Decade honorees using peer input and other criteria. According to the Business Journal’s Aug. 28 special supplement, A Decade of Diamonds, a variety of metrics for the selections were weighed including “leadership, community involvement, industry recognition, character and the propensity for being in the middle of big deals.

“All 400 overall honorees are winners in their respective fields. But the Business Journal’s 12 All-Decade selections set themselves apart through consistent, long-term success. They have elevated not only themselves through personal wins, but have in one way or another changed the local, and sometimes even national and international, dynamics of their respective fields.”

Hard Working

Wendy Davidson, group vice president/food service at Tyson Foods Inc. in Springdale, probably gave the quickest answer. Having risen through the company’s ranks from sales rookie to running her division’s $7 billion balance sheet, Davidson said it takes a little of everything to reach the senior executive level.

“Who you know gets you in the door,” Davidson said. “What you know gets others to notice you. How hard you work determines how far you get ahead.”

To a person, the All-Decade dozen said climbing from middle management to the top is virtually impossible without some real elbow grease.

Dan Dykema, founder of Rogers bank dynamo ANB Bankshares Inc., went so far as to say “the bulk of [success] is hard work.” He knows from experience, having grown an investor group’s initial $5 million into what’s approaching a $1 billion financial services firm.

In the last year, Dykema has expanded out west opening strategically placed loan production offices in the economic engines of St. George, Utah, and Jackson Hole, Wyo.

“Even getting to know the right people involves work,” Dykema said. “Certainly knowing someone can get your foot inside the door, but you have to roll up your sleeves once you get in there. I would say 80 percent is hard work. You can’t go through life bluffing your way.”

Banker Sam T. Sicard and real estate broker and developer John David Lindsey said, “there is no substitute for hard work,” although both agreed connections and knowledge are valuable. Even engineer Alex Lostetter, who’s $3 million electrical systems firm requires highly technical knowledge, rated work ethic higher than knowledge.

“Particularly in technical fields, you’ve got to know your stuff,” Lostetter said. “But 75 percent of success is still getting hard work from every team member.”

Smart Working

Todd Simmons, president and chief operating officer of Simmons Foods Inc. in Siloam Springs, was more philosophical about what can take a leader to the next level.

He said it’s nice to know influential people, and dedication is a must, but there’s also more to getting ahead than running yourself into the ground.

“My experience is if you know someone, and you have the industry knowledge, but you don’t put in the work and don’t demonstrate your ongoing willingness to do that, that you’re going to wind up with a big zero,” Simmons said. “But I would put more weight on smart work, rather than just hard work. You better have the smarts to produce consistent, quality results.”

Elise Mitchell, the public relations guru whose clients include a cattle call of Fortune 500 firms, said she has relied on people, training and her own determination over the years. At different levels of a professional’s career, she said, all three factors matter.

When Mitchell moved to Northwest Arkansas, she said she didn’t know anyone in the community. She started volunteering for nonprofits, forging relationships and demonstrating a passion and selflessness that created value.

“In the end, that’s what people want,” Mitchell said. “They want someone who’s going to contribute and make a difference, whether it’s volunteering or in business.

“You have to build relationships and demonstrate your worth, but hard work, dedicated smart work, must be a part of everything you do.”

Networking

Charles “Trey” Sharpe III, president of Internet services company Arkansas.Net, did particularly well in the “who you know” department. During the height of the mid-1990s high-tech boom, telecommunications firms suddenly changed the rules regarding how Internet Service Providers had to locate local server equipment. The mandates were cost prohibitive for many firms, but Arkansas.Net was able to adapt thanks to a network of Sharpe’s friends.

“We had 30 days to find 35 physical locations to house some expensive equipment,” Sharpe said. “I had a lot of college friends in banking, and some who were banking associates of my Dad’s.

Theresa Barrera, who oversees seasonal sales related to Halloween, Valentine’s Day, Easter and Christmas for Wal-Mart Stores Inc., said she prides herself on having “good relationships with customers,” which she equates with being “a woman of [her] word.”

Brandon Barber, the regional commercial and residential developer, said relationships and hard work are 90 percent of success. It’s important to “never burn a bridge,” he said, because “you’ll never know when you might need an easement.”

Gregg Ogden, chairman and CEO of Athletic World Advertising, prized work ethic most. But he’s made a career, and the largest sports schedule poster and schedule card business in America, out of surrounding himself with bright leaders.

“Building relationships is a skill and something you have to work at,” Ogden said.