Spotlight Interview Q&A with Arthur Rosen, Business Coach & Consultant
At Office Evolution Ann Arbor, we value the spirit of enterprise. That is why we’ve chosen someone who makes business their business as the next interviewee for our Spotlight Interview Q&A Series.
We first met Arthur Rosen as an attendee of our LinkedIn Local-Ann Arbor professional networking event – and we knew he was one of us. Arthur is a certified FocalPoint Business Coach with over thirty years in the field of business development and consulting. He has worked with several major and up-and-coming retailers to coach their teams into success. How? We wanted to find out, so we sat down with Arthur to pick his brain.
Tell us a little bit about your journey getting into the field of business development and consulting.
In my 25 years of being in the field I was able to serve on several boards of directors as well as be a part of key committees for local & state builders’ associations. As time passed, I began to see that there was a need for help. I discovered that many business owners were on a proverbial treadmill — putting out the fires that come with trying to keep up with the daily issues of running a business. In short, they were working “IN” their business, not “ON” their business. So their business reputation, family relationships, and health suffered. I knew I wanted to play a role in solving these issues and FocalPoint was my answer. At FocalPoint, we implement a process that uses clarity and effectiveness, while strengthening growth strategies, sales, and leadership.
While I have learned from my personal experiences, I have also picked up my passion for the business industry through generations of my family. In our household we ate, drank and lived business – and all the ups and downs that come with it. Now, I’d like to pass that knowledge on and “pay it forward” as they say.
What have you found to be the most rewarding part of this career? What about your biggest challenge?
The most rewarding part is helping people become successful and, with that success, finding what is most important — family, friends, health, and what they do and for whom. Helping them find order in chaos. The biggest challenge is as one of our coaches quoted, “Comfort makes for cowards” which means that the economy is good for most right now and everyone is busy just keeping up. It’s when things are going economically well that we need to get ourselves organized, running more efficiently, and planning for the future/the next phase of your business cycle. Getting folks to pause to consider is a challenge.
Who was your most influential mentor?
If I had to pick one, it would be my father. He was in business with his brother for over 60 years. Though not formally educated (2 years in college), he is the smartest guy I know. He has both common sense and street smarts. Something that I love about him is his ability to observe, understand, and adjust. On top of that, he lights up a room. My mother has also been an incredible mentor. She’s read more books and has more knowledge than anyone I know. What makes her different is her sense for when to use it.
My family members’ stories of running businesses have impacted my life greatly. For example, my great-grandfather was reported to be the person who sold Jesse James a horse and my grandfather ran the filling station where Charles Lindbergh stopped to fill his motorcycle on the way to the air field!
What’s an essential piece of advice you would give to someone starting a new role as an executive?
There are foundational concepts you should set. Clarity is the first of those. Understand the why, not just the what. The how and who come next. Be open, dedicated, honorable and accountable.
Who do you see benefiting most from attending your speaker series at Office Evolution Ann Arbor?
I believe startups, existing businesses, executives, franchises, or those waiting in the wings to take over a business could benefit most from the series.
Can you give us a snippet of advice or a preview of your talk that might make someone on the fence want to attend your series?
The first session will focus on behavioral styles and elements of clarity. Part of it is my understanding of my client then my client’s understanding of themselves and how they are perceived. Through this, I will show them the best way to absorb information and disseminate it. This is crucial to learn when trying to be a leader. Later in the series, I’ll share the “The Way to Wealth” and then eventually marketing and sales topics.
What was it about Office Evolution Ann Arbor that made you want to use it as the venue for your speaking series?
Office Evolution is the perfect venue. It’s made up of vibrant businesses and people eager to improve and succeed. The infrastructure is state-of-the-art, and the atmosphere is conducive to getting work done and learning. On top of that, the location is conveniently near the heart of Ann Arbor, U of M and Eastern.
If you’re interested in consulting with Arthur about how to grow your business or coach your team into success this coming new year, consider attending the first of his five-part speaking series taking place at Office Evolution Ann Arbor on November 7th.