jim torina, ceo of talyst, on running a company and how to be an executive
Jim Torina runs Talyst, a pharmacy automation company. We talked in October about how he runs his company and how he got where he is today.
Jim on Mentors:
You have to plough your own way before you get to ask questions of mentors. Don’t pretend to know what you don’t know. Know what you know, and then hire the rest.
On how he got to where he is:
Fellow believers helped get me here. Build a network of people who trust you to invest wisely.
You have to have people you can count on. Find people you can trust, and then trust them to do their jobs.
It begins with credibility. Say what you are going to do, and then follow through on it. Then do it again. And again. Keep making, and delivering, on your promises. That is how you build credibility- the credibility that will get you connections, get people to invest in you, and get people to join your team.
On Talyst’s statement:
We’re going to benefit people’s well-being by helping them stay in their homes longer before needing assisted living or nursing care. That’s our big promise. One fourth of people are admitted to nursing homes because they don’t know how to handle all their medications. By helping people get the right drugs at the right time, we are going to help people stay in their homes, being cared for by their loved ones. This is even more important with the age shift happening in our culture right now.
On learning financial management:
Just do it. I did an internship at Northwestern Mutual Life. I managed a team of insurance people. But bottom line, you have to know what you are good at and hire the rest. Hire people you trust, then let them do their jobs. Sure, you could go to school to learn finance, but why not hire an expert instead and stick to what you know best?
Performing finance duties and understanding finance are two different things. Again, trust who you hire (such as your CFO), and then get out of their way.
On being CEO of Talyst:
My role is leading the company and setting its vision. Also, being the interface between the management, the staff, and the Board of Directors. Our goal is to keep the company moving down the tracks as fast as possible while keeping it on the tracks. Keep making money and growing and meeting financial goals while balancing that against growth, but keep moving- quickly.
On building a team:
Hire the smartest people possible, then let them do their job. Age is irrelevant. Experience is not an automatic indicator of knowledge.
Southwest hires for attitude because they do preformed processes. Fly this plane from here to here. Do maintenance on that plane.
At Talyst we are doing revolutionary things, so we have to hire the smartest people possible.
Hire people and you hire their networks.
On money and time:
You have two things- money and time. The trick is to buy as much of other people’s time as you can. Then, you get more money and you can buy more people’s time. So find the experts, make your statement, and go from there. You need to know how much your time is worth per hour, and not do anything that is lower value than that. Hire smart people, then resell their time at the highest rate possible.
On becoming a professionally managed company:
This is the corridor of danger- you have to change from seat-of-the-pants management to defined processes without losing your entrepreneurial initiative. Talyst is making this transition now.
On education:
Your first job should be in selling. You also need to know about finance and personnel if you want to run a company, but start in sales as you go there.
On selling:
10 calls means 3-4 meetings means 1-2 closes. That’s it. Make 10 calls a day every day forever. Have big goals and write them down- take a 5 year goal and break it down into the parts you need to make the big goal happen. Motivate yourself with what you want. Ask your current customers who they know who would benefit from your services. Go to trade shows and other places where your customers are. It’s just about getting in front of customers.
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Have a follow-up question you’d like me to ask Jim? Post it in the comments below or sent it to me at brian@portentinteractive.com.
