In today’s Best Advice Q&A installment, we hear from Jeremy Bates, vice president of business development, mergers & acquisitions, for Pye-Barker Fire & Safety. He shares the best advice he’s ever gotten, how he boosts others in the security industry and the person who elevates him with his words and actions.
Security Sales & Integration: What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever received?
Jeremy Bates: One piece of advice that has always stuck with me is Attitude + Performance = Employment (A + P = E). Essentially, this is a mindset that you should have BOTH a good attitude and good job performance. Neither a great attitude but subpar performance nor a poor attitude but exceptional performance will help you achieve your own personal goals or help your company achieve its goals.
Incorporating this mantra into our culture and holding people accountable to it has helped us develop a great workplace. Ultimately, that culture helps us attract like-minded people that fit our core values, helping us achieve our goals. When you surround yourself with people who hold the right mindset, you’ll find tremendous success together.
SSI: What advice would you give to those looking to achieve success in the security industry?
Bates: There is no doubt in my mind that attending industry events and being a member of peer groups are keys to success. I’ve been able to develop a network of industry friends to learn from, run ideas by, and get advice from on how to handle any challenges we inevitably encounter.
Being active in industry events and going to educational sessions is simply a great way to learn what others are doing. It’s amazing how much people are willing to share with others. Over the years, I’ve gotten renewed motivation from participating in different industry events, learning great ideas that I was able to take home and use to grow our business.
SSI: If you could point to one person in the security industry and tell up and comers, make sure to listen to what they have to say. Who would you pick and why?
Bates: I would say listen to Chip Shiver, who successfully grew and sold his highly respected business, Shiver Security Systems/Sonitrol of southwest Ohio. He has been in our industry for more than 50 years now and is still going strong today, now working with us at Pye-Barker.
He has been a mentor of mine from early on in my career and he always had great advice to share with me from when I was a young sales consultant to ultimately running my family’s business. He has a diverse and successful career to draw upon in giving prescient advice to anyone seeking it.
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