10 Apr Evantage Inc Celebrates Its 11th Year In Business
We have a lot to celebrate at Evantage, Inc.! Last week was our CEO, Chris’s birthday, and this week commemorates his 11th year in business! Chris has had many triumphs over the years and we’d like to take this time to celebrate our boss! We know that you’ll love getting to know him as much as we have.
Before entering this industry, Chris was a Quality Control Manager in the automotive business, where he led a team of 40 in Toronto. Chris joined this business because he was looking for an opportunity that rewarded him for his effort and performance. “I saw that I could work with positive people and really make an impact on my future while also helping others to create a successful career.”
Even though Chris didn’t necessarily have experience in sales prior to developing his career at Evantage, Inc., he found that he was able to apply many of his previously developed skills to his new venture. We stress that there is a big correlation between being “sports-minded” and finding success in business here at Evantage, Inc., and Chris established that early on. “Playing sports growing up has had a big impact on my success in leadership. Being a team captain and leader has allowed me to learn how to lead from the front and set and achieve goals in a team environment. In the workplace, I moved to Toronto without knowing anyone and had to develop a team of 40 people.” Chris also explains how working in multi-cultural backgrounds has taught him to connect and help integrate teams from many different backgrounds. As a leader, it’s important to be open to different ideas, backgrounds and beliefs.
Since establishing Evantage, Inc., the company has been recognized by our clients for total sales, sales quality, and customer retention. More specifically, we have been recognized by the Dallas Morning News as a Top Workplace 4 times, won awards for Most Meaningful Work, and Most Efficiently Run Company. Last, but certainly not least, in 2016, Chris was recognized as Top CEO of Small/Mid-Sized Businesses in Dallas!
Chris’s favorite part of this business is helping people grow personally and professionally and seeing them believe in themselves while reaching goals bigger than they ever thought they could. In addition, he finds it freeing that we are rewarded for our accomplishments and in charge of our own destiny.
Another big advantage of being a part of this great company is the opportunity to travel! “For work, some of our Management Team traveled to London for our Manager’s wedding. It was a ton of fun to be able to celebrate his big day, as well as take in sites such as Buckingham Palace and Stonehenge!” The team also takes yearly trips for meetings, networking, and R&R to places such as Puerto Rico, Mexico, Las Vegas, Colorado, The Bahamas and Chris’s favorite, Hawaii!
Just like anyone else, Chris has had his share of setbacks along his path to success. However, it is those setbacks that typically teach us the most valuable lessons! “I think in general we don’t want to think about failures, but in reality, it is part of any process. As we work with clients and people, we don’t always get where we want to be in the timeframe we want to be there. You have to be relentless in attacking your goals and not give up. Any time we have had a set-back, we need to learn from it to be better next time.”
Both failure and success are inevitable in life and in business. The best thing we can do is look for lessons in both situations in order to move forward in the best possible way. Here’s how Chris sums up his lessons in the simplest way; “I learned to be more confident in myself, to stay positive no matter what, and to get outside of my comfort zone.”
When asked about his most gratifying successes, we weren’t surprised that Chris’s answers were all about his team. “We have seen individuals who worked with us for less than 2 years, manage their own locations and hit their financial goals and beyond. More importantly, they truly develop into great people, with integrity, confidence and amazing leadership skills who are committed to hitting their goals. One of the biggest successes we are proud of is our people. Great companies are made up of great people. I think we have amazing people, and I am very proud of them.”
This year, with Chris’s leadership, we are on target to expand our team into 20 new markets, see people make more money and develop relationships with new clients. We will continue to grow and evolve into a more innovative company so we have the edge on our competition. This will allow us to come through more for our people and our clients.
If you’re interested in becoming a successful part of the Evantage, Inc. team, Chris has some advice; “In life, surround yourself with positive people who you want to be like. You will become a sum of the 5 people you spend most of your time with, learn and develop good habits from them.”
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