In 1974, I was chosen to train as an electrician at the Homestake Gold Mine in Lead, S.D. That opportunity changed my life. I discovered a challenging world of advancing technologies and the satisfaction that comes from helping people solve and prevent problems. Homestake miners, engineers and technicians pioneered innovations for more than a century, and my colleagues at the mine were wonderful teachers. In 1983 I took charge of my own team of electricians, and I began to learn about leadership and the rewards of helping others succeed.

In 1998 Homestake cut the size of its workforce in half, and I got another opportunity. First, I got an electrical contractor’s license. Then I became a Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer. In December of that year, Gen and I founded All Net Connect. Our goal was to provide “Enterprise Class IT Service” to small and mid-sized businesses. I define “Enterprise Class” as the kind of service large companies get from dedicated IT departments. Today even small companies depend on IT, so we developed a system to make Enterprise Class Service affordable.

Creating All Net’s unique business model has been every bit as challenging as providing reliable power and data connections to miners 8,000 feet underground. Gen and I are especially thankful we’ve been able to provide opportunities for our younger colleagues. They are as thrilled as I was back in 1974 to roll up their sleeves and solve technology problems for so many wonderful customers.

Let’s get started decreasing your downtime, increasing your productivity, and boosting your business.