Girls blow up company inventory and make $10 million a year

When  Disney, the Kentucky Derby, the Super Bowl, Mt. Rushmore, Knotts Berry Farm, The Hard Rock Hotel in Hollywood, FL, The City of Las Vegas, The Rockies Baseball game in Denver and many others, you know you’ve developed a winning formula. But, when that winning formula involves a female management team who blows up their inventory every year, I wonder just how high the stress level is at their company. Did they take away caffeinated coffee at the office? Or maybe they took chocolate out of the vending machines? Something is going on at this company and I wondered what makes them tick or it is probably better if I asked if they are “ticked off”?

The company that I’m referring to is a family owned business whose management team consists of four women, who happen to be sisters. Now, I know about sibling rivalry, but blowing up your company’s inventory to let your sisters know that you mean business?  It seems to me there’s got to be a better way, but then again they’re making $10 million dollars a year doing just that, so they’re obviously doing something right!

The company that got my curiousity going is the Zambelli company, a century old company, that has been putting on fireworks displays for adoring fans from sea to shining sea. Although, I find their company’s products and shows awe inspiring, as a business blogger, I am more intrigued about what makes a 114 year old company tick. And I thought there was no better way to take a closer look at their company than listening to what the sisters have to say. Here’s what I learned from the Zimballi girls.

Lesson 1: Get your projects done on time and completely.

“Females are less competitive than men about who’s in charge. They see the big picture and will strive to get the job done.” - Marcy Zambelli

Empty a box of jigsaw puzzles pieces on the table and ask your employees to put it together without showing them the picture on the box. Make a note of how long it takes them to put it together. Ask the same employees to put a puzzle together with the same number of pieces as the first box and ask them to put it together. This time, let them see the picture on the box while they’re putting the puzzle together. Which puzzle is more likely to be put together first? If you want your employees to make your vision a reality, make sure they know what your vision IS before you ask them to achieve it.

Lesson 2: Give employees a reason to want the same goals that you do.

“Our life is fireworks. We’ll keep going, providing fun and amusement to others. My sisters and I were raised on electrifying the heavens, and it’s all that we really care about. Our goal is to keep our company on top and bring joy to others. I know I’ll always remain in the business.” - Danabeth Zambelli

Employees, are first and foremost, people; people who spend hour after hour, day after day, working hard to achieve a company’s goals.  If all your company is doing to reward them for their efforts is giving them a paycheck every week, it is only a matter of time before they seek out the help of recruiters, like the SearchLogix Group. If you’d rather hold on to your team, than let us help them find a new job opportunity, take some time to find out what would make work more enjoyable for them. How? Why not ask them? Who knows better what would make them happy, better than they can? No one.

The little things matter - My son, who works for a company as an MSCE, just told me that he will be attending his company’s employee appreciation day this week. Employees at the company and their entire family are invited to attend. “Their day” will include a free barbecue, a band made up of musically talented employees, an “American idol” type of talent contest made up of company employees, and carnival rides for the children of their employees. Smart company. Get the employees and their entire family happy about the perks of working for your company! Good idea!

Lesson 3: You’ve can’t buy trust, you have to earn it.

• “Mom has always been the woman behind the scenes. But believe me, without her I don’t think our company would be where it is today.” -Marcy Zambelli
  

• “We care so much about what my Dad has built. We all care and work hard at what we know and do best,” “Really when you get right down to it— it’s not a matter of only liking my work it’s that I truly love my life.” - Danabeth Zambelli Trasatti
  

Even if you’re not your employees’ “mom” or “dad”, they should still know you well enough to trust you.  Do you know if your employees trust you? Think about the people you respect and trust. Why do you respect and trust them? Are they honest with you? Fair with you? Respectful of your ideas and opinions? Learn from them and use that knowledge to build a better team!

Lesson 4: How to make a good impression and inspire others.

George Zambelli Sr., head of the famed Zambelli Fireworks Internationale died two days after Christmas in 2003 from complications of pneumonia after battling cancer for 10 years. George was 79 years old when he died.  He ran the Zambelli business from 1946 until the day he died.

What George’s family, friends, colleagues, and customers remember about him is a tribute to the kind of person he was both personally and professionally. What legacy are you creating about the kind of boss you were? Everyday, you get a new opportunity to leave an impression on your employees about the kind of leader that you are. When all is said and done, profits won’t matter, how many hours you worked won’t matter, and how much money you made won’t matter. What will matter are the kinds of memories that your co-workers, friends, and family have about you. The smile that you put on when you interview for a job isn’t something that should limited to an interview. Bring it with you to work, each and everyday, and you’ll reap the benefits socially and financially.

What impression did George Zambelli make on other people?
(excerpts from the Post Gazette and The Miami Herald.

• “What he loved more than anything was seeing people of all ages smile.”
  
• “When George walked in the room, he lit it up more than he did with the fireworks,”
• “When we were searching for fireworks vendors, and we looked at a lot of them, George was very interesting. He did what he did best. He introduced himself and became a friend. And on the business end, he backed up everything he said he was going to do.”
• My dad never forgot his original customers — his loyalty and wanting to give back to the community who supported the company.”
• “George was the most genuine human being,” D’Errico said. “George wasn’t like other famous people. He did what he did to bring joy to people.”
• “He’d be up at 5 a.m. and work until 10, 11 at night. Fireworks consumed most of his time but he loved to be around the crowd. It was a labor of love.”
• ‘He always wanted to be one step above,” she said. “People to this day still talk about him.”

More about Zambelli Internationale:

The company is run by George Zambelli’s four daughters, who employ 50 people year round. Many of those employees have worked there for generations. Between mid June and mid July, they hire hundreds of additional workers to help them prepare for their “big day”, the Fourth of July. This year, they put on 1,800 shows across the country. All of their fireworks are handmade, just as they were a century ago. But, these days, the fireworks displays put on by Zambelli are synchronized to music, include laser lights, and utilize computer-controlled firing. And although summer is a busy time of year for the Zambelli’s, their fireworks shows aren’t limited to the Fourth of July. They also do fireworks shows for weddings and other special occasions including funerals.

For more information about the Zambelli’s you can visit their website or do a Google, MSN, or Yahoo search for Zambelli fireworks. For more information about Fireworks, check out the PBS Nova website.