Meet SILVIO CATALANO OF MARIS MACHINE WORKS, INC.
Tell us about yourself and your organization.
My name is Silvio Catalano, and I was born and raised in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. I have been married to my wife Janet for 28 years and we have three children. I have worked my entire life in the manufacturing sector producing large components for gas turbines, steel mills, and large industrial compressors. In 1996, my three sisters and my brother and I purchased the company we were working for and founded MARIS Machine Works, Inc. At this time, we have 36 people working in our family business and we are planning our growth rate at 10 percent per year. Our biggest success is the fact that after 12 years of being in business, we are all still talking to each other. We treat business and our families separately.
How did you and your organization get introduced to Rapport Leadership International?
A very good friend of mine, Luigi Miceli, took the Leadership Breakthrough One class and came back with a passion and enthusiasm that was contagious. He said this was something our family had to experience, so I did what everyone in control does, I sent someone else instead of me. My brother Robert was the first and when he returned with the same passion, he said we all deserved to take this class and it would be the catalyst to change our behavior and our culture.
How many Rapport graduates does your organization have?
We have eight master graduates, and four more teammates will complete Leadership Breakthrough Two in the fall to become Master Graduates. All of our family members have been through Power Communication and Leadership Breakthrough One. Most of our children have been to Teen Leadership Breakthrough and Teen Eagle Quest. In 2005, when we were starting with Rapport, it was a huge financial commitment because we were in a decline in the market. I was looking for a company that could unite us in our struggle. Rapport was the perfect solution because it made our families and employees stronger so we could weather the bad times.
Tell us about your Rapport experience?
As most people who go to the training in Las Vegas do, I thought it was going to be a vacation; was I ever mistaken! I came away with a newfound energy to change my life and to help others. Rapport challenged me to become a team player, to seek help when I needed encouragement, and to step up and help others in their breakthroughs. I came away with a love/hate relationship with Rapport. I hated the fact that I could be exposed, and, at the same time, I loved the idea that my experience taught me a new lesson in life. I knew that things had to change, and the changes had to start with me. Halfway through the training I knew that this was what I wanted for our company and its employees.
How has Rapport influenced you personally?
Rapport has opened my eyes to the needs of everyone around me and to how each person needs different treatment. It has given me the tools to listen to and understand what others are telling me. I know that I have all the tools to get me through any challenges I face during my day.
How has Rapport affected your business?
We have created core values for our company instead of a mission statement. It is through these core values that we operate to make each other accountable to our everyday actions and to ensure that our customers are our focus. There is a positive energy in the office and the work environment is fun. We now understand that all feedback is good feedback.
What is the most surprising benefit you or your organization received from Rapport Training?
We stopped pointing fingers at one another, and we all became part of the solution instead of fixating on determining who had created the problem. We looked for the root cause and worked as a team to solve our customers’ needs.
How do you keep Rapport alive in your organization?
My team has monthly meetings to discuss the challenges with the operations. We talk about our problems and see how they relate to the training that Rapport has given us. In addition, in all of our company meetings we do a “Process of the Month” to discover what the real issues are on the shop floor.
What class had the greatest impact on you and why?
Power communication had the greatest impact on me because I now understand more about the people around me and about myself. An action on my part can send people into “Effect,” but if I present my words/actions well, we can all stay at “Cause.”
When you face a challenge in your organization, what tools from the training do you call on first?
Staying at “Cause” has to be the most difficult thing for me, but I am improving everyday. I am aware that I must stay focused on finding a solution and on listening to the people around me. I call upon this tool first.
