So many of the members took welcome
bad strictly tragic and say.

They should thank you for

that introduction it's
quite an introduction to.

Thank you for having me up so
excited to join you in a talk about this

interesting our topic of minutes to update
you on the screen as related mentioned.

Let's hope yeah it's Richard for
State University graduate and

I'm actually from time I see something
a lot of fond memories growing up and

to see and driving to Atlanta to come
to Georgia State football games for

what we consider was
typically an easy win.

But I also appreciated the fact
that you guys would remind us

of the bit that we are going to work for
you one day right.

Handed to you you think I do it for

you I said I could see is wrong when
he's a pro Georgia Tech I might.

Have that the airlines also work for

Chief Information Officer John Trainor
who's actually in here is John back in

I just I was actually the student body
president Georgia Tech a long time ago.

And I was going to search through a Human
Resource Information sister to the system

to find out who are Georgia Tech
grads world and

I asked John about them and
this guy George people day.

They told me about it
someday you'll never maybe.

Do a little bit of the Georgia Tech
folklore and me I know a few stories so

it really talked about and as you say the
title of his presentation is failing chess

solitaire Mark Webber and I was asked
to talk to you guys really about.

Important positive sustainable
change can be achieved

in a fairly large organisation and
we've got quite a few would.

The impulse of that it errands I'm going
to an attempt to to weave this in I was

told by do if I could interesting title
that I would get more people here so

I could title first and
then we work backwards from there.

OK So we as an organisation I
might talk to you about some very

specific instances in a company's history
there's actually two dates I can add in

a fine that the company had to prove it
to make a positive sustainable change for

the company and then also talk a little
bit about myself and my career when I've

had to put it made make some positive
sustainable changes for me to be able

to run to continue to do what I wanted to
do first is talk about what we are what

insurance is and is Ryan mentioned
we are specialty we would tell it.

In lease appliances electronics and

furnishings we also I mean the fact that
we have a manufacturing division called

Woodhaven we produce I mean the factual of
the furnishings that we sell in our stores

as well as other retailers across
the country now I think the questions

about real business really isn't when I
say we're specialty retailer and released.

It's important for you to understand what
we are because it's really the basis for

our business model is unique and
it's that we should be a client base

that does not have access to traditional
credit I can't walk into a Best Buy and

purchase the necessities of life like
a refrigerator or stove or television and

some people think T.V. is a necessity
of life but they can't break in and

purchase those items on credit
like a lot of Americans can so

we provide them with the opportunity
to acquire these things but

we do it through trust and through
ration ships we don't run credit checks

we don't ask anything of them other than
to sit down with our social it's and

discuss their personal finances so we can.

Make sure they can afford the things
that they're asking for we ask them for

three references and then we work
with that customer to make sure that

they're going to obtain the merchandise
because we want them ultimately to own

the merchandise so it's a unique
business in that it's dealing with

a segment of our population that a lot of
people don't come into contact with but

in reality it's actually half of America
half of America doesn't have access to

credit so that's a bit more graphic and
that's who we're typically working with.

We have twenty one occasions across
the country seven hundred which

are franchise we've got fourteen
media factoring facilities

the primary ones are in south Georgia and
we've got eighteen distribution centers

we have twelve thousand just over twelve
thousand associates in the company

we've been publicly traded
since the mid eighty's.

Revenue software corporate owned
stores are just over two billion and

we're about three billion system by if
you include the franchise locations so

great organizational base here in Atlanta.

So this gets us to that Fed chair.

And in one nine hundred fifty five
we had a gentleman named Troy

milk that fell with the company and
he did it with that really fit and

share and you would never thought that
you could found a three billion dollar

going to zation off of a failing ship but
he did it he is a.

Landmark he has a lot of their own
fabric endeavors here in Atlanta but

he is something that we're very proud
of as an organization and because of

all the things that he's done now how
did he go about filling the company's

interesting story he's a universe
you know if you want to graduate he.

Has made to actually own a restaurant
here in Atlanta and after graduating from

North Carolina he decided he didn't want
to work in the restaurant so he got five

hundred dollars and he parted with the
body of his who also threw a five hundred

dollars and they put it in the paper
this it ends rinse anything and he got.

From some individuals that said we were
ready do you have a feeling cheers and

he said Sure that feeling chips and

a little what's the date of the rush
that bats I'm feeling shares and

that was the first little transaction that
he had and that was really felt nation for

the company and what it would become for
many many years so

the company was known as in the winds for
a bit long time and

it was what we call a traditional rent to
it model I mean individuals rented for

a specified period of time they
had a rental contract I but

they never attain
ownership of the product so

it was individuals that were finishing
up payment for spent specific a time.

Maybe they had a company that I just
wanted to rent furniture for and

we would fund the office and
we were successful and they

successfully business model I just went on
through it the sixty's the seventy's and

eighty's we continued to grow
at a pretty steady rate and

when it took nine hundred eighty
six bit we really can identify

the first moment of positive sustainable
change in the company's history

it was at this point that that traditional
went to went model of the business

started to decline and there was
an individual I mean named Ken better

who was a young regional manager here in
Atlanta did approach Troy out of milk and

said you know what I've got this idea that
we could start a rent to own division and

they could focus on a different customer
demographic than what we've been

focused on and I'm on a movie based on
getting that individual that doesn't

have access to credit the opportunity
to obtain ownership of the product.

Or to me to do that and

they started to enhance rent to own
division I don't actually went through.

Archives to find some pictures
I will do the same or

it's a wrestling rink in front of
the front of the grand opening.

Wish we did it would be interesting but

this is they just wrestling
was really popular then but

this is the vision Study Group through
the eighty's and into the ninety's and

it became enjoyment to purchase and then
ultimately by the mid ninety's it was and

sells only center ship and it wasn't
really until ninety ninety four that

this incessantly center ship model really
started to click I started to grow

substantially it was at that
point that the company really

if this was a want to have been productive
it was something to combine and

then suddenly starship
started to do this and

when my nine hundred ninety four was
when they the two passed each other so

you think back to that decision to create
that division in one thousand nine hundred

eighty six if they had done a crude I
did which went division which no longer

exists means that this company would no
longer exist pretty significant impact

by Ken Butler and Charlie did rather
well to make that decision to pivot and

change the business model you
can see from our performance and

this is our stock
performance from since we

went live in mid eighty's it was right
around here in one thousand nine hundred

four that the company really started to
take off and that's when it started grow

revenues grew up profitability grew and
it was a result of that sells only so

our ship model that they can
bother truly just started.

So this gets us to the first
significant change in my career

which was in two thousand and one I
had been working on is run talk about

I don't the law school you'll have
to up forgive me for doing that but

I did it really was wanted to be a lawyer
and I was hired by several techs Corp

to to be away with employment lawyer my
dream job right out of the squad court for

them and never thought they'd offer me a
job but they did bake side had a big role.

In.
My office I was a big shot and

about eight months into
my employment they.

Well made that hey we're us on the company
of breaking it into pieces so that was

my job I flew around the country and laid
a bunch of folks off which was not fun and

then I turned up the lights on the company
was pretty sad pretty traumatic for me but

that gave me an opportunity to move to
Atlanta I came to Atlanta to work for

a labor employment law firm that was
opening an office here their best

and from.

That minute actually was
traveling to Boston.

Basically every week so a kid from Florida

that's NOT use of the call that's been in
there wonders and Boston was not fun so

today's around I met the general counsel
there's a guy named David wrote us and

he talked to me about this company
that he was general counsel of and

the fact that he was very concerned
because they did have a human resource

function and he was constrained from
both the compliance standpoint but

also because he had store managers and
operators calling all the time saying

Help me out I need some advice on what
I should do with this employee and

we talked through it and
I gave him some advice and

he said you know what did you come in and
talk to the milk I never have an H.R.

department but maybe you could talk
to me about coming on board so

I'll do that and you know I knew
the company and I do try lot of Macwas so

I was pretty nervous when I went in there
I never forget I went into his office and

I sat down I catch a catch
as office was set by

Joe He didn't say anything and
he said only looked at me and

he said you know I don't like lawyers.

And I sat there for about the last
fifteen seconds of my life and

the only response I could
come up with was it.

And.

From that point on we
talked about the value that

I could bring to the organization even
though he didn't believe in human

resources because he
was an entrepreneur or

he believed that each store manager
each operator was only human resource.

Action they should be responsible for
recruiting their own people and

developing their own people
making decisions when it comes

to the people who didn't think that
someone in the corporate office in Atlanta

should be telling a story major in
Milledgeville how to operate their store.

So I came to work for
a mine two thousand and one and

when the first things I did I walked
around and I said you know I understand

his aversion to human resources but when I
write could we develop some kind of H.R.

function to really help the company and
I was told of this legend and

it was the religion of Solitaire is what
I was told and John even if you know

about the stork bed at some point in the
ninety's one of choice friends convinced

him that he should think about having a
human resource function in the company and

they talk about the fact that having high
better people and helping develop better

people say said that OK I'll take a chance
when I'm by the way this is a legend I

don't know what we have a fact checkers
in here whether it's true or not but

this is the legend I was told so you need
someone to come in to start with an H.

often she only saw one person do that and
this is the ninety's and

we had these new things called computers
which were a major distraction

toward working no not if
you can understand that but

it really was in the computers
solitaire game was loaded and

apparently the legend was Troy
walked into that the new H.R.

professional during the first week of
appointments all playing solitaire and

that was the end of a chore that
if it interests at least for

the next fifteen to twenty years or
so that's a that's a solitary legend.

So.

To are really looking at when I came to
work for the company around this point

two thousand wanted only two thousand and
two the dramatic growth that we experience

after that point really had nothing to
do with me it really was pure timing but

it was a wonderful experience for
me to be a part of that quote that we.

Encountered during that time period we
went from a few hundred stores to twenty

one hundred stores in just over a decade
few hundred million dollars in revenue to

several billion dollars in revenue all
operationally driven all about growth and

all about cost control the resources
were dedicated to corporate support

functions because we were not a company
and that's how we would grow the company.

And this gets us to the next major pivot
point in the company's history and

that's two thousand and
ten in two thousand and ten.

I believe Trey was studying consider
retirement at that point he only fifty

nine percent of the shares of Aaron's
at that time he decided to go ahead and

divest his shares so he went from fifty
nine percent ownership to five percent

ownership his son his name was Robin lot
of milk and was my boss he was the C.E.O.

at the time when women could
be a unique ability to

see into the future and he was concerned
about what with the company was headed

because we had not invested resources into
corporate support functions it's something

that he talked about all the time and
in particular he was very concerned about.

Doing the right type of person for
our business he knew that our business was

predicated on the relationship of the
customer and that it was something that

we'd always focused on as a small company
of something that we could enjoy when we

were small but as we grew when we got to
over two thousand locations you can't make

sure your store managers are hiring
the right type of people to ensure that

relationship the customer is always going
to be valued so they consumed about who I

think concerned about how we're developing
our associates how we run operations to do

everything and he made the decision to
create a human capital function and

he said we're going to do this right
we're going to build it from scratch

with a make should it we're tracking
the right type of people for business and.

We're training them in that we're
educating them and it we're taking off

we had high turnover at the time it was
becoming a distraction for the company.

So this gets us to the next point my
career where I had to make a decision

Robin approached me and at that time
I had been promoted to what we called

vice president play relations in
two thousand and six which really

was just kind of the counseling and
leave a function of a chore so

I was still handling all the legal related
employment matters was litigation or

any other kind complaints issue and that
was really the vast majority of my job and

all and said we're going to create this
function it's going to be a lot of fun but

I don't want you to head it
up which I was honored by but

he said Betty to do something
he had quit being a lawyer.

And so that threw me off I was so
excited about opportunity but

I grew up my whole life went to be really
are a good up to rise in my Uncle Gary and

he was a labor to point lawyer and
he actually was a law professor and

he's going to do is be up again I've been
perhaps and let me play that offer over

ten years at that point and that's if
you go to law school that's how you

identify yourself what do you do I'm
a lawyer so it's all you know and so for

me to think about and consider
giving that up was pretty traumatic.

But he did think about it he
said with think about this

if you stay being a lawyer a good
lawyer the best you'll ever become

as a general counsel in a big company
which was what I thought was pretty quick.

But he said if you train
zisha into the business side

then you've got a lot more opportunities
the opportunities are endless

you've got you know business savvy and
you've got.

A passion for

the positive side of our business
being a lawyer is all about negative

your cleaning stuff up all the time
that's not really what you were doing.

So I said you know what you're right.

And I made the decision to give
up practicing all when active and

all the banners it was the best thing ever
did but it was a big gamble I mean it

was a really big gamble for me pretty
shocking for my family my friends and

almost school classmates that still
can't believe I did it to this day but

my point is if you wanted to replicate
my career it would not be possible but

it is all about seizing opportunities and
that was a great opportunity for

me to grab hold of and
I want to talk about that Will bit more so

this it's a two thousand and
ten we went through a pretty significant

period of change you know currently going
through a period change from two as a lead

in the two thousand thirteen
when he decided to.

Focus he had a real estate business
he want to focus on real estate.

Were tired came back to the chief
operating officer retired after thirty

nine years we convinced right now and

have talked about before
a problem Georgia Tech alumni.

Member for fifteen years we convinced
him to come on as our C.E.O.

This is pretty exciting for
us former C.E.O.

of Delta Airlines understood how to
run a business understood the need for

building you know resources for
support functions for

operations and so it wasn't just human
capital that we were interested in doing

we wanted to make sure that we had an I.T.
infrastructure that could support

the stores we really hadn't dedicated
any resources to over the years so

we had a point of sale system that was
really old that was struggling to keep up

with their stores were going to
make getting function they had been

purely executional they just executed Web
operations decided they needed to do in

terms of marketing we didn't use it really
any data about our customers to find out

what customers wanted to hear when I came
to marketing so we basically do marketing

team a new head of marketing we've
done the same thing with the legal Now

rather compliance issues that we needed
addressed we want to have a counted legal

team I miss is what we've been doing over
the last two and a half to three years.

To change for a successful company.

I want to talk about for

the rest of us just about the change with
human capital and building H.R. function

in organization first is I want to talk
about why we did it and kind of addressed

that already we had compliance issues
whether it was employee relations issues.

Benefits we did have a compensation
function do a lot of just

fundamental compliance issues that
we had to address with building H.R.

I did next was told acquisition and
really this is that the drive for

me in my mind where we can really make a
difference is we've got to make sure that

we're hiring and attracting the right
people we want to make sure that we

once we attracted to those people and
we don't bit we're able to develop them so

we want to develop a running management
system that's going to help train them

a performance management system would
they know what the expectations or and

if they can be held accountable to those
expectations and if they can also receive

you know for instance a minute increase
based on how well they performed these

are things that we had to build literally
built from scratch I mean culture

it was very important to us as we
built this function to keep in mind.

The culture of the organization was built
on this relationship the customer in this

entrepreneur spirit when you get so big
and you don't have someone focused on net

you could easily lose that especially when
you have high turnover have mentors but

over the country so casual is
something that we see a trade function

in the organization being able to at
least help drive with operations.

The good for
us in creating this function was to really

make end's a great place to work we want
to make end's great place to work so

we would have happy to engaged associates
there would be concentrated on

developing meaningful relationships
with our customers if we could do this

we can make a significant impact
on the business and that's what.

I've been working on.

So were the results were asked three years
we've been working really horrid building

a foundation it's not an easy thing
to do to build an H.R. function for

a company this big that's never had one
there's been a lot of obstacles and

we've been overcoming those obstacles over
these years and that foundation that we've

built I'm very proud to talk about because
we've been able to achieve a lot of things

that companies spend years and
years and years working on we.

Have tons of people we've
developed a H off field team

twenty four people on the field
dedicated to helping our SO

see it's in our managers with employee
relations issues and recruiting we

do tell that was a system which also
includes a new plant a new employer

brand and we're focused on how we
attract the right type of candidate for

unique business we've also implement
performance management system where we

literally went in touched every single
employee all twelve thousand ploys and

the whole company and
explain to build with expectations not for

their job and
how they can be successful in that job and

this is a when done within
the last two and a half years.

I guess a lot about metrics I wish I
had more metrics but we didn't have any

systems to provide us with the tricks we
now do we've now built the systems so

we're going to start being able to track
metrics but one thing when women trip

we do half that really is the key metric
and a choice is what is your turn over

them probably over the last two and a half
years ago Trevor has been reduced by

ten percent annually when you have
twenty thousand employees and

you have high turnover ten percent
is a pretty significant number and

this is just based on where we believe
the new initiatives that we've you

know been able to work around which also
includes I forgot to talk about benefits

we really focused on making sure that our
benefits were comparative to the market

we gave associates more vacation
time which was a big hit.

And we really focused on what other soft
benefits we could provide employees to

just make them feel good about work and

it airs so we've got some good
results we still want to do.

Now I want to focus real quick on how you
know how do we do this and this isn't

something that you've been a funny text
book this is really my thoughts on how you

implement positive sustainable change
in a large organization like this I.

Could be wrong I could be wrong but
this is what I believe you have to do for

she got to have talented people to help
you and I've got an amazing talented

team the first thing we did was we went
out and hired we started a director level

we hired some leaders to come in
from big successful organizations

that knew a lot more about human resources
than I did and they helped me do it but

team that we have today and every single
one of those individuals on this team.

Hundred percent dedicated to building
something special you come to work it

ends in a choice function you're
not going to be on cruise control

we're building every single day since
we walk in the door until we leave and

sometimes at night and on the weekends
we're building because we've got twelve

thousand people four thousand families
in drive as a livelihoods depending on

the work that we do we've got to make
sure that we're doing it right and

we've got to make sure that we're we're
building something this is stable so

talent is number one it's the number
one thing that we focused on and

what you have told the people you can do
a lot of special things leadership by and

I know this would be impossible
if our C.E.O. didn't believe

that it was important and that we could
achieve it but Rob a lot of milk and

on believe in that and they've been
unbelievable support function for

us we're really excited to have leaders
that really believe in what we're doing

and it's not just those two but really
leadership throughout the organization yet

have transcended credibility.

You know this is I think
something that is you.

Meet to someone who's been able to build
lasting relationships with business

partners I had worked it in for over ten
years at this point it's been a rough

time with our business partners we have
divisional vice president spread out

across the country those are really the
individuals that are running the business

and for us to tell him we're
going to create an H. O.

function in this company something
they thought would never happen

they had to believe and trust that
we would do it the right way and

that we wouldn't do something that would
not help them or would not benefit them so

we had to have a credibility and trust of
the business partners and that's something

I think is unique that you've got to be
able to build it I don't think anyone

could have come in to the company from the
outside and it was kind of trust that we

had with with our business partners so
it's it was a unique experience for us.

Culture to talk about
this already you got to

really evaluate the great things of
your culture that you want to keep and

know that there's parts of your
culture that you don't want to keep.

This is probably one of the most critical
things that I have to do as a leader of

this function I'm going to run it to
people working for me and they come

from a lot of different organizations they
come from McDonald's a new Rubbermaid and

all these great companies here in Atlanta
they all have these different cultures

that we're bringing in but it's up to me
to make sure that we keep in mind what's

made Aaron's great and what's made
is great is entrepreneur spirit and

focus on that relationship with
the company with the customer and

you've got to keep that in mind it
every single change that we make every

single tweak every single system every
single communication that we have got

to keep culture in mind and it's something
that I can really consider has been part

really the biggest little bit
I've played in doing this

timing to talk about the timing and
to be you know in the fortunate

situation where I came into the company
during a great growth period.

I was able to really work with the founder
and chairman in an Archie popping

off of a closely you don't get that
opportunity many times in life and

I say get to the point
where we have grown so

dramatically without dedicating these
resources to support functions and

then having it lead to realise it's
what we needed I was totally timing but

at the same time it was an opportunity and
opportunities were presented to me and

I took those opportunities and
a lot of times I see people a bit

of opportunities presented to
him that they don't take and

it's because it's hard work it's really
really really hard work to do this kind of

change to implement this kind of change
it's not easy and if the opportunities

presented to you I thought this is
the one thing I would relate to you

if you want to make a difference if you
want to make a change you've got to seize

that opportunity because you don't know
when the next one's going to come a long.

Commitment.

I think that Reich we needed to
show commitment to the chorus.

Mediately said the last thing I wanted to
do was tell the whole company that we were

going to quit N.H.L. function and that it
be several years before anyone really felt

it so we immediately hired us and told
the people to come work and we would need

immediately without major initiatives that
every employee in the company felt so

within that first year everyone had
felt the associate resources function of

the company I think is really important
because I wanted to build that momentum I

wanted associates to feel like it wasn't
just talk but we were actually going to do

what we said we're going to do we're going
to make errors a great place to work so

we had to show that commitment
early we had to show it often.

Quick.

I was talking to one of my
colleagues last week actually and

she's actually done something similar
to launch company here in Atlanta and

we talked about you know
what was the biggest.

Scariest thing that you had to do
when you read about this change and

we both said it's coach.

We both agreed at the end of the day
you have to be prepared to lose your

job to implement positive
sustainable change and

you've got to be prepared to deal with
consequences of doing that and you're

going to meet resistance you're going to
have pops of course placed in your way but

if you really want to do it and if you
know it's the right thing to do which I

believe it is then you'd best be prepared
to lose your job I mean it's just the way

it is you've got to have that courage
right there you have asked my job yet but

but I think that's a really key component
on how you can make an impact and how you

can develop sustainable positive change in
organization especially one this big step

schizos the Mr Weber right however it does
Mark Webber fit into this discussion.

I like to think about companies I like
to think about individual us dead

have managed to change themselves
in a sustainable way and

I know as millennial So you guys all know
Mark Webber as Mark Latham the great.

Producer.

You know.

Right he fights I don't think he's great
things but as a generic soup I know.

This Marky Mark in the family bunch and

the rest of the labor good as
he never done it with this.

OK Exactly so this is what I
grew up with me and if you have

told me twenty years ago when Ricky Martin
the family bunch with it would become what

he is today we would have to you but
he is he constantly worked on

making positive changes in his life
to really develop his career and.

Company there's so many companies
have done the same thing you look at

Apple Apple was making computers just
like Compaq was thirty years ago

Compaq doesn't even exist anymore you know
Disney was you know making movies and

now they they do everything.

I like to think about it is a great
example of someone who's made simple as

a state it will change but we could also
do it Arabs have made changes in their

histories so was i get us to and
that's really the destination I get asked

this all the time you to ask
this by the people that work for

me I was going to get a whole
going to build this I would ask if

he wants a company you know what's
the ultimate goal and where we go in.

And I recently got asked a very
interesting question by a consultant

that does work on a project for
us to kind of stump me for

a second she asked me she said
if any of us didn't exist.

What is the one story that you could
tell that really defines its legacy.

And it took me a few minutes to think
about but I tell you about this

charity it's a community ed and
it's a small charity that provides.

A place for abused children to go and
it provides a place for

abused children and their brothers to go
when they have no other place to go and

we recently partnered with They'll miss
part of our leadership development program

to build bicycles for these children so
we get it leaders together we

go bicycles it's a great team building
a bit my family went to the city.

And I'm only going to.

To visit it and see you know what it looks
like and had been to before so they took

me on a tour of the director took you
know a tour she showed me a facility

they had one if it functions in
there I have cancer is live for

the children and you know it's something
it's pretty touching whenever he

sees families coming in there because you
know they don't have the will to go and

this is their home until
they can find some.

You know to take them in.

We would do to get in she said you know
we've got actually have a long history

with parents and I said you do it I didn't
know that that we just saw a partner with

you and
she said no when we founded the company

many many years ago before
you started working there.

So I founded a charity we have a lot
of money but we do what we want

to do we want to provide a safe place for
families to go and

for abused children to go so
we went to Aaron's we went to the local M.

store to help us with furnishings and we
went in and we said we you know we really

we want to start we really hope that you
can you know give us a discount on on

some furnishings a strong leader said Yeah
we'll give you a discount to go in and

pick out what you want I mean pick out you
know what you can afford and anything else

that you think you might want and we can
talk about it so they were around it and

picked out the furnishings that they
thought they could fit in and they picked

up a furnishings that they would love to
have at the next day the trip is up and

they unload everything functions that they
want to pass the what the things that they

really wish that it could have and it is
such as you know noticed that she went

to the manager said We didn't talk about
price I'm not sure we can afford this

in a store manager said don't worry about

it's on else this is considered
a charitable donation.

And she got very upset with that pretty
upset thinking about that store manager

because we knew it ends we do that at
store manager had the power to do that

he didn't have to call the bucket and
have called a corporate office and

ask whether or not he had a permission
to do that he was allowed to do that and

that's part of the entrepreneurial spirit
part of being in the community and

being part of the community did that
we serve so it's really two things it's

two parts of our legacy that I think we've
got to make sure that we keep in mind when

we're making a change you know we want to
keep the Great in the Great is you know.

We will.
Resent the opportunities that

entrepreneurship brings We represent
doctors on entrepreneurship wings for R.

Soucy it's for the customer but
also for communities and

the second thing is well the business
model that's serving a community and

a customer base that
other businesses don't

let alone would they base their
entire business model on it and

we're only basing on to business
sponsoring this this customer but

also basing it on trust when asking for
credit when asking them to do anything

more than make a commitment to pay for
the product over a period of time and so

when I think about it you see when I think
about what we need to keep That's it and

that's what all good is going to be as
we develop not only this human capital

function but all the other changes
that we're making going forward and

I'm Bay excited about a future I'm
excited about what we're doing and

all the telling people that we
have work force so I would be

in big big trouble with recruitment
team if I didn't show a talented

group of Georgia Tech students at least
one recruitment video some want to show

you maybe it's a minute more I promise you
it's something that we just put out this

year but you're going to see how it
incorporates that theme of relationships

into the type of individuals that were
recruiting we went through a pretty

extensive process we asked for
employees were it why do you work here.

As I work it because it was a job and
you pay well instead they told us

the reason I work here is because I
like the relationship with the customer

I'm from this community I know customers
going through and I appreciate the service

that we're providing and it's right
the customer comes in every month and

I have that relationship with them and
that's why I work here so you'll see that

the as we go through this but maybe then
woken up for questions on a self right.

Now the volume.

All right.

Thank you thank you Sam member
travel we've got sixteen minutes for

questions which has a lot more time so
I just wrap it up for questions now.

I want her.

I.

Want you to share this
I mean a little bit.

But you mentioned a lot about charting
the right type of employment and

considering and specialty and

your client base what would you say
is the right type of employment.

The question so it depends on
the type of job we want to help.

Right and as you say if I'm from that
video that's really focused on story

operations or working in a store typically
the individuals that we want working

in a store or individuals that live in
the community that they're serving and

it's individual is that are happy that's
very important it's individuals a bit

are engaging because again they're doing
with customers it's not like retail where

you welcome to Best Buy you buy something
and they never see again this is literally

a relationship where they're coming
in every month to make a payment and

you're also working with the individual
customer to make sure that they can afford

the products so you know it's a happy
engaged individual someone that

understands what that relationship is
the corporate office who are looking for

right now and I think I touched on this
a little bit it's someone do it wants to

build something because that's really what
we're doing right now it's someone that

is engaged in creating something
special someone that understands.

Big picture not only what we're doing
as an organization but what particular

function whether you're working in I.T.
or marketing it's a lot of hard work but

it's someone that I think has to be fully
engaged in doing meaningful work and

that with when I sit down to talk to
someone that's what I'm looking for does

this person really want to do meaningful
work or are they just want a job.

That no question yeah I know you
have any time to ride and I'm.

Not in each I function and
all the components that go into that.

Piece of advice if there's someone
who's really passionate about going to

facial teams in life to
going to Human Resources.

My best piece of advice.

Would be we work it in a chair function

that is strategic and
not mistreated and I see this a lot.

A lot of H.R. functions and unfortunately
no matter what it's the culture or

the leadership of both the H. O.
function would be you'd have sales is

just administrator so either you're
processing payroll making sure new hire

paperwork filled out they're not
engaged in things like what is a play

about you proposition for candidates how
do we convince people to come work for

us how do we make sure that we're
developing a performance management

system that's going to help drive
the business that's very strategic and

so if you want to be part of that you
need to ask a lot of questions about

what do you do every day and what's the
long term strategy what we're working on

our strategy all the time right now we're
working on a five year long term strategy

on it where do we want to be and how we're
going to get there so if you asked us that

question we'd be able to tell you how you
do it would tell pretty quickly that that

would we consider ourselves a strategic
business partner not just said Mr.

Good question.

Here.

Just.

I'm.

But you did a Silicon Investor we
put that question many times and

that's the unique point of our business
and what's made us successful it very much

is a transaction based on we're asking you
for three references we're going to call.

Three references and talk to them
make sure that they're legitimate

I want to talk to you about your
finances make sure you can afford it and

then from there you're signing a lease
agreement and you understand as a customer

if you can't make the payments we're
going to work with you if you miss

a month we're going to work with you we're
going to come out pick up the march and

I says it is you miss a payment but
we also ask from you a commitment and

that's a discussion that our general
manager has with every single customer so

it's the value of that general manager
in the store is really what drives that

that piece of the business and why it's so
surprising for individuals to think

you're going in a credit check what's
to keep everyone from just leave it and

we certainly have write offs I don't
know what the rough percentage is but

it's fairly low you know.

I think about half of our customers end
up getting the merchandise long term so

they end up pushes it purchasing at long
term and and we're really happy about that

I mean that's that's our whole goal is to
get the customer to ownership there's all

the right to only retailers out there that
that's not their business model they want

to maximize the value of that product they
want to get you get it back in place and

other people that's not what we do we want
to make sure the customer gets ownership

I know it's OK It's a crazy
concept it really is and

that's what makes our our story I think so
unique.

Good luck story is the question we're
going to have a question and so

I think if you're speaking about my
question regarding something you mentioned

about how do you respond to the employees
are guiding the country changing.

Function and if so
would that look like for someone like you.

In terms of what you have to employ and
what did that process look like.

For you said you said to
each individual employee and

it was that my if you like an automated
message really reaching out to the person.

So that that talented team of H.R.
professionals I said we had.

Good.

In March that they were going
to travel to every single

store in the company and they were going
to sit down with every single employee and

they were going to what we were doing was
rolling up performance management system.

I was expecting to wake up
the door when we said that but

they didn't they said bring it on
let's do it and so we literally had

a chart team going to every single store I
mean we traveled from really march through

August and we rode it out and win it for

me you know I have communicated I'll tell
you Communication is a challenge for

us because we have always locations
across the country and we have and

this is a challenge for retailers we've
got individuals in these locations that

you don't have a direct way
to communicate with and

they don't have email so we don't issue
email to store so it's typically So

we're a lot on our general managers we
rely a lot on our company internet so

every time they log into
the computer they see a message but

a lot of it was just face face to face
interaction I do a lot of interaction

with our store managers we have a national
mentors me several thousand people there

I typically talk to all of our store
managers about these concepts and

what we're doing we read about them play

a boy in to those managers face to face so
it's.

It's a challenge it's a lie work.

But it's fun at the same time because
you could meet all your people.

Yeah yeah Chad you said that
now when you talk about the.

Critical ingredients it's kind of age you
would say to date you need to be prepared

to lose your job what have you actually
ever been confronted with Dad is it.

Has meant that that's on necessary.

Have I ever been confronted with
that this is being webcast live.

I mean I've been.

Appeared Yes I've been prepared to lose
my job to do what's right to implement

a change I have certainly encountered

significant obstacles along the way that
made me feel like I had to take that stand

and it was the right thing to do and
luckily I had leadership at the very top

that would support me it's mainly but
it's.

Something that in your mind you
think if I want this initiative if

I do something that we're not used to
how is the company going to react to it

if it doesn't work what if it
actually becomes a distraction and

affects store operations and
and our performance goes down.

That's something that weighs on your mind
all the time when you're making these

really significant decisions like rolling
out a performance management system or

a new talent acquisition system but

if you do it's right then you just got
to do it you just got to go with it and

I certainly been presented with
that that decision many many times.

I think I was wanting to talk
a little bit about the most

significant challenge that you rabbiting
to function in two thousand and ten and

I want to move be a few of the steps that
you took to overcome that challenge.

Sure.

Though the most significant
challenge was the culture

challenge again this was
an organization that

literally one of the mantras was we
would never have an H.R. department.

I mean it was like you know when there
was a cheer going on it was like.

An illiterate H.R. department.

It was thinking about how do we change

the perception of what an H.R.
function could do.

In their mind a lot of operators
in the business partners say

Human Resources is that it ministry.

To function or that police function
it's going to keep us from doing

things that we need to do good to
get our business accomplished.

So we were came that run
the discussions a lot of education

of trust a lot of let me explain
to work with your most significant

challenge right now business operator and
they would say I think the best people.

And we'd say when you have time to recruit
that's a watchdog after all my stores and

I say well that's what we could do for
you you tell us who you want and

who you think would be successful and
we'll go up and find them for you that

way you can focus on your customers and
you can focus on operating your stores.

Of international law discussion and

it was it was a process I mean it really
was a process to go through that.

Well I should have to question that.

Reputational issues.

The first.

Sexual harassment finding against
the resolution which you were

quoted as saying it was a right to which
I mean this Democrats might have gotten.

Into some resource as a protection.

That's a first OK.

A minus and in terms of the coaching
staff I mean I have to.

Have described.

More about.

Fights power case and you know how do.

You know what.

Doesn't extend to have the impression.

And someone should understand QUESTION So
the first one it's everyone knows we had.

A sexual harassment case.

Where we had a significant
verdict against us it was

actually ninety five million dollars
in St Louis and I to cut the.

Company it's really really the case that
the verdict was overturned by the judge

and then the company also settled the case
around six million dollars The timing

on that because I get asked that a lot
we actually had started developing H.R.

function before that case went to
trial and whether or not it was for

the catalyst for what we needed to do
it probably was and we knew we kind of

well we only had developed kind of a game
plan to where we wanted to be in and

how we want to develop the function and
in the case happened so it helps to

categorize you know what we wanted to do
as an organization but the second piece.

There's pending litigation
we're going that F.T.C.

case and my general counsel would
absolutely kill me if I commented on it

I would make it's come on I would love to
discuss that with you and and hopefully

one day I'll be able to but maybe you
could maybe get me Yes exactly and

we back end up talking about that just
to talk about two unfortunately we

actually talked about this you know we've
been asked a lot about that recently and

a lot of companies are facing the same
challenges with privacy and security

that's something that we have dedicated
a lot of resources to making sure that one

compliance and it's something that
we're working really hard on but

I can't comment on the case right now OK.

Final question actually
three plus years and.

It has to show from that.

Road Rick is going to change his
mind regarding the Importance

of people who are.

I mean talk to talk to.

Me We're talking.

Now but I think he he was

a hero he had before he tired I mean we're
going to talk about the importance of it

it was there he was still our chairman no
whatever we made the decision to do it so

he understood the company's change
the company's grown really big company and

just like to the things it was just asking
about there's things that that a truck

would help us avoid and help us make
sure that we're going to be sustainable

in the future so I think Charlie agreed
with that because one final question.

To.

Say he would have a game on my
computer if he gave her my computer.

Group is very good last thing I would
do is because played solitaire.

OK Thank you.