MAN OF THE HOUR FOR TWO DECADES

ABMA EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR DAVID PARR PREPARES AN EXIT STRATEGY

by Bob Lawrence

ABMA President Greg Miller’s June 17, 2021, announcement of Executive Director Dave Parr’s retirement next year was surprising to many association members because it seems like Dave and his team—his sister Katherine “Kappie” Swanson and her husband Martin “Marty” Swanson—have always been behind the scenes managing the association. However, when he won the position in 2002, he promised to work for 20 years and move on to new adventures. The departure will represent the end of an era because Parr’s is only the second management team to run the association in what will be its 105th year in 2022 which coincides with his final convention as executive director.

For 85 years, ABMA was under the management of Philadelphia-based Fernley & Fernley, the nation’s oldest association-management company founded in 1917 with ABMA as one of its first clients. On October 30, 2020, that business filed for voluntary Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection, listing debts up to $1,602,485, according to the Philadelphia Business Journal.

It was the ABMA’s growing discontent with Fernley & Fernley in the latter years of their relationship, accompanied by a hefty 18% annual fee increase sought by the firm in 2001, that eventually led to a dissolution of the partnership. This came at a time when the brush, broom, and mop industry it managed was in dire straits due to companies consolidating, some going out of business amid a national economic recession. Which all meant the association membership was in decline.

“Given the situation we were in, the board of directors found the rate hike in Fernley’s fee offensive,” says then Treasurer Ken Rakusin. Additionally, “many of us on the board felt it was not offering the membership new and value-added services,” says then vice president Bruce Gale and later president (2003-2005). “Suffice it to say that many members were also unsatisfied with the services the incumbent was rendering.”

Parr, who served on the board from 1996 to 2001 was keenly aware of the problems with Fernley, but had a good relationship with then Executive Director Ken Hutton. So, Parr became aware that the company’s “senior management above Ken was meddling, and that meddling was eroding confidence and trust. There were also a number of undisclosed business practices hidden in the financials that had been creeping out in the open, further eroding that trust.”

That came to light as the result of a thorough review of all facets of ABMA’s dealings with the company by Treasurer Rakusin, who has a Master’s degree in Finance. The review included contracts with convention hotels in which he found “significant discrepancies that were adverse to the way the association believed its account should have been handled,” Rakusin says. “While none of that was illegal, we found such practices to be disconcerting.” Parr adds that it was “clearly time for a change.”

Even so, some on the board wanted to continue with Fernley, while others wanted Hutton to leave Fernley and form his own company to manage the association. When he declined the board decided to seek new management.

Taking on the recruitment project were then-President John Cottam (2001-2003), past President Robert Fowlie (1999- 2001), and Rakusin (2005-2007), all conveniently located in or near Los Angeles where they could frequently meet. Their focus was on existing management companies, however, knowing that the “perfect person” for the job was Parr, Rakusin called him to gauge his interest in submitting a bid. “This because Dave knew its inner workings well and knew the problems we were having with Fernley,” says Rakusin. “In fact, he and I were two of the most outspoken regarding the issues we had with that company. He was also running two brush businesses and had a life’s knowledge of the industry.”

More importantly, Rakusin says, “Dave was passionate in wanting ABMA to be a success. And I was sure his high energy level and creativeness could make it happen.” Cottam adds that Parr had been a “very active participant while serving on the board, was a valued member and was well known by the directors. As a known quantity to us, we knew he would bring knowledge of ABMA and a lot of energy and creativity to the job.” That being said, the board required bids.

THE FINALISTS

After finding 100 management companies and deciding which might be the best fit for the association, the recruitment team narrowed the list to under 20 and sought bids. Fernley was among those submitting bids as was Parr who did so under his company, SilvaCor. Asked why he did so, he says,

“I have a passion for the brush industry, and its crazy cast of characters. As a fourthgeneration brush maker whose family had been in the industry since 1911, and me since 1981, it was in my blood. I count many of my closest friends among ABMA members. I was in a professional place where I could take ABMA on and I had a larger company behind me for support as needed,” that company being the National Brush Company.

In addition to manufacturing, he also had experience and expertise as a supplier via National Wood Products.

Additionally, his long, continuous relationship with ABMA as a member who participated in numerous conventions, and committee/board meetings beginning in 1981 was a key strength for his bid. And he also had another key advantage for the ABMA. “In 2002 I was turning 50 and felt I could be in a position to manage ABMA for perhaps as long as a couple of decades before it was time to exit. I believed that additional stream of continuity would also be a positive.”

Dave Parr with the late Paul Miller in Ireland waiting for their first pint of Guinness at a pub during a October 2015 golf trip to The Emerald Isle

From the 20 management firms, the number was culled to four, Parr and Fernley among them. The finalists were then invited to make individual presentations in May of 2002 at a Chicago board meeting. There, the candidates considered the best were Parr and Fernley. The latter offered continuity given its 85 years of managing ABMA, but the firm’s bid still included that 18% hike in its fee.

Although Parr had no association-management experience, he believed that in addition to his history of business management, he had three things going for him in making his presentation: “The board knew me, knew my contributions to ABMA, and my work ethic, so there was some credibility already in place; I knew the deliverables; and I was honest about what I was going to have to learn, and provided a summary of what I needed to accomplish and by when.”

In addition, Parr’s bid sought annual compensation that was a whopping 50% lower than Fernley’s. He arrived at that figure by doing a lot of time-consuming research which involved evaluating salary ranges for executive directors for non-profit organizations about the same size in budget as the ABMA. “At the same time, I was also serving on our local Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors and used their national listserv to garner additional financial compensation information about not-for-profits.”

With all he was offering, the job was his, and in hiring Parr, ABMA got the executive director it so badly needed, but with major dividends due to his stunningly low bid. At the time, it meant ABMA would be saving between $125,000 and $150,000 a year as a result of the lower management fee and with commissions the association gets from convention hotels, according to Rakusin. Cottam adds that Parr’s low bid “provided the association with another bonus—a revenue source the board had been searching for in order to avoid a potential increase in membership dues. With that savings, we were able to restructure the dues and make it easier for smaller companies to join while capping the dues paid by larger companies.” In essence, the savings were given back to the membership.

In addition to everything else Parr had promised and then delivered on, there were three other essentials he feels he has brought to the job, those being transparency, empathy, and responsibility. As he puts it, “I knew where all of the bottlenecks were in all of the board meetings, financial statements and communication. I’d lived it serving as an ABMA director from 1995-2001. I watched how conventions were being run and saw where improvements needed to be made, and in how people were treated, especially when it came to inclusivity and consideration. It is always good to remember who works for whom.”

INITIAL CHALLENGES

Parr says that in assuming the job the most challenging aspect was “creating everything from scratch. The incumbent, having lost the bid and their 85-year relationship, was not inclined to assist in any transfer. I received a database with no explanation as to its contents, checks and electronic files that only went back a couple of years. And a lot of boxes with a lot of paper. So I got to work and created a filing system for all of the paper, developed a database on Access for the records and got started on QuickBooks for the financial end of the business. Marty was a big help to me in all things database related.” He also revised the chart of accounts and all of the financial reporting “in order to be transparent and understandable,” says Parr, adding that Rakusin also “contributed mightily to that effort. We also rebuilt the website and added many new features.”

And the association’s evolution hasn’t stopped since. An association management software system product was added in 2008 and ABMA’s logo was updated, and the website was rebuilt in 2016. Then last year when COVID hit, Parr says, “We had to dance to change as did all of our members. Hello Zoom. Hello Every Action. Hello ABMA Community Chats, Webinars and Emerging Leaders. It was, and continues to be, a never-ending continuous improvement process, one item at a time. And all of that is fun and very rewarding.”

OTHER CHALLENGES

LEFT TO RIGHT: Dave Parr during a 50th birthday trip for Gary Townes and Jeff Malish and a 60th for Scott Enchelmaier prior to their Team Kilts defeat of Team Tartan Pants at a Ryder Cup format event in Scotland in September of 2019. Jim Benjamin on the far right in the group photo.

Scott Enchelmaier and David Parr

In succeeding years since becoming executive director, Parr has encountered other challenges including changes in the hotel industry which have been hard on hospitality. As he explains it, “Over the past two decades there have been countless ‘right sizing’ experiments which inevitably leads to fewer people required to do more. The Audio Visual and Destination Management industries have consolidated as well, driven by the consolidation in the hotel brands. The Marriott Starwood merger changed most everything. Now there is truly an 800-pound gorilla controlling multiple properties on nearly every corner. One has to stay nimble and look for opportunities in order to get a good deal. There is a lot less competition than there used to be, and that’s generally bad for the consumer.”

And ABMA hasn’t been immune to major changes as well. “We have fewer member companies even though dues collection has stayed relatively stable,” says Parr. “I’d like to think that ABMA member companies are healthy and are purchasing competitors, sometimes consolidating ABMA memberships, and sometimes folding a new entity into an existing membership. It is especially gratifying to see so many ABMA companies profitable and growing.”

PUTTING ON ANNUAL CONVENTIONS

“The convention planning drives you crazy because you have a lot of balls in the air at the same time, but it is all manageable,” says Parr. “Having Kappie and Marty with me

from the beginning has also been a tremendous asset. During convention week we all try to have everything lined out well in advance so that during the convention itself, we have the ability to dance and tangle with whatever comes up. We all love the convention because we get to be with our friends, old and new, and enjoy the moment along with everyone else.” He adds that “Kappie and Marty have been invaluable to ABMA, and me, since 2002. They are every bit as much a part of this story as I am. She and Marty completely and expertly run the front room of convention services and are for many people the face of ABMA. I am very proud of the work and service they have provided.”

MOST GRATIFYING

Asked what has been most rewarding to him during his tenure, Parr says, “The ABMA Foundation which is a wonderful part of the association which exists to serve others. Through the foundation, we have been able to change people’s lives for the better, and a lot of the credit for it goes to Tom Parseghian of Power Brushes who created an opportunity in which a discussion leading to its formation could germinate. It was also very gratifying to have been able to work on the 100th Anniversary with so many other ABMA members.” As to what he feels are his major accomplishments as executive director, he says, “In a very selfish moment I’d hope to think that we are better than we were when I took over in 2002. We are healthy financially with strong world-class membership and a fabulous volunteer board of directors which exhibits excellent leadership and gives up so much to serve ABMA. They deserve all of the credit, and if everything works, it means I am doing my job and we all win.”

Dave Parr with the Catch of the Day during an October 2014 fishing trip off Marco Island, Florida, in the Gulf of Mexico

Speaking of volunteers, he singles out “Kristin Draper of Draper Knitting who has been behind the scenes for all of my 20 years of service, assisting in planning our Friday Suppliers receptions. Kristin deserves the credit and thanks for all of that volunteer effort. She may also need therapy for ‘party fetish’ but that is a story for another article.”

What he will miss most about the job is networking on all levels because the ABMA is, as he puts it, “a networking association. Humans are networkers by nature and so much can get done when people work together. Especially when they are all members of the same crazy, close-knit club surrounded by all things brushes. It has been a real joy professionally and personally.”

Asked to make additional comments, Parr says, “First: To paraphrase the immortal words from Monty Python’s The Holy Grail, ‘I’m not dead yet.’ We still have the better part of a year before the transition, and there is a lot of work to be done. Second: I would like to express my gratitude to the members and people of ABMA for allowing me to serve. It has truly been an honor and a great pleasure.”

THE SEARCH FOR DAVE’S SUCCESSOR

Regarding a lot of work left to be done. A search committee was formed in the spring of 2021 and a selection process was developed with the goal of hiring a successor in January 2022. The plan calls for Parr and his successor to work together for three months and through the 2022 ABMA Convention, after which the handing-off process will wrap up and complete.

In the June ABMA announcement of succession plans, those within the industry were allowed a chance to put their hat in the ring for the job. In July the position was posted on Indeed and Linkedin. Since then, Parr says the association has received “many qualified applicants and are working to shuffle and rank the contenders.” Interviews began in August with plans calling to have the finalists’ interviews with the full board at its November meeting in Chicago.

His advice for his successor is, “Remember that there are others in the room who share your passion. And even more with their own special skills and capacities. Listen to them.”

PARR’S PLANS AFTER 2022

“I will continue to work on a book that I am writing. It’s not a book for anyone else to read, but rather an opportunity to see if I really have a book inside of me. So far the only thing I have learned in this process is that if I use a larger font, it seems like I am getting more done. I want to ride my bicycle up Haleakala in Maui, and from Ke’e beach to the Kalalau overlook in Kauai, and a variety of other stupid boxes I’d like to check. Kay and I plan on doing some fun travel, starting with three weeks on the Dalmatian Coast in the spring of 2022.”

When he originally left the brush industry in 2001, Parr was given the recognition as an honorary member, “so hopefully I will able to attend future ABMA conventions, and once again I will be able to lose money to my golfing friends at an ABMA Convention and smile about it. I had back surgery in 2019 just to have an excuse at the ready, but I don’t think it will get me any more strokes.”

HIS BUSINESS INTERESTS

“I will continue to operate SilvaCor, Inc as it still has investment properties, and I am still connected with Advantage Self Storage as an owner, investor; but no longer have day-to-day responsibilities. Advisun will sunset as it served ABMA only to negotiate special travel-related deals.”

--BRM