Temple Entrepreneurial Women Speech by Karen Daroff

-‐ Thank you Dean Barber and good morning everyone. karendaroff founder + principal daroffdesign inc

28 october 2013! temple university  league of entrepreneurial women

When Dean Barber asked me to speak with the students, faculty and friends of Temple University’s League for Entrepreneurial Women….I jumped at the chance! -‐ Why? Because… ●“We are bombarded by headlines and stories warning us that as women we cant possibly succeed if we are committed to both our families and careers.

We are told over and over again that we have to choose, because if we try to do too much, we’ll be overwhelmed and fail at both.

● As Sheryl Sandberg says, Who would ever choose work over life?

- Sheryl Sandberg from Lean In

“Who would ever choose work over life?” -‐ Because I believe the good news is, that, not only can women have both families and careers; we can thrive while doing it. It is in that spirit that I am eager to share with you my entrepreneurial experiences, some of the highlights of my career and several key business strategies that have contributed to my success.

been many sleepless nights worrying about.. ● how to make the next sale, meet the next payroll, solve an HR challenge or deal with a difficult or disgruntled client. DAROFFDESIGN © 2012 All Rights Reserved

● -‐ In fact, I am proud of my hard-‐earned success and

..........just “wishing”   won’t get you there

● -‐ Starting your own business is risky and often

Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook

must be strong, ambitious and courageous!

● Men enjoy these same characteristics and are accepted and admired, but assertive women are sometimes considered abrasive or called a “bitch”. This brings me to….

● Key Business Strategy # 1 Key Business Strategy #1   Find Your Voice, Speak-Up and Be Heard!

Find your voice, speak-‐up and be heard. Men are encouraged to speak up and to be assertive,

and frequently women are not, or they are afraid.

● A recent study published in American Political Science Review found that in collaborative group

The time that women spoke was significantly less than their proportional representation – amounting to less than 75% of the time that men spoke.

- American Political Science Review

settings, “the time that women spoke was significantly DAROFFDESIGN

less than their proportional representation –

amounting to less than 75% of the time that men spoke”. ● To me, this looks like good ol’ social pre-‐ “It took me quite a long time to develop a voice, and now that I have it, I am not going to be silent.”

conditioning. Women with entrepreneurial

- Madeleine Albright!

aspirations must have the courage and interpersonal skills to make themselves heard in order to encourage others to embrace their vision.

● That’s why I love this poster I have hanging in my

social preconditioning

closet. It reminds me of the importance that as women we-‐have-‐the-‐right-‐to-‐be-‐heard! DAROFFDESIGN

● One of my favorite quotes from Anita Roddick is, “A A strong woman understands that the gifts such as logic, decisiveness, and strength are just as feminine as intuition and emotional connection. She values and uses all of her gifts.

strong woman understands that the gifts such as logic,

- Anita Roddick, Founder of the Body Shop, Champion for human rights and environmental issues!

decisiveness, and strength are just as feminine as !

intuition and emotional connection. She values and uses all of her gifts.” A woman must be strong to succeed and must use all of her qualities to stand up and have a voice.

● During my 40 year career I have survived 3

test of time

and the recent international recession and financial market credit crunch. ● It has taken a lot of hard work, personal sacrifices, flexibility, good instincts, a little luck, and the sincere and effective efforts of many, many collaborators and

loyal employees over the years to have achieved the success I am so proud of here today. ● And, of course,

driving compulsion to succeed

● As a quick background, I grew up not far from here

looking back

home mom. I was a skinny, Jewish “street kid” and learned from lots of bumps, bruises, broken teeth and dares, not only how to survive, but how to get along with all the neighborhood kids. Looking back, my finely honed intuitive skill of “how to get along with all types of personalities” has been at the very essence of my ability to succeed as an entrepreneur. As a teenager, we moved to a suburban home in Springfield, Montgomery County.

●From Springfield high school I enrolled at Moore

Education!

College of Art and Design, then and still an all women’s college located on Logan Square here in DAROFFDESIGN

Philadelphia. ● My doting parents bribed me to stay in Philadelphia

taking the bribe

1966 fast-‐back Corvette, and a wardrobe of the sort of trendy clothes Mike Myers parodied in his Austin Powers films. ● I felt like a rock star at Moore and the Moore -‐ professors instilled in me the self esteem and drive as well as the foundation of professional skills I have

relied on my entire professional career.

● Key Business Strategy # 2 Key Business Strategy #2  Get the Best Education and Training Available to You in Your Chosen Field!

Get the best education and training available to you in your chosen field.

For those of you who are not familiar with the academic process at a design college, it’s a lot like Project Runway. The professors assign projects with an established due date. On that specific due date, each student hands in her work and then presents her project to a jury of her peers and professors; which is then critiqued in comparison to standards set by the competitive work of the other students in the group.

● All of us who have succeeded in the design world

Sell Your Vision!

skill of how to present or (SELL) our vision to prospective and current clients. Which brings me to the one of the most important lessons I’ve learned.

● Key Business Strategy # 3 Never stop marketing

Key Business Strategy #3  Never Stop Marketing!

never stop marketing. I personally really enjoy sales, When you are busiest; you need to market the most. The sky might fall tomorrow and a major project may be put on hold, so I always have a few project leads in the wings. I network with everyone. Business associates, manufacturing sources, friends, strangers on planes and trains. Remember: You never know where your next lead will come from.

● Key Business Strategy # 4 Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.

Key Business Strategy #4 Don t Put All of Your Eggs in One Basket!

DAROFFDESIGN

Before 9/11, we were heavily invested in the hotel !

and entertainment marketing segment. ● After the crushing events of the twin towers

diversification is key

After that, I learned we could no longer allow our marketing effort to be too heavily weighted in one market segment.

-‐ My firm’s strategy to work in diverse markets has been very helpful, so that we can easily shift gears when necessary and market more heavily in a growth market segment, when others have temporarily hit bottom. Diversification is key to riding out the hills and valleys of macro economics. ● Being an entrepreneur is clearly not for everyone.

financially independent

● My first salary was earned as a teenager at Hi-‐Hat

financially independent

my drive to succeed, I quickly exceeded previous sales. I also gained a certain sense of pride for having earned a salary at a young age and quickly realized how much I appreciated the independence of having my own money. ● I started saving my money from my first pay check,

financial independence

my ability to fund my business enterprises from my own equity. I have never had a third party investor or even a partner.

● In part, I owe my financial independence to my

Hold on to Your Paycheck!

first mother-‐in-‐law who, when I was about to turn over my first paycheck to my then husband, DAROFFDESIGN

Mitchell Daroff, she suggested, “Honey you hold onto your paycheck and in that way you will always be financially independent. You will stay together because you want to be together not because you need to be together.” That was good advice.

-‐ Today, I have no corporate debt; I pay my taxes on time, every time. and I pay off my credit cards each month. I also have made each and every payroll for 40 years. But I promise you … it’s not been easy ● While still at Moore, I had the opportunity to

karen at kling

firm here in Philadelphia called, the Kling Partnership.

● My first and only “boss” was Florinda Doelp, the

Florinda Doelp!

Interior Design department head at Kling. While (more) common-‐place here today, at the time, DAROFFDESIGN

Florinda was only one of a handful of women leading design departments in large Architectural firms world-‐ wide, and she was a wonderful mentor. She was demanding, powerful in her persona, extremely smart and professionally gifted. I slaved long hours, nights and weekends to prefect my work product to meet and try to exceed her high expectations. -‐ She also persisted until she broke me of the bad habit of saying “like” like a “valley girl”. She taught me the value of being an effective communicator, which beings me to my next key business strategy.

● Key Business Strategy #5 Fine Tune your Communications Skills

Key Business Strategy #5 Fine Tune Your Communication Skills!

Whether working in a professional environment or DAROFFDESIGN

marketing and selling a product or service, having excellent written and verbal communications skills is must. -‐ I cannot underline more strongly the absolute necessity for each of you to learn how to write, speak, and in general, communicate effectively. -‐ Surprisingly, I find it extremely rare to find people who are able to express their thoughts articulately. You can imagine how much more challenging communications can be in our growing “global” economy.

-‐ I will always be grateful to Florinda, and I hope that each of you are able to have equally rewarding experiences with women role models as talented demanding and yet as warm and inclusive as Florinda. ● Key Business Strategy #6 Seek out quality apprenticeships and learn from

Key Business Strategy #6 Seek Out Quality Apprenticeships and Learn From Mentors!

I believe I learned more about the profession from Florinda because I was perceptive, observant, and eager to learn. ● The flip side of this message was well expressed by

There is a special place in hello for women who don’t help other women.” - Madeleine Albright

Madeleine Albright, our first woman Secretary of State.

“There is a special place in hell for women who don’t help other women”…

-‐ After I graduated in 1970 I was offered a full time position at Kling. ● My first assignment was the interior design for a

Prudential Insurance Company

and I just plunged in. ● While working on the Prudential project, I was also assigned the design of a Girard Bank branch (Girard

later became Mellon Bank)

branch, I began to realize that as much as I had a passion for design, I was a natural at marketing and sales. I was as successful selling my design concepts to clients and at bringing new projects into the office. ● After 3 years of making major sales and bringing in substantial repeat work, I became disenchanted. I did not feel valued as an employee. I was performing as an

entrepreneur, bringing in $100,000’s of new work, but my substantial design and new business sales successes were not acknowledged or rewarded.

● Over the 40 years I have recruited, hired, trained and

assembling a team

worked collectively with hundreds of talented design professionals, the best and brightest have stayed with me and form the core of our well-‐respected team.

● Key Business Strategy # 7 Value your team.

Key Business Strategy #7 Value Your Team!

respect, a sense of caring and reasonable professional and financial reward, commensurate with their experience and performance.

● My staff members know I am there for them. I

Valued Staﬀ!

team. I learned long ago that frequently the best ideas come from the least expected staff members. We have management meetings and lunch and learn educational seminars each week, all hands staff meetings bi-‐monthly, and once a month “huddles” with refreshments to share successes in an open forum, and one-‐on-‐one discussions whenever requested by an individual or group of staff members.

Almost immediately, I was awarded a new project with Prudential, and then went on to design 23 branch banks for Girard and millions of square feet of office space over a 20 year period with Prudential.

● Key Business Strategy #8

Focus on client retention.

Key Business Strategy #8 Focus on Client Retention!

The best and most cost effective sales leads are from DAROFFDESIGN

and with your existing clients. We make every effort every day to exceed the expectations of every one of our clients, every time. As a result more than 80% of my year-‐to-‐year sales are with current or prior clients. Think of this as a “stepping stone” process and make sure the previous project results in a firm foundation for the next stepping stone.

● In the beginning, while working alone, at home on my

cobblestones restaurant

● I submitted photos of this project for the Institute of

interior design magazine

Business Designers award and was the second place national winner. It was also published by Interior DAROFFDESIGN

Design Magazine as an award winner and…

I-‐was-‐on-‐my-‐way! ● Key Business Strategy #9 Recognize the value of public relations

Key Business Strategy #9 Recognize the Value of Public Relations!

and establish a memorable brand! If you don’t speak up and promote your work, no one will know who you are and no one will see your vision.

With these initial sales successes and some repeat business, I soon had 2, then 3 employees joining me, all working at my kitchen table. ● I realized we had to have more space to work and a new kitchen table

proper design studio. ● By 1978 I was well established as a young, aggressive,

Smith Kline

of SmithKline (now Glaxo Smith Kline) at 17th and Race Street.

● This project won the Interiors of the Year award from

Smith Kline!

Architectural Record, which in turn resulted in invitations from architects throughout the country for DAROFFDESIGN

me to join their project teams. ● These invitations resulted in project opportunities

new opportunities

design talents into the hospitality (hotel and resort) market that had been mostly served either by upscale traditional residential designers, or cookie cutter designers working for major national hotel brands. ● In 1980 we were commissioned to do the interior

Sagamore Hotel

● I had just seen the Christopher Reeve’s -‐ Jane Seymour film “Somewhere in Time” and inspired by this movie, I set about to create an authentic back in time experience at the Sagamore Hotel …and it worked…it

really worked, ● guests arrived and immediately felt as though they

Sagamore Hotel!

were transported to the Victorian era. DAROFFDESIGN

● With the publication of our work at the Sagamore, I

Wing Chao

received a call from Disney’s design director Wing Chao. DAROFFDESIGN

● Wing explained to me that what I had created at the michael eisner, peter brummell, wing chao

hotels in Orlando. So off I went to Disney to meet with Wing. Wing and I hit it off immediately and together we have enjoyed working on Disney projects for almost 25 years.

disney s contemporary resort + conference center

● We completed 3 resorts including the renovation of DAROFFDESIGN DAROFFDESIGN

the flagship Disney Contemporary Hotel

land pavilion at disney s epcot

disney s wild horse pavilion at treasure island

Pavilion ● and the Wild Horse Saloon at Pleasure Island.

DAROFFDESIGN DAROFFDESIGN

● Our work at Disney led to similar projects at Universal

royal pacific, porto fino

● Including an 1800 guest room resort themed in US

cabana bay: think mad men hotel

Think 1905’s MAD MEN – the Hotel is scheduled to open in 2014!!

● Jekyll + Hyde

● Fantasia Reef

● We also began to earn the respect of mainstream

Major Brands!

● Our award winning work to convert the historic

PSFS philadelphia

1920’s-‐30’s era International Style PSFS office tower on Market Street into the LOEWS Hotel is another example of creating a themed hotel environment.

-‐ At the same time we were expanding our credentials in the hospitality market segment, we were building on our already well-‐established reputation as designers of corporate headquarters and operational facilities. ● In addition to our work with Prudential, we were

Merrill Lynch!

Wall Street to Princeton.

● We also added Comcast as a new client 25 years ago

Comcast!

when they had only a small suburban office in Bala Cynwyd. I am very proud of my team and our ability to !

provide continuing services to Comcast as they’ve grown over the past two decades. ● You may be familiar with our current work for the

Comcast!

interior design of the one million square foot Comcast headquarters building at 17th and JFK. DAROFFDESIGN

● Based on our successful design work, superior service

NBC Universal!

and positive relationships, we then had the thrill of designing the new executive offices for NBC Universal DAROFFDESIGN

at 30 Rock, when Comcast acquired NBC Universal several years ago.

Now back to the 70’s. Life was good and we were very busy and growing. ● After returning from a fabulous vacation in Italy, I

italy

thought that in order to attract international clients, we had to have a New York office.

● So in 1975 I leased a small office, a penthouse floor at 55th and Madison. It was a huge commitment, but at DAROFFDESIGN

that time I felt invincible.

● I hired an incredibly talented staff and we did some

Revlon Headquarters

● and Prudential’s Boston NE headquarters. What I

Prudential Boston NE Headquarters

going well….I hadn’t been minding the store financially. I didn’t know what warning signs to look for and I was about to learn a bitter lesson.

● In 1979, my new accountant, Barbara Schoenberg from Deloitte Touch sat down in my office and said the

$250,000 in debt

DAROFFDESIGN

words that will forever echo in my mind. “You have to

close your New York office immediately or you’re gonna go “belly-‐ up.” I felt like I had been kicked in the stomach. The incredible bottom line was that my small business was $250,000 in debt!

-‐ This was the first time I had to borrow funding to cover unpaid expenses. I had established no collateral and the only way I could get an approved loan was that my first husband, agreed to cosign. It was a scary and humbling experience. -‐ What made things worse back then was that interest rates were 22%. But I realized I had to deal with it. I drove up to New York City and on July 31st 1979 we closed the office. It was one of the saddest and most disheartening days of my life.

After a couple of years, I managed to pay off the debt and as work picked up, I started to pay myself a small salary again. ● In 1981 I was invited to be a guest of the Italian Trade

meeting in milan

Where I met an American Architect who was giving a speech on “How to run a successful and profitable design firm”. His name was Jim Rappoport. I was so impressed with Jim, that when I returned from the trip, I called him (he lived in New York) and asked if he’d come consult with my firm.

The first thing Jim gave me upon arriving at my office was a book for the nonfinancial executive on How To Read Financial Statements. I immediately gave it back to him and told him: I was a designer, and that I didn’t want to have to deal with finances. Business and finance were not part of the curriculum at Moore, and I had no interest in it. That was my first important “Jim lesson:” ● He had to force-‐fed me financial management.

learning financial management

read a financial statement. I learned about the key business ratios relevant to the management of our type of business enterprise

● Key Business Strategy # 10

Manage the bottom line.

Key Business Strategy #10 Manage the Bottom Line!

Today, I authorize every purchase order, I co-‐sign !

every check, I review every incoming payable invoice and I have learned the hard way, that it is critical to cut overhead immediately when sales are down and workload is reduced. This sometimes means cutting staff, renegotiating lower rent and finding other ways to reduce operating expenses.

● At the beginning of the recent recession our

Manage the Bottom Line!

management team agreed to a pro rata salary cut across the board, and for a few months we closed the DAROFFDESIGN

office every other Friday. As a result, we continue to remain profitable and as our sales have once again picked up, we are now hiring again.

-‐ Jim and I have worked together since we met in 1981. He is intellectual and theoretical. He is a Cornell Architecture grad and a graduate of Columbia in Urban Planning and Economics. In other words, we are from 2 different planets. Which brings me to my next …

● Key Business Strategy # 11

Never Work With your husband or

Key Business Strategy #11 Never Work With Your Husband or Significant Other!

Just joking! What I have learned from working with Jim, and the other smart, talented and quirky members of our team is the next and very important…

● Key Business Strategy # 12

Celebrate Individual Strengths. Key Business Strategy #12 Celebrate Individual Strengths!

I sincerely believe that everyone is differently capable !

and I attribute much of my own success to my ability to celebrate the strengths and abilities of each of my employees and team members. When project teams are formed, I assign team members who have complementary skills, who I intuitively feel will be compatible with the personalities of our clients and who I believe will be most responsive to that particular client project’s aesthetic and technical needs.

● In recognition of our commitment to design

Moore College of Art – Levy Galleries

year retrospective exhibit of our work at Moore College of Art’s Levy Galleries (a project that we had designed a few years previously). -‐ My good fortune continued in 1990, and I received my best award ever. ● I gave birth to a beautiful baby boy, Robert

better than any award

-‐ Now, perhaps the most important lesson I wish to share with you this morning is:

● Key Business Strategy # 13 Find time for yourself.

Key Business Strategy #13 Find Time For Yourself!

Embrace each stage of your life. You have choices. While pursuing your entrepreneurial dream, keep in mind what I have now learned. Life goes by in a flash. While you are working on cultivating your mental toughness, find time to take care of your own personal health and vitality. ● Find time for family, friends and fun. If you find a having it all

-‐ One of the key lessons to having it all, is not trying to do it all by yourself -‐ all of the time. Learn to delegate and embrace opportunities.

● Key Business Strategy # 14

Recognize the Importance of Collaboration and

Key Business Strategy #14 Recognize the Importance of Collaboration and Networking!

Networking. DAROFFDESIGN

I constantly market to potential collaborators (peer group firms) all over the world. While we have a great portfolio of design work and terrific client references there are many times when a third party team member’s credentials are more aligned with the particular needs of a desirable client, and will help close the sale.

● We found it is better to have part of a project rather

team marketing efforts

team marketing efforts frequently succeed at a higher rate of success than when I market (just) the services of my own firm. ● After 9/11 when there was a dearth of development

Opening the Chinese Market

an office in Shanghai to directly provide our professional services to the major hotel brands opening new properties throughout the rapidly expanding Chinese market.

Mariott Hotels in Harbin and Shijiazhuang

and throughout the USA, we are frequently invited to join project teams, because of our proven design skills, our WBE certification and with due modesty, my personal ability to help organize strategic design teams and orchestrate compelling marketing and sales presentations.

● Key Business Strategy # 15 Take Advantage of Being a

Key Business Strategy #15 Take Advantage of Being a Woman Owned Business A WBE !

Woman Owned Businesses “a WBE”. !

Invest the time and effort to obtain certification as a Women Owned Business Enterprise, locally, State-‐ wide, nationally in other cities throughout the United States and at various tiers of the Federal government.

As a result of the recession of the early 1990s, all of our private sector corporate work evaporated overnight. At that time, we thought we would turn to public sector projects and... ● We pursued our certification as a WBE, and because of that we were invited to join a design team for Philadelphia International Airport. We had a small DAROFFDESIGN © 2012 All Rights Reserved

token role initially, as a sub-‐consultant to a major architecture and engineering firm, but because we worked hard to exceed client expectations, we were later able to leverage that experience from an initial minor role of only 10% of the fee to:

● Today, approximately 25% of our fee income can be

PHL International Airport!

● Key Business Strategy # 16 Celebrate and be proud of your success.

Key Business Strategy #16  Celebrate and Be Proud of Your Success!

● Today more than 150,000 employees are working in office facilities we have designed, hundreds of judges preside over court sets we have created, more than

10,000,000 travelers will pass through airport terminals we have designed, more than 50,000 hotel guests will sleep in guestrooms we have designed and more than 200,000 restaurant guests will have their meals in restaurants experiences we have created.

● As I stand here celebrating our 40th year in business, I

16 Key Business Strategies! 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16

Find Your Voice, Speak-Up and Be Heard.! Get the Best Education and Training Available! Never Stop Marketing! Don t Put All Your Eggs In One Basket.! Fine Tune Your Communications Skills! Seek Out Quality Apprenticeships and Learn From Mentors! Value Your Team! Focus On Client Retention! Recognize the Value of Public Relations! Manage the Bottom Line ! Never Work With Your Husband or Significant Other! Celebrate Individual Strengths! Find Time for Yourself! Recognize the importance of Collaboration and Networking! Take Advantage of Being a Woman Owned Businesses WBE! Celebrate and Be Proud of Your Success!

opportunity to work with so many incredibly talented professionals, and appreciative clients. It is really the reason why I am here today. I hope these Key Business Strategies resonate with all of you.

-‐ No matter how many more exciting projects my firm is commissioned for, or how many more awards we win, or if we are ever on the cover of another magazine, the most significant thing I wish of these past forty years is that the nuanced stories they’ve created and the unexpected lessons they’ve taught me to serve, inform, inspire, and energize future generations of entrepreneurs such as yourselves. ● I am heartened each time I recall Maya Angelou’s quote “I love to see a young girl go out and grab the world by the lapels. Life’s a bitch. You’ve got to go out and kick ass”

● I encourage you to go out, kick ass, and do whatever it is going to take to make your dream a reality. thank you

karen daroff kd@daroffdesign.com 215.636.9900

Thanks for your attention …please keep in touch