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2016 Rhode Island Small Business Person of the Year
Tom Kellogg
Tom Kellogg graduated from Vanderbilt in 1983 and began his career as a Manufacturer’s Representative for various sporting goods brands, including Asics and Oakley. In 1989, Tom joined Nike as a Sales Representative and worked his way up to Eastern Regional Sales Manager for Nike Golf.
After many years of success with Nike, Tom saw the potential to create his own business meeting corporate sponsors’ demand to purchase premium golf equipment bearing their own logos. Tom’s company literally began in his basement, where he started adding sponsors’ logos to golf balls, and with that, ParsonsKellogg (PK) was born. His business began growing quickly, with more merchandising options and a rapidly expanding client base.
Like many other small businesses, the 2008 recession battered PK, and for the first time in Tom’s business life, he faced the overwhelming task of keeping a business with over 40 employees afloat during a time of economic uncertainty. When asked how PK survived this time, Tom explained, “You have to make tough decisions, and some of those tough decisions don’t wait.” For Tom these words could not have been truer. During better days, the company could absorb high volume customers that were not highly profitable, but that model no longer worked. He also had to take a hard look at his expenses, make cuts and work with his team to find new ways to compete. Unfortunately, Tom also had to lay off some employees and friends. Throughout this painful episode, he took steps to ensure PK’s survival. He began securing payments in advance and did whatever was needed to keep the doors open. This strategy, while a difficult one, continued to keep PK afloat through uncertain times and eventually guided PK out of danger, securing the company’s future and emerging stronger. Tom looks back on those uncertain times with a learned eye, admitting that when times are steady, a business owner can postpone making a hard decision, but today he understands the value of making the tough call when needed. Now that the team at PK has weathered the storm, Tom says his people are stronger in their roles and more accountable than ever to PK and to each other. He also was heartened to discover that people who left PK found jobs they were well suited to for the long term.
PK has since established itself as a Top 100 distributor in the 50 billion dollar promotional products industry. The company offers apparel, corporate gifts, tradeshow giveaways, awards and accessories, all in premium brands. PK stocks over a million dollars’ worth of inventory at any time to ensure immediate demand, and Tom hopes to one day expand regionally, while remaining committed to doing business in the Ocean State: “I love Rhode Island, I wanted to make a business here, and I wanted to stay here.” He elaborated, “Rhode Island is not a bad place to do business or recruit people. We, for example, have an internship program with Providence College, Bryant University, and the University of Rhode Island, and I am truly impressed by the young talent that comes out of this program.”
Tom Kellogg has continually done it his way, with respect, class, humility, and a belief in the people around him, a way his staff has embraced and affectionately branded the “PK Way.”
When asked to elaborate, Tom explained, “We were at our holiday party, and it had been an incredible year, and while I was thanking everyone, I just said that I was proud we had done it the PK Way. The PK Way isn’t anything set in stone, but all of us here know it when we see it.” And what they see is the drive to better their products, explore new and interesting directions and deliver excellence and accountability to the customer and one another.
For his demonstrated success, the U.S. Small Business Administration is pleased to honor Tom Kellogg, President of ParsonsKellogg, as the 2016 Rhode Island Small Business Person of the Year.
Mount Saint Charles Senior was Named a Candidate in the US Presidential Scholars Program
WOONSOCKET, RI – Madeline Charbonneau, a graduating senior at Mount, has been named one of more than 4,000 candidates in the 2016 US Presidential Scholars Program. The candidates were selected from nearly 3.3 million students expected to graduate high school this year. Madeline is from Mendon, MA and is the daughter of Bree and Dennis Charbonneau.
Inclusion in the US Presidential Scholars Program, now in its 52nd year, is one of the highest honors bestowed upon graduating high school seniors. Scholars are selected on the basis of superior academic and artistic achievements, leadership qualities, strong character, and involvement in community and school activities.
Having attended Mount from grades 7-12, Madeline has a cumulative GPA of 4.16 and has been listed on the Excelsior Honor roll from grades 9-12 (a minimum GPA of 4.0 and no grade below a C). She was also a member of the National Honor Society in grades 10, 11, and 12 and has received several academic awards during her career at the Academy. In addition to her academic accomplishments, Madeline has served in several leadership roles. She was captain of her varsity cross country team and track team, was the founder of the running club and, during her sophomore year, held the position of Class of 2016 vice president. Active in school and in her community, Madeline is a musician in the Academy’s Fine Arts department and spends much of her time volunteering at various service opportunities such as at the Ronald McDonald House and at Trinity Nursing Home in Woonsocket, RI.
“Mount Saint Charles Academy is proud of the recognition that Ms. Maddi Charbonneau is receiving for her tremendous work ethic and determination,” Edwin Burke, principal of Mount Saint Charles, said. “She is a young woman who is committed to scholarship and service, and she embodies the mission of the school. We at Mount Saint Charles join Maddi’s family in celebrating her effort.”
The US Presidential Scholars Program was established in 1964 by Executive Order of the President to recognize some of our nation’s most distinguished graduating seniors for their accomplishments in many areas: academic success, leadership, and service to their school and community. It was expanded in 1979 to recognize students demonstrating exceptional scholarship and talent in the visual, creative, and performing arts. In 2015, the program was expanded once again to recognize students who demonstrate ability and accomplishment in career and technical fields.
Annually, up to 161 US Presidential Scholars are chosen from among that year’s senior class, representing excellence in education and the promise of greatness in America’s youth. All Scholars are invited to Washington, DC in June for the National Recognition Program, featuring various events and enrichment activities, culminating in the presentation of the Presidential Scholars Medallion during a White House sponsored ceremony.
A distinguished panel of educators will review these submissions and select 800 semifinalists in April. The Commission of Presidential Scholars, a group of up to 32 eminent citizens appointed by the President, will select the finalists, and the US Department of Education will announce the Scholars in May.
About Mount Saint Charles Academy 
Mount Saint Charles Academy is located in Woonsocket, RI and is a private, Catholic junior-senior high school in the tradition of the Brothers of the Sacred Heart. It serves a co-educational community in a college preparatory environment. Students are challenged through a rigorous academic program and through religious and co-curricular experiences to become people of faith who use their talents and intellects to serve others.
Alliance Security and URI Create New Learning Experience for MBA Students
CRANSTON, RI — A new collaboration between Alliance Security — a leading home automation and security solutions provider — and the University of Rhode Island is offering MBA candidates an educational experience with real-world content and application. Students are tasked with developing new processes and solutions for business cases in a seven-day competition.
Alliance Security and URI recently completed a pilot phase of this intensive learning experience, which marked the start of collaboration between the two organizations. A cohort of 20 students enrolled in URI’s one-year MBA Program in Strategic Innovation spent one week at Alliance’s headquarters in Cranston, Rhode Island.
“It was truly inspiring to have so many great minds at work,” stated Jay Gotra, CEO of Alliance Security, who added that the partnership represents an intersection where the supply of and demand for fresh ideas meet. “These are projects that have the potential to truly transform lives — creating real jobs and opportunities.”
The student-contestants were split up into six teams, which each strived to develop the best strategies unique to one of three businesses owned by Alliance Security. One offers SBA loans to small companies and two offer products and services aligned with that of their parent company — identity protection and concierge residential relocation solutions.
The week kicked off with a briefing of business cases and concluded with 30-minute presentations by each team. Scholarship stipends were awarded to members of the team with the best pitch, selected by a panel of judges consisting of Gotra and other members of Alliance’s leadership team — Chief Operations Officer Eric Patrick, Chief Financial Officer Ricardo Diaz, Chief Strategy Officer Eric Polson, and Vice President of Operations Jake Murray.
During the presentation preparation process, students had direct access to support and guidance from Alliance’s executives and management personnel. The insight-filled competition challenged the MBA candidates to apply technical knowledge and creativity in an innovative environment that integrates the needs of both students and employer.
URI Professor of Practice, Innovation, and Entrepreneurship Diane St. Laurent worked closely with Alliance Security on its concept and design. While URI has established numerous partnerships with businesses, this competition-style initiative with Alliance Security was the first of its kind for her MBA students.
“We knew that Alliance Security’s needs were immediate and that’s why we created an expedited program specifically to address them,” stated St. Laurent, who added that the MBA program emerged from a redesign in 2012 with aggressive goals, and is grateful for Alliance Security’s role in helping URI achieve them.
“This collaboration offers the students a chance to develop ideas using methods such as design thinking, lean startup, and the innovator’s method,” said St. Laurent. Students were required to submit white papers on their projects, as well.
St. Laurent first came in contact with Jay Gotra in 2006, when she rented out property to Alliance Security, which was then a three-year old startup company with only 15 employees.
Business performance for Alliance has since been nothing short of impressive. A repeat contender on Inc. magazine’s list of fastest growing companies in America, the company has created over 500 jobs and protected over 250,000 homes in 46 states.
According to St. Laurent, Alliance Security’s culture — one centered on learning, teaching, and growing among its employees — makes the company a perfect environment to cultivate the future business leaders enrolled in URI’s MBA program. “Seeing the students learn and grow everyday while developing a business case was an amazing transition to witness.”
Dr. Maling Ebrahimpour, Dean of the College of Business Administration at URI, agrees. “Our students worked hand and hand with Alliance Security and utilized the knowledge they had acquired to help Alliance make more informative decisions about their business and products. This was truly a mutually beneficial experience for both Alliance Security and URI.”
Furthermore, the experience offered an opportunity for students to showcase their talents to a company looking to recruit the best and brightest grads. Some standouts were actually offered contracts by Alliance to continue developing their ideas.
“We look forward to strengthening our relationship with URI and continue developing a talent pipeline for Alliance Security that is aligned with career pathways of their MBA students,” concluded Alliance Security CEO Jay Gotra.
Discussions for another installment of the business case competition to take place later this year are already underway.
Alliance Security is hiring. To learn more about the company and opportunities to join its fast-growing and dynamic team, visit www.alliancesecurity.com.
About Alliance Security
Alliance Security is a leading provider of home automation and security solutions. Over the past 13 years, the Rhode Island-based company has established an expanding presence — operating in 46 states with over 500 employees. Dedicated to offering the latest smart home technology, security products, and award-winning service, Alliance Security has protected over 250,000 homes across America.
With Moratorium on Shut-Offs Ending, Households In Need Encouraged To Apply To Good Neighbor Energy Fund for Assistance
PROVIDENCE, RI, – The moratorium on energy shut-offs is ending this Friday, April 15th for all customers not on protected status so the Good Neighbor Energy Fund and its administrator, United Way of Rhode Island, are encouraging those in need of energy assistance to visit a local Community Action Program (CAP) agency or call United Way 2-1-1 to determine if the Fund can be a source of relief.
The Rhode Island Good Neighbor Energy Fund is a safety net for households in temporary crisis who do not qualify for federal and state assistance programs such as LIHEAP. The State’s local CAP agencies determine households who are eligible for the Fund based on specific household income and family member guidelines.
“With the moratorium on energy shut-offs lifted at the end of this week, we’re entering a time of the year when the need for energy assistance is highest,” said Anthony Maione, President and CEO, United Way of Rhode Island. “We encourage all those who are having trouble making ends meet to contact our 24-hour call center by dialing 2-1-1 or visit a local Community Action Program agency to see if your household qualifies for assistance from the Fund.”
In addition to the various giving programs of Fund sponsors – National Grid, Pascoag Utility District, Dominion Resources, Entergy RISEC, Petro Home Services and Trans-Canada’s Ocean State Power – the Fund’s “Warm Thy Neighbor” campaign relies on the generosity of individuals, families and local corporations for support. Rhode Islanders most often donate to the Fund via the yellow donation envelopes that are enclosed with energy bills. Those interested in donating to the Fund can also text “WARM” to 91999 on their mobile phone, send a check payable to “Good Neighbor Energy Fund” to Rhode Island Good Neighbor Energy Fund, c/o United Way of Rhode Island, 50 Valley Street, Providence, RI 02909-2459 or visit www.rhodeislandgoodneighbor.org.
About United Way of Rhode Island
Because everyone needs help sometimes, United Way of Rhode Island (UWRI) helps people. United Way invests in programs with clear results, including those that help children fall in love with learning, that help families meet their basic needs, and that offer training and education for jobs and careers. United Way also provides everyone with one number to call for help, 2-1-1. The organization’s fundraising costs are covered 100% by a trust. For more information, visit www.LIVEUNITEDri.org.
About Rhode Island Good Neighbor Energy Fund
Since its establishment in 1986, the Rhode Island Good Neighbor Energy Fund has raised over $12.9 million and helped over 44,000 families in need of temporary energy assistance. For more information about the Good Neighbor Energy Fund or to receive assistance, contact the United Way 2-1-1in Rhode Island help line or a local Community Action Program (CAP) agency. Web: www.rhodeislandgoodneighbor.org.
