Dragon Jim Treliving Breathes More Life Into Our Economic Recovery

Dragon Jim Treliving Breathes More Life Into Our Economic Recovery

For me, it was an absolute pleasure to meet with Jim Treliving as he represents the very best things about Canadian business. Honesty, integrity, hard work and a large slice' of true entrepreneurialism has enabled Jim to build the Boston Pizza empire to more than 375 restaurants across Canada and the US, and a number of other successful businesses including the Mr Lube franchise.

Like most compelling business success stories, Boston Pizza started from humble beginnings and there were many struggles on the way up. Jim shared his story at the Oakville Chamber of Commerce Kick-off breakfast event celebrating the beginning of Small Business Week 2009. Jim reminisced on the day he told his father that he resigned his position with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. His father was less than pleased that his son had walked away from a steady salary and a good pension plan, and even less impressed when he told him that he had decided that his future career lay with a Greek owned Italian restaurant based in Edmonton. But, the rest is history and his father would surely be proud of what he has accomplished since then.

People Provide the Key to Your Business Success

Asked what he believes the key to a successful business is, Jim Treliving unreservedly points to its People'. Jim considers himself as a passionate people person', and modestly attributes much of his success to the people around him, "I'm only able to stand here and tell this story because of the quality of the people around me in my business".

Boston Pizza now employs over 16,000 people and serves around 38 million customers annually, so it is little wonder why Jim Treliving is such a people person'. However, it is Jim's genuine appreciation of people and his ability to create and foster a culture that attracts and retains talent that has been the real key to whatever personal and business success he has enjoyed.

People represent the lifeblood of any business and therefore a business owner must work diligently to ensure that the infrastructure and environment is designed to ensure that people are attracted into and allowed to flourish within it.

Understand your Strengths and Limitations

When I watch the Dragon's Den, Jim Treliving shines as such an accomplished entrepreneur. He exudes confidence, he asks all the right questions and you get the feeling that he has all the right ingredients for a successful business person. But when I spoke with Jim, he quickly told me that one of his foresights was "realizing his strengths" and, more crucially, "acknowledging his limitations". "For anyone running a business" he said "they must know what they can do and what they need other people to do." Jim openly admits that "When deals were complicated, I knew I was not the most talented guy when it comes to that because I didn't have the experience and/or education in some matters".

Hire the Best Talent You Can Get

Business will always have scope for growth or change and as the business grows or moves in a new direction, new challenges emerge which inevitability stretch the existing compilation of skills. Business leaders are often reluctant to relinquish responsibility, even in areas where they know they are not qualified and the results are often devastating to the business. Jim Treliving retorts about the early days of business when he was faced with challenges which sat outside his core strengths. "What did I do? I hired the best people you can get".

At a crucial stage in our economic recovery, businesses have the opportunity to communicate a strong message to the world. Now is the time for the exploration of new opportunities and new directions. Successful businesses are those who are well positioned to ride the wave of economic recovery. Has your business got the talent on board to take you where you want to be?

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