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52 • FOODSERVICE EQUIPMENT & SUPPLIES • MAY 2015 was a steadily growing regional player for years. So what woke up this sleeping giant? "One of the transformative things has been getting the proper manage- ment team that absorbs [Fred's] energy and uses it to get our teams going in the right direction," Gene Clark says. Indeed, while the various techno- logical solutions Clark Associates uses are impressive, they are only as effective as the employees using them. "It all has to do with our people. We have made some of the best hires over the past fve years. And that has been the catalyst of our real growth," Fred Clark says. "These people are ambitious, they are aggressive. They want to do well and they want to grow." Overall, the company looks for two key traits when hiring new associates: work ethic and intelligence, according to Fred Clark. "If there's anything that bleeds through everyone in this com- pany it is work ethic," Weaver adds. The typical Clark as- sociate exhibits other key attributes. First, they have a strong entrepreneurial spirit. In other words, the company attracts people that have ideas, will take risks and speak up. "We have ideas coming from everywhere," Garber says. And, fnally, they will do the right thing. "We want people who are honest and ethical," Groff adds. Because the company continues to grow so fast across a variety of chan- nels, fnding other models to emulate is not an option and that impacts the type of person Clark Associates will hire. "I want someone that's determined to be the best," Garber adds. "I want some- one that will produce the best solution, no matter what. The more passionate they are the better." One thing Clark Associates is not hung up on when it comes to recruiting new people is experience in the food- service industry. The company looks for experts in their respective disciplines and then teaches them the nuances of the foodservice industry. "The people we want are obsessive about their niche, whether it is online development, system engineers or any- thing along that scope. We are looking for people that are passionate," Garber adds. "They don't care whether they are making an e-commerce site for muscle cars or foodservice. It's the same. They are making a cool website and work- ing in code to make neat, cool features. Someone that buys from Amazon or the WebstaurantStore — they want a good, online shopping experience." While its people represent one of Clark Associates' greatest assets, attracting and retaining top talent doubles as a key challenge. One Clark Associates' test kitchen serves as a training venue for associates. And the dealership uses it to build community. For example, once a month the company hosts a birthday lunch. Associates who share the same birthday month come to the test kitchen and work together to prepare lunch for everyone else in the building.