In the early 2000’s, Dick Corp. had been flourishing for years and by that point, enjoying a period of very rapid growth. But as is the case with any rapid growth in business, with that growth came a myriad of challenges, both internal and external.
Internally, the perpetual question of “How do we manage this growth?” was front and center on the minds of management. But the struggles the company had were due primarily to external circumstances, such as the downtown of the power and banking industries
Stephen D’Angelo, who had been running his own consulting firm, was brought aboard to become Dick’s Chief Restructuring Officer. He brought with him a no-nonsense, back to basics approach that wasn’t pretty, and definitely ruffled feathers along the way, but was most certainly a proven one. One that was centered around basic tenets of any successful business ofany size: managing cash flow, hiring top talent (or recognizing and retaining that which WAS working for a company you intend to turn around), and being direct as possible, with no sugercoating (not the easiest task, but the most necessary, and one that requires everyone from the top down to be all-in, thanks to a clear communication of goals, and measurable, manageable expectations).
Over the years, Dick Corp evolved into dck worldwide and 15 years later, under Stephen’s leadership as its current Chairman, President and CEO, the company has grown into a truly global powerhouse, all the while maintaining its presence where it all began, in Western Pennsylvania.
Today, dck worldwide is much more than a general contractor. The company is a total building solutions provider, with the capability to provide capital solutions and funding for development projects, pre-construction and procurement service expertise, design and leading-edge building information modeling, and everything else you would expect from a contractor that successfully turns its clients’ blueprints and visons into reality.
On this edition of The Raja Show, Stephen joins Raja to discuss where dck worldwide stands today, 15 years later, and what he has done to position the company as a standard bearer in the construction industry across the globe. Even though the company is now international, the basis of dck worldwide’s corporate culture and success remains grounded in the strong work-ethic born in Pittsburgh.
Listen to Raja’s interview with Stephen here