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Eric, Melissa & Clem Lesch -
Award Winner for Outstanding Associate Member,
Subcontractors Association |
Natives of Wisconsin, Clem and his wife Pauline headed to Texas
on the 3rd of January 1973, leaving the freezing 0° Wisconsin
weather for a warm 60° in Dallas. Clem worked eight years as an underwriter for
USF&G and Hartford and then a few years at a full lines insurance agency
before he and Pauline started PCL in 1985.
In 2008, their son Eric joined the business as a producer,
after working as a senior software engineer for Lockheed Martin for nine years.
While at Lockheed Martin, Eric worked on a variety of missile systems.
Below are some excerpts from my interview with Clem and Eric:
Tell me a little bit
about how you got started?
Clem:
I had earned a degree in finance and replied to an ad in the paper for a bond underwriter
trainee for USF&G. Initially, I thought they were looking for someone to underwrite
investment bonds, but when I arrived for the interview, I realized they
underwrote construction bonds. So I guess I got into the industry by accident.
What prompted me to start my own agency was getting laid off
the Monday before Christmas. At the time, Pauline was working for a struggling
real estate developer. We thought we would be better off running our own
business. She agreed to run the office while I handled the selling side of the
business.
We were very successful and soon rented an office in
Lewisville. I can remember the first time driving to our new office and hearing
on the radio that the Piggly Wiggly next door had caught fire. When I got there,
to my relief the firemen had been able to contain the fire and it hadn’t spread
to our office. It was really hard going in the early days, as we opened our
doors in the middle of the saving and loan bust and there were construction
companies across the state going under. We stuck with it, though, and decided
we would just work twice as hard.
I felt that if we could make it through tough times, the
good times should be that much easier. We worked 14 hour days and I remember
Pauline typing out letters and bonds in the front seat on a portable typewriter
while I drove. We did what we had to do to succeed and have seen the agency
grow along with our clients over the years.
Eric: I grew up wanting to be an electrical
engineer which was largely influenced by a much older cousin
who
was one. After graduating from the University of Texas at Arlington in 1999
with a degree in electrical engineering I went to work for Lockheed Martin
where he had already been working for many years.
Lockheed was very good to me; however, in 2008, I mentioned
to my wife that if I was going to make a career change, now was the time to do
it. She told my Mom and then I knew that I had to have the ‘talk’ with my Dad. My Mom was not pleased with my great idea to
work in the business because she was worried about it leading to problems in
the family so just to be sure, my Dad had me go through two assessments before
bringing me on. My first few years were particularly challenging as I started
in the business right as the financial crisis began.
Now, having worked nearly six years in the business, I have
developed a great relationship with our clients and sureties and enjoyed seeing
them succeed.
Who had the most influence
on you in terms of building PCL?
Clem:
My wife who encouraged me and worked with me in starting the business. Also,
our upbringing. We both grew up on dairy farms in Wisconsin. I came from a
family of eleven siblings, and parents who didn’t have a high school education.
Pauline came from a family of nine siblings. I learned how to work hard from an
early age and lost my parents when I was relatively young. This, combined with
being involved in sports, gave me a competitive drive as well as making me
self-sufficient.
Eric:
My cousin had a big impact on my childhood by introducing me to engineering
which lead to my first career at Lockheed Martin. However, my parents had the
strongest influence on my life. I can remember my mom helping me write computer
programs and learning how to do this herself despite having no background in
computer programming (she was a graphic artist). My Dad would make me go out
and work on the farm in the evenings. I inherited a strong work ethic and
positive attitude from them.
What do you think it
takes for a producer to be successful?
Clem: For a producer to be successful they have to
be willing to put the effort in at the beginning until they see results. I wore out my shoes from the bottom up. I got
out there and met a lot of contractors before I got any business.
I have a quote on my desk that says, “The only way to be an
above average organization is to employ above average people and have above
average clients.” I have tried to build my business this way. I think successful
agents measure their success by the success of their clients. I want to do the
best that I can do, so I look for clients who want to do the best they can do
and that way we both benefit.
Eric:
I think that in order for a producer to be successful they have to be
autonomous and persistent. There are a lot of good contractors who are already
working with a bonding agent. If you are persistent, you may eventually catch
them at a time when they are open to working with you.
I also think that good producers are capable of assessing
prospects and maintaining market knowledge. For example, throughout the
economic downturn PCL didn’t have a single claim. This is largely because of
work we do to keep track of the market, as well as what is happening with our
clients and providing training/seminars that are useful in helping them grow
and run their businesses.
Where do think the
greatest opportunity for growth will be in Bonding?
Clem: The
basics of bonding haven’t changed but how surety is used as a tool to manage
risk has. For example, the introduction of Subguard which is an insurance
product has allowed more contractors to manage their performance and payment
risks this way. At the same time, we are seeing an increase in the government
contractors and as well as private contractors we are bonding as the economy
continues to grow, especially in Texas.
Eric:
We specialize in bonds for contractors. It is all we do and I don’t see
diversification into other products in our future. There are opportunities to
work with insurance agents that don’t have a thorough understanding of bonds.
We can help them get bonding for their clients without the threat of losing the
insurance to a competitor.
Finally, when you are
not building PCL what personal interests do you have?
Clem: Our
family has a small farm which we enjoy spending time at. Pauline and I have
also done some travelling over the last ten years visiting all seven continents,
including Antarctica. I also enjoy spending time with our grandchildren.
Eric:
Outside of work I am involved in family activities with my wife Melissa and our
daughter, Sophia (9) and son Evan (6). I also enjoy working on our family farm
whether that is tackling different projects on the property, hunting dove and
ducks with my Dad or fishing with the kids.
