Ch-ch-ch-ch-Changes: Reinventing Ourselves

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For many of us that pay attention to pop culture there is something fascinating about iconic aging rock stars.  David Robert Hayward Jones – Anyone heard of him?  In 1966 the fledgling musician decided he needed to change his name due to the fact that he was being confused with one “Davie Jones” of The Monkees and so was born “David Bowie”. 

Bowie wrote and recorded (1972), and has performed thousands of times what has become a modern day anthem with the stuttering chorus:

“Changes”

Everybody probably interprets the song in his or her own way but when you listen to the lyrics you get a sense that the theme of the song is really all about reinvention.  In our business we have done a fairly good job of continuous reinvention but we have also stayed on a strategic path of not changing too much.  Why not?  Because we have a formula that is successful.  There are many ways to measure success but in simplest of terms it comes down to profitability.   We have been profitable since inception. 

We also measure success by the vibrancy of our culture.   Here at Trase Miller, we have a vibrant and specific culture that has endured the test of time for a few simple reasons:

• Management Tenure – Lead by GM, Frank Silzer, we have a skilled and competent Management Team (around since the beginning).
• Best-In-Class Workforce – We carefully select our employees and diligently train.
• Ownership That Cares – Trase Miller’s owner Jim Miller is a successful/serial entrepreneur.  We benefit from his wisdom and willingness to invest in our business.   
• Narrow Focus and Quality Clients – We opened our doors in 1994 as a premium contact center service provider to the travel business with American Airlines/American Airlines Vacations as our anchor client.  American Airlines has treated Trase Miller as a partner and trusted advisor since the beginning. 

So these four things don’t necessarily need reinvention but that doesn’t mean that we are not open to changes and reinvention – We are!  About 90 days ago, we launched this new website as part of our efforts to invite more quality clients into our lives.  We completed a technology audit inside the last 60 days and decided to make some new investments.   In the last 30 days, we have made significant progress in charting our course for the next five years. 

Inside the next 30-60 days we intend to launch an awareness campaign called “Without a TRASE”.   The campaign is intended to provoke the thinking of external client candidates as well as internal employees.  When we sat still and thought about the fact that we have helped millions of people with their vacation planning, it occurred to us that so many people’s lives would be different if there were no Trase Miller around.   Surely there is tons of perspective out there that we could draw from to help us develop our campaign. 

So we need your help –  Stories are welcome! To submit your thoughts on how to finish the sentence, “Without a Trase….” hit us up with an email: sbell@trase-miller.com

PS and Sorry, David - -

“ …Time may change me – But I can’t Trase time”