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by Stephen Parezo

Rodger Polivchak

February 1, 2006—Before he became an entrepreneur, Rodger Polivchak worked with small and mid-sized companies in central Europe helping them become acclimated to the market economy.

He returned to the U.S. and in 2002 acquired an existing Fiducial franchise in Bradenton, FL, where he realized first hand the challenges faced by small business owners.

“In the early going it was tough,” said Polivchak. “You’re trying to build up the business part-time while you’re holding down a full-time job.” He soon realized he would have to change his approach in order to make a go of it. “I either had to jump in and do it or it was just going to be a hobby,” he said.

Buying the business in Bradenton helped him grow his operation through acquisition with many of his acquired clients linked to the practice since the 1980s.

“I have a lot of clients that have been around for a good many years,” he said. “I inherited some good operating restaurants.”

What really helped Polivchak was the fact that a number of these inherited clients ran long-established businesses that had already put the difficulties encountered in establishing a company way behind them.

Keeping his vision alive

Growing up in northern Indiana, Polivchak says he always had a knack for numbers, puzzles and problem solving which he demonstrated by participating in high school math competitions. He earned an undergraduate degree in computer electrical engineering from Purdue University then worked in the aerospace industry designing the insides of microchips and microcircuits for defense contractors. Meanwhile, he kept his vision alive for one day owning an accounting business.

After receiving an MBA from Duke University with a concentration on finance and operations, Polivchak took part in the MBA Enterprise Corps, a program that’s like the Peace Corps. It was a consortium of the top businesses schools in the U.S. that sent recent graduates to work with companies in Europe. He drew an assignment in Poland where he liked it so well he stayed there for three years.

In post-Communist Europe, Polivchak noted that the mindset among Polish small business owners was very exciting since opportunities were just starting to open up in their economy.

“A whole bunch of entrepreneurs were trying to make a buck,” he said. “I worked with a company that made printed circuit boards for television remote controls.”

Following his stint with the Enterprise Corps, Polivchak did some technical consulting and worked for a venture capital firm as an investment officer who were looking at investing in Polish businesses.

“I got to see all corners of Poland and meet with a lot of new business owners,” he said.

Polivchak also met his future wife, Izabela, in Poland who is a physical therapist. He joked that he experienced some reverse culture shock upon returning to the U.S. at a large grocery store where he was overwhelmed by the variety of goods. Back in Poland, he had to go to separate shops for items such as meats, fruits and vegetables and paid cash for everything.

“What really got me was the credit card machine at the checkout,” he said. “Here was someone who worked in the aerospace industry trying to figure out how it works.”

Whether it’s Poland or the U.S., entrepreneurs are trying to build their businesses and Polivchak wants to help them find ways to do that.

Finding good help

Business owners in the Bradenton area, located just north of Sarasota on Florida’s West Coast, face a continual challenge finding enough qualified employees.

“Some of the big challenges here are unemployment is low but it’s hard to find reliable people especially with the restaurants,” he said.

With the minimum wage going up and hurricanes the last two years hitting the state hard Polivchak noted that the tourist season which runs January through April “hasn’t been as good as it’s been.”

“Seasonality here is pretty dramatic,” he said. “It’s hard finding people who want to be there day in and day out.”

Fortunately Polivchak has been able to put together a solid staff at his office which consists of a bookkeeper, utility person and an administrative assistant.

Other challenges working with small business owners include trying to convince those operating S Corporations that they need to have payroll taxes taken out and dealing with capital gain calculations. He’s also advised clients who were selling their business with the transition process.

Tackling tough problems

Occasionally Polivchak is called to tackle some tough problems like sorting out a dispute between a client and a vendor who indicated that the client “owed a bunch of money.” He requested paperwork from the vendor and went through the process of matching up payments to invoices. Then the vendor tried to collect finance charges which ended up getting dropped along with some of the claims. The matter took about eight weeks to resolve.

“When there’s a business transaction I want to make sure that both parties are happy with the results,” he said. “If they’re not then they shouldn’t go through with the transaction.”

Looking out for clients’ best interests also means having to step aside such as the time Polivchak informed a construction company owner that had experienced tremendous growth in a short span that “they’ve outgrown what our services can provide.”

While the client’s reaction raised an eyebrow at his unexpected frankness, he says it would not have been good for either party to continue as if nothing had changed.

“It’s not about me but how I can help your business out,” he said.

Stephen Parezo is the Media Manager for Fiducial.

Whatever your small business needs, your Fiducial tax and financial professional can analyze your situation and recommend an appropriate action plan. To locate a Fiducial office nearest you on fiducial.com, see the Zip Code Locator located in the upper right hand corner of the page. Do you have a particular topic that we should be writing about that can help your business? Please send your suggestions to: stephen.parezo@fiducial.com.

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