Home » Authors » Della Pacheco

Della Pacheco

Articles

Storrow Kinsella Associates Inc.: Landscape firm aims to improve urban settings Architectural training helps SKA in bid to transform communities

John Kinsella is proud of Davlan Park, a collection of grass, trees, plants and public art tucked away on a tiny patch of green next to the Mass Ave Starbucks. He smiles when he sees someone sitting on a bench or at a table, taking a break from the bustling commercial corridor. He remembers when the so-called pocket park was just neglected space. But that was before Storrow Kinsella Associates worked its magic. The 20-year-old landscape architecture firm, owned by…

Read More

Grant Communications Inc.: Cellular merger brings growth to local retailer Business expansion beats owner’s initial expectations

Cellular phones may be ubiquitous today, but they weren’t in 1987 when Elkhart-born Adam Grant spotted an Atlanta neighbor talking into a two-way radio that doubled as a phone. The communications device was introduced by Nextel, which rolled out a mobile phone that same year. Intrigued by the innovation, Grant began a journey taking him from Atlanta to Houston and back to his home state. He opened his first central Indiana mobile-phone store in April 1998, and now Grant Communications…

Read More

Bruce R. Frank & Associates LLC: Business, basketball give adviser a leg up International perspective useful for Indianapolis consulting firm

At 6 feet 8 inches, consultant Bruce R. Frank is an imposing figure. But it’s the 30 years of business experience the former professional basketball player has accumulated that he says helps him tower over his competition. Frank, 51, is the founder of Bruce R. Frank & Associates, an Indianapolis-based consulting group that helps life-sciences companies develop business strategies. So far, he has found most of his clients outside Indianapolis: Frank spent seven months on the road last year. The…

Read More

Overcoming negativity can boost bottom line: Realistic optimism is a skill worth learning

Negativity is an increasing problem in the workplace, costing U.S. companies about $3 billion a year in lost productivity, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Whether it’s due to downsizing, budget cuts, lack of participation in decision-making, or co-workers who are simply pessimistic, negativism hurts everybody. Suzanne Metzger knows this firsthand. She said strong faith helped her weather a life-threatening setback-breast cancer. A major obstacle in her life was dealing with difficult people instead of holding her anger…

Read More

Stoeppelwerth & Associates: ‘Staking’ their claim on growth Local engineering firm finds abundant opportunities

While most 8-year-old boys were playing with toy trucks, Dave Stoeppelwerth was riding in big ones helping land surveyors at his father’s civil engineering firm. Stoeppelwerth, now 51 and CEO of Stoeppelwerth & Associates, grew up learning the business. In fact, Stoeppelwerth had done enough surveying during grade school and high school that at age 16 he became a crew chief working under his father, Dick, who started the north-side company in 1962. He joined the company full time after…

Read More

New Horizon Credit Inc.: Firm focuses on collecting older debt Company specializes in finding people who haven’t paid their credit card bills

Company specializes in finding people who haven’t paid their credit card bills As long as Americans have a champagne thirst for the good life but a beer budget to pay for it, there will be debt. And as long as there is debt, there will be those who fail to pay. That’s where companies such as New Horizon Credit Inc. come in. Founded in 2003 by brothers William and Fred Goodnight, New Horizon specializes in collecting older debt-debt that’s been…

Read More

Aging employees, parents face care-giving challenges: More Americans balance jobs, elder-care concerns Long-distance care

More than 14 million employees today face the challenge of balancing job duties with the responsibility of caring for an older relative, according to the San Francisco-based Family Caregivers Alliance. And the numbers are growing as America ages. Employers and employees are feeling the cost of elder-care work conflicts to the tune of more than $11 billion in lost productivity annually, according to a MetLife study. Many baby boomer care givers find themselves sandwiched between caring for their own children…

Read More

Appnuity LLC: IT firm targets small businesses, not-for-profits Web-hosted services one of the company’s fastest-growing areas

Appnuity founders David Eckel and Mark Castelli started their information technology business in 1999 specifically to serve this client base. They provide a wide array of personal-computer network solutions, Web site application development, Web-hosted services and structured cabling, which is determining the type of cabling needed to support current and future technology needs. The partners’ skills complement each other. Eckel, 33, who is president and CEO, has experience as a network technician and sales consultant. Castelli, 34, is Appnuity’s vice…

Read More

Indiana Restoration Services Inc.: Disasters send firm into action Restoration helps get homes, businesses back to normal Disasters-natural and otherwise-can strike at any moment. Floods, fires, tornadoes, even backed-up sewers and broken water pipes can

Disasters-natural and otherwise-can strike at any moment. Floods, fires, tornadoes, even backed-up sewers and broken water pipes can wreak havoc on homes and businesses. Dealing with the aftermath-waterlogged furnishings, mold, structural damage and other devastation-is what Indiana Restoration Services does 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Co-owners Dan Hanlin and Darren Peck didn’t start out with a detailed business plan to run a disaster-recovery business with $3 million plus in annual revenue. “We got into the business by…

Read More

Employers target obesity through wellness programs: Overweight workers contribute to higher health costs

Companies enjoy seeing an increase in their bottom line as a reflection of positive growth. They don’t, however, like to see growth in employee “bottoms,” as evidenced by a national obesity epidemic that is becoming a public health crisis and is cutting into corporate profits through increased health care costs. A study by the not-for-profit, nonpartisan Trust for America’s Health reported that nearly 119 million American adults-65 percent-are overweight or obese. The group warns that obesity may soon overtake tobacco…

Read More