| Russ' Business History |
| Russell A. Parsley December 2000 |
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| Russ entered the world of Sales, Marketing & Business Development almost by default. As circumstance would have it, Russ' abrupt return to the Central valley of California was due to a corporate decision to close down all entertainment outlets in an effort to reduce increasing liability. Russ' position as Entertainment Director for Stuart Anderson's Black Angus in Fremont, California, was effectively eliminated. Upon his return, because Russ was supporting his spouse's continued Medical Education, realizing the limited opportunity he had of continuing in the entertainment industry in Fresno, CA, Russ decided it was time to take the advice and recommendations of so many family, friends and associates to make a concerted effort to develop his skills in Sales, Marketing & Business Development. Though Russ' education included three colleges and nearly enough units to complete two Associates Degrees, without a formal BA/BS, Russ found his options very limited. He found himself testing the waters, first for a Home Security company selling Home Alarm Systems. Russ found this to be limited in earning potential and found a company offering an Adjustable Sleep System that literally everyone 45 years of age or greater could, and should, have in their home. Russ saw this as a viable opportunity to generate the type of income he and his family has grown accustomed to. After a successful nine months, and earning more than he had ever imagined possible, Russ began to experience charge backs due to poor Company Customer Service and with little control to offer any solution to save the sale, Russ was forced to seek out his next opportunity that offered him greater control over Customer Service and Quality Control. |
| Russ located a local Computer Learning Center that was a franchise of a nationwide company. The company was in need of the type of people skills and relationship building skills Russ offered and was not concerned of his limited Technology background. In just the first few short months, Russ had proven himself as a very competitive and effective Sales Executive by setting record sales for 3rd & 4th month New Executive Sales and attaining the award for Sales Executive of the month in March 1997. However, this success was shortlived when the company was shut down by the IRS for their failure to pay over $1,000,000 in Federal Employment Taxes & $200,000 in EDD Taxes. Russ was once again seeking his next opportunity. In his search efforts, Russ was offered a position with a prominent communications firm with locations nationwide, however, at the same time he was offered a position with a local prominent Web Development company. Though the salary & commission structure was less than that of the communications firm, Russ' view on the development of the Internet and its ensuing opportuniities would be of much greater value to him over time. Russ' consideration proved to be 100% on the money as the communications company ceased operations a few short years later. Russ accepted the position with the Technology firm and through inside channels was later informed that the level of internal sales support from a certain key Executive would never have been what he needed to succeed, and was due primariily to the ego of the individual. Following the first year with the Technology firm, Russ was approached by his Air National Guard unit, the 144th Fighter Wing, to crosstrain into the field of Videography, as part of his ongoing Air National Guard career by attending the Defense Information School for a 5-month in-residence training. At the same time this opportunity presented itself, a competitor firm was offering Russ an opportunity at a greater salary and commission than what he was receiving. After considerable evaluation of all opportunities being presented, Russ elected to take a sebaticle from his civilian life for the 5 months required of the military training in Fort Meade, MD, with the intention of returning to his former employer on his return to the Central Valley. Following Russ' graduation from this latest Air Force training, he flew his Boy's out to have them join him on his trek back across the United States in his '94 Air Force blue Firebird. Taking the long way home, the three Parsley men headed out to experience a once-in-a-lifetime experience, together. 4,700 miles & 8 days later, the Parsley men drove up the driveway of their Clovis, CA home at 5:00 AM on Thanksgiving Day morning . . . the smiles were wide and the tears of joy were plentiful when Russ' wife and the mother of his two sons got her first glimpse after having spent the last two weeks without her boys and 5 months without Russ. Following the holidays, Russ contacted his Air National Guard unit ony to find that the promised 30 days of Active Duty following his return from training were not available. With this, Russ contacted his former employer to inform them of his return to the area and to arrange to resume his position with the company. It was then that he was informed that because Russ was not officially scheduled to return until after the new year, they were not able to make room for his return until January. In an effort to avoid burning any bridges with his former employer by exercising his rights under the Sailors and Soldiers Act of 1971 requiring the employer to immediately place Russ back into the position he left, Russ contacted the competitor company that had offered him a position prior leaving for his training. It just so happened that a new program was being developed but wouldn't be ready to launch until the first week of January. Russ decided that the wait was worth while, though it meant a loss of income for the month of December. Once January rolled around, Russ was officially offered a position with greater salary, commission and benefits, which he accepted. This placed Russ in the position of Affinity Marketing Manager of an Affinity Program created to increase the number of its ISP subscribers. |
| Contact Information Russell A. Parsley P.O. Box 27211, Fresno, CA 93729 559.281.5491 email: russ@russparsley.com |