March/April 2004
ISRI members—meet your future leaders. Here are the four scrap industry veterans running for the national ReMA officer positions of chair, chair-elect, vice chair, and secretary/treasurer.
It’s no easy task serving as a national ReMA officer. For one, there’s the time commitment. It not only can take years to climb through the officer ranks, but a national officer’s day-to-day responsibilities also demand significant time and attention. There are executive meetings and conference calls, reams of paper to read, events to attend on behalf of ISRI. Then there are the challenges of leadership—that is, the responsibility, fiscal and otherwise, of directing the association’s future. National officers must also be troubleshooters for members’ problems. And don’t forget that officers handle all of the above while managing the daily demands of their own businesses.
Of course, being a national ReMA officer also has its share of perks and positive paybacks. For instance, officers expand their personal and professional contacts. They increase their business management knowledge by immersing themselves in the inner workings of their industry trade association. They hone their leadership—and public-speaking—skills, discovering new abilities within themselves. They learn how to run a meeting the right way. They also reap the altruistic reward of knowing that they’re giving back to their industry and their association while helping to secure the future of both.
It obviously takes special people to fill the national ReMA officer roles. Here, we introduce you to four such individuals—the nominees for ReMA chair, chair-elect, vice chair, and secretary/treasurer for the 2004-2006 term, which begins at ISRI’s annual convention and exposition in Las Vegas in April.
Nominee for: Chair
Joel Denbo
Chief Manager, Operations, Tennessee Valley Recycling LLC (Decatur, Ala.)
(For Denbo’s profile, see “Joel Takes Charge” on pages 88-93.)
Nominee for: Chair-elect
Frank Cozzi
President, Cozzi Enterprises Inc. (Chicago)
Current ReMA positions: Vice chair; member of the executive committee.
Past ReMA positions (highlights): National secretary/treasurer; chair of the
finance committee; chair of the transportation committee for both ReMA and ISIS; vice chair of the chapter presidents council; president of the Chicago Chapter.
In my view, the biggest challenges facing U.S. scrap companies are … the ongoing adversarial relationship with scrap consumers, environmental legislation, and regulatory compliance.
In the next two years, ReMA must focus on … fighting any attempt to control scrap exports and improving relationships between scrap consumers and ReMA members.
ISRI’s greatest benefits to members are … its annual convention, its education programs, its networking opportunities, and its respected reputation on Capitol Hill.
I personally value ReMA for … all the above, but most importantly the dozens of relationships built over the years.
My strengths as a leader are … the ability to listen, the ability to gain the trust of those I lead, and the ability to make decisions quickly after obtaining the relevant facts and consensus of opinions of those affected by the decision.
I’d like to improve my … golf game and relaxation skills.
My greatest professional achievement has been … building a business with less than $1 million in sales and 12 employees into a company with more than $250 million in sales and 600 employees, then merging that firm into a public company with more than $750 million in sales and 1,200 employees.
If I ran the world, I would … invoke the William Shakespeare rule and kill all the lawyers (figuratively, of course). I would shut down all businesses for the months of January and July and eliminate all other holidays and vacations (it just seems we need a little more order in that part of our lives). I would put an end to all wars, with all disputes being settled by NFL rules or a poker game. And I would assign all unemployed former attorneys to work as security around my castle to fend off the endless attempts at overthrowing my government.
In my free time, I like to … read, golf, hunt, gamble, and travel.
Nominee for: Vice chair
George Adams
President, Adams Steel (Anaheim, Calif.)
Current ReMA positions: Secretary/treasurer; member of the executive committee.
Past ReMA positions (highlights): Chair of the finance committee; president and member of the board of directors of the Southwestern Chapter.
In my view, the biggest challenge facing U.S. scrap companies on the West Coast is … the way the business is changing because of the export of ferrous scrap in overseas containers.
In the next two years, ReMA must focus on … communicating the true value of all of the things that it does and offers for its members.
ISRI’s greatest benefits to members are … its lobbying strength, its targeted educational and safety programming, and networking.
I personally value ReMA for its … proactive efforts on legislative issues, its educational programs, and its networking opportunities.
My strengths as a leader are … the ability to overcome serious obstacles with creative thinking and the ability to get diverse groups of people to work together.
I’d like to improve my … public-speaking skills.
My greatest professional achievements have been … the success that I have had with my business and becoming a national ReMA officer.
If I ran the world, I would … do my best to promote individual freedom for all people.
In my free time, I like to … water ski, snow ski, and spend as much time as possible with my five boys.
Nominee for: Secretary/treasurer
John Sacco
President, Sierra International Machinery LLC (Bakersfield, Calif.)
Current ReMA positions: Member of the executive committee; chair of the shear and baler committee.
Past ReMA positions (highlights): Member of the board of directors; chair of the member services committee; chair of the chapter presidents council; president of the Southwestern Chapter.
In my view, the biggest challenge facing U.S. scrap companies is … keeping the nonrevenue expenses—such as insurance, workers’ comp, medical, and regulatory compliance—from escalating.
In the next two years, ReMA must focus on … continuing to develop the chapters, keeping in touch with any regulation that could adversely affect our industry, keeping the trade association funded properly, increasing membership, and reaching out to other trade associations.
ISRI’s greatest benefits to members are … knowledge, networking, and helpful guidance.
I personally value ReMA for its … networking and its friendships.
My strength as a leader is … knowing that I don’t have all the answers and am willing to embrace discussion.
I’d like to improve my … vocabulary and my overall knowledge of the industry.
My greatest professional achievement has been … being nominated to be a national ReMA officer.
If I ran the world, I would … probably get assassinated.
In my free time, I like to … go to the beach, cook, play golf, and be with my family. •
ISRI members—meet your future leaders. Here are the four scrap industry veterans running for the national ReMA officer positions of chair, chair-elect, vice chair, and secretary/treasurer.