From Rich Vegter:
I encourage you to read the full story on my journey below. I trust you will find that I am uniquely qualified to help your business grow and provide an easier and faster path to success. It is far too costly and painful to miss important issues and opportunities. For a small investment, you can save tremendous amounts of time, energy and financial resources as well as achieve much more than you ever thought possible. I’m a big believer in working smarter, not harder. Please let me know how I can help.
About Rich Vegter
Education:
DePaul University – MBA – concentration in Finance
Roosevelt University – BA Marketing
Experience:
Service Sanitation, Inc. President/Owner – 15 years
United Site Services – SVP-Sales – 9 years
Black Tie Sanitation Services, President – 2 years
PSAI Experience:
President of PSAI 2006
Board of Directors – 2003 – 2006
PSAI Scholarship committee – 10+ years
Former PSAI Image and Education Committee Member
After receiving a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing in 1990, Rich worked in computer sales for 2 years where he learned the power of a disciplined sales process, how to greatly increase sales productivity, and how to leverage CRM systems. He was then offered the role of General Manager and partner of a small portable sanitation company (Service Sanitation, Inc.) where he had previously worked during college summers. With only 4 employees and being charged with growing the business, he implemented the sales processes he had learned, added sales resources, aligned the operational capabilities of the business, and became intensely focused on customer satisfaction. Rich then went back to school and earned an MBA from DePaul University. Rich took over as President of Service Sanitation, Inc. in 1998, sold the business in 2001 and stayed on as President until 2004. From 1991 to 2004 the company averaged 29% annual revenue growth in addition to completing multiple acquisitions. This growth was exciting but brought many challenges, mistakes, and difficulties. All of these were great learning experiences that he is now able to pass along to his clients.
A key part of Rich’s professional growth came from friends and mentors in the PSAI over the years. Rich had the great fortune of getting to know the leaders of most of the largest and most successful companies in the industry in almost every major market in the USA. As a young man, he asked a lot of questions, studied their businesses, and learned every best practice possible. This was foundational to building Service Sanitation, Inc. into one of the largest independent portable sanitation companies in the country.
In 2010, Rich received a call from the CEO of United Site Services, Inc. (USS). The 2008 economy brought many financial challenges to USS and the company brought in a new CEO to navigate the challenges ahead. When the CEO interviewed Rich, he explained his unique qualifications. He held a CDL and an MBA. Yes, he had a command of the business strategically, but had also spent years working in the yards, on service routes, delivering equipment, selling, automating the business, etc. Rich explained the importance of understanding every aspect of every role in the organization and convinced the CEO that he could relate both to those on the front lines in the organization as well as the Board of Directors. Rich was then hired to lead the sales organization for USS. He brought USS many of the best practices he had learned building Service Sanitation. The new USS management team quickly began to turn the company around financially. In addition to focusing on driving organic growth by building and training the sales teams, Rich served on the acquisitions team. While there, the company closed and integrated approximately 70 acquisitions, sold to new private equity investors in 2014 and sold again for in excess of $1 Billion in 2017 (NY Post). Bloomberg reported that USS was recently valued at approximately $4 Billion.
After traveling over 45 weeks a year for 9 straight years, Rich retired to spend quality time with his wife and 2 teenage children who at that time were in their final years of high school. Rich has a daughter who is a freshman at the University of Florida (go Gators!) and son who is a senior in high school and has committed to playing basketball at Denison University in Ohio (go Big Red!) in the fall of 2022.
If you would like to learn any more about Rich’s background or how VCG can fit into helping you build your business, please fill out the Contact Form.