Tony Siwinski

UIP 250
Prof. Willins
05/20/2014

Interview Analysis: Entrepreneurial Process

Owning a company is strenuous work, and it is a personal aspiration I hope to achieve in
my career. I recently conducted an informative interview with Debra Barbaro, the Owner and
Chief Executive Officer of Oakbrook Design Group Inc., to better understand the Entrepreneurial
process. Her role as CEO has many responsibilities such as account/client management, project
approval, industry analysis, sales, marketing, and billing. Our interview was structured around her
success story as an owner of a company. Questions asked pertained to her motivation, direction,
decision process, problems, and overall experience in becoming a business owner.
Debra and her husband, Phillip started Oak Brook Design Group, Inc. in 1981 after being
taught from their college instructors to go off on your own, and open your own graphic design
studio. After realizing that both of them had reached the height of their positions within a
corporate environment as Phillip being a Senior Art Director and Debra as a Senior Creative
Director, they felt that after that experience, they had the knowledge to start their own business.
They decided to work from their home for one year as freelance commissioners on premises for
large accounts. In addition to freelancing, they consistently called for other accounts.
They eventually decided to move into an office space in Oak Brook, with an attitude that
they would either sink or swim . During this time, they targeted accounts in the Western Suburbs,
while all of their competitors were opening studios downtown. Debra expressed that It took a lot
of cold calling on prospects from a lead sheet that they put together and since they were targeting
manufacturers for their business to business marketing needs, they worked off the Illinois
Manufacturers Directory which gave them all the information they needed, (ie. Size of company as
far as employees, revenue received and who the key people were in charge of the Marketing
Departments.) Many times Debra and Phillip worked with the Presidents and Vice Presidents of
corporations in order to get the information conveyed to their marketplace.
In approximately 5 7 years, their company grew to 13 employees, who included graphic
designers, a typesetter, Art Directors, Marketing people and a sales force along with many major
accounts and also smaller ones to support their growth. They built a good size small agency that
targeted businesses from 20MM up to 2 .2 Billion, which was their largest account General
Motors Locomotive Division, in which we were published in Crains Chicago Business as the
Agency of Record for that Division. Debra and Phillip continued to market their business through
external newsletters and postcard mailings to present their services and any new clients they
acquired. Their sales team attended various marketing functions to network and promote their
agency.
Some of the problems they endured were during the growth stage of their company. One of
these problems was the fact that they had to continuously upgrade their equipment with software
as well as hardware due to computers needing to be upgraded. Oak Brook Design was funded
privately since it was a husband and wife team. They were responsible for any loans that they took
out to fund the company. We found out that the bankers were your friends to help you grow
your businesswe were fortunate to have a mentor, a self-made millionaire, who guided us in our
growth stages, teaching us to never get in a comfort zone or we would never achieve that much in
life.
As time went on that the business changed with the onset of the web, it was tougher to
capture that part of the market as it was learning all new software applications again and they
were up against younger students who were coming out of school and were taught all the latest
applications in that category at that time, it would feel as if we had to start all over again, as we
knew print like the back of our hand and what it took to work on those projects the web was a
different animal which eventually became a household project that people did not want to pay that
much for, Debra states.
After listening to Debras story on Oak Brook Design Group Inc., It became clear that I need
to prepare myself for a variety of different challenges. Our interview left me feeling motivated and
eager to begin my own company. Debras main advice was to keep connected and never stop
marketing myself in my career. I do a good amount of networking in college, but it is definitely
something I will need to continue throughout my career. Marketing myself as a brand is another
path I am deciding to embark on. Becoming a successful real estate broker is of my main goals, but
it is only a stepping-stone in my career path. This position will require me to market myself
constantly, and learning new ways to do this, such as sending out mailers, can be very beneficial to
my success. In addition to marketing and networking, learning how become a better problem
solver is a valuable characteristic to attain, and it will create desirability in my candidacy for
brokerage. Keeping up with technology will be one of many ways I can avoid problems. It will also
be vital for my career.
This interview with Debra was extremely beneficial to me. I have realized that starting a
company is not as easy as some people make it seem. It has also helped to prepare me for future
interviews. Sometimes it is frightening to ask questions during an interview with an
executive/employer. After my interview was conducted I realized that executives should not be
feared. They are prepared to answer any questions you have, and are willing to talk to you
especially about themselves. In future interviews, I will be more conscientious in preparing
questions similar to those in my interview with Debra. Gratefully, this interview not only
enhanced my knowledge of the Entrepreneurial process, it also provided advice and motivation
before embarking on my career path.