George Cloutier is the Co-Chairman of Partner America™, a partnership between small businesses and a collection of over 800 American Mayors which has twice named him Small Business Advocate and Entrepreneur of the Year. He is also the founder and CEO of American Management Services, a consulting firm that specializes in small businesses. Christened the "Turnaround Ace" by BusinessWeek, he is the author of Profits Aren't the Only Thing, They're Everything: No-Nonsense Rules from the Ultimate Contrarian and Small-Business Guru (Harper Business) in which he shares his tough love and contrarian message for entrepreneurs and small business owners that has made him a sought after speaker and business media commentator.
Cloutier is a nationally recognized speaker, who lectures at dozens of conferences and seminars about the path to real business profitability. Past clients include The US Conference of Mayors, The US Department of Energy, The US Chamber of Commerce, The US Department of Housing and Urban Development, The Glass Association of North America, Business LINC, The US Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship 2004 Conference, Babson College Kaufman Foundation Entrepreneurship Research Conference, and at numerous business colleges and small business conferences/associations.
The sobering message in his book, Profits Aren't Everything, They're the Only Thing, is a wakeup call for the 23 million small and mid-sized businesses across America who need to get their business fundamentals in order. Cloutier reveals 13 no-nonsense, tough-love maxims that small business people may not want to hear at first, but will thank him for in the end. Among his controversial (yet proven!) ideas:
- Teamwork is vastly overrated
- You shouldn't treat sales like your mother-in-law
- It's not the economy Stupid, it's YOU!
- The best family business has one member
- You are not in business to pay your vendors
Today, Cloutier is well known as the nation's leading small business expert. Top economic, media, and political professionals from around the world frequently solicit his advice on profit issues faced by small and mid-cap companies, and the failure of government to assist them. He has been a regular on national television programs such as, Fox News, Fox Business News, ABC's 20/20, CNBC's Squawk Box, and Bloomberg Television, and is often quoted in media outlets such as AP, Reuters, Fortune, BusinessWeek, Wall Street Journal, Market Watch, Entrepreneur, Entrepreneur.com, Forbes.com, Washington Business Journal, Yahoo News, The Kiplinger Letter, MSN Money, Crain's New York Business, Washington Post, Boston Globe, Boston Herald, Los Angeles Times, Miami Herald, and business journals throughout the country. His commentary has reached hundreds of cities in radio broadcasts from the Wall Street Journal and Legends of Success programming.
In recognition for his dedication to small and mid-sized business, Cloutier was awarded the first ever Small Business Advocate Award and The Small Business Leadership Award by the US Conference of Mayors in recognition of his tireless efforts on behalf of small business owners on a local, state, and federal level. He was also awarded The Minority Business Development Agency Award, for being a critical partner in America's economic success. In 2007, Cloutier was given The Social Entrepreneur of the Year Award by the Tulane University A. B. Freeman School of Business for his contribution and fundraising assistance in developing a student based "Peace Corps" style "Small Business Corps" to assist businesses affected by Hurricane Katrina. Dozen of cities across the nation have also awarded him small business achievement awards.
A native of Maine, Cloutier resides in Palm Beach, Florida and Nantucket, Massachusetts with his wife Tiffany.
What People Are Saying about George Cloutier's American Management Services:
"I hired American Management Services in 1998 after seeing my sales drop from $11 to $7 million and incurring losses. Today, 11 years later I still seek their advice. My business has grown in a down economy to over $16 million. Profits remain strong and I am almost debt free. I am a strong supporter of American Management Service's 'Profit First,' 'Delegate Don't Abdicate,' 'Forget Sweat Equity,' and 'I am Your Work God' philosophy."
- William P. Gorman, President, Gorman Bus Sales
"When I hired American Management seven years ago, we were marginally profitable and always cash stressed. Today, even with the economy in shambles we have no debt and maintain healthy and consistent profits. The systems and processes taught and implemented by American Management Services have been the cornerstone of our success."
- Mario Bruni, President, Bruni and Campisi, Inc.
"I hired American Management Services in October 2009 with the economy slowing. Our primary business, pool manufacturing, had been marginally profitable. We lacked the systems and disciplines necessary to compete in the very difficult marketplace and economy. Where we stand in April 2009 is like night and day from when we first hired American Management. Our 2009 sales will almost double to $16 million with a net profit of almost 10 percent. I had high expectations when I began this process and every expectation has been exceeded."
- Donald Baker, CEO & President, Paddock Pool Equipment Co. Inc.
"In March 2009, we were awarded the New England Dodge Dealer of the Year Award by
Chrysler Corporation. I tell my fellow dealers this was due to our working with American Management Services in 2008. We have generated improved profit of over $500,000 and have realized a return on our investment in excess of 1000 percent. We would have not believed this to be possible at the onset of the project."
- Gerry Good, President, and Tim Good, Treasurer, Good Brothers Dodge
"The inability to pay our vendors and a maxed out credit line, had backed our multimillion dollar construction company into an untenable position. Hiring American Management Services became our last chance at survival. They taught me how to design and implement a 'Profits First Plan,' installed true job tracking and costing, along with a disciplined cash management program. Six months later and now, continuing forward, we are able to discount our vendors and have paid down almost all of our debt. Our ever skeptical banker commented, that he never thought these results could ever have happened. Our profits continue to average 5 percent per year."
- Daniel Kim, L.A. Lacy, Inc.
"Historically, we operated at break even on $18 million in revenue with business from gas stations, convenience stores, restaurants, and truck stops. We didn't even know how much. American Management Services identified profit leaks in excess of $400,000. Key areas addressed included portion controls, pricing, labor scheduling and utilization, and purchasing. We completed our project with American Management in 2007. Their controls are still in place, we look forward to our monitoring visits, and profits are in excess of 6 percent."
- Ray and Ruth Ann Funck, Funck's Family Restaurant