Q: Hi, Do you find there are unique challenges being a woman running a multi-million dollar company?
A: First, I find that there is always a challenge running a multi-million dollar company. There are many challenges. The fact that I happen to be female... I don't like to consider that to be an obstacle. It has never been an issue with me.

Q: Do you have a personal motto that you like to use?
A: That is a favorite question, I do. There is an old Armenian expression that translates literally to..."Open Your Eyes". It says it all. It says to be visionary. To really think outside the box, to be alert. My mom said it to me a lot.

Q.How long have you been president? Please let me know what your plan for success is?
A: I have been President since 1989. My husband passed away then and I assumed Presidency. He had prepped me extensively. My plan for success is to surround yourself with smart people, and being visionary is a key element. Knowing your competition is vitally important. That is key.

Q: Hello. First let me congratulate you on SBA Small Business Person of the year. Secondly, what are some of the more difficult problems facing someone in your position?
A: Thank you! That is truly an honor and a thrill! I think the main problem for me is spreading myself too thin. I am a hands-on person, I like to be involved, and have a tendency to be involved 110 percent. I don't know how to give less than that. I do have some specific problems. We have been growing through acquisitions over the past couple of years. The fact that I have five locations presents a bit of a problem. We are working on consolidating our locations. It is a problem from a communications standpoint to operations to identity even. Another challenge is that the acquisitions have been in our industry, but what we want to do is offer a broader spectrum of products to our distributors. That presents some challenges in itself.

Q: What do you feel were some of your biggest obstacles?
A: This kind of ties in with what I said before. Part of that is on a personal level...it is time. You have to appreciate the fact that I am a single mother having two young boys who are now teenagers. I felt my sons had one parent, my company had 300 employees, and to me it was a balancing act. It was important, if not more so, to be that one parent. I have 300 people here that can take care of the business and I trust them. Since the day he was born, my son Anthony spent a great deal of time with his father coming to the office on Saturdays and opening mail. His goal in life was to step into his father's shoes and be a part of the business. He has worked at the company and got to know the business from the bottom up. He worked in the printing company, in maintenance, and has gained an appreciation for all the parts of the company. There is one thing to learning the mechanics, but one of my strengths is that I am a people person and I am grooming him to be a people person as well. That is important. Every employee is referred to as a family member.

Q: Hello, I'm putting together a training session on effective meetings and need some ideas. What do you do to prepare and plan for a successful meeting?
A: Have an agenda. Then I need someone that can moderate the meeting, a facilitator.

Q: Are there plans for any more expansions?
A: There are always plans for expansion. You always have to look. Right now my plate is a little bit full with the recent acquisitions. I need to let the dust settle. What we are in the process of doing right now is closing the Pittsburgh site moving it to Amsterdam, and a California site has to be moved out of the location it's in to Albuquerque. I just signed a lease for a new facility in Albuquerque and will get that operating in the next couple of months. A full plate!

Q: How would you describe you Management style? What are the most important traits you look for in your team (Management Team and Employees)?
A: First you have to know that I have a type A personality. I try to bury that because it scares people to death, so I am rather laid back on the outside. My personality style is nurturing, like it would be with a family. I draw a lot of parallels between dealing with employees and family. By being that way people are honest, open, sharing and caring. I look for those same attributes in my management team. I hold them to the same standards that I hold my kids to. But there is one other thing that I look for from my management team, and that is technical knowledge. I can't be all things and I know it. My job is to be the visionary.

Q: How did you grow your company into the 2nd largest manufacturer of photo bags in the US? Thanks!
A: Timing is everything. That is a complex question. A couple of things happened. We recognized that there were some evolutionary changes that were taking place. The small mom and pop developer, if they were successful, were buying their neighbors. As they bought out other mom and pops, they wanted more bells and whistles on their bags like bar codes, numerical sequence, etc. I have to rely on my people. A woman, who was heading up the photo division, brought it to our attention. We started researching machinery that would be able to satisfy the needs of our customers and ended up with wonderful state-of-the-art machinery from Germany. We started with one and now are up to four, and that is where timing is everything. We were on top of this need, recognizing it from the get-go, and took action as soon as we could. It gave us a leg up on the competition.

Q: Carol, could you share some insights into how you have looked to others to utilize and share resources, delegate, and outsource. Have you found that getting the right team in place makes all the difference? This is one area that as a woman in business I sometimes struggle with since I will sometimes feel I have to do it all myself or that only I can do what needs to be done.
A: I share your concern. I think that I am not any different from anyone else, male or female. I do think at times we as women have a tendency to embrace a project, a business, and not let go. It is important to recognize that you will only be good if you can delegate. That is vitally important. I am bringing it back to kids: You have to learn to cut the cord with them and do it incrementally. You don't sever the ties, but little by little. You find people you can work with a little bit, when you are comfortable and satisfied with their manner of dealing with a situation, then you can trust them and give them a larger chunk of the pie.

Q: Hello. Regarding your product line, who came up with the idea to manufacture promotional bags?
A: That was my husband, he was the genius. That is a history lesson. My husband came up with the idea of the litterbag. That began from a tissue pack that was on the sun visor that he sold advertising on, and you have to understand the company goes back to 1954. 1954 was when we just started to become mobile with cars, billboards were a hot item on the roads, and my husband wanted to put that billboard in the car! So first came the tissue pack because it was right on the sun visor in front of you. Then somebody asked what do you want me to do with this tissue when I'm done with it, and then came the bag!

Q: Hi, since you deal in the promotional products industry, I was wondering if you would be able to provide any suggestions for corporate gift ideas? The gift should be between $2 and $15.and will be for the small business manager. The gift might be useful, it might just be fun, but it will be branded with my logo. Thanks again!
A: I am going to have to defer on that one. As much as I might like to help, I don't feel qualified to do that. I am a manufacturer in that industry and you really need to be in touch with our distributors.You can refer to the yellow pages under Promotional Products or Advertising Specialties. These distributors have an array of products available to them. They know the best supplier, best manufacturer for turn-around times, imprints, etc., and they are the best to contact. I can't recommend one distributor over another because it depends on your location. Some of them are national distributors and some are the mom and pops.

Q: It's an asset for the city to have you here. Your doing a terrific job Carol - Thank YOU, Dottie
A: Thank you! We love it here. I have to be honest, I love being in Amsterdam. The people are the best. Everybody cares. I have a wonderful pool of employees that we need that have an old fashioned work ethic. It works here, it just works for me. It is not my original home. I am originally from Troy.

Q: I agree. Timing is everything. How does Noteworthy identify up and coming growth markets? Also, how do you market Noteworthy?
A: A lot of that is a gut feel. I find that the best way for me to keep in tune is to go on vacation. When you go on vacation you come back with new insights. I try to be very alert when I am away. I tease with my salesforce that when they are at the beach they need to check out the color of the bathing suits because color is important. On one of my trips I went into a store to buy something and the bag they used had a foil stamped logo on the bag and it was awesome. After a year or two, we used it and it's a real growth product for us. You have to go outside your comfort zone. Go away from your backyard.

Q: Hello, what particular issues need to be considered when designing marketing communications across cultures? thx
A: We embrace that. We try to stay very much open to the fact that the world is becoming a smaller place with a lot of diversity. We try to take that diversity into account. For example, when we do coloring books, which is one of our products, or book jackets, which is another product, we always try to show ethnic diversity because we realize that we need to bring balance to our product line. You can't include everybody, but you can't exclude everybody, you need balance. We are sensitive.

Q: What methods do you use to market your products? Do you use a direct sales force?
A: I have a small sales team and they market to my network of distributors. The network of distributors sell to end users. We promote ourselves through our distributors, through the sales teams, trade shows, catalogs, and mailings.

Q: What techniques do you utilize for employee motivation?
A: I use a couple of techniques. One is being honest and forthright. That is probably the most important. And for me it is dealing with people. My management team does not sit behind a desk, they are on the floor and they are working with everyone here. I am on the floor. I think that is one technique, the most important. But throughout the year we try to provide little perks for the employees. Everything from picnics, Christmas party, little raffles, dress-down days, pizza parties, and gift certificates at Thanksgiving. The bottom line is most importantly is listening to them. Because they are the ones that make this company grow and it is important to not just listen but act on their recommendations or give them an answer.

Q: How was the company name "Noteworthy" arrived at?
A: My husband came up with the name. If you are worthy, people will take note. However, the most important letter in the word is the letter "e", because the "e" stands for enthusiasm, excellence, employees, energy, efficiency, email, e-commerce. Without that "e", you are not worthy.

Q: Thank you for your insight today!
A: Thank you! I think in business there are a few things you need to know. Know your weaknesses, and find people that can help you. Know your strengths and build on them. Challenge yourself and those around you. Have a passion for what you are doing. If you don't have the passion, give it up. Business basically to me is common sense. I don't care whether you use the buzzwords of lean manufacturing, TQM, or anything else, they are common sense philosophies. We make our own destiny, however, remember that all of our gifts come from God. I am a true believer that it has been through divine intervention that I am as successful as I am. Last but not least, give back. Give back to your community, give back to your employees, and their extended families. I may set the pace here at the company, and they do the same. They know how to share. We are in this together!

The moderator says: This wraps up our Executive Chat session for today. BizBOOM.com and Niagara Mohawk, a National Grid company, would like to thank Carol Constantino for her time today in providing expert advice to the upstate NY small business community.

This Executive Chat with Carol Constantino is brought to you by http://www.bizboom.com BizBOOM.com and http://www.niagaramohawk.com Niagara Mohawk, a National Grid company.