No. 11 November 2009

A shareholder vote held recently by Tecumseh Products resulted in the Herrick family regaining control of the company they once owned and ran.

As you may recall, I called this saga a “soap opera” in my November 2008 OPE “Anonymous Distributor” column that detailed all the posturing and lawsuits. Remember that Kent Herrick, a former executive and his father Todd Herrick, former CEO, president and chairman, were ousted from the company in 2007. At that time some shareholders blamed the Herrick’s and their management team for allowing the Tecumseh engine division to become a non-factor in the air-cooled engine manufacturing business and losing major placement with lawn mower manufacturers and retailers like Sears.

As we all know, new management was put in place in 2007 and the engine division was later sold to Platinum Equity, LLC. But the Herrick family continued to be major shareholders in Tecumseh Products through their Herrick Foundation which owned more than 40 percent of the company’s voting stock in 2008.

As a result of the annual meeting in August, 2009, the shareholders voted to elect the Herrick slate of board candidates and voted down a recapitalization proposal that would have reduced the Herrick Foundation’s voting power. Kent Herrick was elected chairman of the board of directors.

Remembering a proud Tecumseh Engine Division once so strong, I can’t help but wonder why the shareholders want the fox’s guarding the chicken house again?

Here are some thoughts about the health care bills that may be imposed on all of us soon. Why should you and I care? Because we’re going to be paying for it for a very long time.

Here’s what John Feehy, president of the Feehy Group, an advocacy firm located in Washington, DC, had to say about the health care bill: “I believe that the health care bill is overly complex and not well-understood by most Americans. And it frontloads the pain and backloads the gain.

“To help pay for the benefits and to fit into the budget parameters as laid out by the president, most of the bills start increasing taxes and cutting Medicare benefits almost immediately, while the health insurance programs don’t really get up to speed for another four years or so.”

“The Democrat’s health care bill is also a direct money transfer from those middle class Americans who have health insurance to those who don’t. But polls show that most Americans not only have insurance, they are satisfied with it and fear that the Democratic plans could make it either more expensive or less effective.”

Feehy goes on to say that “making Americans pay more for their insurance (through higher premiums or taxes) or giving them fewer benefits (such as cutting the Medicare Advantage program), will cause a firestorm with middle class voters.”

Agree or disagree, you owe it to yourself to become more informed on this topic and its potential impact on your wallet and you and your family’s healthcare.

Harvey MacKay tells a wonderful story about applying a personal touch to make your sales efforts more effective. During World War II, the U.S. government began offering soldiers a life insurance policy with a $10,000 benefit if they were killed in combat.

In one unit, a young lieutenant delivered a polished presentation on the details of the plan. No one signed up. Then an older sergeant quietly asked the lieutenant if he could talk to the troops.

"Men," he said, "if you get this life insurance and you get killed, the government is going to send your family $10,000. If you don't get this insurance and you get killed, the government isn't going to send your family anything. So who do you think they're going to send up to the front lines—the ones who'll cost $10,000 when they're killed, or the ones who won't cost anything?"

All the soldiers immediately signed up.

That’s a great example of the power of applying a personal touch to your sales effort!