If You've Noticed Any Changes in This Magazine

Then you've been paying attention. During the past several issues, you might have noticed that we are now turning our attention back to articles that focus on the business issues that affect wholesalers. Sometimes these issues are directly related, for example, management improvements in a wholesale operation, or indirectly, how to close a sale that might apply to any industry.

Because a new year is around the corner, I thought this December issue made it a fitting time to introduce a number of our contributors. I'm proud to say, with only the slightest snippet of hyperbole, that they really are the best around. All have been contributors at one time or another to HVACR Distribution Business and, in some instances, to our sister publication, Contracting Business.

• Michael Maynard

  He is now our contributing editor, and if you've read a profile about a wholesaler or manufacturer, Michael wrote it. It's uncanny how he has managed to capture the spirit of companies in a fresh, clear manner in every issue. He is my left hand.

• Bryan Jensen

  I don't know Bryan's IQ, but it must be enormous. He's a vice president and partner with York, Pa.-based St. Onge Company (stonge.com). He also is one of the smartest, most erudite people I've ever met; after talking with him, or better yet, exchanging banter, I feel like I've had a bout of verbal fisticuffs. Bryan has spent a career telling some of America's largest companies how to improve their supply chain issues. He will continue to do so for this magazine (even though I do have to ask that he simplify the writing of his analysis a bit more).

• Steve Coscia

  The best customer service expert in the HVACR industry (Coscia.com). If you doubt me, listen to him on our industry's speaking circuit. His textbooks are the backbone for curriculum in colleges throughout the United States and he knows our industry like the lines in the palm of his hand. Remarkably, he is not only a speaker but served as president of the Philadelphia Chapter of The National Speakers Association. When it comes to customer service AND explaining it, he's the King.

• Frank Hurtte

  Don't let the folksy writing style fool you. Frank is a trained engineer who not only can write but adds flavor and color to his articles. Though he's well-educated, I think of him as a contributor who has gotten his fingernails dirty working with distributors. His added value is that while he is familiar with our industry, he has worked in other related industries such as electrical. This is a strength because it gives him a perspective that is not only HVACR-centered. Stealing good ideas is always acceptable, and you can't copyright an idea.

• Reid Goldsborough

  This is our only contributor whom I've never met. He was a columnist for The Philadelphia Inquirer, a newspaper that has won numerous Pulitzer Prizes. He is now a syndicated columnist on technology issues and is read throughout the United States. He also is the author of Straight Talk About the Information Superhighway (Macmillan). Why a personal computing column in a business magazine? Two reasons. First, most of us spend more time working on a computer than anything else except possibly sleeping. Second, we weave our personal life — interests, quirks, escapes — at work while we're on that computer. Doesn't it make sense to offer his informative, enlightening and relevant columns to our readers to make their computing practices easier and possibly more interesting?

• Jon Melchi

  Jon joined HARDI in 2010. Now you might think that, well, he's with HARDI, so I should flatter him. Wrong. What you might not know is that I worked in Washington, D.C., as a reporter for years. I can tell when someone understands the machinations and complexity of the government. Jon's strongest asset (besides clear writing, something EVERY editor cherishes) is his ability to drill away the political patois and make it meaningful to our wholesalers. He gets it, he explains it and he demonstrates its implications.

That's the lineup. You won't see their photos in the post office, but you will see them with some regularity in our pages. And if there is someone out there who has something extraordinary to say and I've missed him or her, become a talent spotter and drop me a note.

Good reading.

HVACR Distribution Business welcomes letters to the editor. Please send correspondence to: Tom Peric´, Editor 2040 Fairfax Avenue Cherry Hill, NJ 08003 856/874-0049 or email [email protected].