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This is Fred Ball for Zions Bank, speaking on business.
Mike Robson was the first in his family to earn a college degree. But he soon became frustrated after realizing his business degree wasn't getting him the work he'd hoped for.
Finding himself stuck in a job where the pay was low and the work unfulfilling, Mike decided to go back to school for an MBA. While working on his degree, he met some students who held day jobs at a company that supplied security and safekeeping systems for the banking industry. On one occasion, the students mentioned that their company was looking for a way to produce a box to house and secure some mechanical components for the ATMs it serviced. As they described their needs, Mike realized he could build it for them. So, he did. The box worked, and with that, Mike believed he had found a lucrative business opportunity and a new career.
He invested all of his savings to establish the business. To his dismay, eight months passed without a single call for work. Mike, however, didn't stop thinking of the possibilities, and it wasn't long after that he recognized a need to not just build parts for ATMs but to service them as well. And with a few phone calls, Mike Robson soon found himself running ATA Services and made $220,000 his first year in business.
These days ATA Services offers everything for servicing ATMs, including exterior maintenance, restorations, cleaning, custom signage and even complete rebranding work. And it's work that's done onsite at ATMs nationwide. Mike tells me that although his company is based in Salt Lake City, most of his clients are banks back East, one of which is the fifth largest ATM owner in the world.
Mike's strategic decision to change his technician's compensation to a bonus-based program helped his business earn $5 million this past year, putting ATA Services among the nation's 500 fastest growing companies.
For Zions Bank, I'm Fred Ball. I'm speaking on business.
