09/23/2002
For Indiana's Barbara Quandt, running small businesses isn't half as fun as creating them. "I've been classified in some publications I've read as a 'serial entrepreneur,'" she says. "I had started a travel agency and then started another one, and while I was operating those agencies I started The Quandt Group."Does the 'serial' tag bother her? "I use it as a humorous intro sometimes when I'm speaking," she laughs. "The word 'serial' kinda has a negative connotation, of course, but for those people who enjoy starting and running small businesses, they understand."
Quandt's current venture, The Quandt Group, is based in Indianapolis but serves clients around the country. "We're a public relations firm but not in the classic PR-agency mold. 'Public affairs' would best describe what we do. We specialize in crisis management, environmental issues and government relations," explains Quandt. "We do quite a bit of community-relations work, often representing municipalities and companies that have a significant environmental problem that needs to be communicated to the community. Often we're referred by an attorney -- sometimes you can win the legal battle and lose in the court of public opinion."
When Quandt isn't running her own small business, she's working on behalf of others. She is currently a member of NFIB's Leadership Trust and chairman of Indiana's leadership council. Quandt serves on the board of directors for the Indiana Small Business Council and was appointed by Congressman Ed Pease to represent the 7th District as a delegate to the 1998 and 2000 Congressional Small Business Summits. She served as chairman of the Information and Technology Committee for Indiana's delegation to the 1995 White House Conference on Small Business and participated in the Women Entrepreneurship in the 21st Century conference in Washington, D.C. in March 2002.
Quandt has tremendous respect for NFIB state director Ed Bowman. "He is absolutely the backbone of the organization in this state," she says. "Ed is one of the most respected tax experts in Indiana, and House and Senate leaders often turn to him for advice on state fiscal matters." For her part, Quandt hopes to bring some of that leadership to her own work assisting fellow small businesses. "I've been consulting on the side," says Quandt. "I don't do it for profit, just to encourage other people who, when I see that entrepreneurial bent, that spirit, to encourage and help them as much as I can."
It's that desire to create and grow things that truly motivates Quandt. "If I had to stay even all the time and just maintain the status quo," she says, "I wouldn't be happy."
Quick Facts:
Name: Barbara Quandt
Business: The Quandt Group, www.quandtgroup.com
Location: Indianapolis, Ind.
Founded: 1994
Number of employees: 3
When (and why) did you join NFIB?
A rep came to see me in 1985, the day I started my travel agency. It at least felt like it was the day after I opened my doors. And of course I'd never heard of the organization, but I joined that first time because I thought, well, this might be interesting and good for business. Her name was Pat Powell, and she would come back each year, and I really started to pay attention. In fact, I used to be a liberal from Long Island, N.Y., and it's kind of amazing to me how being in business -- starting it and growing it and having employees and all of the issues you face -- how that can change your perspective.
Which legislative issues top your list currently?
Where do you start? Certainly the tax restructuring in the state of Indiana is crucial. It seems that whenever they want to increase revenues, they look to the small business community to carry the burden. So it's a constant battle, and we've just been through a very difficult session this year and we're going to be going at it again in the long session this fall. We're spending too much money, that's the bottom line.
At the federal level, health care and the cost of health insurance. That's the one that really got me active in NFIB. I went from being an observer and somewhat of a participant to an activist when the Clinton health care proposals came out. When I looked at my small travel agencies, it would have most likely meant closing the doors.
