Dan Schuster- The biggest challenges facing mid market companies today

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Kevin Price, Host of the Price of Business on Business Talk 1110 AM KTEK (on Bloomberg’s home in Houston) recently interviewed Dan Schuster . Here’s that interview.

About the interviewee

Dan Schuster founded Remi in 1998. As Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Dan is responsible for giving direction and leadership toward achieving the annual strategic goals and objectives of the company. He coordinates external initiatives at the highest level, creating new and innovative opportunities for growth. Dan, along with the executive management team, ensures the value proposition, philosophy, and mission of Remi are unsurpassed in providing clients a lower cost alternative to equipment manufacturer service contracts and extended warranties.

Dan has four brothers and was born and raised in Milwaukee, WI. He received a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering, as well as a Master’s in Business Administration from Marquette University. Today, Dan resides in Charlotte, NC with his wife and Director of Marketing, Mardell. Dan and Mardell have three sons and enjoy traveling the world and spending time with family at their condo in Myrtle Beach, SC. (148 words)

Tell me about your firm (number of employees, location, type of companies you work with, etc.). 

Remi is headquartered in Charlotte, NC and has approximately 110 employees; the majority of which work in Charlotte. The remaining employees work from satellite offices in Alabama, California, New York, Texas, and Wisconsin.

Since 1998, Remi has helped organizations of all types by providing a more cost effective, centralized approach to repairing and maintaining electronic devices. From diagnostic imaging equipment in a hospital to desktop printers in a university, and virtually everything in between, Remi replaces existing manufacturer agreements and consolidates all assets into one comprehensive program. Remi assumes the financial risk associated with equipment repair, guarantees significant cost savings, and delivers various benefits associated with administrative efficiencies, management reporting, and service delivery best practices.

Remi offers an unprecedented level of industry experience and technical expertise that few can rival. Remi provides clients with a team of highly respected professionals that have the tested know-how to deliver proven solutions. (149 words)

What type and size of companies do you have as clients?

Remi typically works within the confines of five major market segments: healthcare, laboratory, government, education, and financial.

Healthcare clients include rural and urban hospitals, surgery center systems, imaging centers, dental practices, and veterinary hospitals. Similarly, laboratory clients include research institutes, local pharmaceutical companies, and state food testing labs.

Government clients include small towns, mid-size and large cities, counties, and entire states. Educational clients include colleges, entire university systems, local school districts, and institutes of technology. Finally, financial clients include local banks, federal credit unions, and trust companies.

Remi can help anyone who buys a service contract on electronic equipment. Every client receives the same level of attention and additional benefits that Remi provides whether clients’ have one piece of equipment or thousands.

Remi’s program gives clients of any size the ability to analyze and effectively control electronic equipment assets while realizing significant savings on annual equipment maintenance budgets. (148 words)

What comes to mind when you see this topic?

Remi has been faced with several challenges as a result of the trials and tribulations our clients are facing, especially in the public sector. Government entities, healthcare facilities, and higher education institutions in particular have been under tremendous financial pressure to reduce operating costs, yet continue to provide the same level of services. The perpetual state of the country’s “economic recovery” has had negative effects across all market segments. Government entities are experiencing budget cuts to vital programs, staff layoffs, and pay cuts. Hospitals are experiencing lower Medicare reimbursements, decreased admissions and revenues, and staff layoffs; while colleges and universities are experiencing lower enrollment rates and increased tuition payments compounded by increased tuition loan interest rates.

The original equipment manufacturers are facing similar problems and aren’t inclined to analyze or control expenses and save the client a significant amount of money. (141 words)

What are the best practices when it comes to this issue?

One budget line item clients often overlook when trying to cut costs is the electronic equipment maintenance budget. In a typical situation, equipment buyers enter into a service agreement with the Original Equipment Manufacturer at the time the equipment is purchased. It’s standard practice and has been done this way for years. Unfortunately, most clients don’t have a firm grasp on what they are spending on these high-priced agreements year over year, the equipment repair history, or the reimbursement summary over the equipment’s useful life.

This is where Remi comes in; it’s Remi’s responsibility to increase the efficiency of our clients’ equipment portfolios. We use our 16 years of experience to save clients a significant amount of money on their operating budgets while decreasing the administrative burden of managing multiple equipment service contracts, as well as extending the useful life expectancy of the equipment. (144 words)

Contact information:
www.theremigroup.com