In Black America; Maxima Corp. with Joshua I. Smith

Treat her being a little woman. A little for a woman. A little brother. For my love. Her name is as From the Longhorn Radio Network, the University of Texas at Austin, this is In Black America. Up until about three years ago, 100% of maximum revenue came from federal procurement, and as of about five years ago, most of that was due to the Set-Aside Program. Today, only about 75% of that comes from federal procurement, no dollars and no percentage from the Set-Aside Program. We are completely competitive, and 25% of our business is in

the state, local, and institutional arena, including some potential in the international arena. So, we have diversified our base, and we haven't done it a minute too soon because of federal, there are definitely cutbacks in federal procurement. We see a lot of growth in the state and local industry as far as facilities management, value added hardware, systems integration, and maintenance services of hardware is concerned. Mr. Joshua I. Smith, founder, chairman of the board, and chief executive officer, the maximum corporation. The maximum corporation is a 12-year-old integrated information management products and service firm with over 1,500 employees in 46 locations across this nation. Senator Maxima's first decade in business, Inc. Magazine, consistently listed the company among the top 500 privately-held corporation in the United States. Maxima has also been honored with Black Enterprise Magazine's Company of the Year Award, and was the magazine's

choice for the fastest growing black-owned company in America in 1985. Recently, Joshua I. Smith, Maximus Chairman and CEO, has been appointed by President Bush to head the Commission on Minority Business Development. I'm John L. Hansen, Jr. and welcome to another edition of In Black America. This week, Maximus Corporation with founder and CEO Joshua I. Smith in Black America. It was a field of change, and I have the kind of personality. I don't like to do things forever and ever. I can't work on an assembly line. I try it even as a teenager. I can't do it. I just get bored. I have to. I like dealing with people. I like dealing with different conditions, and I saw the information science computer field as one that's constantly changing, and that was the big attraction to me. It always intrigues me. Whatever you do today, it's going to be challenged tomorrow. I love challenge. I love competition. Such day with the field. But as far as the publicity is concerned, I'm very appreciative of it.

It's been basically good. I've been very outspoken. It's not only Maximus, I spend a lot of my time trying to address student groups, community groups, business groups, on entrepreneurship, because I sincerely believe it. I also think it's good business for Maximus because we are a national company. All of that fits in, and then, of course, the president just appointed me to become chairman of the Commission on Minority Business Development. I'm very proud of that. We're going to be going around the country, conducting hearings. We're going to find out what is a success, from the standpoint of what programs are seem to be successful, from a federal standpoint, local, national, I mean, state, as well as institutional and commercial. We're going to examine and determine what the policy for minority business is in this country. Black America has a rich business tradition. One of a people who have faced insurmountable odds to participate in the free enterprise system

and may significant contributions to the economy of our communities and the nation. For decades, Black Americans have defied the legal system and even risked life and limb to realize their dream of business ownership. Over the past decade, Joshua I. Smith has built his maximum corporation from a one-man operation to a company which employ some 1,500 workers and has offices in 11 states and is one of this nation's fastest-growing companies. As president and CEO of maximum corporation, Joshua I. Smith got his start in the information field in 1969, handling databases and developing information systems as administrator at the University of Akron. After five years at the University, Mr. Smith managed a data book division of a New York publishing house. Then went on to eventually become the executive director of the American Society for Information Service. I recently spoke with Mr. Joshua I. Smith at his Rockville Maryland office complex.

Graduated in 1963, taught Central State for one year. Then I went to Washington to go to medical school, but my wife at the time, and pregnant, that took care of the medical school, so I taught high school for a year. And I liked it very much and just happened to be an Akron, Ohio, where my wife at that time was from. And decided to get a position in Akron because Washington is very competitive. Ended up being on the faculty of Akron University in information science. They call it literature chemistry at the time. And was the first person hired on a project to computerize a database in polymer chemistry. And that began a whole career in the information science field, which has led to where I am now. Being a student of economics myself, one thing I did notice in taking courses on a university level, there were very little information and actually deal with specific aspects of entrepreneurship

of actually going into business for yourself. Basically, the majority of the information will give you a track to a particular vocation or profession for extra number of years. You retire and move to Palm Beach, I guess. When did you first feel or realize that you had what it takes to be an entrepreneur in the big leagues? First of all, I think you hit up on one of the key fault lines, if you will, in the black community. I didn't realize until I was about 27 years old, and I remembered well. You know, 27, you've gone through most of the college you're going to see happen to be on the faculty at Akron University, had an excellent career. But was never exposed at any time during my schooling to entrepreneurship, to business, other than business courses. And those who took courses in business administration and accounting took it from the point of

you getting a job and working for someone until you retire. That was pretty much the mindset that existed. I saw it because as I was assisting people in the community businesses in the community as part of my responsibility on the faculty, I noticed that so many of them were making many times more of my salary and I was helping them make even more. I didn't seem to be a fair process for me. The equation was absent some major factors. And I decided that, at that point, that business was an arena where the measure of one's performance could be realized. And it's amazing. It's not just in money, but you, the maker, you don't make it. You either make it well, you don't make it well. It's measurable. And I like to know that when I put forth an effort, I like to know what the results are. I don't need to know them right away. But I don't want to go on throughout my life not feeling that

the scorecard has been sorely absent. I want to know the score of Joshua Smith. So when I was exposed to entrepreneurs, I realized that that was it. Bottom line. And it required the knowledge of business that required a determination. And the more I got into the preparation for starting my business, which took about 10 years and packaging different parts of my career, the more I realized I had what it took. Basically, I'm a very tough person in terms of hanging in there. I mean, I don't get discouraged when others are giving up on the ship. I don't feel so proud when things are going well that I go around bragging. But I don't put my tail between my legs and walk away if something didn't work out of first shot. I'd get up dust myself off and I'm out there trying it again if it's

what I believe. And I found out that I have an ideal personality. Now, the interesting thing is I've had this personality since I was a kid. I was a very devilish kid. I was a creative. I was curious. All the things that make for bad kids are our features of entrepreneurship in many instances. There's a curiosity about it. There's a belief in ourselves. I mean, I'd stand up even to my mother and father, not in a belligerent way because I respected them. But I tell them the truth. I would never acquiesce to my mother and father if I felt what I believe is right. And I take my medicine. I got it too. I mean, there was no psychology to the punishment when I was growing up. All those factors go into an entrepreneurial attitude that I had no idea. And I think that's the case today. Too many of our black kids in particular where I think entrepreneurship is missing. Our parents know so little.

Our schools don't teach it. We don't get it in college. We really don't know what is the stuff enough of an entrepreneur. We see it in athletics. We see it in entertainment. We see it even in politics as some extent when you have a kid that's very articulate and can stand up and wants to be class president. But nowhere do I see there any support system for entrepreneurship. And it's hurting the black community. It's not talked about in the family culture. We don't have role models that to the degree that we have them in the entertainment athletes, athletics. So I think that your question is very germane because at no time did I see that. And unfortunately, I don't see a big change now although I do see some momentum occurring. Living in the South and not particularly well aware of what's happening here on the East Coast, but our co-ops, junior achievements, addressing some of that entrepreneurial concern particularly for black and minority kids. And I guess the big question is, are we as

minorities participating in those type activities that would steer us towards an entrepreneurial career? Well, I think the answer to the first question is yes. I think that's the intent of the junior chambers and co-ops. The question is to what degree is this supported by the families? And that really goes into the second answer. Second question. That we're just not participating. And I believe it starts with lack of understanding of entrepreneurship from a family standpoint, from an environmental standpoint, neighborhood standpoint. As long as we don't have blacks in business running stores, we now see our Asian friends doing that and that's not a negative statement. It's just a fact. As long as we don't see blacks running large businesses, many people have talked about maximum, you know, 50, 60 million

dollar business in my opinion is not a large business. It's a small business in the industry we're in. As long as we don't see this, then obviously we don't think about it. We're still at the era where we are job oriented. But you know, jobs are fine, but jobs lead to jobs. Jobs don't lead necessarily to control over one's future. And many people can control it through their investments, through a job. But majority of us, if we're going to achieve any wealth, which I think has to be a number one priority in the black community, are going to have to become entrepreneurs. And right now, there's very little appreciation, very little sensitivity. I don't know of a lot of educational programs. And there are a few historically biologists that are doing it, for example, to a far less degree than other colleges are doing it. And that's a personal opinion. I hope that that's not correct,

but I feel that that is the case. It's like a new thing. And you see, as long as that's the case, then we're denying those bad kids out there who are potential entrepreneurs. And I say that very affectionately, the opportunity to see role models and to show that as an alternative plan of action for our career. So we're not participating in the junior achievements to the degree that we should. And there's no internal human cry for entrepreneurship. And until we have that, I don't see how we can ever have any degree of parity in this economy. The last couple of years, you couldn't pick up an industry, economical business industry, trade, publication without reading something about yourself or maximum cooperation. How did you happen to stumble and it may not have been a stumble to get into the information system, retrieval and storage, and also the computer age?

Well, first of all, I'm hoping that the news has been good. I did stumble into information science. It's the truth of it. But after I saw it, it's been conscious for 25 years. And the long and short of it is that that was my position at the University of Akron. But I saw it was a field of change. And I have the kind of personality. I don't like to do things for ever and ever. I can't work on an assembly line. I try it even as a teenager. I can't do it. I just get bored. I have to. I like dealing with people. I like dealing with different conditions. And I saw the information science computer field as one that's constantly changing. And that was the big attraction to me, that it always intrigued me. Whatever you do today, it's going to be challenged tomorrow. I love challenge. I love competition. So I stay with the field. But as far as the publicity is concerned, I'm very appreciative of it. It's been basically good. I've been very outspoken. It's not only maxima. I spend

a lot of my time trying to address student groups, community groups, business groups, financial entrepreneurship, because I sincerely believe it. I also think it's good business for maximum because we are a national company. And all of that fits in. And then, of course, the president just appointed me to become chairman of the Commission on Minority Business Development. And I'm very proud of that. We're going to be going around the country conducting hearings. We're going to find out what is a success from the standpoint of what programs are seem to be successful. From a federal standpoint, local, national, I mean, state, as well as institutional and commercial. We're going to examine and determine what the policy for minority business is in this country. And that's going to be one heck of a challenge that I'm really looking forward to. So the visibility has been nice. Let's just hope it continues to be good visibility. A large portion of the revenue received

by maximum cooperation were from federal agencies. Will that change in the coming years? Oh, we've, it's already changed in terms of percentage. We up until about three years ago, 100% of maximum revenue came from federal procurement. And as of about five years ago, most of that was through the set aside program. Today, only about 75% of that comes from federal procurement. No, no, no dollars, no percentage from the set aside program. We are completely competitive and 25% of our business is in the state, local, and institutional arena, including some potential in the international arena. So we have diversified our base. And we haven't done it a minute too soon because the federal, there are definitely cutbacks in federal procurement. We see a lot of growth in the state and local industry as far as facilities, management, value added, hardware, systems integration, and maintenance service

of hardware is concerned. So we're pretty excited that, I feel good that we're in the right parts of the industry that are going to grow. I'm quite sure you've probably heard some of the horror stories about SBA. Is it a decent, fairly run program? That's going to be the charge of this new commission. The basic, at least as it relates to the 8A and federal set aside and the federal procurement, minority business procurement. One of the things that we're going to determine substantially is the fairness of the program, has it helped, has it hurt, and so forth. So I don't want to prejudice that with my own official responsibilities and my own opinion. But let me tell you this, I do have some experiences. My experiences were both positive and negative, and the negative was very negative. I say that because what I experienced as an individual business is that there was no room for success.

There was no plan for success. That's changing somewhat now. But we were literally terminated from the program because we grew. We're always up front with our numbers. That's the way I am. And we were told to leave the program when we became knowledgeable to participate. The problem is, once that happened, there was no room for successful companies. So one has to think that within that bureaucracy and all the procedures and the red tape and the activities that are required, does that help or hurt business? I tend to think that when we overly bureaucratize a situation, we kill the regular proponents, the persons who needed most. And I think that what's happened has been a degree of bureaucracy that's kind of built up, which when it finally, when there's something that oozes out at the

end, it's too little, too late and does not help businesses. Now, that's not a predisposed judgment. That's an experience. The agencies that are dealing in minority business have to become streamlined in their own management, many of the people that we dealt with, knew very little about business. I didn't know the first thing about business, didn't appreciate the life and death of making a payroll. Many of them were pushing paper. These are personal experiences. It's not judging what the role of the Kiss mission will be. I want to make that very clear, but I have had absolute experience of where the agency has, through its bureaucratic approach and the layers and levels of bureaucracy that we had to fight through. You spent more time fighting the bureaucracy than you did going for the business. So, at the same time, the program did help us in gaining access to opportunities, which we would probably

not have gotten at that stage. So I think that if there are improvements in the agency, I would love to see a much better, a better managed agency, a more streamlined approach, and more education and training about basic business principles in dealing in the business arena and not just people that are pushing paper. Otherwise, I think SBA has done some good things. I think that it's some of those bureaucratic problems that hurt people. So the jury's out. We'll see. I think there's a need for the agency. It certainly has some very significant goals and serves a purpose. But we've got to minimize the degree to which red tape and bureaucratic entanglement affect the end users. And I think, in the case of business, it's quite lethal. Besides making a profit, how do you measure a successful company? I measure, and that's a very good question. I measure a successful

company by its ability to adjust to the constant changes in the marketplace. Today, we don't start businesses necessarily that are going to be around for a hundred years. It's not like starting a more family business and seeing it through generations after generation. The cycle of business challenges, the technology, the impact of technology is so rapid that I measure business success by its ability to continue to grow, by its ability to adjust in the marketplace, to handle itself an extraordinarily global competitive arena, and to provide good community service. I believe that true measure of a business is the impact it makes on the community, too. It's not just a matter of having jobs or providing jobs, but improving the quality of life. And I think businesses are now challenged more and more to become

part of the community. And it's those things that you don't see that I think make for successful business, whether it's United Way, whether it's working with schools in terms of the partnership programs that exist, getting involved, and the real problems that are facing our neighborhoods and our communities. I think businesses have to play a role as well as the other things that I mentioned. Before we run out of time, if someone was calling maximum cooperation today, what type of goods and service could you offer this particular client, perspective client? Over the past 11 years, maximum has become a genuine player in the area of computer systems integration that is making the different software and hardware work, according to the requirements of the client. We've become a key company in the area facilities management, which is literally running the computer operations

and telecommunications operations for our clients, including local area networks and all other data processing needs. We have grown into providing value added services, particularly in hardware, where it's not just a matter of buying a computer and the associated peripherals attached to that, but doing what's necessary so that it works within that organization. The other area is maintenance of the computers. We believe that keeping the computers running the third-party maintenance repair is a very key element. We've evolved into that very nicely, and I believe that's where the future lies. Final question, Mr. Smith. What do you see the state of Black America headed towards in the 1990s?

Well, I don't have an optimistic forecast at all because some things have to change. It's basically attitudes toward economics. We have not become a player. We're not just talking about a capitalistic society. We're talking about a capitalistic, democratic rural, the same principles. It's going to become more competitive as we deal with in the global scale for us. The demand for skills, the man I'm just scared to death of what's happening to our Black males. It's putting a burden on the females. It's going to have a tremendous social problem, terms of who we marry and propagation of our species. I'm concerned about the degree to which drugs and crime have engulfed our communities. The lack of support systems, the lack of family support systems, the struggle that families have, and that's on one side of the formula. On the other side, I see a continuing growing middle class, but my concern there is there's an absence of focus on the entrepreneurial

side of it, the economic side. We're still conspicuous consumers. We get high salaries in middle class and we go out and we buy our luxury cars and our mean coats and we just consume, consume, consume. We don't create assets, we don't save. Black America has to start, has to create assets and poor people can save and everybody else can save. It's a matter of priorities. I don't see that happening to the degree that it's better because without assets, it's going to be very difficult to go in entrepreneurship to become viable players and the competition is keen and if it doesn't turn around in my opinion in the next six, seven years, we're going to find ourselves probably a minority among minorities and that's a frightening notion when you think about it. It doesn't have to be that way, but other minorities seem to be the Asians, the Hispanics, to a great extent. More focus

to the Cubans in particular, more focused toward business, economics, entrepreneurship. That's the key. I mean, if we were to focus on that, I think other problems would fall in place. We're not. We're still advocating the same principles and when something goes wrong, we still go out and we want to march and we want to create a protest. A protest means nothing unless you have a solution at hand too, not just identification of the problem. The solution, in my opinion, is in the economic arena. That's what we're living in today. We've got to change our attitude. We've got to focus on economics and unless we do, I'm afraid that we're going to see a whole new future where a few of us, maybe half of us make it and the other half are going to be constantly dependent and that's not going to help racial tension or anything else. Mr. Joshua, I, Smith, founder, president and CEO, the maximum corporation. If you have a comment or question about this program,

write us. Remember views and opinions expressed on this program are not necessarily those of this station or the University of Texas at Austin until we have the pleasure again for a production assistant, Betty Rodriguez, and technical producer David Alvarez. I'm John L. Hanson, Jr. Please join us again next week. Cassette copies of this program are available and may be purchased by writing in black America cassettes, Longhorn Radio Network, Communication Building B, UT Austin, Austin, Texas, 78712. That's in black America cassettes, Longhorn Radio Network, Communication Building B, UT Austin, Austin, Texas, 78712. From the Center for Telecommunication Services, the University of Texas at Austin, this is the Longhorn Radio Network.

I'm John L. Hanson, Jr. Join me this week on in black America. I'm continuing going middle class, but my concern there is there's an absence of focus on the entrepreneurial side of it, the economic side. We're still conspicuous consumers. Joshua I. Smith, founder, president of Maximum Corporation, this week on in black America.