President’s Letter: EFBC >25 Gala

Hey, everyone!

In preparation for our upcoming GALA event on May 7th, I am flooded with memories from our last Gala, where we celebrated our 20th anniversary back in 2014! And we had a blast! The Liautaud’s founder, of the then CFBC, Jim, was celebrated and presented with a lifetime achievement award from the Council. The year was 2014, Bob Carmody was President, my TAU forum mate Gina Krusinski was the current first VP and former TAU member Jeff Connor was the 2nd VP. During the event, Gina Krusinski, as the first VP, gave a moving speech. These are just a couple individuals amongst a group of great friends that have provided me with the knowledge and courage to take the President position myself. I was young, but it left an imprint and inspired my future leadership within the organization. Libations flowed, we were downtown, everyone danced to live music; by all accounts it was a heck of a bash!

But, wow, does that last gala seem like a distant memory…one that we are going to do our best to repeat this year. This year we’re calling it “Greater than 25”. The math dictates that we should have had the party 2 years ago, but an event in May of 2020 at this caliber was not in the cards So now we have a chance to make up for lost time. There will be dancing, tasty food and drinks, a toast to those that we appreciate, and more. This year is the time to get back together, mingle, do the things we’ve all been missing. I am excited to have time with some fun people and a little normalcy. This gala is a black-tie event where we celebrate you; our members, strategic partners, Gala sponsors and staff in one spectacular event. I, for one, am really looking forward to seeing people that I haven’t seen, some in nearly two years and to meeting new people and dancing the night away with my wife, Annette.

I hope to see you all there! Bring your significant others, family, friends, and employees to celebrate. Anyone that wants to get out there and enjoy themselves with a solid group that knows how to have a good time is welcome. The more the merrier!

Cheers,

Neil O’Donnell

EFBC President ‘21/’22

Meet Kornel Grygo, CEO of Tasty Catering

Get to know Kornel, a new member of the EFBC.

Tasty Catering
Founded: 1989
Location: Elk Grove Village, IL

Tell us about your career leading up to where you are now:

I started at Tasty in 2007, and officially became CEO January of 2019.

I graduated high school in ‘04. I took a little break from school and worked some different jobs. And I quickly figured out that not getting an education is not the best route for my future. So in 2007 I decided to go back to school and attended UIC, where I studied Business Management. At the time, I was looking for something that’s really flexible with my schedule. And my girlfriend at the time, is a niece of the Walter brothers, who own Tasty Catering. I started off at Tasty as a delivery driver. At the time I was in school full time and working full time. Tasty is a 24-hour, 7 day a week operation, so I was able to easily work full time.

I remained in that role until I graduated, which was 2012. At that point, I was promoted to Director of Logistics, in charge of our delivery staff, fleet maintenance, and part of the leadership team. Throughout the years, I fell in love with the company. They always took care of the people, were always culture focused. I actually approached Tom Walter, who was the CEO at the time, and is the current owner and said “hey, I want your job, what do we have to do?”. We then worked together to create a timeline and metrics I had to achieve to in order to prepare myself for that position. I have held almost every position at tasty, so I understand the whole operation and a lot of the staff here have been together for a long time.

What do you like most about what you do?

I really like the daily challenges. It’s always something. And obviously we’re in a food business, so the pandemic had a huge impact on our business. It’s easy, a lot of times, to focus on the negatives, but there are also a lot of positives in our business that allowed us all to get closer and work through the challenges we faced in 2020 and to this day. It helped us focus and really live our culture and ‘walk the talk’. It allowed us to focus on the core values and the principles we always preach about. Everybody says, ‘we take care of people’. When your business drops 85% overnight and you know that you are not making a lot of layoffs, you focus your efforts on investing in the team. It was hard, especially not knowing what’s going to happen day-to-day, week-to-week, hour by hour is just kind of made us all closer. We follow those core values, and we follow our mission, and we all care about each other and it’s just, well, that’s kind of been the biggest story for us. We’re always looking through the lens of ‘hey, this is a challenge and how can we learn from it and make our company better as a result’.

How did you hear about the EFBC?

I believe Tasty has been involved with EFBC since the beginning, back when EFBC was at UIC, and was the Chicago Family Business Council. Tom Walter has always been associated with it. Tasty has always been a family-owned company, so I think that’s what drew the Walter brothers to the organization originally. Once I stepped into some of these leadership roles after college that’s when I got involved with EFBC. I was in charge of the sales team, so that was my first introduction to some of the educational programming. I was able to participate in the sales roundtables.

Why did you join, and what do you hope to gain from your membership?

In the past few years, as I have taken on this leadership role, I appreciate being able to understand and talk to other business leaders, and to have that support and that shared experience, which is critical because you know sometimes leaders feel alone. You have a lot of pressure because at the end of the day, I’m responsible for everything that happens under this roof, every employee and all their family members. I can lean on the members of EFBC, other leaders, without judgement. I appreciate the most the shared experience piece. There is no advice or how you should do things, rather there is the opportunity to listen to what works in other organizations so that our team can then take that back to our company and determine what would work best for us. Every organization is different, so just hearing those stories is invaluable.

I just try to continue to grow and to become a better leader and person. That is what I continue to look forward to in my membership. Educational programming really forces you to think. What can I take from this? How can I use this in our organization? Will this work for us? The community is also great. You have so many members. At any time, I can just pick up a phone and pick someone’s brain about something I am struggling with and it’s far less isolating, it’s that relationship piece that I highly value. I can surround myself with people that can help me, can hold me accountable.

Join us in welcoming Kornel to the EFBC community.

Looking for Qualified Candidates? Our EFBC Members Share Their Best Tips for Recruitment

Recruiting and hiring qualified candidates, that fit the culture of your organization, can be challenging. Whether your organization is experiencing turnover, potentially from retirements, or experiencing growth, being able to find the right people for the job takes a successful recruitment strategy in order for your business to succeed.

If there is one thing that all EFBC members have in common, it is brilliant minds. And whether it’s through forums, roundtable events, or one-on-one conversations, the beauty of EFBC is that our individual experiences are shared with other business owners and team members. Utilizing our community, we reached out and gathered the best tips, shared by members, on strategies, tips, or tricks, they have found successful over the past year. The following is what they had to say:

• Alex Argianas, Argianas & Associates – Putting homework in the job posting. It has weeded out everyone who doesn’t follow directions. In our job postings, we will include a simple direction for them to follow such as sending an email to us with their favorite Chicago building and asking them to identify some grammatical errors in the posting. So far, I’ve had one person who successfully completed it, everyone else has not. To be honest, I’ll never go back to not having that in my postings, no one reads! And if no one is reading, then you know for sure that they’re not taking it as seriously as you may, and/or, they’re not really wanting the job that bad.

• Rachel Bossard, Burke, Warren, MacKay, & Serritella, P.C. – We do our best to convey what sets our firm apart from the rest. When candidates hear a common theme from several people, it really resonates.

• Kim Schrader, Vaxcel International Co.,Ltd. – Our strategy is to have multiple resources to recruit candidates. This could be agencies, employee referral programs, postings on Indeed, LinkedIn, other sites, and looking internally. Also, know the characteristics and skills you are looking for and hire a candidate that fits both. We have found that both culture and skills are important, and we take our time to find the right candidate.

• Sara Curry, Interra Global – Hands down our greatest success rate has been from employee referrals. Our team knows best what type of individuals and skillsets can thrive and likewise help our company grow. We tell our employees not to think about any position we may or may not be recruiting for. Instead, explore their network and focus on a potential candidate as a good culture fit. If they are a good fit and we like them, we will find the position. We have an employee referral program, but more importantly, we continually encourage everyone to take ownership in helping grow our team.

• George Karavattuveetil, Psyched! – Be very intentional and clear in communicating your organization’s values in recruitment efforts. These are the “must-haves” and not the “nice to have.” They provide the critical foundation for job descriptions and role success, integrated into every aspect of the organization. If it’s RESPECT, how does it show up on a daily basis? If it’s ACCOUNTABILITY, how will it be recognized? The potential candidates who have or want a culture driven by the identified values will be attracted and excited. While the ones who don’t will increasingly be repulsed. It’s your choice what you present to the world!

• Amanda Baker, Performance Plus – Each candidate is there to sell themselves as the “best candidate” however, if you don’t have someone who can “talk shop” with them, we may be wasting time and money on training the wrong candidate. We are usually experts in people, not their skills. Additionally, the first interview will be the “best” you will ever see them so, if you ask them back for a second interview (maybe to talk shop with the manager) you will see how they present themselves. If it is the same, you may have a good fit, if they have become more relaxed in the presentation of themselves, take that into consideration.

• Tracy Olsen, Nova Fire Protection – This past year we have tried to involve more stakeholders in the interview process. Previously, a new hire was onboarded and only one person outside of HR was involved. Involving others has allowed roles to be more clearly defined and expectations are set across the board. The collaborative and transparent approach is definitely a game-changer for us.

Did you know? 2025 Family Business Statistics

Each year, Family Enterprise USA (FEUSA) releases its annual survey, providing some of the most detailed family business statistics available. The 2025 family business statistics offer a current, data-driven look at the contributions, challenges, and priorities of U.S. family-owned companies. These insights help legislators, educators, and business leaders understand the crucial role family enterprises play in the economy and how to support them.

The 2025 FEUSA Family Business Survey was conducted in January and February 2025, gathering responses from 730 family business leaders across 45 states. Here’s what the data tells us about the role and realities of family enterprises in today’s economy.

Key 2025 Family Business Statistics: About Participants

• 82.7% are sole or majority owners of their business.

• 80.3% operate as pass-through entities; 57.5% are S Corporations.

• Industry breakdown: 25.9% Manufacturing/Operations, 12.4% Construction/Facilities, 5.8% Real Estate.

• 70.9% have majority ownership held by first or second generations; 30.8% have passed controlling ownership to the next generation.

• 81% have been in business for 20+ years.

• 47% employ 51 or more workers.

• 71% have generational employees — non-family employees whose own families have worked for the company for multiple generations.

• 66.6% have next-generation family members working in the business.

Economic Overview

• 33% reported $0–$5 million in gross revenue in 2024.

• 28% earned over $50 million in revenue.

• 59% grew in 2024; 36% of those saw growth over 10%.

• 77% expect to grow in 2025.

• In 2024, 91.4% added between 1 and 50 jobs.

• 90% pay average or above-average wages and benefits.

• 72% of charitable contributions go to local organizations or local chapters of national charities.

Policy & Workforce Priorities

Top Tax Concerns:

• Income taxes (47%)
• Estate taxes (“Death Tax”) (19%)
• Capital gains taxes (12%)

Top Economic Policy Priorities:

• Reduce federal budget/debt (32%)
• Reduce income taxes (21%)

Top Workforce Challenges:

• Recruiting & training (53%)
• Benefits/pay (26%)
• Culture building (16%)

Top Barriers to Growth:

• Market conditions (29.3%)
• Cost/availability of labor (25.4%)

Estate Tax Preferences:

• 33.1% want to keep the current exemption level (down from 36% in 2024)
• 29.9% want to repeal the estate tax entirely (up from 26% in 2024)

Family businesses are more than an economic driver—they are long-term stewards of jobs, community involvement, and generational leadership. Understanding 2025 family business statistics helps policymakers create better legislation, and helps family business leaders benchmark their performance against national trends.

At EFBC, we equip family business leaders with the peer support, education, and strategies they need to tackle the challenges highlighted in this report and ensure their companies thrive for generations to come.

Ready to experience the EFBC difference? Join our community of driven business owners who learn, grow, and succeed together. A great way to start is by attending our Prospect Forum, where you can see firsthand how our confidential, peer-to-peer groups work and connect with leaders facing the same opportunities and challenges you are.

Source: Family Enterprise USA 2025 Annual Family Business Survey, conducted Jan–Feb 2025, with 730 respondents from 45 states.

President’s Letter – New Year, New Activity

December and January have been exciting months for the EFBC, especially at a time when things are usually quiet. I’m proud to say that we have had 4 new members join in the last month! Equally as tremendous, we are fortunate enough to have 2 members come back to EFBC after hiatuses. Their Forum was very pleased to have them back, as is our membership. This is very much due to recent efforts to focus on membership, spearheaded by the Membership & Marketing Committee and everyone else that stepped up to help spread the word about our growing organization. The M&M Committee is made up of Patty Rioux, Sean Hoffman, Matt Ahrens, Andy Sanghani, and the Board/EC. Thank you all. This is a direct reflection of your collective efforts, and we appreciate the group working together to share our experience and how it might be of benefit to others, thus expanding the brilliance that is within the EFBC. Awesome job! A lot of momentum was gained going into last week’s BOD meeting, into the following days M&M meeting, that we hope to keep building on as we move into the new year.

We look forward to that the momentum of membership, along with our robust programming of in person and hybrid meetings will lead to extraordinary benefits for the EFBC. In addition, we have partnered with Goldman Sach’s 10,000 Small Businesses. 10K Small Businesses provides a network of support through high impact educational programming that provides participants with opportunities to “learn from other small business owners, receive expert advice from business professionals, get one-on-one business advising, and join a national network of entrepreneurs.” With a shared mission and goals, this partnership aims to foster the development of other Entrepreneurs, Owners and the principal people that take care of us

After much anticipation, Danielle Reidel, our new Marketing and Programming coordinator, started her new position and has begun onboarding! We were able incorporate Danielle in to a few meetings last week as well. She hit the ground running and didn’t miss a beat! Danielle, along with Cha Mi, our marketing intern, are going to be a dynamic duo for 2022 and beyond. Cha Mi just celebrated her one-year anniversary of being with us. Please make sure you introduce yourselves to the new associates as we open up to more in person gatherings.

In alignment with our mission, which is to “Educate and empower people of family and entrepreneurial businesses through impactful programs and a unique community of peer support”; I want to thank you all in continuing to keep our Council growing, flourishing and helping others!

Neil O’Donnell
VP of Business Development, Progressive Industries
EFBC President 2021-2022

Your Five-Step Plan to Getting Gala-Ready!

It’s happened to all of us. After almost two years of remote work, canceled events and social distancing, our interpersonal skills are a bit out of tune. Add to that the new complexities of interactions – Are we hugging, shaking hands, elbowing, fist-bumping or waving from across the room?? – and it is enough to make one feel like an awkward pre-teen on the first day of junior high. As the EFBC Community looks forward to finally celebrating our 25th anniversary together at our >25 Gala in May, for many of us that means swapping our now de facto sweats and slippers for bow ties, formal dress and heels. Certainly, we need a five-step program to prepare for that level of social re-entry! And perhaps help us fine-tune those lapsed interpersonal skills and habits along the way.

Step 1: Put on “hard pants” that have an actual button and zipper as opposed to the comfort of elastic.

Remote work and socializing via Zoom can be a challenge for communication but it has been a definite plus for comfy work attire. Some scientists, however, tell us that “enclothed cognition” or the psychological effects of clothing do show that dressing can improve productivity. So, start getting Gala-ready by putting a blazer or jacket on over that Zoom-ready t-shirt (but go ahead and keep the sweats!)

Step 2: Put on shoes that tie or have a heel and walk around – even dare to walk outside!

Yes, we know it is winter in Chicagoland and for some of us, that means a desire to hibernate until May – especially now that many of us can work from home. But here again, science encourages us to get outside daily. Just a few moments of fresh air can perk up a tired brain and reduce stress levels. Now, if we can remember how to walk in heels!

Step 3: Have a conversation with someone you are not related to. Or don’t work with. Or who is not your pet.

Here is where a community like EFBC makes a world of difference. For our members and Forum groups, their conversations and meetings have been a lifeline during the last two years. Maintaining – and growing – friendships and relationships remains a vital part of having a healthy business and healthy life.

Step 4: Practice balancing a glass and an appetizer plate in one hand while eating with the other.

No one talks about the physicality of socializing, especially for those of us who may be “co-ordination challenged”! Physical exercise is another of those habits we need to keep in our daily routine. And practice makes perfect for mingling at the Gala in May! While a personal trainer might not think eating dinner with your family while walking around your house as if at an event is a workout, we think it counts.

Step 5: Brush up on those dance moves.

It’s been a while since many of us have boogied on a real dance floor. But a kitchen floor makes the perfect space to perfect your signature move – especially in heels! Once again, science tells us that dancing isn’t only fun, but it’s a great way to improve your mood and relieve stress. Whether you’re a professional moonwalker or two-stepper, start practicing now so you are Gala-ready to dance the night away.

Following the above advice will undoubtedly prepare you for our >25 Gala!

Emotional Intelligence Beyond EFBC

Emotional Intelligence (EI) is at the core of everything we do. Ask any EFBC member and they will tell you, “EI isn’t about being emotional, but being intelligent about your emotions.” It’s a valuable skill that, when used with EFBC protocols, can bring about endless opportunities. Whether it’s a conversation, a conflict, or a negotiation, EI skills and protocols can turn these moments into an opportunity to connect. At EFBC, we don’t just talk the talk. We put our EI skills and protocols to use. But what about beyond EFBC?

This month, we asked some of our EFBCers to share how they’ve used the EI skills and protocols they’ve learned from EFBC in their daily lives. As a business owner or team member, a spouse or parent, or even a friend, these EFBCers are sharing how EI has helped them become better listeners and communicators outside of EFBC.

• Dave Westerman, President – Carbit Paint Co.

I have greatly reduced the advice-giving I would have otherwise provided to my friends and family. This has been difficult for me, as I have been raised by parents that show their love through advice-giving, and I have had to change my habits that I have mimicked for decades. EI skills learned through EFBC programs and protocols have provided me 1) the awareness to understand the challenges with providing advice and 2) the tools to offer assistance in other ways, namely, shared experience.

• Gina Krusinski, Vice President – Krusinski Construction Company

The protocol I use the most, by far, is to put myself in others’ shoes. I consider myself a good listener but putting myself in someone else’s shoes elevates listening to truly feeling what they are feeling. What are they going through? What are they dealing with personally that they may bring with them to work? It helps me make the right judgment calls and the right decisions. And especially with my kids! Thinking back to being a teenager and trying to imagine all that they are feeling and going through makes me a better parent for sure.

• George Karavattuveetil, President and Founder – Psyched, LLC

Improvement of EI skills has helped with respect to every one of my relationships. Most importantly, to take the time to listen to others’ perspectives, and understand where they are. As a performance improvement coach, I can only appropriately guide a client to a better place only after clearly knowing where they are coming. In a similar fashion, as a parent, I am most effective when I take the time to put myself in the child’s shoes and look at the current situation from their perspective. I have found that there is more value in them recognizing the time I have taken to be present and the effort to understand, more than providing an answer or solution to the immediate challenge.

• Kevin Walter, President – CLEF Consulting, LLC

Learning about and how to use the EFBC Emotional Intelligence (EI) skills and protocols has truly changed my life. It has influenced me in so many ways that it is hard to pick the area in which it has had the most impact.

After much thought, I would have to select how it changed us as parents. When we first learned of and started practicing EI, our two daughters were teens. Those were some rough years prior to EFBC!

After many blowups when giving advice, our older daughter came home with an issue one day and said, “I’ve got a problem with the dance team, but I don’t want solutions right now. I just want you to listen and validate that I am looking at this the right way.” Wow. We knew we had to change.

Thankfully, that was right around the time I joined the CFBC (as EFBC was known then). Employing listening skills was the first step. Instead of interrupting as soon as we thought we had a solution to their issue or problem, we would listen intently with good body language and eye contact. We would also validate their narrative with nods of affirmation and listen to them until they were finished speaking. We would express empathy for their situation. Next, we added in clarifying questions if needed then sprinkled in some shared experiences, not only telling the story and outcome but also adding in what we might do differently if we had the chance for a “do over”.

Voila! The previous outcome of anger, shouting and stomping off to their rooms lessened significantly. The back-and-forth of sharing and caring blossomed. We feel that by subtly employing EI and protocols, the girls were much more likely to come to us with issues instead of keeping them bottled inside until they reached a boiling point.

I am happy to report that they are now 24 and 21 and are on good paths to happy lives. Hopefully, they picked some of this up that they can use once they start families. If not, grandma, grandpa and the EFBC EI and protocols will be there to help!