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26 Special Advertising SupplementS. TienWongCEO/ChairmanLore Systems, Inc.Silver SpringMitchellWoolPresidentThe Bean Bag Deli andCatering Co., LLCRockvilleSTATSSTATSAge: 47Education: AB, government, Dartmouth CollegeFirst job held: working in his dad's Chinese restaurantHobbies: tennis, golf, skiing, readingFavorite sports team: New York GiantsHelpful business book: Topgrading by Bradford D.SmartFavorite TV show or movie: ShawshankRedemptionBullish on the company'sengineering tradition, S.TienWong and his partners purchasedLore Systems, Inc.in2008. "Our plan isto build Lore into one of the topcompanies in our space over the nextfour to five years," he said.Lore Systems is amanagedinformation technology services companyestablished in 1995. It provides managedhosting,cloud computing,and enterprisenetwork engineering servestomore than200 government, Fortune 1,000,association and small- and medium-sizedbusiness clients.The firmisanindustryleader in cloud computing,virtualization,green IT,telework, and disasterrecover/continuity of operations planning.Lore's success is due, in large part,to its outstanding customer service."Without acustomer, youdon't have abusiness.So, my job as CEO is to makesure thatour clients' goals are our goals,"Wong said. "Making our clients happy isour first, second and third priority."To help Lore stand apart from itscompetitors during these difficulteconomic times,Wong strives to exceedclient expectations."When we add valueway beyond what istraditionallyexpected, we differentiate ourselvesfrom the competition and can land andgrow key accounts," he said.The toughest business decisionWong has faced was tolay offemployees."We had to do this in 2008and it was very painful for obviousreasons," he said.Another tough decision, thoughone with asilver lining,was to sellMost admired person: Warren BuffettWould liketodine with: Jesus ChristLife motto: "Never give in. Never give in. Never,never,never,never--in nothing, great or small, large or petty--nevergive in, except to convictions of honor and good sense. Neveryield to force. Never yield to the apparently overwhelmingmight of the enemy."-- Winston ChurchillWebsite: www.lore.netFounded: 1995 Employees: 22CyberRep,Inc., afirmWong had spentyears building. "We sold the company toAffiliated Computer Services, aFortune500 company, in 2003 at apremium tothe market comparables and they keptour entire management team.Thebusiness unit is now apart ofXeroxCorp. and is billing in excess of $1.3billion-and our guys are still running it,"he said.Wong as well as Lore employeesare heavily invested in the community,serving on numerous boards andcontributing to charities."Because webelieve that giving back is incumbent onmore fortunate individuals andorganizations such as Lore, we stronglyencourage all members ofour team toget involved in the community andmake an impact," said Wong.Striking abalance between homeand office is astruggle for Wong. "It'svery hard for 'type A' entrepreneurs toshift gears, especially when there's somuch work to be done during thesetrying economic times," he said. "At theend of the day, you have tothink aboutwhat's truly important in life, the legacyyou want to leave,and those things helpdrive one towards balance."WhatWong wishes he knew earlierin his career is to hire great people. "Iwas too focused on keeping costs undercontrol and not paying high salaries forgreat talent," he said. "I learned thatgreat people can deliver multiples oftheir salaries above merely 'good'people….My advice is to bite the bulletand hire the very best you can afford."nAge: 45Education: high school graduateFirst job held: at Herman's Sporting Goods (age 15)Hobbies: family and exerciseFavorite sports team: Washington NationalsHelpful business book: The E-Myth Revisited byMichael GerberHaving moved locations after 33years, Mitchell Wool is growinghis company. "Our new locationis two-and-a-half times bigger than ourprevious store so we've been able toincrease our in-store menu offerings aswell as really expand our cateringcapabilities," he said.Established by Wool's parents,TheBean Bag Deli and Catering Co.beganas aspecialty coffee and tea shop inBethesda.Today itisafull-service retaildeli with dine-in and carryout servicesin Rockville. It features specialtysandwiches, subs, salads, soups, andbaked goods, as well as fresh coffeebeans and loose leaf teas.Italso caterssocial and corporate events and handlesspecial event and concession services.Asmall business with limitedfinancial resources,The Bean Bagsupports some 20 charities andnonprofit groups."Iconsciously steppedup our involvement over six years agowhen we took on the roll of VP ofconcessions for The Bethesda Big Train,asummer baseball league that benefitsthe Field of Dreams charity," said Wool."Our real strength has become being asource to help nonprofits generate morerevenue or fundraising dollars byhelping them plan, organize, andoperate functions and events while, atthe same time, assisting in maintainingcontrol over expenses."The most challenging aspect ofbeing asmall business owner is, forWool, "keeping up with the cost ofFavorite TV show or movie: Rocky (I, II, and III)Most admired person: his parentsWould liketodine with: his dad (deceased)Life motto: "It's all good" and "If something is worthhaving, it's worth working for."Website: www.thebeanbag.comFounded: 1977 Employees: 11doing business: health care, taxes,utilities, and rent," he said. "At the ratethat expenses of being in business goup,itishard to keep pace."Keeping up with the hours isanother challenge. "I start mydaytypically by 4am," he said. "And withthe expansion of our catering and eventservices, Ican frequently be working anevent until midnight or later."To keep things in perspective,Woolcarves out time for family."Iamblessedwith awonderful and understandingwife and three amazing children.Between stealing an hour here or thereto see them or having ameal with them,if I'm not working,all Iwant to do is gethome to be with them," he said.Wool credits his parents, withwhom he worked beginning at age 13,with instilling in him the values andproviding him with the resources tosucceed. "They taught me theimportance of being agood person, thecore fundamentals of the retail business,and what itistotake responsibility foryourself and make your own way andsuccess," he said.According to Wool, when it comesto succeeding in the retail sector the keyis customer service. "You can have thegreatest product, the best looking store,and ahome-run location but ifyoudon't take care of your customers, therest will probably not matter longterm," he said. n