James Staengel, vice president and CEO: Accupoint, Inc.

• Author: Gallion, Mari
• Position: View from the Top

Originally from Los Gatos, California, James Staengel was taught at an early age that hard work and self-respect go hand in hand. In high school he was in a program that offered school credits for working, so senior year he went to school half day then worked in the family construction business the other half.

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Right after high school, Staengel's brother-in-law asked if he would come to Alaska for three months to help him build a spec house. A day later, Staengel packed his bags and was headed north, believing that Alaska, with an average age of twenty-six, was the land of opportunity for young people.

It was while in Anchorage that he met Jim Gregory, a survey equipment repairman, and in 1986 they combined their complimentary talents to form Accupoint, Inc.

FOUNDATION FROM FAMILY: In our family, finances and investing were talked about freely. Late in the evening while driving home from the job, I would be asked and made to think about different scenarios of what would happen if I invested this way or that. I was made to think about how to use money as a tool. I didn't appreciate it at the time, but it trained my mind to be able to have forward thinking.

START IT UP: Jim Gregory had an amazing talent at servicing survey equipment. He and his wife had worked in the field starting in their preteen years. It was a specialized field. No one in the state at the time had my partner's talents and certifications. We thought our combined talents would allow us to bring to the customer a unique option for product and service in Alaska. I was asked to help for the business side and that started us on the journey.

We started our business post-pipeline; banks went under and neighborhoods emptied--so our business was forged in the fire of tough times.

SUCCESS SECRETS: The foundation to our success rests upon having good standards, morals, and ethics. Everything in life builds from these. Besides this foundation, the top three qualities would...