A bout three years ago, Bob Bremm made the decision to put his nearly 30 years of experience in leadership development to good use by starting up a consulting and coaching business under the corporate name of Orion Maine, doing business with AdviCoach. Through AdviCoach, he helps companies grow profits and build high-performance teams by focusing on leadership skills.

A resident of Bowdoinham, Bremm joined AdviCoach, a business consulting franchise that he was introduced to through a local entrepreneurial source. He saw it as a way to share his wealth of experience and tap into the knowledge of other like-minded people. Bremm said, “I talked with several coaches in the group, and what convinced me to join them was the way they lit up when they talked about how they were helping their clients.”

The U.S. Navy brought Bremm, a New York City native, to the Midcoast area several years ago. When it was time to retire, he knew exactly where he wanted to settle down and continue to raise his family.

After serving as an active duty pilot then a reservist, Bremm gained valuable experience as the leader of facilities departments at, not one, but two, large well-known Maine employers, Maine Medical Center and Bates College. After spending about eight years with each of these organizations and heading up his own project management services company, Bremm, a self-described introvert, believed that what AdviCoach had to offer was a great fit for his skills and experience.

He said, “AdviCoach has a very good training program as well as effective tools. Most importantly, there is the talent, experience and support of other coaches. We stay networked and collaborate on a regular basis.”

These days, Bremm is building his client base by helping to create company leaders and keep them motivated. The way he sees it, many business owners don’t have a good handle on the definition of leadership. He said, “Good leadership is the basis for building highperformance teams, which are the most important part of a company.”

He believes the biggest mistakes managers make involve poor communication and leadership skills along with a lack of strategic, business and comprehensive marketing plans. Other important areas where business leaders fall short, according to Bremm, include lacking a way to measure key performance indicators and misunderstanding the difference between cash flow and accounts receivable. Add in not taking the time to consistently review where the business is financially, and a recipe for disaster is in the making, or at the very least, the organization is stagnating rather than experiencing healthy growth. “A particular interest of mine is one-to-one leadership coaching,” Bremm said. “Yes, leadership can be taught. I see many companies ready for growth, but their management team doesn’t have the requisite leadership skills to make it happen.”

The problem can exist at the highest management levels or at mid-management levels. In Bremm’s opinion, it’s a major impediment to a company’s growth plans. The benefits of leadership coaching will ripple through an organization, making the return on the investment of the coaching significant.

In his quest to make the organization he’s working with the best it can be, Bremm explained, “Step one is to clearly define the problem. It’s important to determine the root cause rather than just dealing with a symptom. Once that’s accomplished, it must be clear what the desired outcome is. At this point the pathways to a solution start to become more welldefined.”

Although Bremm is a firm believer in virtually all businesses needing best business practices and leadership skills, he’s found that designers, contractors, IT and manufacturing areas are clients who are an especially good fit for him because of his technical background and mechanical engineering degree.

No matter what type of organization he’s working with, Bremm operates under the premise that there’s a significant difference between consulting and coaching. A consultant will come in and determine the solution to a problem which the owner may or may not implement because they sometimes haven’t learned enough from the process. Bremm’s coaching process teaches the owner best practices. The owner is then held accountable for implementing solutions. This allows for developing skills that can be used in the future with the return on the initial investment lasting for many years.

While Bremm is busy giving his clients a hand with their issues, he’s also growing his own business.

He said, “The most difficult part is finding good quality people to join me as associates. Remember, your business is only as good as the people you have in it. I’m also always looking for good strategic partners. There are times when a client needs a specialist in a certain discipline. I’d like to be able to refer them to a strategic partner who I can trust. There’s a wide range of specialties including, but not limited to, bookkeeping, insurance, business brokers, bankers, attorneys, etc.”

He described his best clients as those who want to improve, recognize they can use some help, and are willing to invest both time and dollars in their business to begin the improvement process.

As change agent and coach, Bremm leads the way by bringing forth an awareness of opportunities and challenges. He then works toward teaching best business practices while designing a plan for success. He also fosters accountability when it comes to implementing the plan because, as he puts it, “Their success is my success.”

You can contact Bob Bremm at Orion Maine at rbremm@advicoach.com or call 449-1794.

KAREN SCHNEIDER, of West Bath, is a freelance writer. She can be reached at iwrite33@comcast.net.

Coach contact

FOR MORE information, you can contact Bob Bremm at Orion Maine by calling 449-1794 or at rbremm@advicoach.com.