Mike Carley says one of the keys to the success at the Gibson City Birkey’s Farm Store is having the right people in place in key positions. But what makes those people the right people?

“It’s organization, it’s personality, it’s being driven,” he says. “You want a competitor. I don’t want to lose and everyone who works here wants to be number one.”

Here are some further points he made regarding what he looks for in people.

• “Personality is huge. You want someone who is going to try and drive business to the store and they’re not going to be able to do that if they don’t have the personality.”
• “They’ve got to be smart enough to read the financials. I’m not saying they have to have a four-year degree, but they have to be able to understand the numbers and how a business runs. Then I can teach them how to take those numbers and put them to work for Birkey’s.”

“Organization is very, very important to me. If you’re not an organized individual, you’re probably not going to work very well with me. You can go into somebody’s house or office and see if they’re organized. You can tell if you take a ride in their car.”