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00:00:39.679Welcome back to another episode of Rick in Resolve and Alliance and I had heard in today's special guest is Darren Thompson, founder in president process alumni, also a fellow member of MRC12 Cohort here in Indianapolis.
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00:00:42.320Darren, thanks for being with us today.
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00:00:43.679Thanks for having me again.
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00:00:44.479I just appreciate it.
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00:00:46.000Look forward to our conversations.
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00:00:48.960And I'm looking forward to it as well.
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00:00:54.479You and I have built a friendship over the last now, what, four years or so?
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00:00:55.119Yeah.
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00:01:13.760And it's been really cool to do that, to talk about life in general, but also just an incredible story of a Lily engineer leader retiring into just something totally massive, which is Process Alliance.
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00:01:15.680And we'll we'll get into that story.
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00:01:26.480But um before we get going, Darren, if you wouldn't mind, uh just give us a little bit of a background of you, where you grew up, um, and just you know, what did it look like?
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00:01:28.079What what made Darren Darren?
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00:01:28.959Sure.
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00:01:33.920Well, the thumbnail sketch is I was born and raised uh here in Franklin, Indiana.
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00:01:37.840Uh live in my hometown that uh I grew up in.
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00:01:40.640My brother lives in the house we grew up in.
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00:01:54.400Um, you know, born into uh a blue-collar family, um with uh roots going into uh Kentucky and to uh the the tobacco region of of western Kentucky.
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00:01:59.599And um my dad was a uh UAW, a General Motors guy.
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00:02:10.960My mom you know dabbled here and there and took care of the kids and um uh lived in the town she grew up in after they moved out of Kentucky.
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00:02:15.919And so um so that's kind of where we came from.
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00:02:23.520Uh just one brother, uh, you know, a a solid blue-collar middle class growing up.
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00:02:33.520When I grew up, I was on my bike uh every day of the week, uh riding through town, and uh, you know, no inhibitions back then in the in the 60s and 70s.
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00:02:40.960So uh life was pretty good uh with just uh a small little family of the four of us here in Franklin, Indiana.
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00:02:43.039Married my high school sweetheart.
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00:02:52.879Um Bonnie and I started dating in in 1978, and then uh we just celebrated our 44th anniversary um a week ago.
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00:03:08.080So uh she also was born and raised here in Franklin, and uh so we've had the privilege of of raising our children uh near grandparents and near uh our families.
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00:03:11.599So um so that's the the thumbnail sketch.
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00:03:45.039Um got out of high school, went to engineering school in Terre Haute and Rose Holman, and uh uh graduated at the worst possible time uh in 1983 when the economy was uh uh really struggling and uh couldn't find a job, struggled, uh took about a year to get a decent job, and um then bounced around uh for I think six years or so before I landed at Eli Lilly and then worked at Lilly for 30 years before retiring.
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00:03:57.840So what were some of those first jobs that you had before totally going all over the uh well my very first job, uh uh a guy came on campus and this was after graduation and he asked two questions.
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00:04:01.360Uh Did you graduate and can you start on Monday?
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00:04:14.479And it was uh it was at the Marble Hill nuclear facility that that uh uh one of the power companies was building down on the Ohio River between uh Madison and Jeffersonville.
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00:04:19.120And uh that was my first first big boy job right out of college.
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00:04:34.560Worked the second shift, and um uh it lasted for uh three months before they laid everybody off uh on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving in 1983, and then I was back at it.
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00:04:52.639And then uh I think uh after that I went to work for the Board of Health and the environmental side and uh worked on uh um some environmental work and and um eventually made my way to Eli Lilly after a couple other assignments uh after I left the Board of Health.
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00:05:06.480So when you when you landed at Eli Lilly, what were what was like what were you first getting involved in and how did that give us like what did that career trajectory look like at Lilly?
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00:05:07.360Sure.
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00:05:30.399Well, I I studied chemical engineering and um and so obviously that um for those of you who don't know in the pharmaceutical world, uh at least in the the uh upfront part of the manufacturing of making a drug molecule is a is a is a chemical or biological uh uh type of process.
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00:05:35.680And uh the demand and need for chemical engineers in those facilities is pretty high.
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00:05:38.319And and so uh that's where I started off.
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00:05:52.800I I worked in uh as an individual contributor engineer for um I don't know, maybe 12, 13 years, and then went into uh into leadership in the manufacturing leadership in uh one capacity or another.
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00:06:05.439Uh pretty much stayed rooted in the uh engineering component, um, and then at the tail end of my career began to do uh large project uh uh capital project management.
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00:06:27.360Um uh unlike the scale of what Eli Liddy is doing today, uh, but uh um I was in I'm I was in the group that is now managing uh the massive expansion that you see uh going up in in uh Lebanon and you know certainly many other cities throughout the United States, but uh I was in that group that is now doing that.
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00:06:42.079So um so it was kind of a migration from from uh being in manufacturing and understanding the engineering function associated with manufacturing and then uh migrating into uh large cap, uh large capital project delivery.
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00:06:46.800So you were working to hey, where are we going next?
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00:06:50.720What are we going to invest in from a from a build and startup?
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00:06:54.240Like always into the where are we growing to toward?
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00:06:54.560Yeah.
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00:07:16.399There's there's always you know uh always a problem to be solved, um, always in a uh an expansion to be made, whether it was a you know solving a risk problem from a um you know compliance or a health and safety problem to uh adding adding capacity to make uh to make more molecules.
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00:07:35.519And so um, you know, companies like that uh have to have uh a lot of engineers and scientists to run the manufacturing component and uh knowing how to uh design and build those facilities and how to start those up, and um that's the space that I operated in.
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00:07:36.319All right.
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00:07:38.879So, Darren, uh I was just checking this.
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00:07:46.879I thought the date was pretty close, but uh Prozac approved for FDA approval December of 87 hit the U.S.
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00:07:48.000market in 88.
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00:07:50.560I bet you caught that that wave, didn't you?
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00:07:52.000Yeah, there was a wave.
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00:07:53.839There were two big waves back back then.
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00:08:01.839There was the Prozac wave, and I started in 1989, and and then there was a pretty uh heavy wave in the uh antibiotic business.
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00:08:12.720So you know, folks will remember uh a molecule by the name of Clore and uh and then uh uh a subsequent uh molecule whose name I can't remember, but uh those were the two big waves.
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00:08:30.319Uh so Lily had got into the uh um you know the mental health space with Prozac, and um and that was uh um you know a molecule that did did very well uh in the marketplace and and provided a lot of fuel for uh the growth.
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00:09:10.080I personally was in the insulin business for the majority of my career and worked in um an insulin manufacturing facility, um which is really part of part of our DNA here in Process Alliance of being uh attached to um you know a company that uh does good uh for uh for people in terms of you know, you can you know walk into a into a you know a ball or a football arena, basketball arena, and realize that you know there's a there's a lot of diabetics sitting in this room and knowing that I contribute in a really small way uh to their well-being.
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00:09:20.000And so uh that's kind of at the heart of Process Alliance is knowing that we contribute to uh the well-being of of patients around the world in an extremely small way.
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00:09:34.399But uh as an engineer in the pharmaceutical business, that uh you know gave me a lot of uh I'll call it the good part of pride um uh in knowing that I contributed to uh to others' well-being.
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00:09:39.600Was most of your time in all those plants that are on the south side of Indianapolis or were you elsewhere?
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00:09:43.039No, I was pretty I was pretty much at the south side of Indianapolis.
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00:09:49.039Uh uh for a short amount of time I was at the corporate center, but most of the time it's been in there on the south side of Indianapolis.
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00:09:55.840I think most people can't quite fathom the amount of square footage they have of manufacturing just right there, can they?
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00:09:57.440It's a lot.
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00:10:23.840Um I I have long since forgotten how big the footprint is, but you know, it's it's uh uh uh a lot of acres, and I and I and I really don't know have any fathom understanding of how big the the other facilities are from a scale, but they're you know the one at Lebanon as an example is bigger than the than the Lilly Technology Center, at least I think just from a scale perspective.
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00:10:30.480I I have no no idea since I haven't been involved in in that how big it is, but it's it's massively large.
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00:10:32.399So yeah, it looks like a city.
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00:10:34.240Yeah, up there.
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00:10:39.840Yeah, so um so from that experience, and you mentioned Process Alliance.
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00:10:51.600Uh can you describe the pro like you uh from what I understand took an early retirement took a retirement package from Lily and then started your own own company.
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00:11:05.039You could just share share what that was like, maybe even share some of like the biggest business principles or biggest lessons learned from your Lily days that helped help you in starting your own business too.
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00:11:05.679Sure.
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00:11:23.200Yeah, well, like you said, Ben, they they did offer a retirement package in at the end of 2017, and and I was uh uh old enough and uh had enough years of experience to uh uh to get a full retirement uh package out of there.
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00:11:27.200So it was a an opportunity to to uh to take that.
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00:11:29.039I still had two boys in college.
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00:11:42.799We have four children, and and uh the two boys were still in college, so I had to go to work, and um, but it was an opportunity with the package that they delivered that I um I could explore uh some things.
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00:12:03.360And so uh when that happened, uh of course there were uh many other colleagues um you know in their in their late 50s and early 60s that that uh that retired and and there was this this uh immense amount of talent uh that I had worked with um with a bunch of engineers and scientists.
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00:12:12.159And um I when I told my wife uh hey there's an opportunity to retire, and and she said, whatever you do, you just got to replace your Lily income.
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00:12:14.000Okay, I'll go figure that out.
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00:12:21.759And so um so I started talking to my colleagues that I retired with and said, hey, this is what I'd like to do.
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00:12:44.799Uh I saw a niche in in an opportunity from some of the challenges that I faced, uh, you know, as a as a buyer of services uh at Lilly, and uh that there was just a lack of uh understanding of uh you know chemical engineering and and lack of understanding from other firms that just didn't really understand manufacturing.
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00:12:50.879So uh so we set out really to be a chemical engineering firm and partner with folks that didn't do chemical engineering.
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00:13:11.279Um that kind of worked, uh, didn't work all that well, and so we grew and pivoted and changed and and uh uh but we really started on on the backs of a bunch of you know squiggle 16 60-year-olds, and uh and that worked, and it and we we got some good traction.
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00:13:16.320And uh, but you know, you can't build a sustainable business on the backs of 60-year-olds.
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00:13:21.039Uh your one question in terms of one of the main things that we learned.
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00:13:28.000Uh, I think what I what I really took away with is the is the uh leadership and governance structure.
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00:13:40.000And really, Lily did a really good job of of leadership development and uh had a really good structure for how they managed manufacturing.
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00:13:57.440And so we took those principles uh as we grew and evolved, and it implemented those um you know leadership and governance structures um on how we and that's how we grew the business, um how we manage the business.
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00:14:01.840Um business development was something that none of us knew how to do.
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00:14:08.639Um uh uh I remember when I was first starting out and I was struggling to get traction.
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00:14:16.960My wife said, Um, what did you do when when sales guys would call you uh to want to sell you something?
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00:14:18.720I said, Well, I ignored them.
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00:14:20.240That's what was happening to me.
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00:14:21.759They were just getting ignored, right?
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00:14:22.879So good job, Dick.
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00:14:42.480So, you know, I I I the lesson of uh uh of grit and uh tenacity and um you know not giving up uh was really at the forefront of our early formation of how we went about uh getting business.
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00:14:43.840And we were a brand new company.
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00:14:49.519Well we were all very, very experienced, um, but a brand new entity.
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00:14:59.600And so you know we we had no idea how to do sales, we had no idea how to uh invoice, we didn't have an accounting system, we didn't have any operational system, had no HR, I mean had nothing, right?
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00:15:08.080It was just we have a bunch of talented, retired pharmaceutical engineers and scientists, and there's value there.
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00:15:10.000We just had to figure out how to go tap into it.
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00:15:10.720So yeah.
00:15:10.960 -->
00:15:20.320So when you kicked off, did you expect that your a lot of your revenue would be outsourcing back to Lily, or did you specifically plan to go elsewhere?
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00:15:31.679We s specifically went elsewhere um because there was a there was kind of a wall of separation um that uh that Lily had in their HR system.
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00:15:39.679Um and so the vast majority of our work early on was not uh Eli Lilly.
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00:15:42.480Uh in fact, almost zero of it was.
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00:15:50.559Um and and so we had to learn to go expand our network outside of it.
00:15:50.639 -->
00:15:58.639Uh about the same time, uh one of the fortunate things that happened to us one about the same time is uh Elanco was separating from Eli Lilly.
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00:16:06.559And so that that helped us because Elanco didn't have the same um uh rule set and restrictions.
00:16:06.879 -->
00:16:20.080Um yeah, it's since then even though Lily's still got a little bit of a uh a firewall there, we uh a lot of our colleagues are are are working on on uh on Lily projects because the demand is so great.
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00:16:22.000Um that's how we started.
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00:16:35.759And um, you know, we got our first uh our first project was was in Greenville, North Carolina at a uh at a manufacturing company down there.
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00:16:44.480And uh so we we sent a guy down there for six months and and then the next thing happened and the next thing happened.
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00:16:49.039So today number of customers is roughly how many?
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00:17:05.200Oh, number of customers, um there's probably 30 or 40 different uh customer bases that we have um throughout the United States.
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00:17:22.799Uh we we have we have work all over the United States from from Maine to Seattle, um Bend Oregon, uh, you know, so we've worked all over the United States uh in Kansas City, so a lot of different places we've worked.
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00:17:26.960Um and the work you guys provide, is it mostly consulting?
00:17:27.039 -->
00:17:29.599Are you selling any product along with it?
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00:17:32.799Or are you we do we do not have any any product?
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00:17:54.960Um I think the um the best analogy for a couple insurance guys is is the the the consultant side of your business from uh how do you help a business like mine manage uh through the the complexity of uh whether it be the health insurance or the commercial insurance.
00:17:55.200 -->
00:17:59.599Um so there's there's that consultative side of business.
00:17:59.680 -->
00:18:11.759But what what we primarily do is uh we provide engineers and scientists and some uh affiliated uh folks to go in and help um solve problems.
00:18:11.839 -->
00:18:19.279And that problem could be um because they don't have enough capacity uh to to get all of their work done.
00:18:19.359 -->
00:18:30.400It could be a capability problem, they don't have the expertise, so they're gonna rely on us from some of our you know very senior level folks that have deep technical expertise.
00:18:30.640 -->
00:18:43.039Um and so we we frame framed our work around capacity and capability, and knowing that uh a company's challenges are generally rooted in one of those two categories.
00:18:43.359 -->
00:18:59.680And um and so when you when then it's not just Lily that's spending uh a lot of capital, uh but when you start spending that much money, uh you become very capacity constrained from a human capital perspective.
00:18:59.759 -->
00:19:08.400And so we're able to uh supplement um the owners uh in in what they do.
00:19:08.559 -->
00:19:20.160So uh so we don't have a product, but we do have a design uh wing of our business that is more traditional uh architect engineering, uh, where actually the product is the design.
00:19:20.319 -->
00:19:20.559Right.
00:19:20.720 -->
00:19:27.599Um so it's kind of like with you, you don't sell a product, you're selling lines of of risk management, right?
00:19:27.759 -->
00:19:32.880Uh we're selling uh technical capabilities and technical capacity.
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00:19:42.960Now I would think in your work, uh a seniored, experienced individual would have a clear path within your organization.
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00:19:46.079Do you have a path for early career talent?
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00:19:51.599Yeah, so uh as our business has matured, uh several things have happened.
00:19:51.759 -->
00:19:53.759Uh one is we've grown in numbers.
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00:20:02.960We had to recognize that uh in order for us to uh meet the market needs, we had to grow in leadership.
00:20:03.119 -->
00:20:10.319And so um two years ago, we started an employee or a an emerging leader development series.
00:20:10.559 -->
00:20:16.640Um and the first uh the first group that went through was you know 10 uh 10 younger folks.
00:20:16.720 -->
00:20:19.279So I'm gonna call them all 30 years plus or minus.
00:20:19.359 -->
00:20:22.559So it was you know folks from 28 to 34.
00:20:22.960 -->
00:20:36.160Uh so it's the 30-year-old mark that we look at uh folks that have demonstrated uh uh aptitude and interest in in moving into leadership uh types of uh positions.
00:20:36.240 -->
00:20:37.839So so we've developed that program.
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00:20:51.200We're now on our second year, and it's a year-long program of emerging leader uh uh talent development that really uh looks at both uh business acumen and leadership uh capabilities and talents.
00:20:51.440 -->
00:20:56.960And so we we work on both of those, and then we give them a special project for a problem that's inside the company.
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00:20:58.240Help us solve this.
00:20:58.400 -->
00:20:59.680And so there's an example.
00:20:59.759 -->
00:21:08.720One of them is um our uh onboarding process um was okay, but not great.
00:21:09.039 -->
00:21:20.720And so their job is to take it from okay to great and um and to to create that experience for um you know the first three months of someone's uh work with us.
00:21:20.799 -->
00:21:36.000So so we've been very intentional, uh Todd, about um knowing that our our business uh livelihood depends on, because of the scale that we are now at, depends on uh developing future leaders.
00:21:36.240 -->
00:21:41.759Um most of our senior level guys don't want anything to do with anything.
00:21:41.920 -->
00:21:45.839They just want to be do the work and get out of my way.
00:21:46.000 -->
00:21:47.359I've done all that in my career.
00:21:47.440 -->
00:21:50.880I just want to I just want to be an engineer, I just want to be a scientist.
00:21:50.960 -->
00:21:52.160Uh let me go do that.
00:21:52.319 -->
00:21:53.759Don't want to mess with the other stuff.
00:21:53.920 -->
00:21:59.759So um and and realizing that you know, you can't build a sustainable business.
00:22:00.160 -->
00:22:02.480On the backs of a bunch of 60-year-old guys.
00:22:02.880 -->
00:22:04.559So how do you pivot?
00:22:04.640 -->
00:22:08.960And so we've been learning that over the past eight years of growing and changing.
00:22:09.119 -->
00:22:13.359And our service offerings have changed because of that uh over the years.
00:22:13.519 -->
00:22:20.079Of now all of a sudden, we've got you know 25-year-olds out in the field doing stuff for for clients.
00:22:20.160 -->
00:22:21.519And what what does that look like?
00:22:21.599 -->
00:22:25.200It's very different than you know sending a 60-year-old.
00:22:25.359 -->
00:22:25.599Yeah.
00:22:26.160 -->
00:22:35.839And uh what a great opportunity you're given those those young individuals to be so close working with you guys that have been in so many different settings.
00:22:36.079 -->
00:22:41.200Um, I would think your 30-year-old self would have jumped at the opportunity to be in that kind of role.
00:22:41.440 -->
00:22:43.119Yeah, so I'll give you an example.
00:22:43.200 -->
00:22:44.240Uh say Megan.
00:22:44.400 -->
00:22:48.000Megan is now approaching, you know, 28, 30 years old.
00:22:48.079 -->
00:22:50.799And uh she started with us right out of college.
00:22:50.960 -->
00:22:52.880So maybe she's not even maybe she's 27.
00:22:53.039 -->
00:23:06.799I don't know how old she is, but um uh, you know, Megan has probably had six different meaningful experiences um of working with us.
00:23:06.880 -->
00:23:16.400Of here's this project, and and she goes and learns and conquers it, and then here's another project that you're gonna go do, and it had nothing to do with what you just did.
00:23:16.559 -->
00:23:16.960Wow.
00:23:17.119 -->
00:23:19.920Um, other than it's related to manufacturing.
00:23:20.079 -->
00:23:20.319Yep.
00:23:20.960 -->
00:23:40.720And uh so you know, she's she's gotten this wide variety of experiences that have led to this point where now she's a uh very much a significant technical contributor on the design team because she's had all that years of experience of being around manufacturing and seeing the issues around manufacturing.
00:23:40.880 -->
00:23:54.400And so part of what we want to do is make sure that we, you know, if we're taking someone right out of college, we've got some base level work that is we call it manufacturing one-on-one, that it's a little bit drudgery.
00:23:54.559 -->
00:24:03.920Uh, it's certainly not not uh sexy engineering and science stuff, but it it is foundational in understanding how manufacturing works.
00:24:04.160 -->
00:24:18.400And so they'll do that for a year or two, and then we'll rotate them into a you know a more um more challenging project that they that they go work on and get another different type of experiences.
00:24:18.559 -->
00:24:22.799So yeah, uh, I didn't have this kind of opportunity uh when I was that age.
00:24:22.960 -->
00:24:26.880I I felt like when I was 30 years old, I was still still clueless.
00:24:26.960 -->
00:24:28.160So yeah, that's cool.
00:24:29.359 -->
00:24:38.319Well, we talked about how with your scale, some of these types of opportunities have opened up inside of your business.
00:24:38.559 -->
00:24:42.319Uh give a little bit of context to our listeners about this.
00:24:42.720 -->
00:24:47.279I mean, they could look, they could just Google Process Alliance, and it's pretty much out there.
00:24:47.440 -->
00:25:02.000But just if you wouldn't mind for our listeners, uh give them just kind of some context to just what the business has done over the last eight years and um you know how the Lord has blessed your work and grown grown your business and that sort of thing.
00:25:02.319 -->
00:25:02.799Sure.
00:25:03.039 -->
00:25:19.200Well, I uh um Ben's heard this me comment on what I call rocket boot rocket booster events, and so um we've had these several moments in time um and uh throughout the our journey.
00:25:19.440 -->
00:25:30.480Um you know, the first one being a I'll call I'll call it a chance uh meeting with a Lily colleague who had a problem that he said, can you go solve this problem?
00:25:30.880 -->
00:25:39.519And so uh as a result of that, you know, we ended up getting a a an Eli Lilly vendor code, and that kind of opened the door for us to do business.
00:25:39.680 -->
00:25:43.200And that was a couple years into uh to our journey.
00:25:43.440 -->
00:25:55.119Um, and then we had this um uh freak moment in in the history of the United States called uh a pandemic.
00:25:55.759 -->
00:26:03.920And uh, you know, two March of 2020 rolls around, and then we all know what happened there.
00:26:04.079 -->
00:26:31.279But the the thing about it is our government's response in Operation Warp Speed um was um regardless of where you stand politically on the issue, the government's response in terms of enabling and and assisting um uh companies to get the vaccine uh out in the marketplace created this incredible demand for uh our type of talent.
00:26:31.599 -->
00:26:39.920And so that really exploded uh our and gave us visibility to many other companies.
00:26:40.079 -->
00:26:48.000And and at one point in time, you know, we had worked uh in some way on the the Pfizer vaccine, the Johnson ⁇ Johnson vaccine, the Moderna vaccine.
00:26:48.079 -->
00:26:56.960I mean, we've worked for all those different companies, and so it gave us broader exposure than we ever would have gotten without the the pandemic.
00:26:57.200 -->
00:27:13.119So um, so uh as hard as it is to say and reconcile, um, but that was very good for our business, you know, and in any kind of crisis, there's winners and losers, and we just happen to be uh on the winning side of that.
00:27:13.440 -->
00:27:43.599And then I made a uh um somewhere along that journey, uh maybe before that, I can't remember now, but uh I had I made a um a pivotal hire uh with a with a lady by the name of Michelle, and um and she just really uh exploded our one part of our business and was so good at um meeting clients' needs uh that um you know word has spread.
00:27:43.680 -->
00:27:51.920Now she's since retired, but word has spread that hey this company can do this, and it was really rooted in in the work that Michelle did.
00:27:52.000 -->
00:28:10.799And so that's kind of the second, you know, there's these many rocket boosters, COVID was a big one, and then and then just quite frankly, uh the outcome of COVID was uh a significant reshoring effort to bring manufacturing back to the United States.
00:28:10.960 -->
00:28:12.720So we benefited from that.
00:28:12.960 -->
00:28:24.559Um the other thing that has happened is new modalities or new drug types uh have come on the marketplace that have driven the need for our talent.
00:28:24.640 -->
00:28:45.680And so now what you see um that didn't exist in my career uh and that has been um and is only you know four years old now is this incredible amount of investment uh throughout the United States in uh pharmaceutical manufacturing facilities.
00:28:46.079 -->
00:29:01.519And so if you look at the landscape of uh what's happening across the United States, there's there's somewhere between 300 and 400 billion dollars worth of new manufacturing facilities that are being built in the United States.
00:29:02.720 -->
00:29:40.799So you've got this incredible demand uh for talent, you've got a um uh a different curve of talent of folks that are going into engineering and science, and so um we it it has just created this uh huge demand for the type of work that we do, such that you know, eight years ago it was me and a handful of of uh um of retirees with my wife doing everything in the back office from invoicing to figure out how to how do I what I do about insurance?
00:29:41.039 -->
00:29:42.559How do I how do I do all this stuff?
00:29:42.640 -->
00:29:52.319So she managed that while we did all this technical stuff, and so she's really the one that built the infrastructure for our business as well as built the culture for our business.
00:29:52.880 -->
00:30:16.720So you have this from from 2018 to today, where we've grown from you know, just Bonnie and I as a full-time employees to a bunch of part-time uh engineers and scientists, uh, you know, maybe 10 of them to uh now uh 170 people uh because of those things that have happened uh from a um a demand perspective in the marketplace.
00:30:16.960 -->
00:30:29.440So you have you have a pandemic, we have a critical hire, and uh and then we have new modalities um and new drug compounds that have come on that are are creating.
00:30:29.839 -->
00:30:49.599You couple that with the the geopolitical forces of bringing stuff back to the United States um to manufacture, and now you have nearly$400 billion worth of new facilities going in the United States, you know, starting from three or four years ago to not ending until 2030-31.
00:30:50.079 -->
00:30:54.559Um that number is pharmaceutical only, right?
00:30:54.880 -->
00:31:06.640Yes, right, because it has nothing to do with data centers, has nothing to do with with uh batteries, it has nothing to do with uh you know any of the other explosions that are happening in manufacturing.
00:31:06.960 -->
00:31:09.599Where's obviously Indiana's getting a piece of that?
00:31:09.680 -->
00:31:11.440We got the Lily stuff up in Lebanon.
00:31:11.599 -->
00:31:13.759Where else across the country are those hot spots?
00:31:13.920 -->
00:31:15.680What states are attracting that investment?
00:31:15.920 -->
00:31:19.359Uh North Carolina is is is probably the leading one.
00:31:19.599 -->
00:31:24.079Um uh New Jersey had always been a primary place.
00:31:24.400 -->
00:31:25.200Johnson and Johnson.
00:31:25.599 -->
00:31:29.759Johnson and Johnson, and that corridor up through New Jersey, there's a lot.
00:31:29.920 -->
00:31:34.640We used to say you could sling a dead cat up there and hit a hit a consumer plant.
00:31:34.720 -->
00:31:36.400Um let's not try it.
00:31:37.519 -->
00:31:44.400Uh so so uh you know, Boston uh was really more uh uh science development.
00:31:44.480 -->
00:31:47.680It wasn't manufacturing there, but it's not predominant.
00:31:47.839 -->
00:31:56.799So it's really been North Carolina, New Jersey, and now it's expanding into uh into Virginia, has a significant foothold uh in manufacturing Texas.
00:31:57.039 -->
00:32:06.319Obviously, it obviously it's expanding now into uh eastern Pennsylvania, which is really part of the New Jersey carryover in eastern Pennsylvania.
00:32:06.559 -->
00:32:11.119Um uh Texas is now becoming a thing.
00:32:11.279 -->
00:32:13.279Um Huntsville, Alabama, yeah.
00:32:14.400 -->
00:32:18.079You got space stuff that obviously Lily's building a plant there.
00:32:18.160 -->
00:32:27.920So uh so there's a number of spots, but you know, the primary ecosystems, uh North Carolina's the biggest, Indiana's certainly a major, major player.
00:32:28.079 -->
00:32:34.079Um, you know, out west is predominantly science heavy, not manufacturing heavy.
00:32:34.240 -->
00:32:35.759Um, but there's some.
00:32:36.000 -->
00:32:41.680Um but those are the big regions as we look at is is the Great Lakes region.
00:32:42.400 -->
00:32:48.400There's a smattering in in Illinois and up and into Wisconsin, some in Ohio.
00:32:48.880 -->
00:32:52.799Um what else is being built in Indiana that we're may not be aware of?
00:32:52.960 -->
00:32:55.920Certainly you go up I-65 and you see the news on the league.
00:32:56.079 -->
00:33:01.039What what are the sort of not secret but just not spoken about and what companies are doing that and where they're doing it?
00:33:01.279 -->
00:33:09.920So uh you know, unless you're part of the ecosystem, you wouldn't know that Indianapolis has become the uh radio pharmaceutical hub of the United States.
00:33:10.240 -->
00:33:11.039What's that mean?
00:33:11.519 -->
00:33:12.559Radio pharmaceutical.
00:33:12.960 -->
00:33:18.240So the there are drug compounds that are um you know radioactive in nature.
00:33:18.559 -->
00:33:19.039Gotcha.
00:33:19.519 -->
00:33:23.279And uh uh Novartis uh came here.
00:33:23.920 -->
00:33:35.359Um, there were a couple of development firms that were developing drugs that you know are uh had uh radioactive properties with them that are you know very oncology targeted focused.
00:33:35.519 -->
00:33:56.160Um it's like the you know it's like a heat-seeking missile where you there's a there's a cancer drug cancer and you you find that and it's like you you target that molecule and you insert yourself in the molecule and you explode, and now all of a sudden you just put the really small dose of radioactive material to kill that cancer cell.
00:33:56.880 -->
00:33:59.359Um that's as best I could understand, yeah.
00:33:59.440 -->
00:33:59.519Right.
00:33:59.759 -->
00:34:02.960So is that driven not by Lily, but by other players like November?
00:34:03.200 -->
00:34:03.920Or by other players.
00:34:04.160 -->
00:34:05.279That's driven by other players.
00:34:05.359 -->
00:34:11.360And and and the reason is is because of of you know, Indianapolis has been the crossroads of the United States.
00:34:11.440 -->
00:34:16.079And so you can you can by plane get to anywhere in the United States in in a short amount of time.
00:34:16.159 -->
00:34:21.039And so you see these radio uh pharmaceutical facilities popping up.
00:34:21.199 -->
00:34:33.360There's a you know, um, so that's happening, and then the other space that's happened uh outside of Lilly has been the contract manufacturing space, and Fisher's has been a uh a key player in the space.
00:34:33.440 -->
00:34:34.639Um like NCOG.
00:34:36.239 -->
00:34:37.119Stefanato.
00:34:37.440 -->
00:34:56.719Uh you've got a you've got a major facility uh down in Bloomington, and so there's there's a there's a larger bio and pharmaceutical footprint in Indiana than most people think, and it's pretty significant that that Indiana, Indiana is the number one export of pharmaceutical drugs in the United States.
00:34:56.960 -->
00:34:58.800So most people don't know that.
00:34:58.880 -->
00:35:09.119So is the contract manufacturing are they making generic drugs or are they being contracted by the still on patent man uh owners to manufacture those drugs?
00:35:09.360 -->
00:35:10.000Yes.
00:35:10.239 -->
00:35:19.679Both both uh primarily it's it's uh they're they're still making the uh uh patent molecules.
00:35:19.760 -->
00:35:41.679So so what has happened because demand has grown so high, and uh you know you know, companies like Lily and Johnson and Johnson Pfizer, they have a vast network of contract manufacturers because they just are choosing not to build all of their own facilities and they're leveraging folks like NCOG and and uh Catalan to hey make this stuff for me.
00:35:42.400 -->
00:36:07.679Um they're they're mostly players in the um you know the injectable space is the where the hot hot market is, but you know, there are some smaller players in the orals, and um there's only a few contract manufacturers playing in the what we call the uh the bulk drug substance or the actual making the the chemical or biological molecule.
00:36:07.760 -->
00:36:11.119Uh there aren't as many players in S because it's so capital intensive.
00:36:11.199 -->
00:36:22.079Uh but we're working for a couple of those companies that uh you know don't have a presence in Indiana, and you know, they have presence in uh in other states, and that's so we've been working with them.
00:36:22.159 -->
00:36:28.559So is it possible that you are an economic development engine for the state simply by being located here?
00:36:28.800 -->
00:36:34.719And what I mean by that is are there customers that you're acquiring that have places elsewhere?
00:36:34.880 -->
00:36:40.239And as you talk and as they talk with them, they go, Oh, is that what's happening in in Indiana?
00:36:40.400 -->
00:36:41.760That's not what's happening here.
00:36:41.920 -->
00:36:47.679And maybe those discussions turn into more of a maybe we should put our next plant somewhere in Indiana.
00:36:48.000 -->
00:36:50.000I wouldn't I wouldn't go that far.
00:36:50.239 -->
00:36:59.039Um uh, you know, I most of our most of our customer bases are are larger pharmaceutical players.
00:36:59.360 -->
00:37:03.199So um I don't think we've been been that.
00:37:03.440 -->
00:37:12.800I I will say that you know, we've been in conversations with with um I think it's called CERTA, Central Indiana Regional Development Authority.
00:37:12.960 -->
00:37:37.360Um, we've been in multiple conversations with that group uh about uh you know if you look at the uh to use the the the automotive analogy, you know, you have your tier one, tier two, tier three suppliers that support you know an automotive facility, and and the same concept is happening in in our space.
00:37:37.440 -->
00:37:49.519And so we're that you know tier two supplier um to from a professional services perspective to pharmaceutical uh uh organizations.
00:37:50.000 -->
00:38:03.920Uh and so what CERTA is really working on is how do we take the Indianapolis and the Donut counties and um create uh a broader regional uh hub associated with this, and they're doing a pretty good job.
00:38:04.079 -->
00:38:09.840And so that's why you're seeing these investments in in Lebanon and Fisher's, and now we're starting to work on.
00:38:10.079 -->
00:38:32.639So we we've got this small little thing going on in in Johnson County and uh coupled with our other company that you know, we've been in conversations with uh with some of the leadership there about how do we broaden that that tier one, two, three support network beyond um uh we're in in the donut counties.
00:38:32.800 -->
00:38:39.119And and it there's you know, obviously Fishers gets uh a big lion's share of them, but you know, there's there's opportunity.
00:38:39.440 -->
00:38:44.960You know, you're always gonna have challenges when you get over concentrated in one particular location from a labor perspective.
00:38:45.039 -->
00:38:52.079And so um so there's very limited um work in our space going on in Johnson County.
00:38:52.159 -->
00:39:16.000So it's kind of a ripe area uh in terms of uh especially if if you're doing some kind of manufacturing, which is why we launched Rippleworks, uh, to take advantage of that as well as to have a very missional approach to to that lake before so uh so there's there's a lot of activity going on in the uh um the biopharma ecosystem uh in the in central Indiana.
00:39:17.119 -->
00:39:27.679Darren, you mentioned uh Rippleworks and that kind of your journey with process and alliance, uh the concept of Rippleworks uh was light on your heart.
00:39:27.840 -->
00:39:29.599Can you kind of explain?
00:39:31.360 -->
00:39:42.719Yeah, so so um uh at its core, RippleWorks is a uh contract manufacturer in the um really the medical device related space.
00:39:43.199 -->
00:39:50.400And the genesis of that is uh, you know, three years ago I hired a guy who really understood the medical device world, and I didn't know a thing about it.
00:39:50.480 -->
00:39:55.039So uh he knows uh you know, he's a 30-year veteran of that space.
00:39:55.360 -->
00:40:09.119Um and so I looked at that uh from a technical perspective and said, okay, you know, we've got we got all this young talent from an engineering perspective, and so uh how do we how do we couple this?
00:40:09.280 -->
00:40:13.199As well as our senior leaders in Process Alliance all came out of manufacturing.
00:40:13.280 -->
00:40:15.119So we understand manufacturing.
00:40:15.599 -->
00:40:18.400And so we coupled that together and we just kept saying, why not us?
00:40:18.480 -->
00:40:42.719And then uh, you know, quite frankly, one one morning, I I and I can't pinpoint it and say, you know, I heard a voice from the Lord by any means, but you know, as I was having a quiet time, I you know, the concept of why not us, and then the concept of um what was really laid on my heart is is as you've done it unto the least of these, you've done it unto me.
00:40:42.880 -->
00:40:47.679And so I began to research and ask the question, who are today's least of these?
00:40:48.639 -->
00:41:02.480And uh two things uh came to mind those that have been uh uh incarcerated and and needed uh an opportunity, and those that are coming out of the cycle of poverty.
00:41:02.559 -->
00:41:10.320And part of the inspiration for that for me was my dad, who broke the cycle of poverty, and some of his siblings did not.
00:41:10.480 -->
00:41:20.159And I see the ongoing effects of being in poverty from you know my cousins and their children that are my distant cousins to my kids that are still in that cycle.
00:41:20.400 -->
00:41:34.000And so I just really asked the question what what can we do in terms of impacting um the least of these and knowing that who are they today, who needs a helping hand, not a necessarily a handout.
00:41:34.079 -->
00:41:46.800And so so ripple works was formed under that um set of principles, and the name comes from um really my wife kept talking about making ripple effects.
00:41:46.880 -->
00:41:59.840You know, you throw the stone uh in the pond and you see that first ripple and then the second ripple, and then it became the analogy of if we can change one guy's life, we've changed a family.
00:42:00.079 -->
00:42:04.800If you change five guys and gals' lives, you've changed, you begin to change a community.
00:42:05.039 -->
00:42:11.599And so that ripple effect um uh took root, if you will, and that's where the name ripple comes from.
00:42:11.679 -->
00:42:13.519So it's really a double metaphor.
00:42:13.599 -->
00:42:33.280And the works piece was really generated around my perspective that uh work has dignity and and helping to restore dignity to some of these folks that have um you know are broken um in in whatever way, right?
00:42:33.519 -->
00:43:15.920Um either uh from boring into poverty and not knowing how to get out or making a poor decision when they were in high school that led to a substance abuse, whatever it is, restoring dignity of work and knowing that uh if if uh of course I had the luxury of being in the insulin business and and I talked about that earlier, but if if we take part of let's say this is a medical device, and and if we take part of making one part for that and and knowing and communicating that to our team, that's that's working their way out of a tough situation, that what you're doing is impacting someone's life.
00:43:17.039 -->
00:43:24.159That's part of that restoring the dignity of work, and that's where that we're leveraging this double metaphor to come up with Rippleworks.
00:43:24.480 -->
00:43:35.440And so um, you know, my wife really came up with the Ripple thing, and I started talking about the dignity of work, and that's how we formed the name to mean something.
00:43:35.599 -->
00:44:08.559So, really, it's a RippleWorks is a purpose-driven manufacturing company uh that is uh focused on um identifying and giving folks uh an opportunity to uh work their way out of poverty, to make better decisions, being around um you know, folks that that uh are well grounded uh and And uh have have lived a good solid life and have made good decisions and helping folks uh reframe, if you will.
00:44:08.719 -->
00:44:11.840Um, and so we're working through what does that mean?
00:44:12.079 -->
00:44:16.400We're probably about three months from hiring our first uh employee.
00:44:16.559 -->
00:44:42.639And then the other part is in our current business, we we just can't because we deploy folks to sites and you know we have to do a criminal background check, and we can't deploy anybody to a client site that has any kind of criminal history, and so we're able to meet a different place in the in the uh uh in the marketplace and in the workforce that that needs companies to come alongside, and that's what our mission is.
00:44:42.880 -->
00:44:48.800Um another collaboration by Darren and Bonnie, the Ripple and Works.
00:44:49.119 -->
00:45:24.639Um and you guys, I mean you talked about it's interesting in the name, you talk about the Ripple and then the the dignity of work, but that is almost a direct correlation to your partnership at Process Alliance with how you your expertise is in manufacturing and uh your heart for people at Process Alliance, and I think that is uh very much part of your secret sauce.
00:45:25.199 -->
00:45:32.559Um, can you can you give a little bit of insight to your approach towards your broader workforce?
00:45:32.960 -->
00:45:38.000Um, and I mean there's probably you could there's probably several paths you can go down.
00:45:38.079 -->
00:45:48.480I know humble, hungry, and smart has been a key formula for you, but what are some things that are really core to process an alliance and caring well for your people?
00:45:49.360 -->
00:46:08.159Well, our our fundamental belief is that we're training the next generation of pharmaceutical engineering engineers and scientists, and so um, and so what does that look like by giving them you know unique experiences in in pharmaceutical manufacturing um by uh you know having a leadership development uh perspective.
00:46:08.320 -->
00:46:18.400So, so we've worked really hard on our culture, and again, I'll I'll owe this uh credit to Bonnie, um that the the the concept of pouring into one another.
00:46:18.480 -->
00:46:20.719Again, there's scriptural principle there, right?
00:46:21.039 -->
00:46:36.000Second Timothy uh 2-2, 1 Timothy, 2 can't remember, uh, and the things you've heard me say in the presence of of um uh reliable men teach to uh reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others, right?
00:46:36.079 -->
00:46:44.480So you take out the gender piece, but how do how do we um how do we train young engineers and young scientists?
00:46:44.559 -->
00:46:45.920How do we pour into them?
00:46:46.000 -->
00:46:50.639Uh how do we make them better um uh engineers and scientists?
00:46:50.719 -->
00:46:57.679And so one of the things we do tell folks is that look, uh the reality is you're not gonna work for our company for 40 years.
00:46:57.920 -->
00:47:01.039And maybe one of you, two of you might, but the reality is you probably don't.
00:47:01.199 -->
00:47:06.719So when you leave, you're gonna go with our blessing, but we want to make sure that we train you to the best of our abilities.
00:47:06.800 -->
00:47:16.239And so that's that pouring in the cont construct um of not just from a technical perspective, but from a um how do you work with people?
00:47:16.480 -->
00:47:18.639Uh, how do you have hard conversations?
00:47:18.800 -->
00:47:22.960How do you uh how do you show up to work on time, right?
00:47:23.440 -->
00:47:50.800Those all of those things that um you know the reality is uh I'm from a different generation, and I'm I've had to learn to understand uh a different generation, but at the end of the day, we all have work that is meaningful to do, and so we so we've taken this perspective of pouring into one another very seriously, and that's really at the the heart of our culture.
00:47:51.199 -->
00:47:55.039Um and so that's that's where that all comes from.
00:47:55.199 -->
00:48:11.039And it stems from quite frankly, my wife's giftedness of of being a servant and uh of pouring into one another, and you see that in her work in raising our children and her work at church and uh everywhere else she's gone at 4H.
00:48:11.280 -->
00:48:20.159And and so it's it's the her mojo is pouring into people, and that's part of our DNA.
00:48:20.239 -->
00:48:21.679That's a huge part of our DNA.
00:48:22.960 -->
00:48:38.880So you guys uh uh obviously for 44 years have had the spouse title and relationship, but uh I guess now nine years ago, you uh added the title of business partners.
00:48:39.920 -->
00:48:41.119Um can you talk?
00:48:41.360 -->
00:48:58.800Can you talk a little bit about what it what is it like to work with a spouse, or even if there's someone listening or watching this podcast, and you know, they work with their spouse, maybe share some of your you know experiences and and thoughts around that topic.
00:48:59.199 -->
00:48:59.519Sure.
00:48:59.679 -->
00:49:11.199Well, I'll I'll come back to the analogy that that Ben's heard many times, but uh uh somewhere along the line three or four years ago, I came up with an analogy of what's it like to work with your spouse because I've had this question many times, right?
00:49:11.360 -->
00:49:16.880So um first of all, let me say that that uh Bonnie and I are the complete opposite.
00:49:16.960 -->
00:49:23.280So we've done you know working genius and we've done some other things, and and we are just complete opposite.
00:49:23.519 -->
00:49:32.159And uh I'm thinking about five years from now, and she's thinking about the details of the today today, and I can't see the details of today to save my life, right?
00:49:32.400 -->
00:49:36.960And so um we think very differently, we operate very differently.
00:49:37.199 -->
00:49:53.199Um uh I was built to to dream, and they call me the dreamer, and so I'm always dreaming of new stuff, and uh gets me in trouble because I get in front of I get in front of our skis a bit too often and come up with a new business.
00:49:53.280 -->
00:49:57.199And they said, well, what about this business that you launched that's not running very well, right?
00:49:57.360 -->
00:50:04.960So so uh so we're the complete opposite, uh gifted uh very, very differently from from the Lord.
00:50:05.119 -->
00:50:14.400And so how do you take those two that really are polar opposites from a gifting perspective and put them together and co-lead a company?
00:50:14.559 -->
00:50:15.920So my analogy is this.
00:50:16.159 -->
00:50:32.960Um if you haven't been to Williamsburg, Virginia, you need to go and you need to see the stark beauty of the the what they have restored to colonial days, you know, during the Revolutionary War period of how beautiful it was.
00:50:33.119 -->
00:50:42.320And and my analogy is they have these beautiful cobblestone streets, and they're just they're absolutely beautiful, but they're really bumpy.
00:50:43.119 -->
00:50:52.639And so uh so running a business with your wife and growing a business with your wife is beautiful and bumpy.
00:50:53.280 -->
00:51:04.639And so we both have we both get to see uh um the Lord's giftedness in each of us.
00:51:06.159 -->
00:51:26.960And in revealing that giftedness, you see this stuff that is I don't think like that, and I don't want to do it that way, and you know, so so uh uh I it's probably um it it certainly has been the one of the hardest things that we've ever done together.
00:51:27.199 -->
00:51:35.119Um you know, you both have children, you know how to raising children is is uh is beautiful and bumpy, right?
00:51:35.199 -->
00:51:36.320And it's hard.
00:51:36.639 -->
00:51:46.800And um, and so this is this is really similar, but it it's been uh a challenge, it's been uh we've had beautiful moments.
00:51:47.039 -->
00:52:01.920Um and so we're both at this point now recognizing that um, you know, we've been we were blessed before because the blessing that we've received from God is God Himself, and that is our our truest blessing.
00:52:02.400 -->
00:52:13.199But for whatever reason, uh He has chosen to bless this particular business um beyond our wildest comprehension.
00:52:13.440 -->
00:52:20.400And Bonnie uh is fond of saying at some point in time, she says, remember, all we needed to do is to replace your income.
00:52:20.559 -->
00:52:22.000I was gonna ask you about that.
00:52:22.239 -->
00:52:24.320All we needed to do is just replace your income.
00:52:24.480 -->
00:52:32.239Well, God did that, and then and so what has happened now is that we're both in this now.
00:52:32.320 -->
00:52:44.639We have to we've had to learn new stuff that we've never thought we would have to understand and learn about uh legacy, about uh generosity.
00:52:44.880 -->
00:52:52.239You know, we both came from a faithful steward perspective, uh, and and how does that really apply inside your business?
00:52:52.400 -->
00:52:55.519And that's one of our core values of faithful stewardship.
00:52:55.920 -->
00:53:00.239We talk about, you know, in Moses, what's in your hand, Moses?
00:53:00.480 -->
00:53:01.679I got a stick.
00:53:02.719 -->
00:53:04.960And and I can't talk very well either.
00:53:05.119 -->
00:53:06.480I got your brother Aaron, right?
00:53:06.559 -->
00:53:15.760And so, and so Moses God gave Moses all the tools he needed to succeed to fulfill God's mission of delivering the Hebrews out of Egypt.
00:53:15.920 -->
00:53:20.639And in the same way, he's called us to be faithful stewards of the gifts he's given us.
00:53:20.719 -->
00:53:28.960And he just happens to have given Bonnie this gift and me this gift, and they at times collide, and at times they mesh.
00:53:29.119 -->
00:53:45.360And so we're really learning on on uh through the conflict how to mesh to create something even better and leverage the talent that God gave each of us for his glory, for his benefit, uh, and for the benefit of others.
00:53:45.599 -->
00:53:52.719And so, going back to faithful stewardship, use your gifts as you've been given to benefit others, and that's really the key message we give to our colleagues.
00:53:52.880 -->
00:53:58.719So I tell that story and every um employee orientation, use the gift you've been given.
00:53:58.960 -->
00:54:01.760Our framework is that comes from God.
00:54:01.920 -->
00:54:05.199You know, you have your framework of where you believe your gifting comes from.
00:54:05.360 -->
00:54:19.199Uh, but ours is is this framework, and so we're able to share uh uh one of the first godly principles, you know, as we we talk about in our business uh with all of our colleagues about where we believe that gifting comes from.
00:54:19.360 -->
00:54:29.840And so it's it's a beautiful cobblestone street, and um it's bumpy, it's it's beautiful and bumpy.
00:54:30.000 -->
00:54:32.639And uh what uh what what have you learned though?
00:54:32.719 -->
00:54:45.199You mentioned collide and mesh, or you can do the the other, like you know uh you know, opposites of the beautiful and bumpy.
00:54:45.760 -->
00:54:48.719Um what have you learned in navigating that?
00:54:49.039 -->
00:54:58.159Like what are some things you're like, man, if I could rewind the clock and tell myself nine years ago this, this is what this is what Darren needed to know.
00:54:59.199 -->
00:55:39.760Yeah, I I think that probably the one thing I um really learned is um I've learned to place more value in her perspective in a business that sh technically she doesn't know really anything about, and so um the so for example, the the empathy isn't one of my stronger suits, right?
00:55:40.079 -->
00:55:56.400Um but it is for Bonnie, and so the the whole culture that we have of caring for one another and pouring into one another, and and you know, my perspective is oh, they're not cut cut them loose, right?
00:55:56.480 -->
00:55:58.639And and she said, Well, wait, wait a minute.
00:55:59.679 -->
00:56:05.599God's called us to minister to people and we minister to people with their flaws, right?
00:56:05.840 -->
00:56:12.400And so I I think I've really learned to um lean into her wisdom more.
00:56:14.000 -->
00:56:17.679Uh I think I originally had this, this is this is my space, right?
00:56:17.760 -->
00:56:32.639This is engineering and pharmaceutical stuff, and and so I I I I think I really learn more about empathy and leaning into people and understanding people than I ever really have.
00:56:32.800 -->
00:56:35.360And I I really attribute that to her.
00:56:35.679 -->
00:56:42.000That um she's you know, we never work together, we raised family together, but you know, you don't work together.
00:56:42.079 -->
00:56:54.000I'm gone for 10 hours a day, and I come home and you you manage through life, and then you go to bed, and then it rents and repeat, and and then the weekends are filled with all right, kids gotta go here, here, and here, right?
00:56:54.320 -->
00:56:59.039Um and and so I was always on the tailing end of that.
00:56:59.119 -->
00:57:01.280All right, I need you to do this, this, and this, right?
00:57:01.519 -->
00:57:08.880Um, and so this really taught me how to lean into her giftedness more than I ever dreamed I would.
00:57:09.039 -->
00:57:25.360And so that's been the beautiful thing about it, is I've changed because I see um I see God's giftedness in her uh applying in a space that I naively and arrogantly thought was my space.
00:57:25.840 -->
00:57:26.480Yeah.
00:57:27.119 -->
00:57:35.280And uh uh engineering organization with uh leading and empathy, there has to be some sort of outside influence.
00:57:35.920 -->
00:57:36.960It's oil and water, right?
00:57:37.039 -->
00:57:39.199It's oil and water, it just doesn't go in anything else.
00:57:40.800 -->
00:57:42.960You can mix them, but they'll separate.
00:57:43.280 -->
00:57:44.000Exactly.
00:57:44.159 -->
00:57:44.960Yes, yeah.
00:57:45.360 -->
00:57:46.719That that is that is good.
00:57:46.880 -->
00:57:50.800And well, and then that kind of goes into the next thing I wanted to talk about.
00:57:50.960 -->
00:58:17.599Um, you guys have been married for 44 years, and um, you know, in our peer group, you are famously known for telling and reminding and encouraging and imploring all of us to pursue our wives, or you know, if they're a female listening to this, pursue, you know, maybe wanting that from your husband is to, you know, for husbands to pursue their wives.
00:58:18.079 -->
00:58:21.119Um can you talk about?
00:58:21.199 -->
00:58:28.800I mean, you clearly have a passion not only for your own marriage, but to encourage other men in their marriages.
00:58:28.960 -->
00:58:32.719Um, what's that been like over your over your lifetime?
00:58:32.800 -->
00:58:37.760So I think you and Bonnie have invested in a lot of people's marriages and helping them and that sort of thing.
00:58:37.920 -->
00:58:42.239So could you kind of explain kind of your journey on that?
00:58:42.960 -->
00:58:47.039Yeah, you know, I I think uh, you know, I learned that it's not original with me.
00:58:47.199 -->
00:58:54.400I learned it many years ago, and and uh uh and I I wish I could remember who taught me that.
00:58:54.639 -->
00:59:14.239But um, you know, it's that that's about the same time I learned that you know, people think that some people think that marriage is a 50-50 proposition or maybe it's a hundred-hundred proposition, but it's really a hundred-zero, and and it really stems from the fact that uh you know God pursued me.
00:59:15.920 -->
00:59:21.440You know, the principle of he left the 99 to go pursue the one, so he pursued me.
00:59:21.679 -->
00:59:43.039And so, what do I learn from his example of his pursuit of me is and how I exemplify and um reflect God's design and image of pursuing my wife as God pursued me, as God pursued the church.
00:59:43.280 -->
00:59:54.639And um, and so I see that as a as a reflection of uh of who God is in terms of pursuing the bride.
00:59:55.280 -->
01:00:20.159And so um of Christ as the bridegroom, he pursues the church, and his analogy of of us as husbands and wives, and our calling is to pursue uh our wife, to protect, to preserve, to uphold, to um to cherish uh you know all those attributes that uh I I just wasn't very gifted at.
01:00:20.480 -->
01:00:34.000And so uh so over time, over that 44 years, I've learned from learning from others and learned from hard mistakes of what what does pursuing my life really look at, look like?
01:00:34.480 -->
01:00:38.400And um and so that's why I use that phrase all the time.
01:00:38.559 -->
01:00:48.320It's remember you need to pursue your um the desires that she has are different than the desires that we as men have.
01:00:48.800 -->
01:01:21.519And recognizing that, that what she longs for as a as a as a wife is different than what I long for as a husband, and so leaning into that of of comfort and protection and security and um and into intimacy from a not a physical perspective, but from a from a relational intimacy perspective that yeah, again, I don't have a whole lot of empathy, and uh also didn't get a whole lot of cards and this whole relational intimacy thing.
01:01:21.599 -->
01:01:23.920So leaning into that, what does it mean?
01:01:24.159 -->
01:01:32.639Um, and and that's that simple thing of of holding her hand and and bringing her flowers, when I remember to do that.
01:01:32.719 -->
01:01:35.360I haven't thanks for reminding me, I haven't done it in a while.
01:01:35.920 -->
01:01:39.679Uh uh of holding the door open for her, right?
01:01:39.760 -->
01:01:51.199It's it's it's out of that desire to draw closer from a um relational intimacy perspective.
01:01:51.280 -->
01:02:01.440And that's to me what you know pursuing my wife is, and and uh yeah, I I failed a whole lot in that category.
01:02:01.599 -->
01:02:17.280But I think one of the things that God's laid on my heart is to remind the men that I'm around uh to pursue their wives and to model that as best I possibly can and uh to cherish honor and wise.
01:02:17.360 -->
01:02:38.800And then there's the whole practical thing that most marriages fail because um because conceit and a lack of humility and and uh um personal desire gets in the way of uh fulfilling your obligation and your desire to make the other person whole, and that's part of it.
01:02:38.960 -->
01:02:40.719And how do I make my wife whole?
01:02:40.880 -->
01:02:50.320How do I help her become um to to become the the person that Jesus wants her to be?
01:02:50.639 -->
01:02:58.880And that's my calling, and fail a lot at it, gentlemen, but uh that is what I believe as husbands we're called to do.
01:02:58.960 -->
01:03:10.320How do you pursue your wife to make her whole in the eyes of Jesus and uh to fulfill her greatest giftedness that God has laid out for them?
01:03:10.400 -->
01:03:13.199So that's pursuing Darren.
01:03:13.920 -->
01:03:17.840What does she say about her newfound role in the company?
01:03:19.920 -->
01:03:23.679You know, she um uh interesting.
01:03:23.760 -->
01:03:31.360I mean, she she's in takes ownership really, really seriously, sometimes much more than me.
01:03:31.519 -->
01:03:36.079And uh, you know, she she watches things much more closely.
01:03:36.159 -->
01:03:44.960I don't want to say like a hawk, that's not fair representation of her, but she watches things more closely than I do uh because that's her giftedness.
01:03:45.199 -->
01:03:53.599And um so she's embraced that, and so we're um we've got an so let's see, we've got Process Alliance, Rippleworks.
01:03:53.760 -->
01:03:57.360Uh we're in the process of buying real estate, so we're establishing a real estate company.
01:03:57.519 -->
01:04:03.679We're in the process of of developing another company that really is her is is her driving passion.
01:04:03.760 -->
01:04:16.559And so I I think the the economic engine that Process Alliance has afforded us is to to go start these other businesses to minister to to other folks and to to make an impact in our community in other ways.
01:04:16.800 -->
01:04:22.719And so uh she's really leaning into that and this other project that I can't share uh yet.
01:04:22.880 -->
01:04:28.239Um I look forward to sharing it soon, but um but she's really leaning into that.
01:04:28.320 -->
01:04:45.199And I think had we not gone through this journey um uh uh of hard knocks and uh as well as uh being uh blessed uh financially that has enabled us to go pursue this other opportunity um that she's really leaning into.
01:04:45.360 -->
01:04:54.400So uh so she's learned a lot about business and uh again the operational piece and the cultural DNA is all all her.
01:04:54.800 -->
01:05:09.039And so she she's leveraging that to go launch this other entity that um and she's uh uh you know preparing some folks uh in our organization to to go help lead this uh other endeavor.
01:05:09.119 -->
01:05:13.360And and so um she's gonna that might be into it.
01:05:13.519 -->
01:05:25.519Is it possible she gained a bit of even more self-confidence in having some wins at Process Alliance that has given her kind of this confidence and gumption to go start this new venture?
01:05:25.679 -->
01:05:33.679I sort of ask that in the sense of, you know, we start this from a business perspective to replace your JOB income, your job income.
01:05:34.000 -->
01:05:43.039But yet along the way, you both learn a lot of things about business and formation and capital and all these things that maybe you didn't have as much when you were W 2 employees.
01:05:43.280 -->
01:05:55.519And then on the back side of it, you create this passion project that you look back and go, I wonder if the Lord had us start process alliance, yeah, for all the great things that we did in that, but it was for this.
01:05:56.239 -->
01:05:57.920That's entirely possible.
01:05:58.159 -->
01:06:12.079Um Uh you know, I think she uh uh has looked at this as an opportunity to make an impact in a different way than what we're making today with Process Alliance and even uh RippleWorks.
01:06:12.719 -->
01:06:28.480And um so I think it's um you know she's uh always been you know fairly confident and she's she's yeah she grew up you know pretty poor in a close-knit family that was pretty poor.
01:06:28.639 -->
01:06:31.679And so you know her DNA is work.
01:06:32.800 -->
01:06:38.320And and you know, when we're done with work or jobs, we go home and we work.
01:06:40.000 -->
01:06:41.599That's in her DNA, right?
01:06:41.760 -->
01:06:53.199I love it, and that's who she is, and and and so uh you know, you could see her out in the gardens, she's just sweating and she's dirty, and and so I've got her, she I've got her shirt says dirt girl, right?
01:06:53.280 -->
01:06:55.039So she's she works, yeah.
01:06:55.280 -->
01:07:23.760And so I what I do think is that it has given her um uh a better understanding of uh certainly uh business principles and a better understanding of uh uh risk and that it's okay for some risk to launch out into this new thing that's that's uh that will require uh quite a bit of capital.
01:07:24.000 -->
01:07:35.280Uh so uh certainly we've been blessed financially to go do this other thing, um, but it still requires a lot of capital to to get this thing off the board, off the off the ground.
01:07:36.719 -->
01:07:43.519And so I I think the the learning certainly has has helped.
01:07:43.840 -->
01:07:50.400Would have we even dreamed of doing this new thing without going through this journey?
01:07:50.480 -->
01:07:51.360I don't I don't think so.
01:07:51.679 -->
01:07:52.239Yeah, I don't think so.
01:07:52.639 -->
01:07:59.519We would have looked at it as that is way, way outside of our uh financial comfort zone, way outside of our talent.
01:07:59.679 -->
01:08:10.880And um, and well, I think what we've really learned is that our talent could be leveraged in many other ways um beyond you know being a pharmaceutical engineering company.
01:08:11.119 -->
01:08:23.359So that I think has been the the one of the key learnings is that we we're able to see what we've been gifted with in a call to steward um bigger than what we would have before.
01:08:23.600 -->
01:08:25.199So I like it.
01:08:25.439 -->
01:08:27.520Giftedness and steward.
01:08:29.039 -->
01:08:41.119Story of of process alliance and uh really probably two words that are really key to to your guys' success um along the way.
01:08:41.359 -->
01:08:44.720Um, Darren, thanks for sharing that story.
01:08:44.880 -->
01:08:58.319We we're getting to the end of our time, but we always ask our guests two questions that we wanted to ask you, and I'll go ahead and ask the first one is what is a risk that you have taken that has changed your life?
01:08:58.640 -->
01:09:09.279Uh I the biggest risk I took was leaving a uh comfortable corporate job.
01:09:10.720 -->
01:09:26.399Um there was some financial incentive to to walk away and it it balanced out that risk for a period of time.
01:09:26.640 -->
01:09:40.159I I think the the training and the learning that I had had from my parents and her parents, which was go get a good job at a great company, and when you get to be in your 60s, you retire.
01:09:40.880 -->
01:09:52.319And uh I think that uh biggest risk of leaping out uh on faith and trying to build something from scratch, had no idea it would turn into this.
01:09:52.399 -->
01:09:53.600I mean, zero idea.
01:09:53.760 -->
01:09:56.960Again, I just need to replace my lovely income, right?
01:09:57.760 -->
01:10:11.840Um and so uh um that risk uh has leveraged into these other uh unique opportunities to minister to people.
01:10:12.560 -->
01:10:25.439And you know, we just bought a brand new piece of equipment for RipperWorks, and uh you know, we didn't we didn't sweat it, and we didn't bat an eye, right?
01:10:25.520 -->
01:10:27.600I mean it was a very expensive piece of equipment.
01:10:27.680 -->
01:10:28.000Wow.
01:10:28.239 -->
01:10:38.159Okay, yeah, we we can write that check, and then we can go hire folks that need another chance and give them an opportunity to thrive and to flourish.
01:10:38.479 -->
01:10:42.720So the biggest risk was I I left a very comfortable place.
01:10:43.279 -->
01:10:44.960Yeah, very comfortable.
01:10:45.279 -->
01:10:49.840You could have done what everyone else says they want to do and just retire.
01:10:50.159 -->
01:10:56.560I I could have, and I can today, and I just I don't sense that's God's calling in my life.
01:10:56.720 -->
01:11:03.039And no hey, retirement's not biblical, by the way, but um that might be a podcast for another day, right?
01:11:03.279 -->
01:11:04.159Another day, yeah.
01:11:04.319 -->
01:11:05.039Second question.
01:11:05.199 -->
01:11:18.800So so second question, and since you've sort of already replaced your Lily income, uh what other than that is left yet unresolved, uh unfinished that you have the resolve to complete?
01:11:21.119 -->
01:11:26.000Uh wow, that is a question I've never pondered, uh Ben, Todd.
01:11:26.319 -->
01:12:06.479Um, what's going through my mind is uh what is unresolved and and incomplete, I I think is I I'll just say it's the continuation of using it's gonna go back to that stewardship thing and giftedness, using the using the stick that God gave me as he gave to Moses to further his kingdom in whatever way uh he leads me to.
01:12:06.560 -->
01:12:30.399And so I think the thing that's unresolved for me uh in this new phase of our life that is very, very different than 10 years ago, is understanding um understanding wealth from the perspective of being a steward of that wealth and how to manage it.
01:12:30.560 -->
01:12:35.359There are things that I've had to go learn that I never thought I would be in a position to have to go learn.
01:12:35.520 -->
01:12:38.159And so now I have to go learn these things.
01:12:38.399 -->
01:12:50.159And and one of the things that I'm really learning, and I think this really gets to your question, is is that Bonnie and I are really learning is is what does our generosity plan look like?
01:12:51.199 -->
01:13:07.600And and how do we how do we understand that, hone into it, and believe in uh and and and focus on that uh as opposed to you know this is kind of the shotgun approach, and you know, here's here's a here's a need, and we can go solve it.
01:13:08.079 -->
01:13:09.199I think it's part of it.
01:13:09.279 -->
01:13:16.399Uh we can we can um respond aggressively when there's a need that we we couldn't have before.
01:13:16.560 -->
01:13:30.800Uh and so I think the unresolved piece for me is what do you how do you want me to steward this next phase of uh of our life?
01:13:30.880 -->
01:13:34.640And what does generational stewarding look like?
01:13:34.800 -->
01:13:48.960Um, and what does Kingdom Impact really look like from what we're able to do by building businesses and impact and poor on the people, as well as what we're able to do with the um excess capital that we've been entrusted with?
01:13:49.199 -->
01:13:54.880That's what's unresolved for me is understanding how to manage through that.
01:13:55.119 -->
01:14:01.199Um I'd like to say it's easier, but everybody I've ever talked to said it's a lot harder than you think.
01:14:01.439 -->
01:14:03.199And I found that to be true.
01:14:03.359 -->
01:14:04.800Um so much need.
01:14:05.760 -->
01:14:08.960And and how do you steward that?
01:14:09.920 -->
01:14:18.720How are you sensitive to the spirit's promptings and knowing where to partner and invest and where to give?
01:14:18.880 -->
01:14:21.760So that's that's unresolved for me, Todd.
01:14:21.840 -->
01:14:28.960That it's a learning uh I'm on a steep learning curve.
01:14:29.119 -->
01:14:35.359So I'm sure as an engineer, um that's a very difficult one to get right.
01:14:36.800 -->
01:14:37.600Yes, it is.
01:14:37.760 -->
01:14:40.319There's the challenge is there's no definition of right.
01:14:40.399 -->
01:14:40.800That's the thing.
01:14:42.159 -->
01:14:42.960But not for an engineer.
01:14:43.199 -->
01:14:45.920Engineer is that I need to balance the equation.
01:14:46.720 -->
01:14:48.399There's a solution that I should come up with.
01:14:48.479 -->
01:14:52.399And I think your solution is just give the job to your wife, let her solve it.
01:14:54.479 -->
01:15:10.000There's some of that, but uh, you know, we're we're partners in this, and and we recognize that we've been handed it, handed, we've we've been gifted, we've been blessed to steward something that is beyond our wildest understanding and dreams.
01:15:10.079 -->
01:15:24.560Yeah, and so we want to be very mindful of how to do that, that follows scriptural principles that that is sensitive to the spirit's promptings.
01:15:24.880 -->
01:15:32.560And um and so that's that's that part of that steep learning curve is is doing that.
01:15:32.720 -->
01:15:46.399How do what do we what what does it mean when you when proverbs say uh a good man leaves an inheritance to his children's children, right?
01:15:46.479 -->
01:15:53.680So as I lean into that and I lean into the the the generosity piece of what I'm called to give.
01:15:53.760 -->
01:15:58.159And I so it's how do you put that together?
01:15:58.479 -->
01:16:05.439Uh and that's that's what I'm that's unresolved.
01:16:07.840 -->
01:16:11.439Walking in that, growing in that, both Bonnie and I are.
01:16:11.680 -->
01:16:16.960Um, and uh it's it's been an incredible journey.
01:16:17.680 -->
01:16:24.000Well, I look forward to being educated on what you learn as you as you sort through that for sure.
01:16:24.239 -->
01:16:28.319Um, thanks for joining us and sharing your story.
01:16:28.560 -->
01:16:37.359Uh we're just so blessed to be able to walk through life together and um uh with you and your business and your family, really.
01:16:37.840 -->
01:16:39.520Um but yeah.
01:16:39.920 -->
01:16:53.039Thanks for reaching out and letting me be part of your uh uh risk and resolve podcast, and uh and so for the uh the men in your audience, I'll leave this parting word to gentlemen, go pursue your life.
01:16:53.119 -->
01:16:54.159So there we go.
01:16:55.039 -->
01:16:57.039Can't say it can't leave it any better.
01:16:57.119 -->
01:17:01.680So thanks to our listeners for joining us for uh this episode of Risk and Resolve.
01:17:01.760 -->
01:17:02.800We'll catch you next time.
01:17:03.039 -->
01:17:03.840Thanks, Darren.
01:17:04.079 -->
01:17:06.800Thanks for tuning in to Risk and Resolve.
01:17:07.039 -->
01:17:08.479See you next time.
