Jason Seeley: 'A great opportunity'

WESTERVILLE, Ohio - Although running his father's HME business wasn't in his future plans when Jason Seeley studied communications at the University of Dayton in the mid-1990s, things just worked out that way. And nearly one year into his tenure as president of Dasco Home Medical Equipment , he's glad it did. Sharing the leadership helm with his younger sister, Rachel, Seeley retrospectively sees that his situation was destiny. "When I was in college, I never talked about working at Dasco," he said. "By the time I graduated, my dad planned to sell the business, but the deal fell through. Then it struck me as a great opportunity." It's not like Seeley came into the business cold. He and Rachel grew up working for the company. He was making deliveries as soon as he got his driver's license. Still, it's a big leap from the loading dock to the president's chair and Seeley admits that he and Rachel had to climb a pretty steep learning curve. Once they got the basics out of the way, however, the rest was easy, he said. "It took some time to figure out what running the company was about, but we reached a point where we realized that this business is truly ours and that we can do what we want," he said. "Once we came to that conclusion, it fueled the fire." One of Seeley's key initiatives as president has been to upgrade a computer system that was not only arcane, but practically non-existent. During his tenure, the company has invested heavily in information technology, installing a server and an office automation system. About 98% of Dasco's billing is now done electronically and access to the company manual is now available online. Seeley is also instituting a document imaging system. "One of my favorite parts of being president is that if I discover a great idea, I can implement it," he said. Under Seeley's guidance, the corporate culture has become more relaxed - a characteristic of his generation, he said. Even so, "relaxed" doesn't mean "carefree," he said. "Rachel and I have spent time developing a culture that people see as fun," Seeley said. "But we're also driven and we expect performance. We take being competitive in the marketplace very seriously."