Comedian Jim Gaffigan to headline CONNEX2020 25th Anniversary Gala Dinner

Connex, formerly PRSM, the authority on Retail and Multisite Facilities Management, is excited to announce that Jim Gaffigan — comedian, actor, producer, best-selling author and performer known worldwide for his unique humor and observations on life — will headline the CONNEX2020 National Conference, 25th Anniversary, Gala Dinner in Orlando, Fla., April 21.


Connex/PRSM will celebrate its 25th Anniversary during the conference and the Gala Dinner is the marquee, kick-off celebration.


Gaffigan is a four-time Grammy nominated comedian and five-time Emmy winning touring performer, as well as a platinum-selling recording artist. His many movie credits include “Three Kings,” “Super Troopers” 1 & 2 and “Chappaquiddick.” Gaffigan has had his biggest year to date on screen in 2019, as he has been featured in eight films, including two in which he was the lead, “Being Frank” and “American Dreamer.”


Gaffigan recently released his seventh stand-up comedy special and has continued his regular humorous commentaries on CBS Sunday Morning. His background includes being a two-time New York Times best-selling author.


“Jim is a fantastic storyteller, and we’re thrilled to bring this rare opportunity to our attendees at CONNEX2020,” said Bill Yanek, CEO of Connex. “We wanted Connex2020 and the anniversary celebration to be very special and Jim’s unique humor and storytelling will be the perfect way to celebrate our success as an association.”


In addition to two seasons of the critically acclaimed semi-autobiographical “The Jim Gaffigan Show,” which he wrote and produced with his wife, Jeannie, Gaffigan has guest starred in many TV comedies and has had dramatic roles on “Law & Order.” Last year he served as Master of Ceremony at The Al Smith Memorial Dinner, an annual event in New York City to raise funds for Catholic charities supporting children. In 2015, Gaffigan performed for Pope Francis and 1 million attendees at the Festival of Families in Philadelphia.   

  

With approximately 950 member companies, Connex is the leading membership organization for FMs and supplier professionals. Established in 1995, Connex empowers facilities management professionals with best practices, benchmarking, education, discussion forums and trusted partnerships. Members depend upon Connex to help them achieve greater success and a competitive advantage through quality programs and resources.


Formerly known as the PRSM National Conference, CONNEX2020 is the largest multisite retail, banking, entertainment, dental, medical and restaurants facilities management conference, with best-in-class education sessions, networking events and more than 300 qualified exhibitors under one roof.


For more information about CONNEX2020 National Conference, visit national.connexfm.com. 

VP of Facilities at Davita Kidney Care passes away suddenly

Matthew Pitts, an active and engaged Connex member for several years, and VP of Facilities and Asset Management for DaVita Kidney Care, passed away suddenly, Thursday, November 21, 2019. Matthew was well known across the association, attended Connex events and was nominated for the Board of Directors in 2013.

“The entire Connex organization would like to extend our heart-felt sincere sympathies to Matt’s family during this tough time,” said Myriah Kingen, Board Chair Connex and Director, Facilities Management DaVita Kidney Care. “Matt was a colleague, friend and mentor who was always there to help others with friendly advice and guidance. He provided a great example for others to follow and he will be sorely missed across the FM industry.”

He began his facilities career in 1994, as an Analyst for The Home Depot and became their VP of Facilities in 2006. He also served as COO for SMS Assist for almost three years. He joined DaVita Kidney Care in 2015 as Sr. Director Asset Management, being named as VP of Facilities and Asset Management in May, 2019.
He is survived by his wife and two children. The Connex staff and membership extends its sincere sympathies to the family.

Connex Foundation accepting applications for $5,000 scholarships

The Connex Foundation, a 501c3 non-profit, is now accepting applications for two $5,000 scholarships to be awarded during Connex2020 National Conference in Orlando, FL, April 21, 2020. The deadline for applications is March 2, 2020. To apply click here.

“Our industry is facing a crisis created by a lack of trained, skilled trades individuals. The Connex Foundation created these scholarships to raise awareness of this issue and assist those pursuing both trades and facilities management (FM) careers,” said Bill Ackerman, Chair of the Connex Foundation Board, and National Sales Executive, Vixxo.

A $5,000 USD scholarship will be awarded to one person from the U.S. and one from Canada.

GI Partners Completes Sale of Kellermeyer Bergensons Services to Cerberus Capital Management

GI Partners, a leading private investment firm, today announced that it has completed the sale of Kellermeyer Bergensons Services, LLC (“KBS” or the “Company”) to an affiliate of Cerberus Capital Management, L. P. (“Cerberus”). 

 

Headquartered in Oceanside, California, KBS is a leading provider of technology-enabled, integrated facility management services to customers across North America. With its differentiated technology and comprehensive suite of facility services, the Company delivers high-quality and cost-effective solutions to customers in the industrial, commercial, logistics, retail, and grocery sectors. 

 

GI Partners acquired KBS in 2014 and, during the last five years, the Company has experienced significant growth through both organic and M&A initiatives. Organically, the Company drove record new wins and maintained industry leading customer retention while diversifying its customer base into high growth end markets. Bolstering KBS’ best-in-class delivery model, the Company developed and launched KBSForce, a proprietary and purpose-built labor management and business intelligence tool, to drive industry-leading operational efficiencies and technology enablement. Additionally, GI Partners supported the establishment of KBS’ successful M&A platform, as the company completed seven strategic acquisitions, accelerating growth into highly attractive end markets while generating meaningful operational synergies. 

 

“We are very pleased with the outcome of our investment in KBS and grateful for the strong partnership with the management team,” said Hoon Cho, Managing Director at GI Partners. “It has been a pleasure partnering with Mark and the team to build an industry-leading facilities management platform. We look forward to following KBS’ continued success during the Company’s next stage of growth and its partnership with Cerberus.” 

 

Mark Minasian, Chief Executive Officer of KBS, commented, “I am very proud of the outstanding performance our team delivered, and we are grateful to GI Partners and Hoon in particular for his unwavering support and strategic engagement during our partnership. We have undergone a dramatic transformation over the past five years, driving large share gains in our traditional end markets while expanding rapidly into new ones. Today’s KBS is a scaled, structurally advantaged, technology enabled North American service platform uniquely positioned to deliver our current and future customers world class service solutions for years to come. As we enter the next chapter of our evolution, we are thrilled to be partnering with Cerberus and are confident that its deep expertise and operational and technological resources will further accelerate the pace and scale of organic and inorganic value creation.” Robert Warden, Co-Head of Private Equity and Senior Managing Director at Cerberus,
added: “We are excited to partner with KBS and build on the foundational initiatives that GI Partners has implemented over the past five years. We look forward to working with Mark and the KBS team to deliver on the significant opportunities ahead.”

 

 

About KBS
Kellermeyer Bergensons Services, LLC is a leading North American provider of technologyenabled,
integrated facility management services to the industrial, commercial, logistics,
retail, and grocery sectors. With more than 64,000 active customer locations in all 50 U.S.
states, Canada, and Puerto Rico, KBS sets the industry standard for delivering consistently
high quality and cost-effective facility service solutions. For more information on
Kellermeyer Bergensons Services, please visit www.kbs-services.com.

About GI Partners
Founded in 2001, GI Partners is a private investment firm based in San Francisco,
California. The firm has raised $19 billion in capital from leading institutional investors
around the world to invest in private equity, real estate, and data infrastructure
strategies. The private equity team invests primarily in companies in the Healthcare, IT
Infrastructure, Services, and Software sectors. The real estate team invests across a broad
range of platforms and strategies. The data infrastructure team invests primarily in hard
asset infrastructure businesses underpinning the digital economy. For more information
on GI Partners and its entire portfolio, please visit www.gipartners.com.

About Cerberus
Founded in 1992, Cerberus is a global leader in alternative investing with over $40 billion
in assets across complementary credit, private equity, and real estate strategies. We
invest across the capital structure where our integrated investment platforms and
proprietary operating capabilities create an edge to improve performance and drive longterm
value. Our tenured teams have experience working collaboratively across asset
classes, sectors, and geographies to seek strong risk-adjusted returns for our investors.
For more information about our people and platforms, visit us at www.cerberus.com/.

MaintenX International Recaps Regional Connexion Events

MaintenX team members traveled from coast to coast this October to attend Connex’s first year of Connexion events in Southern California, Ohio and New York. Connex, formerly PRSM, reorganized their midyear show into three intimate and interactive events across the U.S.

MaintenX team members met one-on-on with facilitity managers in Long Beach, Columbus and New York City to share how MaintenX’s self-performing technicians can assist with preventative and reactive maintenance needs. Each session began with a productive breakfast networking session, followed by one-on-one meetings with multi-site facility managers, lunch and a key note speaker. Attendees in all locations benefitted from unique, regionally-focused facilty-management industry updates. In all, the new program allowed attendees to be more engaged and involved than in past years’ larger format event. Also, by having three events, Long Beach, Columbus and NYC, it was much easier for Connex Multi-Site facility managers to travel and attend.

“MaintenX is proud to have been a Platinum sponsor of the inaugural Connexion event in Long beach and a participant at all three events ,” said Bill Schaphorst, MaintenX’s VP of Business Development. “We enjoyed the time with facility managers and the ability to learn about regional issues, developments, and topics that are critical to our clients.”

Connex is an industry leader in retail and multi-site facilities management, with a focus on providing best practice, education, forums and partnerships to their more than more than 950 member companies. Facility management professionals will come together again with Connex at the Connex2020 National Conference in April 2020 in Orlando, Fla.

For more than 40 years, MaintenX has been a trusted name in self-performing facilities maintenance. With an unwavering focus on customer satisfaction and safety, MaintenX is trusted by clients from coast to coast.

Whether a company needs a personalized preventative maintenance schedules, reactive or emergency maintenance services, MaintenX is ready to provide top-notch service. For more information about MaintenX, visit http://www.maintenx.com.

ABOUT MAINTENX INTERNATIONAL:
MaintenX International is a fully licensed, facilities repair company. As one of the largest national self-performing facility maintenance and repair companies in the U.S., MaintenX has created a wide network of knowledgeable and professional technicians throughout the country. With their team of well-trained technicians, MaintenX self-performs and manages facility maintenance for their clients. In the event there is not a MaintenX technician in an area, the company has established a network of preferred vendor partners throughout the country for continued superior service for their clients. For more than 40 years, MaintenX has been expertly serving multi-location retail stores, restaurant chains and Fortune 500 companies nationwide.

Connex Board of Directors nomination/application process now open

Calling all Connex leaders, movers and shakers! Connex is now accepting applications and nominations for the 2020-2021 PRSM Board of Directors. Deadline for nominations/applications is December 20, 2019. 

 

Click here to read more about nominations rules, the process and what it takes to serve on the Connex Board. 

Connex’s Meg Buckley Earns CAPM Certification

Meg Buckley, Senior Manager, Content & Research, recently passed the Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM) test managed by the Project Management Institute.

“This is a distinguished achievement that provides Meg and the Education & Resources team credibility and effectiveness working on or with project teams,” said Bill Yanek, Connex CEO. “We’re excited for Meg to use her knowledge and proven project management skills here at Connex.”


The three-hour certification exam includes 150 questions that cover a broad spectrum of project management. Additionally, the certification requires 23 hours of project management education. To maintain the CAPM certification, you must retake the exam every five years.

For more information about the CAPM exam or project management credentials, click here.

23rd Group Ranks 1005 on the 2019 Inc. 5000 with 3-Year Growth of 420%

For the 2nd consecutive year, Inc. 5000 has recognized 23rd Group as one of the fastest-growing companies in America. The Inc. 5000 is a prestigious ranking of the nation’s most successful American independent small businesses. 

 

On the 2019 Inc. 5000 List, 23rd Group ranked:

  • No. 1005 – National Ranking
  • No. 27 – North Carolina Ranking
  • No. 10 – Charlotte Ranking

 

“We were inspired to build a superior facility management company, with an ethos firmly rooted in solving industry challenges, confronting industry norms and implementing bold solutions to advance customer objectives, inspire our team and differentiate our firm. We would like to thank our employees, who continue to provide exceptional customer service through unrivaled communication. We value our relationships with our customers and our growth trajectory is the direct result of strong partnerships between our employees and customers,” said Gregg Ross, Co-Founder of 23rd Group.

 

23rd Group offers a full-range of facility maintenance services, project management, and construction related services. Its services enable multi-site companies to better manage their national footprints with a focus on reducing cost, applying innovative strategies and continuously improving the customer service experience. 23rd Group uniquely tailors its services to meet the evolving challenges associated with building, expanding, and maintaining national facilities. The firm provides services for retail, financial, hospitality, entertainment, restaurant, convenience, healthcare, and commercial sectors of the marketplace throughout the United States and Canada. For more information, visit 23rdGroup.com

 

For more info, contact: Gregg Ross, Co-Founder, 23rd Group, 704-909-4423 x102, greggr@23rdgroup.com, or Carl Paparella, Co-Founder, 23rd Group, 704-909-4423 x101, carlp@23rdgroup.com

Branded Group Receives Orange County Civic 50 Award for Second Year

The Orange County Business Journal, in partnership with OneOC, recently honored Branded Group as one of Orange County’s 50 most community-minded companies. This is the second year in a row that Branded Group has earned this distinction.

 

“We are humbled to, once again, have been selected for this award,” Michael Kurland, Branded Group Founder and CEO, said. “Our team is committed to its vision of building a conscious business that inspires future humanitarian leaders. It’s gratifying to know that our efforts have been recognized.”

 

The award provides a local standard for superior corporate citizenship and showcases how companies can use their time, skills and resources to improve the quality of life in the community where they do business.  By their leadership and community engagement practices, Civic 50 Orange County companies are translating good intentions into sound business practices.

 

“Our culture at Branded Group reflects our commitment to give back and make a difference,” Kurland said. “We will continue to do all we can to have a positive impact to our community and the world, and hope to inspire other businesses to do the same.”

  

Since 2012, the Civic 50, an initiative of Points of Light, has recognized the 50 most community-minded companies in the nation. Companies are selected based upon four dimensions of their community engagement programs: investment, integration, institutionalization and impact.

 

Civic 50 Orange County companies are increasingly shaping their strategies and crafting their policies to prioritize meaningful engagement with communities. No longer satisfied with checkbook philanthropy or short-term returns on CSR initiatives, Civic 50 companies are elevating critical stakeholder voices from employees, customers and communities into their mission statements.

 

For more information about Branded Group, contact Michael Kurland at mkurland@branded-group.com.

 

About Branded Group

Branded Group is an award-winning facility maintenance and construction management company servicing multi-site commercial properties. Through its “Be Better” experience, Branded Group provides clients with peace of mind and preserves their brand standards. Services include on-demand facility maintenance, construction management, and special project implementation for retail locations, restaurants, healthcare facilities, and educational institutions, among other industry verticals. With its One-for-One Program, each completed service call is transformed into volunteer time with local non-profit organizations. The company has been certified as a Great Place to Work® and has ranked on the Inc. 5000 for two consecutive years. For more information, visit www.branded-group.com.

 

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Connex members pack the first Mid-Year Connexion event in Long Beach

150 Connex members packed the Renaissance Hotel, Long Beach, CA to attend the first 2019 Mid-Year Connexion event today. Connex Board Chair, Myriah Kingen, Director, Facilities Management, DaVita Kidney Care and Bill Yanek, Connex CEO updated the crowd on the strategic vision of the association and the new emphasis on local and regional events. Keynote speaker, Mary Kelly, used key economic factors to explain how tariffs, the price of oil, BREXIT and other indexes impact our daily lives, our companies, and our future.

 

Round table discussions provided attendees the opportunity to dive into important industry issues such as the skills gap, preparing for holidays, mentorship, and other topics.  Afternoon sessions included time for suppliers to meet with FMs during the exhibition hours, and Rory Rowland, featured speaker in the afternoon session provided key advice on how to develop and manage effective teams.  

 

As the sun sank into the Pacific, the first Mid-Year Connexion event concluded with a closing reception that provided attendees more time to connect, share insights and plan for the future.

 

The remaining two Connexion events are scheduled for October 17, in Columbus, OH, and for New York City, October 29.  Members who have not registered are encouraged to do so.  Click here to register for Columbus or here to register for the New York Connexion.