Linda Hasenfratz’s father used to joke that he only worked half days: from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
That’s one of the ways that Linamar Corp. chairman Frank Hasenfratz instilled a strong work ethic in his daughter, who was honoured by the University of Victoria on Monday as the Peter B. Gustavson School of Business 2016 Distinguished Entrepreneur of the Year.
“You grew up with that,” Linamar CEO Linda Hasenfratz told 90 UVic business students during a lecture on Monday.
Her father immigrated from Hungary and started Linamar, an automotive and industrial parts company, with a single lathe in the basement 50 years ago, the same year Linda Hasenfratz was born.
Despite her father’s dedication to business, he was always home for dinner with the family, even if he went back to work that night, she said.
He made sure that he did not sacrifice his homelife for his business and vice-versa, she said, saying her father shaped her own approach to business. She brought Olivia, 16, the youngest of her four children, on her UVic visit.
The Guelph, Ont., company has reached annual sales of about $5.3 billion. Linda Hasenfratz is expecting to surpass $6 billion this year. Her longer-term objective is for double-digit annual growth, and a sales goal of $10 billion.
Linamar has nearly 24,000 employees, with more than 9,000 of those in Ontario.
Globalization is a key element to the company’s diversification.
The company has more than 57 manufacturing plants around the globe, set up to serve local markets with precision products in the automotive and industrial sectors. It is also a supplier of Skyjack, aerial work platforms used internationally.
Hasenfratz earned a chemistry degree, but didn’t immediately join Linamar. Instead, she worked in the pharmaceutical industry, saying “you can learn a lot from other companies and how they do things.”
That period proved to Hasenfratz that she could make it on her own in business.
Father and daughter developed an eight-year apprenticeship plan to ensure Hasenfratz was trained in all elements of the business. This included working on a production line and as a machine operator, and moving up to senior positions.
She became CEO in 2002, when Linamar was an $800-million operation. She also earned a master’s degree in business administration.
Today, Hasenfratz is chairwoman of the Business Council of Canada. The group’s 150 members employ 1.4 million Canadians and represent more than half of value of the Toronto Stock Exchange.
She told UVic students: “To be an entrepreneur means being a bit of a risk-taker. You need to be open to that.”
Linamar prides itself on being innovative, nimble and responsive to customers’ needs, but takes a strategic approach to its growth. Being willing to take risks means taking calculated risks, not “betting the farm” on a venture, she said. She urged students to “be bold about the goals you are setting for yourself.”
Setting small goals, brings small achievements. By setting bigger goals, “then you think differently.” Her father set a goal of achieving $1 billion by 2000. It happened in 1999.
Linamar relies on what it calls its stepping-stool approach. All three legs must be in balance and those legs represent the customer, employee and financial stakeholders. One challenge is to avoid building in too many rules, Hasenfratz said. If an organization becomes overly bureaucratic, that will take the decision-making capability away from its people and destroy the entrepreneurial approach, she said.
Linamar closely watches global issues, looking for ways it can play a role in solving a problem and strengthening the company at the same time, she said.
Hasenfratz was honoured at a gala event at the Fairmont Empress and Victoria Conference Centre Monday evening with several past winners attending.
