By Mark Nardone
Special to Delaware Business Times
Delaware Today will honor its 12th annual class of Women in Business during special luncheons at the Chase Center on the Riverfront on Dec. 8 and at Heritage Shores in Bridgeville on Dec. 1. Keynote speakers will be Tanya Bakalov, founder of SevOne and CEO of BetterSkills Inc., a dynamic company which focuses on the professional development and talent management of tomorrow’s workforce, and builder Marnie Oursler, founder of Marnie Custom Homes in Bethany Beach. Both women will share their stories of launching new businesses while managing personal concerns.
Prior to BetterSkills, Bakalov grew her SevOne startup from four people in a garage to more than 500 employees around the world and $90 million in revenue before selling the company last summer. SevOne, a digital infrastructure management software company, provides network managers with network monitoring, troubleshooting and performance reporting capabilities at companies such as Verizon, Comcast and HBO.
Bakalov focused on growing revenue, expanding to offices in Europe and Asia, and shepherding the company through several key rounds of financing and two key acquisitions. She’ll use some of those skills in growing BetterSkills, which provides a dynamic new platform for organizational development and employee engagement. It allows companies to grow, develop and retain their talent by providing them with the tools and methodology necessary to enhance skills and competen-cies. Beta and trial testing of the platform will occur over the coming months.
The key to success is believing in yourself, even when people tell you no or, “˜That’s impossible,'” Bakalov said. “It takes true grit to take a company off the ground. You have to be strong enough emotionally to survive through the lows. You cannot succeed if you can’t be persistent, stay the course and be willing to take on some risks. You also cannot do it alone. I attribute my success to my partner in life, Vess, who has always stood by my side and picked me up when I had a challenging day.”
Oursler launched her beach-based custom home building business in 2007, on the verge of the worst housing crash in U.S. history. “I couldn’t afford to hire many workers, so I did a lot of the building myself,” Oursler said. She studied the real estate market, found an affordable property in a growth area, designed and built a home for herself, sold it herself, then did it again. She struggled. “But the third time was a charm,” Oursler said. “The house had a custom oversized front door, wide plank wood flooring, impeccable interior trim details, solid wood 8-foot doors, cathedral ceilings with exposed beams, a sea glass palette.”
When she finished, she invited all the neighbors over for a party. “I expected a few people, but hundreds showed up – and that’s where everything changed. After that day, word spread like wildfire. I got referral after referral. I didn’t even have to submit bids anymore. Business was coming to me. And the best part? They didn’t just want me to build the home – they wanted me to design it, too.” Marnie Custom Homes has thrived ever since, and it has brought Oursler no small amount of attention. She earned a Gold Stevie Award for Women in Business, made Professional Builder Magazine’s 40 under 40 list, became the national spokeswoman for 84 Lumber’s We Build American campaign and earned other honors. She is wrapping up filming for “Big Beach Builds,” which is scheduled to premier on DIY Network this spring.
“Never give up,”Oursler said. “I had all the odds stacked against me when I started – I was a female builder in a male-dominated industry, and the country was facing a housing crisis. Not only did I survive that, I prospered. But getting there took ambition and perseverance.”
Tickets for the Women in Business luncheons are available at www.DelawareToday.com.
