How did Tutor Time end up in such rough shape?
The company had had five CEOs in three years. When I joined, it was losing $1 million a month and had four months of cash available. The company experienced unparalleled growth in the late ‘90s, but its resources and infrastructure didn’t keep pace. And there was a lack of passion for the company and its products. I don’t care whether you make cheese or provide a financial product, you have to have a great product. There was no focus on the product here, and no common look or feel to the brand. The facilities were in need of capital. I was hired to restructure Tutor Time and take it through bankruptcy, and had actually bid to buy the company along with a financial partner. Childtime outbid my offer and acquired the company. The board asked me to head up the whole organization. We had to stabilize the company and we had to be very careful. We did everything in the open with lots of communication. The board gave me a commitment that they would give me 18 months to integrate the two compa
