Ralph Dise
Dise & Co.
Education: MBA, Bowling Green State University; bachelor’s degree in English, Westminster College, New Wilmington, Pennsylvania; Executive Education in Leading the Professional Service Firm, Harvard Business School
What Guides My Decision Making: I have always placed sustained cash flow as the key consideration when making decisions. Cash flow is an organization’s lifeblood. Just as in the human body, lack of blood (cash flow) leads quickly to death (business failure).
What Motivates Me: I love engaging with people from all walks of life. My business has allowed me the opportunity to do so for many years.
If I Could Have Any Other Job: When I was a teenager, I dreamt of being the first chair trumpet of The Cleveland Orchestra. To this day, I listen attentively to the trumpet parts of symphonies, imagining the feeling of hitting the high notes or creating a pure tone on my much-loved trumpet.
Proudest Moment: Sometime in the mid- to late-1990s, Dise & Co. was named to the Weatherhead 100 for the first time. Wow — that was a wonderful feeling.