Keeping up with growth provides the challenge.

Young entrepreneur admits he is learning by trial-and-error

Doug Nadorozny says he should have listened to his high school business teacher.

The 29-year-old Sudbury native had a head for business and this showed in his assignments at Lasalle Secondary School. But the pleasure of working with computers drew him into computer engineering at the University of Ottawa.

After three years he decided that tinkering with circuit boards and electronic wires and designing equipment was not for him. He explains that he just liked using computers, not building them.

Nadorozny dropped out of the science engineering program and enrolled in a business systems analyst course at the Herzing Institute in Ottawa.

In July 1986 he was hired as a sales representative for The AMS Group of Ottawa. He was offered a partnership within a year.

In 1988 The AMS Group opened an office in Sudbury which Nadorozny purchased the following May.

Today Nadorozny sits in his comfortable office at 174 Douglas St., operating a business which has tripled its sales to $400,000. This success has earned him the Northern Ontario Business Young Entrepreneur of the Year award, an award sponsored by Peat Marwick Thorne.

The AMS Group provides microprocessor sales, service, support and training to businesses and organizations in northeastern Ontario. It specializes in network systems and computer-aided drafting and engineering.

Last year Nadorozny bought the Oncourse Learning Centre, which operates as his company's training centre.

Nadorozny says his biggest challenge is being able to survive the rapid growth of his business. In three years it has grown from five to 22 employees.

However, Nadorozny recalls that getting started was not as easy as he thought it would be. One of the biggest obstacles to overcome was financing. With support from his family and $30,000 of personal finances he managed to secure a loan.

Nadorozny describes himself as ambitious, with "just the right amount of aggressiveness to make things work." He is quick to attribute his firm's success to a dedicated staff, as well as to a good lawyer and accountant.

Today Nadorozny spends most of his time managing his business and employees. His corporate philosophy is to provide the utmost in customer service.

Nadorozny just completed a management course, but he admits that he is learning primarily by trial-and-error.

He says the biggest lesson he has learned to date is the importance of a business plan, accurately projecting sales and managing cash flow.

He conducts research to ensure that his prices are competitive and is now making plans to expand throughout Northern Ontario.

Nadorozny is also active with several volunteer organizations in Sudbury.