Business Edge writer Gyle Konotopetz sat down with David Snell, CEO of Electronics Manufacturing Group Inc., and asked him 20 questions. Here’s how the interview went.

1. What are your recollections of a boyhood in Calgary?
“I had a good upbringing. I can’t say I overcame any adversity or any obstacles. I got along really well with my parents. I was always looking for mini-business projects, be it selling golf balls on the golf course or comic books on the street. I enjoyed working, doing it on my terms. I played a lot of sports — swimming, tennis, soccer, skiing, pond hockey. I was one of the very few people I knew who enjoyed school.

2. Your first job?
“Stringing rackets at the Foothills Tennis Club. I was 14.”

3. Your first salary?
“4.25 an hour.”

4. What was your childhood dream?
“I honestly can’t think of a real dream. I never dreamed of being an astronaut. I wanted to be an engineer. I think I’m discovering my dream. I can’t think of anything I’d rather do than what I’m doing today. I think that’s why I like the book New New Thing by Jim Clark (founder of Netscape), because he has been phenomenally successful in living his dream.”

5. A person you admire?
“I’ve always had a lot of respect for my dad (former oilpatch executive Eric Snell). Whenever I was at the (University of Alberta) and things would get very challenging, I’d look up his picture on the wall, because he graduated from the U of A as well. My dad was definitely a huge influence.”

6. Your company was recently ranked by Profit Magazine as the sixth hottest start-up in Canada. What strategies brought this company so far so fast with two-year growth of 3,400 per cent?
“I prefer to hire talented people, let them run the company. I’m there to support them and offer them the resources they need.”

7. The best advice you can offer a budding CEO?
“Find the right people. You shouldn’t be afraid to share the company by offering employees stock options. Dilution won’t kill you. Ultimately, I can build a bigger company that way and, although I’ve got a smaller piece, I’m still further ahead. I think the hardest thing for most entrepreneurs is in letting go some stock. Almost everybody who has joined EMG has taken a pay cut to do it, but you give them stock options and let them run the company.”

8. As a CEO who prides himself in a family environment at work, how do you stay on a first-name basis with 350 employees?
“As the company grew, it became increasingly difficult to remember everybody’s name. There were only six of us two-and-a-half years ago. I remember walking in to work and seeing a hundred people and wondering where they all came from. I’m embarrassed to say that I don’t always remember the names of all our employees, but what we do now is have what we call The Presidents’ Round Table where David King (president) and I will sit down with 10 employees. The rules are no managers in the room and no one is allowed to discuss what was discussed outside the room.”

9. Employee rapport is important to you, isn’t it?
“I spend far more time with those people than I do at home or with friends. If you don’t care about them and it’s not a fun place to be, it’s not a very fun life. When you work 12-hour days, you’d better have fun doing it.”

10. Your approach is not exactly tyrannical, is it?
“I’ve never perceived myself as being intimidating, but at one of our round tables, our warehouse manager — she’s a great lady, really good at her job — said I intimidated her. I asked her: ‘How can you ever be intimidated by somebody that’s got a half-dozen stuffed animals in his office and toys all over the place?’ We’ve always said that the two most important groups are shareholders and employees, and they’re equal.”

11. Your most important business lesson?
“Once again, I’ll say find the right people. If anything has ever gone wrong, it’s usually from dealing with the wrong people and, when things go terrifically right, it’s almost always because you had some help from the right person.”

12. How often do you call up EMG’s stock price?
“If we’re in the middle of a financing, a couple times a day. If not, I could go weeks and not look.”

13. What’s the best thing about your job?
“Every day’s different. You get to deal with fascinating people.”

14. Has success changed you?
“I’m not 20 anymore, I’m 34, but, no, I don’t think it has. I still don’t spend a lot of money and I take only two weeks’ vacation. I have a bigger house than I’d expected and I drive a more expensive car (BMW 540i) than I thought I would. But to me it’s just a car. People ask me: ‘Why are you parking that in the parking lot, it’s going to get scratched?’ I don’t care. And a house is a house. I have a big party once a year and I don’t worry if the house gets trashed. I still buy $10 art from Ikea.”

15. Your house is about to be washed away by a great flood. You have time to salvage three belongings. Which ones?
“I have a box full of personal stuff from way back that has all of my report cards and letters. My parents saved it for me without me knowing it. If I didn’t save that, I’d be in a lot of trouble.”

16. You call in sick tomorrow, but suddenly you feel great. How do you spend your day?
“I’d definitely sleep in. I would have a leisurely breakfast. I’d probably lounge around, but I’d definitely make a few phone calls. I’d have to check on a few things. I’d check the stock price, spend an hour on the treadmill while watching a movie, watch Magnum P.I.”

17. Would you live anywhere but in Calgary?
“I probably couldn’t do with anything much smaller because I need to be within walking distance of 7-Eleven. I love the mountains. It’s such a dynamic city, there’s companies going public every day and the people I enjoy doing business with are here.”

18. If God tapped on you the shoulder and told you that you could change one thing, what would that be?
“I would have probably waited a couple of months before (taking EMG public) because to do it I sold a bunch of Wi-LAN stock at an average of $6. And it raced like crazy a few months later (to $94 seven months later). So then I could have my cake and eat it too.”

19. You didn’t exactly take a bath on Wi-LAN?
“My cost average was about 20 cents and I kept all of my Cell-Loc and still have it. So I haven’t suffered too much. I’m definitely not unhappy at having sold my Wi-LAN because what I’ve realized through EMG is certainly greater than anything I ever lost by selling Wi-LAN stock.”

20. What is your vision for EMG by 2005?
“We’ve laid out a plan where we’d like to be a multi-hundred-million-dollar company. We want to be multi-national as well. We want to be recognized as a premier EMS (electronics manufacturing service) company. We want it to be a great place to work. We want it to be recognized as a great Canadian company. And we think we’re going to get there.”

COMPANY PROFILE: Electronics Manufacturing Group Inc.
* Brass: David Snell, CEO; David King, president.
* Industry: EMG provides a complete range of product development and delivery services to the global electronics industry. Most of EMG's customers in the $75-billion Electronics Manufacturing Services industry are smaller mid-tier companies such as Wi-LAN or Cell-Loc, but the company also does work for major players such as Nortel. Recently ranked sixth in Canada on Profit Magazine's list of hottest startups and Canada's fastest growing manufacturing company with two-year growth of 3,400 per cent.
* Employees: 350
* Recent stock quote: 5.85 on CDNX (1-YR trading range-1.85-8.95)
* Web site: emgplace.com.
* Phone: 207-5364
* Fax: 207-5254
* Address: 7-3805 34 ST N.E.

DAVID LESLIE SNELL IN PROFILE
* Born/Raised/Age: Edmonton, Calgary, 34.
* Occupation: Professional Engineer.
* Titles: CEO/Vice-Chairman/Co-Founder of Electronics Manufacturing Group Inc. (EMG), CEO of Home Media, director of Northlinks, Elite Technical, C Connect Satellite, Hot Chow, former vice-president of production of Wi-LAN and Cell-Loc.
* Education: High School at Sir Winston Churchill, graduate of University of Alberta with a B.Sc. in 1989 and M.Sc. for electrical engineering in 1991.
* Kicks back by: Watching the Flames kick Oiler butts from the EMG private box at the Saddledome, cheering for TV’s Magnum PI, scuba diving in Maui, candlelight macaroni-and-cheese dinners, pruning poplars with his golf clubs.