Estimated reading time: 3 minutes

It's Only Common Sense: Adios, Amigo

Editor's Note: To listen to Dan's weekly column, as you've always done in the past, click here. For the written transcript, keep reading...We lost a good man recently. My friend Juan Serra passed away several weeks ago. Juan and I worked together at General Circuits in the '80s. He was one of the finest manufacturing guys I ever met, a man who clearly understood what it meant to make a promise and keep that promise. Juan Serra was a man of his word.Like many of his fellow Cubans, he came to the United States in 1960, settling in Rochester, New York where his sister and her husband were already living. A short time later he was hired at General Circuits. During his 28-year career there, through hard work and complete dedication, he rose through the ranks to eventually become vice president of operations.I remember Juan as a strong leader, firm but always fair, always looking out for his people, making sure they were treated fairly at all times. In fact, the people who worked for him were so loyal to him that I once joked with him saying that he if needed them to, he could get the women at the company to work on the morning of their daughters’ wedding if he asked them.There was a special quality about Juan that went much deeper than just good business sense. He made you realize that life at General Circuits was much more than business, much more than making circuit boards--it was all about family. And to Juan, General Circuits was family, whether he was talking about the Pluta brothers who owned it or Jim Peck who hired him and became his mentor. It was all about people coming together to do great things and do them better than anyone else.As I write this and take time to reflect on my friend, it saddens me to think that, in some ways, we have not only lost a great man and a good friend, but that losing a good man like Juan also represents the end of an era. Juan, and others like him, represented what was good in our industry. Men like Juan Serra did everything they could to help a customer out. Business was not just about money then. If a customer called him for a special favor he would walk through walls to try to grant that favor. He would spring into action first and deal with the money later. His first instinct was to make things happen for the customer. Because, to Juan, that wasn’t just a customer on the other end of the phone, not just a company. To Juan, that was a friend, a friend who needed his help. To Juan, it was always a privilege to help and to make sure that friend got what he needed, when he needed it.Because I worked out of New England, I only visited the shop in Rochester every once in a while, but, when I did, Juan always made sure that I was treated like one of the family. He would make sure I went to lunch with him and some of the guys and, more often than not, I would also get treated to one of his wife Adis’ fantastic dinners. Let me tell you, there is no better eating than well-prepared Cuban food.As a salesperson, having Juan run the shop made my life that much easier. He was one of the few manufacturing guys I know who could outdo me when it came putting the customer first. Today, when I talk to my own clients about "bringing their customer to the table," I always remember where I got that saying…I got it from Juan Serra.I worked with John Serra, Juan’s son. I trained him, actually, many years ago. This is something I’m proud of since he has become one of our industry’s most successful sales professionals. I want to say to you, Johnny, you were very lucky to have a dad like Juan…he taught you right and your success today proves that. Good for you.

And to Adis and daughters Maria and Lourdes, and his seven grandchildren, I just want to say that I feel your loss as do all of us in the PCB community who knew Juan and loved and appreciated him very much. He was a force as a board builder and he was certainly a force as a good man. I, for one, can say that I also consider myself lucky to have had him in my life.So, Juan, adios, amigo.