In an world united by free market, business skills are becoming survival skills. Increased connectivity means the rapid exchange and development of ideas. Plenty of people have brilliant ideas, but lack the necessary knowledge to put it into action. Lemonade Day is an organization dedicated to changing this early by teaching children the business skills they’ll need to succeed through an innovative exploration of the traditional lemonade stand.

If the business world is a battlefield, Ron Batts (right) is one of its most hardened veterans. With one or two rare exceptions, every position he has held since 1978 has been amongst senior level management. These positions range from Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer to President and CEO with a wide variety of mercantile organizations. battsAs President of Eckerd Apparel, Ron implemented new customer service and employee management programs that increased sales by 13% while simultaneously improving distribution and employee productivity. For the past 5 years Ron has served as the SVP for Charming Charlie Inc, holding full operational responsibility for over 200 specialty stores with an annual revenue of over $425 million.

 

As the new Chief Executive Officer of Lemonade Day, Ron will called on to provide leadership in three main sectors: strategic, management, and development/financial. Strategic leadersLemonade-Day-Logohip largely consists of supporting and enabling senior management to more effectively carry out the company vision, including the development of strategies to ensure operations retain their efficiency and integrity. Management leadership is an umbrella for the logistics of the organization. In short, he’ll be working with his staff to ensure the strategies he’ll be developing with upper management are properly understood, documented, and implemented. Development and Financial responsibilities will include preserving and promoting the “accountability culture” of Lemonade Day while taking steps to ensure the organization’s continued growth.

We at Halftime Talent Solutions are glad to have completed this search with the placement of Ron Batts at such a progressive organization. Children are the manifestation of the future. Building them up early lays the groundwork for strong American business men and women, and by proxy a strong American economy.