Executive Suite: Eco-friendly Larry Vetter, Holbrook

Larry Vetter can't really say whether the recession has affected business - he launched Vetter Environmental Sciences on the day Lehman Brothers collapsed.

"It was a little bit scary," he says about starting a company amid the 2008 financial meltdown. "The economy turned sour in a hurry."

The Holbrook company handles cleanups, including oil spills and chemical spills, and does environmental testing. It was a finalist for this year's Hauppauge Industrial Association's Rookie of the Year award.

Vetter, 57, is married and has four children.

What do you remember about the first time you were someone's boss?

"The very first time I was a supervisor I was pretty young. I didn't realize at that time how to handle people. I thought that the way to get people to work was to yell at them and intimidate them. I learned very quickly that that was a very, very poor idea. It didn't work. You can get people to scurry for two minutes, but the minute you turn your back nothing much happens."

What's your management style now?

"I kind of manage like I brought up my kids - I manage by example. That's the only way I know how. If I expect someone to do something for me, I'm going to do it first. So, for example, in the past if I needed somebody to climb into a tank that contained methyl methacrylate, I wanted to let them all know I was willing to do that myself before I would tell somebody else to go in and do that."

How do you motivate?

"I believe strongly in positive reinforcement. I recognize that in an industry where there really are no clear-cut ways of doing things, errors in judgment are going to happen. I like to look at errors as a learning experience, not as a reason for any punitive measures. I find that most people respond to that. I encourage people to be free thinkers."

What are your plans for growth?

"My goal is to have a crew of about 10 people. I think that would be optimal."

What qualities do you look for in hiring?"Integrity - it's an important part of what I do. There are . . . aspects of the industry where there's no regulation at all," he says, citing mold. "As a result, it's very easy to deceive people. I need to sleep at nighttime. I need to be able to know that there's going to be another job down the line.

"If you are hiring people, it's good to bring them all in and sit them around the table at the same time. I did that a couple of times in the past, and I find that you get different types of responses when they're in a group than if it's one-on-one. There seems to be less of a one-upmanship when they're all together. They tend to be a little bit more low-key as a group."

What advice do you have for someone starting a business?

"Go for it. The younger you are, the better off you are. Don't wait," he adds with a laugh, "until you're my age to start."

Corporate snapshot

NAME: Larry Vetter

TITLE: President

COMPANY: Vetter Environmental Sciences

BUSINESS: Environmental cleanup and testing

LOCATION: Holbrook

TYPE: Private company

REVENUE: Projected $400,000 this year

EMPLOYEES: 3