Western Allied Mechanical

Jeff readily understood and enjoyed working with the system so much, he transitioned careers to become a consultant for them. When Western Allied Corporation updated their accounting system to Dexter Chaney, we hired Jeff to manage our conversion and continue consulting for a few years longer at both the Northern and Southern California offices.

By 2005 Western Allied Mechanical had been established independently in Northern California and we were in need of hiring our own financial Controller. Fortunately for us, Jeff accepted the job and moved to the Bay Area. After several years and fiscal growth in Menlo Park, Jeff became a partner and eventually the Chief Financial Officer. Past president Angie Simon said of her time with Jeff: “He was instrumental in helping us scale up the company as we grew. He was a solid partner and provided good consistent advice to Jim as President, then later to me as President. Also, Jeff helped guide us through many challenging times; particularly 2008-2009 when I was a new President and we hit a recession that was very challenging. Jeff worked hard to establish an amazing relationship with the bank, bonding company and the CPA. They all respected him for his hard work and honesty.”

Elaine Raeber and Diana Kadash who have worked with Jeff since he started, together agree that the key contribution Jeff made was to his staff. “Jeff is a very kind and genuine person. Jeff always trusted that we would do our job and never questioned our ability to get our jobs done. We always knew that Jeff had our back and would support us when needed.” said Elaine Raeber.

Diana Kadash recounts, “One funny story was when we had an accounting lunch and one of us found a set of keys in the lunchroom refrigerator. They were Jeff’s car keys. When asked about it he said, ‘I put them on my leftovers from lunch so I wouldn’t forget them.’ I guess that is one way to remember your leftovers!” She also added, “Jeff’s door was always open, and we were always able to bug him with a question. The only time we weren’t sure if we could bother him is when he had his opera music blaring in his office. We think that meant, ‘don’t bother me now, I’m concentrating.’ It has been our pleasure to work with Jeff over the years!”

Jeff has transitioned over his responsibilities now to Juan Virgen-Torres. Juan has also been impressed with Jeff’s remarkable people skills and describes him as, “humble and kind.” Additionally, he says, “Because Jeff was so integral to our accounting software development, he has a thorough understanding of the backbone of the technology that drives our process. He sets up his own queries and reports and is practically a programmer. It is unusually beneficial to find someone who is not only financially savvy but has such great technical expertise.”

Knowing Jeff’s has both strong technical and people skills it is no wonder he is also a devoted member of the Menlo Park Rotary club where their motto is, “Service Above Self.” In fact, Jeff is now serving as the club’s President. Investing time in the greater good of his community is an endeavor he will continue to enjoy in his retirement. On the home front, Jeff and his wife Deb look forward to having the additional time and flexibility to spend with their adult children and seven grandchildren. Not to mention their dog, of course.

On behalf of each of us at Western Allied Mechanical, we say a “Thank you” to Jeff for investing the past couple of decades into building our thriving company. Jeff’s leadership has greatly influenced the organization we have become and we are grateful to build upon that legacy.