Viewtrak Technologies, Inc. introduces information technology solutions to the agriculture industry. Taking the lead in the marketplace, the company has steadily been growing since it was founded in 2000. Viewtrak had $3.3M gross revenue in 2010 with an intimate team of only 26 employees.
Company President and CEO Dr. Jake Burlet has been studying agribusiness, working in the industry for many years, and now has several profitable businesses in the agriculture sector.
Reaching out to clients in Canada, the United States, Mexico, and China, Viewtrak provides IT solutions for farmers and ranchers, livestock auction markets, feedlots, and meat packing plants. These solutions provide data collection and analysis, allowing clients to monitor their animals from “gate to plate”.
The Doctor’s Story
Dr. Jake Burlet is an agribusiness entrepreneur with broad experience in the livestock industry. Having been raised on a cattle ranch west of Edmonton and worked as a practicing food animal veterinarian, Dr. Burlet has an in-depth understanding agribusiness from a production and animal health management.
He is a co-founder of Viewtrak Technologies Inc., a Canadian company providing information technology solutions to the livestock industry, as well as Cattle & Co. Investments Inc., a cattle feeding business based in Western Canada and Weiller & Williams (Saskatoon) Ltd. a livestock order buying business. Dr. Burlet and his wife own a large central Alberta cattle ranch and are partners in significant land holdings in Saskatchewan.
Dr. Burlet has served in an executive and board capacity for a number of industry professional organizations, and has sat on the advisory boards of two multi-national veterinary pharmaceutical companies. In addition to these varied roles he is a Board Trustee for the University of Alberta Hospital Foundation and serves on the Board of Directors for three privately held Canadian corporations.
Dr. Burlet is an alumnus of the Western College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Saskatchewan and has post graduate training in animal nutrition and herd management from the Ontario Veterinary College, University of Guelph. He holds a Masters of Business Administration degree from the Richard Ivey School of Business, University of Western Ontario.
I have traveled the globe like I never would have dreamed, which has provided me enough stories to share for 3 lifetimes.
What inspired you to start your business?
My veterinary practice specialty evolved from individual animal practice to consulting on farm expansion (finance, business plans) as well as linking animal production to business profitability. After being trampled by a buffalo while preparing a large shipment for international client, I spent 5 days in neurological intensive care unit of University Hospital (Edmonton).
While recovering from my injuries, I came to the realization that the ability to generate a living as a veterinarian required the ability to get out of bed and practice every day. This event precipitated thinking about how to create a business that could be sustainable without depending on my presence there every day to run it and generate revenue.
What was the market need?
Data collection, linkage and sharing across segments of the livestock supply chain. Each segment has their own specific and unique information needs; sharing select data points from each segment during an animal’s production lifetime can achieve traceability from “gate to plate”. The market needed traceability to satisfy both domestic and export markets.
Case in point: Canada’s loss of global export markets for beef, combined with industry support payments as a result of Mad Cow Disease has been over $7B since May 20, 2003, and it continues to increase.
What was the hardest part about starting out?
Having the confidence to make the decision and launch the business.
Where did your business’s seed capital come from and how did you go about getting it?
In order:
- Self – Put up or shut up
- Investors – You don’t get to dance with the pretty girls without asking.
- Venture capital – Came as a result of appearing on Report on Business TV
My goal? Make myself obsolete; create an organization that can function and excel without me.
Tell us a bit about Viewtrak’s products and services.
Viewtrak is the largest provider of livestock auction market software in North America, with over 30,000,000 animals per year being transacted by livestock auctions using Viewtrak software and IT solutions. Viewtrak also has the 2nd largest market share in the feedlot software business in North America. Over 2,500,000 heads of livestock are managed through our cow/calf software.
Viewtrak also designs and manufactures innovative, high quality hardware and software for meat packing and processing plants, used across North America and China. Our two systems, the DT-500 Data Collection System and The PG-207 Electronic Pork Grader, use the most advanced technology to process data quickly and accurately.
What makes Viewtrak’s offerings unique?
We have the most complete livestock supply chain coverage in our industry, moving toward one, integrated IT platform for ease of development and after sales service.
How did you build your management team?
We prefer to refer to ourselves as a leadership team vs a management team. People prefer to be led versus “managed”.
Initially with loyal people from other businesses we owned and then supplemented with new recruits introduced by a former key employee. Timing is everything – our current leadership team saw the right people cross our paths at the right time- for them as well as us.
How do you keep your staff motivated and engaged?
We share all information and consciously communicate a lot. More specifically, our leadership team meets twice daily (15 minutes in the morning, 5 at end of day).
How did you brand your business and market it?
Brand definition – As puzzle pieces: when all the pieces of the puzzle are together then industry livestock traceability is complete.
Follow the Rockerfeller Habits no matter how rough it gets… It will save you heartache, headache, and money, and give both you and your investors satisfaction.
What is Viewtrak’s biggest success so far?
Our entry into the China market.
What other major milestones has Viewtrak reached recently?
Participation in national project (Canada) for livestock traceability within Canadian livestock auction markets.
Do you have plans to expand to new markets?
Yes – Vietnam, Korea, South America.
What are your goals as an entrepreneur?
Make myself obsolete; create an organization that can function and excel without me (but would still like to have me around!).
What is your exit strategy?
MBO, private equity.
What are the company’s goals for growth?
Become the world’s premier provider of livestock IT solutions and grow our business by 5 times in the next 3 years (5 times gross revenue, profit by 30 times).
What is the company’s expansion funding strategy?
Self funding and strategic alliance/partnering. Maybe a private or public source.
Any insights on Acquisitions?
We have had five acquisitions to date, and they have gotten us to where we are today. We are always looking for opportunities and we explore every prospect. You need to kiss a lot of frogs, as the saying goes…
How did we brand ourselves? As puzzle pieces: when all the pieces of the puzzle are together then industry livestock traceability is complete.
How do you define success?
Easy:
- Do your very best every day,
- Make no assumptions,
- Be impeccable with your word (integrity),
- Don’t take anything personally.
When our management team follows these practices, I believe we are successful no matter the circumstance or outcome.
To what do you most attribute your success?
- Dogged, fanatical never giving up.
- ACTING on intuition.
- Recognizing that one person can’t do it all.
- Culture is everything. We recruit for culture; we let people go if the fit is not right.
- Giving great people the freedom to operate.
What advice would you give to aspiring entrepreneurs?
1) Go to Gazelles.com, 2) Go to the first session that you and your management team can and get trained on the Rockefeller Habits, 3) Follow the recommendations from the Rockerfeller Habits no matter how rough it gets, 4) Do this before anything else. It will save you heartache, headache, and money, and give both you and your investors satisfaction.
If you were to recommend a book to a young entrepreneur, what would it be?
Rockefeller Habits by Verne Harnish
How has being an entrepreneur affected your life?
I have traveled the globe like I never would have dreamed, which has provided me enough stories to share for 3 lifetimes. I have worked harder than ever before and have met public and private business people that I would have never thought possible.
I manifested the dreams of my Western European grandparents who were entrepreneurs in their own right by risking it all and coming to start a new life in a new country.
What is the best part of owing a business?
Failures followed by successes. Knowing how hard it is to get it right and then actually doing it.
If you had the chance to start over again, what would you do differently?
Make tough decisions much quicker (rationalizing staff and resources during economic slowdown).
Take Rockefeller Habits course in the beginning. If only I knew then what I know now…
I manifested the dreams of my Western European grandparents who were entrepreneurs in their own right by risking it all and coming to start a new life in a new country.
From Inspiration to Innovation to Success
Many years of experience in agribusiness has lead Dr. Burlet to the success he reaps today. His business ventures have afforded him many opportunities to travel the world, selling a terrific product. He is a true Canadian success and an inspiration to many a generation, from his immigrant grandparents to aspiring entrepreneurs of the future.
For more information about their innovative tracking solutions, and how they are helping protect our food stocks, visit the Viewtrak website.
