Bill Tulloch is president of RHM Fluid Power, a fluid power distributorship located in Westland, Mich. Contact him at btulloch@rhmfp.com.

HOW HAS BUSINESS BEEN LATELY? Challenging! Heavy automotive and machine tool alignment has not been kind to growth initiatives in the upper Midwest. We did experience reasonable growth in 2005, but much of it came from outside of our traditional customer base. First quarter 2006 has been lukewarm.

WHAT DO YOU EXPECT THE REMAINDER OF THE YEAR? The difficulties of our domestic automobile industry create tremendous market uncertainty, making guesswork of forecasting. RHM can realize double-digit growth this year by continuing to expand into new technologies and markets, while at the same time nurturing long-time core competencies.

WHAT IS THE BEST IDEA YOU'VE IMPLEMENTED IN THE LAST SIX MONTHS? Investment in engineering and sales talent who are expert in companion technologies that will take us into new markets and reduce existing vulnerabilities.

WHAT IS THE BIGGEST ISSUE FACING DISTRIBUTION TODAY? A declining manufacturing and industrial marketplace. The steady erosion of our customer base since 2001 has been frightening. Traditional channel issues become secondary when major customers continue to disappear.

IF YOU HAD UNLIMITED RESOURCES, WHAT CHANGE WOULD YOU MAKE IN YOUR BUSINESS? I would develop a stronger and more long-term internal training program to address the problem of finding qualified personnel for the future. Couple that with investments in information technologies to improve our global reach via the Web, and our ability to service those prospective customers.

WHAT IS THE MOST MISUNDERSTOOD ASPECT OF YOUR INDUSTRY? Our manufacturing partners often fail to appreciate our closeness to the customer, the importance of our local relationships in driving their success, and the urgency in addressing customer needs.

IF YOU COULD HAVE ANY OTHER JOB IN THE WORLD, WHAT WOULD IT BE? Owner of a slope-side ski lodge in Jackson Hole, Wyo. If not a full lodge, at least a cozy pub with an appealing après-ski ambience.

WHAT'S YOUR GOLF HANDICAP? YOUR FAVORITE COURSE? A hard-fought 16 at Western Country Club in Detroit. Tops on my list of favorite courses is Pete Dye's Teeth of the Dog at Casa de Campo in the Dominican Republic.

IF YOU COULD CHOOSE SOMEONE, LIVING OR DEAD, TO HAVE LUNCH WITH, WHO WOULD IT BE? Jimmy Buffett. As a closet "parrothead," I have come to appreciate Jimmy's outlook on life and the way he lives it to the fullest. There's something to be said about "...growing older but not up!"

WHERE DID YOU GO ON YOUR LAST VACATION? Skiing in Courmayeur, Italy with some side jaunts into France and Switzerland for the annual "boys trip" that has been ongoing since 1992.

NAME A TALENT YOU WISH YOU HAD. To be truly fluent in at least one other language. I can order a beer in about five languages, but beyond that, forget about it!