Jay Lapeyre, An Entrepreneur Owner-Manager of Many Parts

On this latest episode of the Positive Enterprise Value Podcast, I am thrilled to welcome my good friend Jay Lapeyre. Jay is the second-generation Entrepreneur Owner-Manager (“EOM”) of Laitram LLC. Laitram is based in the New Orleans area but operates worldwide with over 4,000 employees. Jay's dad was a consummate entrepreneur who, with more than 200 patents to his name, invented a number of innovations involved in the material handling business, mostly having to do with food, which was the basis for starting Laitram. Following in his Dad’s footsteps, under Jay’s leadership, Laitram grew worldwide, and is now one of the most successful and widely known innovators in the material movement business, responsible for inventing the plastic interlocking conveyor belt. Jay is a Renaissance man, where in addition to being a husband and a father of three, he holds a BA from the University of Texas as well as an MBA and a JD degree from Tulane University. I'm not sure Jay ever practiced as an attorney, but he certainly has the very ordered thinking and discipline that perhaps some people gain from studying law. My interview with Jay covers a bit of the background of Laitram, some of Jay's interest in developing the whole business, including in particular the human capital aspect: the employees, the management team, the customers, the other constituents around the world, as well as his interest in the community where he is the Chairman of the Board of the Cato Institute, along with The Atlas Society. I loved being with Jay on this interview, as well as spending a half a day on board my boat on the Atlantic Ocean together when it was blowing up pretty hard and we got to see who had a sense of humor after they got a little wet, a little cold, and a little tired. So, without further ado, join me in listening to this fascinating discussion with Jay Lapeyre of Laitram LLC.