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Although he captains a defense/aerospace company at the leading edge of a very complex technology, William Blossom likes to keep things simple.
Blossom, 42, is president of Fishers-based Flightline Electronics Inc., formerly Rospatch Electronic Systems Division, a leading manufacturer of antisubmarine warfare and avionic systems.
"In my philosophy, only a couple things really matter," he says. "You have to service the heck out of your customers -- even though sometimes it's frustrating -- and you have to communicate effectively with your employees."
That policy helped Blossom, who lives in Pittsford with his wife, Pam, and their two children, guide his division out of red ink in the late 1980s, nurture it while its parent firm was engaged in a long and damaging proxy fight, and eventually led him to buy the business.
"You have to be honest with your employees. Tell them both the good and the bad," he says. "Management tends to sugarcoat things when they talk to their people. But they're adults; they can handle it."
Blossom's tenure at Flightline has been a tale of stress and distress, but he has managed both to keep the business profitable and to bolster employee morale.
"Through some very tough times, Bill has been able to keep his operation not only stable but growing," says Russell Coyner, vice president of SteelCase Inc., and a Flightline board member. "Bringing a company through the hard times and uncertainties his people have faced is a tough task."
Blossom, a Binghamton native, is not unfamiliar with rescuing companies in crisis. After graduating from the SUNY Binghamton, Blossom joined Bendix Corp., eventually becoming manufacturing manager. He then joined Hercules Inc.
"Simmons Precision had just been acquired by Hercules," Blossom says. "They made me president of its aerospace division, which had been losing a lot of money. We turned it into a highly profitable division and doubled its sales volume."
Through a couple of acquaintances, Blossom learned about the Fishers company, which had been acquired by Michigan-based Rospatch Corp. The new parent...