"Now, I'm moving things forward as opposed to just cleaning up a hundred items that I didn't get to during the day. I'm able to focus on driving the business forward, serving clients better, vision-casting. I think, personally, I've also gotten some peace that if I'm going to work tonight, it's going to be on important stuff and not sitting around, cleaning up yesterday's emails."
— Doug Mentzer, President
The Challenge
Doug Mentzer, president of The Mentzer Group, is no ordinary entrepreneur. Actively involved in four different businesses — two he owns and two he shares with partners — he holds a leadership position in all of them, spanning two technical ventures, a publishing company, and his independent investment advisory firm.
Beyond his professional commitments, Doug's life is equally full: he's a musician, a competitive obstacle-course racer, an active church member, and a father of two. The relentless pace eventually caught up with him.
"… things had gotten pretty hectic."
The problem wasn't a lack of staff — each business had its own team. What Doug lacked was someone working exclusively for him. Administrative tasks like billing, ordering, and scheduling consumed time that should have gone toward leadership. Meanwhile, a growing backlog of important projects sat untouched, each one requiring Doug's direct input or expertise to move forward.
"My biggest pain points – maybe even more than email – was just all these projects that needed to get done that really were going to have to be driven by me, whether it's because I had the knowledge or it was of my making. And I was the one that knew how to do it or what needed to be done."
The Solution
BELAY matched Doug with Kate, a Virtual Assistant who wasted no time getting to work. She started with the fundamentals — email, calendar, and communications — laying the groundwork that would allow Doug to breathe again.
"Initially, when we first got started in January, there was just a lot of basic work on email and calendar and getting some tools set up,"Doug recalls. But once those systems were stabilized, Kate turned her attention to the backlog of projects that had been piling up for months — the ones only Doug had the knowledge or authority to drive, but had never had the time to tackle.
What made Kate especially effective was her ability to move fluidly across Doug's multiple businesses without losing momentum.
"Kate's proven very adaptable in kind of jumping from business to business. She's had no problem just jumping from one to another."With Kate handling the operational details across all four ventures, Doug was finally free to direct his energy toward the work only he could do.
"Kate and I really hit it off from the beginning, built some good trust really early, and we've been running it all. It's been fantastic."
— Doug Mentzer, PresidentThe Impact
With Kate managing the daily demands, Doug experienced a fundamental shift in how he led his businesses. The reactive cycle of chasing emails and clearing backlogs gave way to the forward-thinking leadership his four companies needed.
"We got to where we were past working on email and calendar – and could focus on bigger-picture stuff,"he shares. Instead of treading water, Doug found himself asking the questions that matter most:
"'What's next? What are we pivoting to? How do we serve our clients better?'"
The impact extended beyond the office. Doug found personal peace knowing that when he chose to work after hours, it would be on something that genuinely moved the needle.
"I think, personally, I've also gotten some peace that if I'm going to work tonight, it's going to be on important stuff and not sitting around, cleaning up yesterday's emails."
The working relationship also evolved into a trusted partnership.
"Kate and I really hit it off from the beginning, built some good trust really early, and we've been running it all. It's been fantastic."