[PCT Leadership Winner] Pat Hottel

In her almost 30 years of experience in the pest control industry, Pat Hottel has become known as an accomplished, informed, hard working, and well respected professional — and then some. In spite of that, she is a quiet, unassuming woman who would probably be embarrassed hearing those accolades, according to her many friends, co-workers and industry associates.
A board certified entomologist, Hottel holds a bachelor’s degree in entomology from the University of Georgia. She has been technical director for McCloud Services since 1980 and was one of the first women in the industry to hold the technical director position when she went to work for Bermuda Pest Control back in 1976.
“Hiring Pat 25 years ago was one of the smartest things I ever did,” says Tom McCloud, chairman of the regional pest control company bearing his family name. The company is headquartered in a Chicago suburb.
“I hired her because she had the experience, character traits and the academic degree that predicts success in pest control,” he says. “I held the job of technical director for several years and felt I could help her out if she ran into any trouble, but it soon became obvious that she would not need that much help.”
Hottel is not just another employee within his company, according to McCloud. “She is also involved in management decisions and her opinion carries a lot of weight here. She always has our best interests at heart and will never compromise our standards or her own high standards,” he says.
According to McCloud, Hottel does many important things for the company. “She keeps everyone posted on the various technical issues. Whatever the latest technology that comes along, she is right on top of it.
“She’s also very well versed in regulatory issues and makes sure that our company is always in compliance. She’s very involved working with the states that are home to our branch offices to make sure that we are very aware of their laws,” he comments. 
“If someone suggests a new or unique treatment approach, the company relies on Pat to say, ‘Yes, we can do that,’ or ‘No, we can’t,’ because of her knowledge of the regulatory scene,” he says.
“She is critical in our decision-making process. She is not a ‘me-too’ person. If she disagrees with something or if she’s got a point to make, she makes it. And that’s something we really appreciate.”
“Pat is dedicated to her profession,” adds Chris McCloud, vice president of operations. “She is always looking to improve her skills and to come up with the newest tricks of the trade or new methodologies,” he explains. “She aggressively pushes for improvements in the ways our pest control technicians do their jobs. And she is willing to share with others.”
The younger McCloud says the company has a core set of values that include honesty, safety, integrity and quality. “Pat is completely aligned with our core values. Safety is one of them and it’s a passionate topic at McCloud. Pat has been vital in instilling that value company-wide.”
According to Chris McCloud, Hottel is “a very caring person” who has been able to find a good and effective balance as a pest control professional and a mother. “That aspect of her identity is very evident at work. She is very compassionate while interfacing with both our customers and our employees.”

ANOTHER FRISHMAN PROTÉGÉ.
Hottel, a native of New York State, was encouraged by her father, who was a plumber, to go to college. “I wanted to take a year off after graduating high school, but he insisted that I go straight to college. I’m glad that he did.”
She entered State University of New York (SUNY), Farmingdale, in 1973 without a major course of study in mind. “But I was interested in the sciences and nature – not specifically insects.”
However, she did pursue a major in biology, and pest control industry consultant Dr. Austin Frishman turned out to be her advisor at the university. He became the biggest influence in her career, she says. “I didn’t really know much about entomology or pest control before I met him.”
After two years at SUNY, Hottel enrolled at the University of Georgia. Upon completing her junior year there she had the opportunity to work in pest control in Bermuda. She had traveled to Bermuda the previous year and loved it. “What 20-year-old kid wouldn’t jump at a chance to live and work in Bermuda,” she states. Her work with Bermuda Pest Control provided great field experience — with roof rats, as well as Australian, German and American cockroaches.
She then returned to the University of Georgia, completed her degree and went to work again for Bermuda Pest Control, this time in their Florida office.
“In the summer of 1980 I saw an ad for an opening at McCloud in one of the trade journals and applied for the position,” she says. “What attracted me was the opportunity to work for a larger company with more of an emphasis on commercial pest control. In Bermuda, the pest control was concentrated on resorts — a type of commercial pest control, but one that is more similar to residential work. McCloud gave me the opportunity to broaden my horizons in terms of working in a variety of commercial environments, especially food processing and food warehouse facilities.”

EVER-CHANGING RESPONSIBILITIES
When she first joined the company, she was training and technical director. But McCloud has at least doubled in size since then and expanded geographically. “We’ve also increased our training staff, so my responsibilities have changed from a technical standpoint. I’m much more specialized. I’m no longer training director but am still involved in training.”
One of the things she most appreciates about her company is their willingness to allow her to be flexible. “This allowed me to raise a family, to work out of my home, to flex my work and travel schedules. This company is very progressive. We always explore new technologies and new ways of doing things. And they have been supportive of me in my interest in working on the Copesan Technical Committee and my involvement with the NPMA and various state associations.” 
Hottel was one of the first chairs of the Copesan Technical Committee. “It’s helped me a great deal professionally. Interacting with the other technical directors who are members of the committee has been a valuable experience. It’s helpful to be able to call on them for support and for answers to difficult questions. They might be able to give you advice on a pest problem that they are experiencing in their area — a problem that you, too, might have to deal with. Or to learn about new technologies and how they are implementing those new technologies.”
A year after joining the Copesan Technical Committee, Hottel began chairing it. “I found that being in a leadership position like that at such a young age was a great experience.”
Jim Sargent, who has been an active member of the committee during the past nine years, has known Pat for more than 20 years. “She is long on experience, her opinions are always relevant and significant, and she has a great sense of humor, too,” he says.
“When I was with Great Lakes Chemical Corp., I would talk to Pat about methyl bromide issues. I still consult with her periodically to get her input about technical information on fumigation,” he says. “She runs her company’s fumigation school for employees and clients and has involved me in making presentations for some of those sessions.”
Sargent says he has great respect for her. “She handles a hundred different things at once. Everyone has great confidence in her. I tease her, telling her that she is fantastic. But she really is. She gets involved in more things that aren’t part of her responsibilities but people keep calling on her for her expertise.”
According to Sargent, Hottel is a great troubleshooter who satisfies client demands and answers their questions. “But I’m most impressed by her training abilities. She puts together some of the best technician training programs in the industry. She is so good at making a subject interesting. She’ll organize workstations or tabletop exercises as part of her programs. Most trainers can do what Pat does but they don’t because it takes so much time and effort. But she does it so well because of her dedication and professionalism.”

ADMIRED BY HER INDUSTRY PEERS
Jay Bruesch, technical director for Plunkett’s Pest Control in Minneapolis, Minn., has been associated with Hottel since the late 1980s as a fellow member the Copesan Technical Committee. They have collaborated on program development for the committee.
“Most notably, Pat and I did a technician training exercise with industry consultant Larry Pinto,” he recalls. “This involved coming up with all the things a first-year service technician should do or say. We plugged in the materials and came up with an effective program.”
Hottel does an outstanding job of instructing and training people “without sacrificing her grace and her extraordinary friendliness,” says Bruesch. “She genuinely likes people and cares that they learn and succeed. She’s tuned into the fact that her students are busy professionals and she doesn’t try to overwhelm them with training. 
“She has the ability to reach people effectively and her commitment to our industry is very evident. I’ve never seen her get angry with anyone. She never gets in anyone’s face or argues with them, but she always manages to make her point with them,” he says.
“Pat consistently looks for ways to improve the status of her own company, be it their safety training, fumigation procedures or technician training programs. She is a respected technical expert both within her company and at the national level.”
Long-time industry consultant Bobby Corrigan, president of RMC Pest Management Consulting, Richmond, Ind., has also come to admire Hottel. He has known her since she started working for the McCloud organization. “Our paths have crossed in work repeatedly and she has always impressed me with her technical insights to pest management,” he says. “She is able to deeply evaluate problems and sees angles that perhaps many of us miss.
“I receive hundreds of technical questions during the course of any year. When Pat calls with one, I know it will usually be a two-way learning experience. I’ve learned from her questions and her own insights on any particular pest issue. Whenever I am responsible for planning seminars and conferences over the years, Pat is one of the entomologists I always call on for her vision on current topics the industry needs to examine.”
The consensus of opinion about Pat, as expressed by Corrigan and her other associates, is that she is simply a joy to be around. Always nice. Always kind. And always engaging and interesting in conversations at meetings, conventions and educational events. In other words, a true professional.