NAMPA -- It is the most talked-about story in this area, and one of the most talked-about stories in the nation right now: A young CEO who grew up in Nampa slashing his own salary to give his employees a raise. Wednesday, we spent the day talking to the friends and family of Dan Price, who said he is now who he was growing up; a smart, driven, independent thinker who likes a challenge and likes to challenge others.
Ron Price is the CEO of a multi-milion dollar company, Price Associates, and is an internationally-sought public speaker. But as of late, he says, "I'm my son's water boy now, I guess."
That's because his son, Dan Price, CEO of Gravity Payments, is making national headlines right now. That's after dropping his own salary from $1 million to $70,000 to pay for a minimum wage at his company of $70,000, giving the majority of his employees a big raise. But, for the father of a young man who's been named Entrepreneur of the Year, and landed on the cover of Entrepreneur Magazine, this is kind of old hat.
"We're sort of getting used to this at this point," said Ron. "But, what's been a real surprise to us, is we didn't expect the kind of response to his decision that has come. It seems like it's touched a nerve."
That nerve is the income gap in businesses. Dan wants to start a conversation and is challenging conventional thinking on compensation. Something that doesn't surprise his former teacher and coach at Nampa Christian, Jim Evenhouse.
"He was an independent thinker, I would say," said Evenhouse. "So, sometimes as a teacher that can be a challenging thing. But, those sometimes are the very things that help people to be successful in business."
Ron Price says, "[As a kid] When he came home with orange hair, I was a little bit concerned. But along the way, he's the kind of guy that learns a lot from his mistakes, very passionate, very willing to take a risk, but also very careful with his own money."
Dan actually called his dad before making this decision. Ron had concerns that he was essentially talking about welfare for his employees. But Dan says he's trying to grow his business by taking away a big concern of his employees; making ends meet. Also, this raise will be instated over three years, and over those three years, the onus will be on Dan and the other managers to train and grow all those employees.
Ron Price said, "He's not saying that someone is going to be stagnant, doing the same they're doing today. And, in 2017, they're going to be making $70,000. He's saying, 'No, we're going to grow you, and you're going to be worth $70,000.'"
Ron also says he believes this will help grow his son's business to the point where Dan probably won't be at that $70,000 salary for long. But Dan hopes he can still inspire other business leaders to rethink how they compensate their employees.
"The fact that he's making millions, to me that's great," said Evenhouse. "But to see him give that up, that really gets me excited."
Ron Price says, "Dan likes a challenge. He likes to do something big, and he likes to do something that's disruptive, that gets other people thinking and talking. So, I'm not at all surprised by this, understanding him, I just don't know what's going to be next!"
