Tom Kaufman got his foot in the door of the family business when he was just a teenager. Although he spent many youthful summers working at William H. Kaufman Inc., it wasn't until he went to university that the 41 year-old decided to jump into the family boot-making business.

    That's when Kaufman (MBA '82) gave "serious thought" to what he wanted to do in life, he says. Kaufman assumed the presidency of the company in January.

    As the head of a family-owned firm, he's up against some daunting statistics. Only three out of 10 family-owned businesses in Canada survive to a second generation, while only one in 10 makes it to a third. But Kaufman is the fourth-generation of a business founded by Jacob Kaufman in 1907.

    As the new president, Kaufman has his own style of management which he describes as "aggressive, but not in a negative sense -- more in the sense of moving things forward." The company, whose products are exported to 29 countries throughout the world, is in the process of developing a Web site on the Internet. The 'bread and butter' boots of the business are the Sorel winter boots and Black Diamond industry safety footwear, which account for the majority of the annual $150 million in sales.

    Kaufman recalls that at the end of the MBA program, many of the graduates were talking to banks, brokerage companies, and large corporations about jobs. "So few were looking to get involved with small to mid-sized corporations," he says. "I remember thinking, all these talented people coming out and hardly anyone looking for opportunities with smaller companies." Kaufman was one of those few who did and has no regrets, he says. Chances are Jacob Kaufman might be pleased by how well his great-grandson is filling his boots.