Ann Parham

By Erica Shatzer

uring the days of disco, Ann Parham, CEO of The Parham Groups, was a student at Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, Texas. The times were changing, and new opportunities were becoming available to females throughout the United States. So, when the educational institution’s Army Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) permitted women to join, Ann, whose father was in the military and who calls herself a “natural boss,” was first to enroll. She went on to become the program’s first female commissioned second lieutenant.

That’s also where she first met her husband Michael “Mike” Parham. They hit it off and started dating. It wasn’t long before they were married. The year was 1976; Ann, a junior in college, was 20 years young. Although they found themselves at the altar slightly sooner than anticipated, they wed in order to be stationed together upon completion of the ROTC program. Unwilling to be separated, that hurried union turned into 39 years of marriage.

“Mike was Mr. Personality and the All-American Boy Scout,” says Ann. “I knew he was going places and had a future ahead of him. He was also lots of fun and crazy about me! That is very hard to resist!”

Married college life taught Ann to live frugally, which would serve her well in the future. Until they both left to serve on active duty, Mike and Ann lived in an old Victorian-style house that was converted into a duplex. Their front door was the sliding glass door on the side of the house. They each received $100 per month while on contract with the military and supplemented their income doing side jobs—all while still attending school with a full load of studies. Mike worked at a gas station (when there were still attendants), and Ann taught horseback riding lessons.

After graduation, Ann was stationed close to Indianapolis, Ind., at Fort Benjamin Harrison, where she completed her officer basic course for three months. Mike attended engineering school at Ft. Belvoir in Virginia, which was a six-month course. Ann was delving deeper into her leadership and management training, focusing primarily on personnel management and club management. There she further developed the skills necessary to eventually lead offices and companies.

Their careers began to shift in different directions after they returned to their home state of Texas. They were both stationed at Fort Hood (now known as Fort Cavazos) in Killeen, where Ann worked at III Corps, the office that was responsible for starting the military’s first personnel database, and Mike was assigned to 62^nd Engineer Battalion. Processing data within that database to produce meaningful information became her newest proficiency—an aptitude that set her up for a career outside the Army. Then they made the decision to leave military life and pursue a civilian career.

About being one of the only females in the officer rank from the late 70s to mid-80s, Ann says she made it a point to “do a better job than anyone else” to earn the respect and acceptance of her male counterparts, essentially “winning them over with performance.”

Subsequent to acquiring a wealth of knowledge about leadership, management, and data processing, Ann joined Affiliated Computer Systems (ACS) in Dallas, Texas, the company that started the automatic teller machine (ATM). She was working third shift at the company’s downtown location in data processing management, the production shift that ensured the ATM withdraws were processed. “It wasn’t live,” Ann says about the reporting of account holders’ available balances, “so there were lots of overdrafts.”

By the mid-80s, they had relocated to San Antonio, Mike had saved $10,000, and he was ready to launch his own business. Unfortunately, high interest rates and the birth of their first child, Rachel, made 1986 a challenging year. As Mike was trying to get NDS Construction off the ground, Ann was serving as the family’s sole breadwinner as an officer with a savings and loan company. He had no salary for an entire year, so they relied on her income and their savings to stay afloat until NDS gained momentum. “We had faith it would work out,” says Ann, “and it did.”

Over the next few years, the Parhams continued to expand their company and their family. While on maternity leave with their second daughter, Rebecca, Ann temporarily stepped into an office management role for NDS. As she handled administrative tasks and odd jobs, she was simultaneously learning the ins and outs of the construction business. However, when interest rates skyrocketed, Ann returned to the bank as the production control manager.

Then, in 1993, with two daughters and one company under their belts, the Parhams grew again, adding their son David and Noah’s Ark Development to their lives. Because the department she was managing dissolved, and Mike’s administrative assistant left, Ann took on a permanent position within the family business.

Four years later, Mike built the family’s first self-storage facility with future phases already in mind. It was a single-story climate-controlled and non-climate buildings on a hill in Bulverde, Texas. Ann thought he was “crazy” at the time, but she served as its first property manager.

“It was a baptism by fire,” Ann says, acknowledging that she knew nothing about self-storage management at the time. Nevertheless, her life experiences as a second lieutenant, production control manager, wife, and mother enabled her to take on the position with extraordinary acumen. In fact, she did such a remarkable job that the Parhams founded Joshua Management in 1997 to manage the Noah’s Ark facilities they were developing. As president, Ann led it to great heights, securing placement on Messenger’s annual Top Operators list numerous times. At its largest, Joshua Management was managing 15 facilities throughout Florida and Texas.

“I’ve done every job except superintendent,” says Ann. “I can relate to managers because I’ve been in their shoes. It’s not as easy of a job as owners may think.”

Moreover, Ann’s military background didn’t persuade her to utilize the stereotypical authoritarian leadership style often associated with drill sergeants. Instead of being inflexible and domineering, she created a collaborative environment that enables managers to thrive.

About the company’s managers, “Their input is invaluable,” Ann says, adding that she experiences no turnover because she treats her managers like family members, business partners, and an important part of the team—an approach she attributes to her Army training. It’s important to “take care of the troops,” she says. “Find a great manager and treat them like they’re golden.”

It’s proven to be effective, as Ann points out that one employee has been with the company for 29 years. “They don’t leave! We provide what they need to succeed.”

What’s more, Joshua Management’s managers are trusted to problem-solve and think on their feet rather than adhere to canned, impersonal scripts. “Not all responses can be typed,” says Ann. “Every store is different. You can’t manage them all the exact same—managers or stores.” For that reason, the company’s team members serve as “test customers” for managers in training to enable them to learn how to handle various situations that may arise on the job. Property managers are selected to fit the market on hand, and the way in which they manage sites is based on the demographics. According to Ann, operating every property the exact same way, regardless of the city and its people, “doesn’t fly.”

Her successful management methods resulted in her becoming a trusted and respected professional within the self-storage industry. As such, Ann was frequently called upon to lead round table discussions, author educational articles, supply advice for various management-related articles, and speak at conferences for the Arizona Self-Storage Association, Texas Self Storage Association, and Louisiana Self Storage Association. Additionally, The Parham Group has won five of Messenger’s prestigious Facility of the Year awards (1991, 1994, and 1996 as well as the Construction Facility of the Year award in 2014 and the Overall Facility of the Year in 2015).

All three of the Parhams’ companies were running smoothly until Mike’s untimely and unexpected passing on Nov. 18, 2014. Following the heartbreaking loss of their larger-than-life husband, father, and leader, the Parhams vowed to continue his legacy with passion and dedication.

“We called clients to tell them we’d be carrying on,” recalls Ann. “Having to pick up everything and losing him was the greatest challenge of my life, but I knew staying in bed wouldn’t help.” They didn’t have set succession plans in place per se, but they knew at least Rachel would carry on the business; she had been working alongside Mike for several years before his death. Ann adds that being prepared for the inevitable is advantageous. “The best gift to give your family is having everything in place.”

As the matriarch, Ann became CEO and president of the Parham Group, while Rachel stepped into the role of president at Noah’s Ark Development and NDS Construction and David joined the business to assume the role of president of Joshua Management. Together, the family maintains the same core values and principles on which Mike founded the companies.

Since that shift in leadership, Ann, who is beyond proud of her three successful children, has been trying to take more of a backseat in the business. “I’m allowing them to take over some,” she says, which can be difficult for a woman who’s used to being in charge. “I’m working in more of an advisory capacity now and training others to go to David and Rachel for answers instead of me.”

Giving Rachel and David more leadership leeway has provided Ann with more time to pursue other interests. She’s currently more involved with her own community, serving on the boards of nonprofits and the local chamber of commerce.

And while Ann may make time to travel, she isn’t likely to walk away from The Parham Group entirely. “I will probably always have a foot in the door,” she says, “but I’m no longer the future of this company—Rachel and David are.”