Welcome to the CanDo News and Thoughts page!

We hope you enjoy our posts and we encourage you to tell use what you think! This is where we'll share what's going on in our world and our current thoughts. 

It's a family affair! CanDo co-founders John and Tom D'Eri, and their inspiration Andrew D'Eri, to participate in Autism Speaks Employment Think Tank

We are honored to announce that all three of the D’Eri boys will be participating in the Autism Speaks Employment Think Tank in Manhattan, NY on June 12th and 13th. Andrew will be a part of the self-advocate panel on June 12th made up of individuals all across the spectrum who’ll each give their prospective on employment. This conversation will inform and shape the discussion on June 13th, which both John and Tom will be participating in. The June 13th panel will be facilitated by James Emmett - one of the nation’s foremost disability employment consultants and a member of the CanDo team - and will consist of a small group of leaders in the business community focusing on how we can change the flat-lining employment trajectory of a group of citizens who are far too often overlooked in the job market.


The goal of this event is to produce tangible, practical and positive outcomes in terms of increasing employment of adults with autism, as well as for the businesses that hire them across the entire corporate landscape. We are thrilled to be part of this event and hope that we can add valuable insight! 

Posted 2 weeks ago

Rising Tide Brand Story (Rough Draft)

Hi everyone,

All of us here at CanDo Business Ventures have been working diligently on building our first venture, Rising Tide Car Wash. In preparation for the launch of Rising Tide’s website (summer 2012) we have put together a brand story which we hope will paint a vivid picture of what we’re all about! Check it out below and feel free to give us some input!!

“This is Andrew, a perfectly capable young man whose autism has kept him, and his hopes of employment, beached up on the shore. Right now, he’s waiting for the tide to come in to save him from the grips of the sand and bring him into the ocean where he belongs.  Well, for Andrew and many like him, the tide has yet to come in because most of society has deemed them as incapable of being real contributors to their communities when all they really need is a rising tide. This misunderstanding of the ability people with autism have has lead to an unemployment rate of over 90% among those on the spectrum. What’s worse is that while many of these people are employable in the right situation, and thus capable of being contributors to their communities, their unemployment carries huge costs to society. According to statistics from the Autism Society, services to adults with autism cost the U.S. approximately $36 billion annually.

We’re here to change the way society looks at people with autism using the car wash industry as our tool to raise the tide. But why a car wash? Well, CanDo Business Ventures, our parent company, has identified the car wash industry as an excellent opportunity because of its great labor profile for many people with autism based on their affinity for process oriented and repetitive tasks, awesome community exposure due to its location on main roads and hyper-local customer base and potential to scale since the industry is both international and highly fragmented. We believe that the interplay between these factors give Rising Tide the vehicle it needs to both employ many people with autism and create a movement to change the perception of people with autism’s ability to contribute to society, thus impacting the lives of everyone with autism.

To harness this opportunity, we’ve designed our business to give our people with autism the initial surge they need to be elite car wash professionals and great contributors to their communities by implementing a world class training program, incorporating sensory design principles into our car washes and utilizing technology to overcome social communication barriers. With this heightened tide, we believe our professionals with autism are the best car wash professionals you can find anywhere because they love to focus on details, follow a process to the letter and take great pride in producing a clean car every time.

The awakening that all people with autism need is an initial push has made us believe that there is a plethora of beached potential out there that has been given up on, when all they need is a rising tide to get them off the shore and into the ocean. This has inspired us to constantly search out new forms of unseen potential like using renewable energy to help power our site, recycling all of our water and selling an array of products in our shop that contribute to creating a better world. But most of all, we want to share this inspiration with our customers to help them see the potential they are capable of creating by raising their tide.“

Posted 3 weeks ago

CanDo Business Ventures to partner with Integrated Behavioral Systems, Inc.

We are very excited to announce that we will be partnering with Integrated Behavior Systems, Inc. to develop our first venture, Rising Tide Car Wash.
IBS will advise us on all autism related issues around developing a training program and proof of concept for Rising Tide. We believe that IBS’s team, which consists of James Emmett, Chris Simler and Scott Standifer, has the best experience in the nation in developing systems to employ adults with autism based on their scientifically grounded backgrounds and work with both leading corporations and start up social enterprises.  We have the utmost confidence that with their guidance, we will develop a methodology and process for Rising Tide which will put people with autism in a position to achieve dramatic success in the car wash industry. 

James Emmett is a national leader in the development of employment services for persons with disabilities (PWD).  He was born with a physical disability and is a father to two daughters with developmental disabilities. Drawing from personal, business and educational experience, James empowers persons with disabilities to succeed in job as well as life skills, and trains corporations in outreach efforts to the disability community.  After earning a master’s degree in rehabilitation counseling, James Emmett became involved with grant-funded community-based projects in Chicago to provide employment services to people with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). Later he worked on initiatives to hire hundreds of people with disabilities, many with ASD, at Walgreens distribution centers in South Carolina, Best Buy distribution center in Shepherdsville, KY and Midway Moving & Storage in Chicago, IL. Also working through APSE HR Connect, James serves as the lead consultant for TIAA-CREF’s “Fruits of Employment” project. For the West Suburban Chamber of Commerce & Industry, James hosted a video entitled, “”Improving Customer Service for People with Disabilities.”  For the past 24 years, James has been developing disability outreach initiatives for major corporations as well as companies and organizations such as UPS, ABN Amro/LaSall e Banks, Century Tile, and the Brookfield Zoo.

Christopher Simler is the Chief Executive Officer for Integrated Behavioral Systems, Inc and is the Director for the Career Development Center at Turning Pointe. He has written several articles which have been published in Foster Care Support Network and Adult Family Caregivers Network magazines. Christopher speaks nationally on the subject of behavioral modification and supports, career planning, placement and transition for individuals with autism. He is classically trained as an Applied Behavioral Scientist specializing in the field of autism supports, strategies, and curriculum development. As a Behavioral Scientist, Christopher applies his knowledge of leadership, program development, communication and instruction as key components in working with people with disabilities. Over the last fifteen years Christopher has worked with corporations, non-profits, school districts, transition programs, national associations and co-operative special education programs providing trainings, transition consultation and behavioral support. Christopher has fourteen years of management and leadership within the field of social services. He has designed new teaching methodologies and restructured the environments in both public and private school’s behavioral and transition programs. Christopher continues to work nationally providing a strong and successful future for individuals with disabilities.

Dr. Scott Standifer is Assistant Director of the Disability Policy & Studies office at the University of Missouri.  He is the author of Adult Autism & Employment: A guide for rehabilitation professionals, and is the lead organizer of the annual Autism Works National Conference.  Dr. Standifer and his colleagues in Disability Policy & Studies work closely with state vocational rehabilitation agencies regionally and nationally. Dr. Standifer has published articles on autism employment in Autism Spectrum News and The Thinking Person’s Guide to Autism, and has presented on autism for National APSE and the Thompson Center for Autism and Neurodevelopmental Disorders. He has also produced a video on the history of vocational rehabilitation and the Rehab Act for the Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA) in Washington.


Posted 16 weeks ago

CanDo Business Ventures to partner with SONNY'S Enterprises, Inc.

We are deeply humbled to announce that we will be partnering with SONNY’S Enterprises, Inc. to develop our first venture, Rising Tide Car Wash.

SONNY’S will help us in all industry related facets of developing Rising Tide including training, proof of concept demonstration and site selection. We are blown away by SONNY’s enthusiasm for our cause and feel that with their help, Rising Tide will be an overwhelming success. SONNY’s collective industry experience and expertise is unparalleled based on their senior leadership’s work both operating car washes and manufacturing car wash equipment. 

SONNY’s legacy began in 1949 when founder, Sonny Fazio, built his first full-serve car wash. Upon retiring, he began manufacturing replacement parts and eventually equipment for his son’s chain of 12 washes spanning 3 states. Today, SONNY’S The Car Wash Factory is the largest manufacturer of conveyorized car wash equipment, parts and supplies in the world. With full tunnel systems in each of the 50 United States, and equipment in countries all over the world, SONNY’s award winning, American built equipment delivers millions of clean, dry, shiny cars each year.   

 

Posted 17 weeks ago

CanDo Business Ventures to partner with GarageTek, Inc.

We are pleased to announce that GarageTek, Inc. has agreed to partner with us to develop our first venture, Rising Tide Car Wash.

GarageTek, Inc. is an international franchise which provides garage storage solutions. GarageTek’s president, Marc Shuman has agreed to leverage his considerable knowledge of franchise development to help guide Rising Tide’s franchise offerings. We are honored to work with Marc and GarageTek and believe that with their guidance, Rising Tide will be able to scale quickly and impact the lives of many adults with autism.

GarageTek is universally recognized as the international industry leader in garage storage solutions according to the preeminent consumer ranking publication, as well as numerous other independent studies. GarageTek’s franchise network spans 60 domestic markets as well as the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand, South Africa and the Russian Federation. 

Posted 17 weeks ago
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