Robert Jaskiewicz

Managing Director, 12five Capital

Biography:

Robert graduated in 1972 from Michigan State University and served on the faculty of Michigan State from 1972 until 1985.  He quit academia to join the real world of business and started with New York Life Insurance. While selling insurance, Robert learned about the alternative lending business and, in 1988, started his career in factoring. Since then, he has worked for several alternative lenders in a variety of roles.  He currently works with two of his sons at 12five Capital LLC, which has an excellent team of 10 staff members. Robert has been married to Linnea for 36 years and they have three sons, Ryan, Jay, and Sean, and Robert has two daughters from a first marriage, Amy and Kimberly.

Robert is currently an elected Village Trustee in the Village of Bolingbrook, past president of the Bolingbrook Rotary Club, current board member for the Bolingbrook Chamber of Commerce and The Bolingbrook Pride Organization, a member of the Northern Will County Exchange Club, and a past board member of the Amita Hospital Foundation.

What advice would you offer to someone just starting out who wants to be a difference maker in their organization?

GET INVOLVED. Join service groups such as Rotary, Lions, Exchange Clubs, Chambers that service the territory you hope to develop a business in. Do not just join, but become an active and contributing member of each group you join.  Payback will be ten-fold. DO NOT just sit on the sidelines after you join and hope for the best. You are wasting your time and money if you do that.

Please discuss any additional organizations you are involved with and why their missions are important to you.

I am an active board member for the Bolingbrook Chamber of Commerce servicing over 600 members. I was instrumental in starting up an award program that recognized successful businesses that were involved in the community and gave back to the community as well. That program is now in its 15th year. I became an elected Village Trustee for our town of 76,000 people in 2017, an active Rotarian and past president of the Bolingbrook Rotary Club and a charter member and Treasure for the Bolingbrook Pride Organization serving the LGBTQ community. I recently joined the Exchange Club of Northern Will County to help fight child abuse. The Exchange Club is about people helping people in the belief that hope for tomorrow happens today. Each of these groups allows me to help a different audience in a variety of ways.

What advice would you give to people who want to give back but aren’t sure how to select exactly which charities or organizations?

Determine first what interest you have, what is near and dear to your heart, and why you want to serve. If you join a group you have no connection with, you will lose interest fast and the other members will see you do not truly care.  There are over 40 not-for-profits in my home town of 75,000 people. I’m sure every town will have a variety of not-for-profit groups that you can join and serve with passion.

How do you balance work/personal time and your time spent giving back?

As much as possible, giving back should be a family affair.  Whenever I’m involved in a service program, I involve my wife and children as much as possible.  This allows us to interact and not feel like my volunteer time is taking away from family time. It also teaches my children the importance of volunteering.

What advice would you give to someone who says they wish they could be more involved in “giving back” but just can’t find the time?

You will never find time if it is not a priority.  It just means you do not truly believe in the mission of the group.  If “giving back” is one way to also build your business, you will find time.  If it is for personal satisfaction, you will find time. If it is being done because it looks good on a resume, and is not a true priority, you will have trouble finding time to help.  I love contributing as a Chamber Board Member, and active Rotarian, and an elected official, because helping people matters. Does it help grow business? Yes. But that has become secondary to having a great time giving back to our village, developing meaningful relationships with other members and to helping those who are served by each of the groups I’m active in.