John Rinaldi started Real Time Automation in 1988 to make products that help the factory floor run more smoothly. It had a slow start. No matter how much time John and his team put into engineering the products, RTA sunk further into debt. Then, after attending a seminar run by a famous business expert, everything changed. John re-organized the entire office around his new-found insight: He needed to spend his time on marketing, not engineering. Pewaukee, Wisconsin-based Real Time Automation has 27 employees. In 2025 John created an ESOP, or Employee Stock Ownership Plan, and sold 20% of the company to his employees.

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