Cal-Tex Electric

Matt Trevis has known Cal-Tex Owner Ronnie Bassett for almost two decades. They first worked together beginning in 2001 at a south metro electrical construction company. He joined Ronnie at Cal-Tex Electric in March 2007, working as a journeyman electrician and a job site foreman. Eventually, in 2011, Matt moved into an office job as a project manager/estimator. In late 2018, Matt was promoted to Vice President of Cal-Tex Companies and became a shareholder in the company in January 2019.

Matt and Josh Humphrey oversee most of Cal-Tex Electric’s operations – estimating, managing projects, and searching for new projects for Cal-Tex through their network of happy, current, and past clients. “I always wanted a challenge like this, and it still challenges me every day.”

Matt grew up in Farmington and eventually earned an AAS degree in electrical construction at Dunwoody Institute. He now lives in South Minneapolis with his wife Kobi, and their two daughters. Matt’s wife is from British Columbia and played four years of college hockey at St. Cloud State University.

Matt loves to fish year around – especially at the family cabin in Brainerd – and spend quality time with his family.

The lure of working with a company bursting at the seams with growth opportunities plus being closer to his daughter was enough of an incentive for Mike Toepfer to move from warm California to the frozen tundra called Minnesota in 2017. Mike is the Chief Operating Officer for Cal-Tex , a new position that is a result of the company’s expansion to three divisions and explosive growth in its client project list.

The move to Minnesota was made a bit easier by the fact that Mike’s daughter Cara is the wife of Ronnie Bassett, the founder and President of Cal-Tex. Plus Mike had owned a trucking company with Ronnie  more than a decade ago. “I had been involved off and on with Cal-Tex since their inception, mainly with strategic insights and operational organization. In 2016 Ronnie told me he would be honored if I would come to work for him in Minnesota. My wife had just retired, so it figured ‘why not’ and we moved to Minnesota and I started in the middle of winter – January 16, 2017. I’ve enjoyed every moment since I moved here.”

Mike’s job is a little bit of everything, from developing and implementing policies and procedures designed to strengthen the company’s client-centered approach to keeping an eye on finances and making sure the company thinks strategically as they expand. “I bring decades of experience working in large companies at the management level to Cal-Tex, and there isn’t much I haven’t experienced first-hand in business.”

Mike earned an undergraduate degree in economics “many, many years ago” he notes, and it gave him the foundation to thrive in the construction industry. He has managed more than one billion dollars (yes, $1,000,000,000) in construction projects in his career, but also has lots of hands-on experience in construction. “I started working construction when I was 17, and worked as a pipe-fitter before moving into the office and getting a college degree. I loved working in the construction industry and what we do at Cal-Tex feels very comfortable. I still jump out of bed every morning because I love working, mentoring young talent, and sharing my experiences.”

Mike and his wife Michelle have three children from their marriage plus two they adopted when Michelle’s sister passed away many years ago. All of their children are now grown, and they have 17 grandchildren. In his spare time, Mike loves to golf and do “anything outdoors.”

In April of 2005, Ronnie Bassett turned a dream into reality, and named it Cal-Tex Electric. Although he had zero employees and not a single customer when he started, he had a belief in the knowledge that he acquired from observations in the field that a client and team focused merit-based electrical company could thrive in the Twin Cities market.  Fifteen years later, Cal-Tex Electric has expanded to include divisions in technologies services, 100 employees, hundreds of clients and a reputation as a leading electrical and technology services company in the Twin Cities.  

 “Early on, our growth was due to who we were and our connections in the design and build industry,” says Ronnie, who notes that Cal-Tex has increased its revenue every year since 2005.

“But our company really started gaining traction when the word got out that we were a very professional company that could outwork our competition and always strive to make our clients happy. It was kind of like a snowball rolling downhill – once it got going there’s was no stopping it. That was and is Cal-Tex.”

Cal-Tex’s growth is linked in large part to three core strengths, according to Ronnie. “One, our guys in the field. Two, everyone in the company embraces Cal-Tex’s mission. And three, our never-ending focus on training. Our guys in the field are better trained than any of our competition. And that translates into better outcomes for our clients.”

Ronnie got his start in the industry from the ground floor. He was an electrician for almost a decade in Minnesota, California and Texas before starting Cal-Tex and still can understand the challenges facing the electricians in the field. “We wouldn’t get the jobs we do if we didn’t have such talented guys in the field and their pursuit of excellence.

Ronnie and his wife Cara live in Prior Lake with their four daughters. They love to travel – Europe is one of his favorite destinations – and Ronnie is a passionate reader.

If it’s 7 a.m. on a Sunday morning and you decide to drop by the warehouse at Cal-Tex Company headquarters, don’t be surprised if you find Adam Kack working feverishly to fill an order for a field crew. More than likely, it was an order placed late on a Friday afternoon or sometime Saturday.

“I love working under stress,” says Adam, who joined Cal-Tex Company in October 2017 and brings 14 years of warehouse management experience to his job. “Guys will text me over the weekend for supplies they need next week, and I’ll just come into the warehouse and fill the order. That’s my work ethic. I like feeling overwhelmed because I know I can get the job done no matter what the obstacles.”

Part of what motivates Adam to “get it done right away” is the sense of team that he feels working at Cal-Tex Company. “They made me feel welcome and like I belonged here as soon as I started. It is a really tight group here in the building and we get along really well. I value our guys in the field, and it is important to me that I build trust with them so they know that they can rely on me the same way our clients rely on them.”

So what exactly does Adam do in his role as warehouse manager? “If the guys need any tools or products, they call or text me. I handle all the shipping and receiving for our projects. We ship directly to the job site about 70% of the time – the rest comes to the warehouse and I make sure it gets to the job site when it is needed.”

Adam lives in Prior Lake with his wife Stephanie, their son Brantley, and his two step-children. When he’s not working in the Cal-Tex warehouse, Adam does a lot of bow hunting in the fall and fishing for muskies or walleye (especially on the ice).

Cathy Theis looks forward to each day at Cal-Tex Companies in her role as the Office Manager. “I love the people here,” she says with a smile.  “Matt and Ronnie (Cal-Tex co-owners) run an amazing company. Their core philosophy is centered on treating employees fairly while meeting customer needs. We have a positive energy and culture shared by employees at all levels. As a result, Cal-Tex is doing very well and growing quickly.”

Cathy’s responsibilities include on-boarding of new employees, management of the reception area, planning company events, and corporate administrative activities. Additionally, Cathy assists with payroll, insurance, and assists Brandon Block, Cal-Tex’s Controller.

Cathy joined Cal-Tex in January 2017, bringing with her significant experience. She worked for more than 10 years as an office manager for an electrical contractor and more than 5 years managing a team of 100 operators working remotely on third-party verifications.

Cathy’s job at Cal-Tex has been her favorite. “I feel like I’m making a difference and helping the company grow. In my role there is constant change and I really love that. It’s not a stagnant environment and it’s a position that rewards and challenges me daily.”

According to Cathy, Ronnie and Matt have “very different personalities, but they work very well together.” Both have an open door policy with employees, notes Cathy. “They’ve created a positive work environment and you feel like you are heard here.”

Cathy has two daughters and six grandchildren. She enjoys spending time with her family and friends and loves traveling in her free time. “I love to go to new places. I’ve been to Spain, Costa Rica, Morocco, New Zealand, France, England and Ireland, but there are still lots of places I want to visit.”

Dan Cameron moved from working in the field as an electrician to an office job with Cal-Tex Electric as an estimator and project manager in 2016. He brought with him 22 years of experience working in the field as a journeyman electrician, and he also brought with him his desire to always get better at what he does in his job.

As a project manager and estimator, Dan manages Cal-Tex Electric jobs on a day-to-day basis, along with estimating of potential future projects.

Dan notes that the core strength of Cal-Tex Electric is the electricians in the field. I really like the challenge of pursuing work and ensuring that our field electricians stay busy. I have noticed that once clients have us do a project for them, they always want us to bid on their future projects.”

Dan lives in Prior Lake – the same town he grew up in – and has been in the area most of his life except for a decade spent in Colorado working and skiing. Dan has one daughter.

Dan Cameron moved from working in the field as an electrician to an office job with Cal-Tex Electric as an estimator and project manager in 2016. He brought with him 22 years of experience working in the field as a journeyman electrician, and he also brought with him his desire to always get better at what he does in his job.

As a project manager and estimator, Dan manages Cal-Tex Electric jobs on a day-to-day basis, along with estimating of potential future projects.

Dan notes that the core strength of Cal-Tex Electric is the electricians in the field. I really like the challenge of pursuing work and ensuring that our field electricians stay busy. I have noticed that once clients have us do a project for them, they always want us to bid on their future projects.”

Dan lives in Prior Lake – the same town he grew up in – and has been in the area most of his life except for a decade spent in Colorado working and skiing. Dan has one daughter.

Gerry Velo has been an electrician ever since he graduated from high school almost two decades ago. For all of those years, he worked in the field as an electrician – and since 2016, he’s been working for Cal-Tex Electric. In the summer of 2018, Gerry had the opportunity to move into the Service Manager’s position at Cal-Tex Electric.

“I really liked the profession I chose to work in, and I enjoyed working in the field,” says Gerry. “But when the Service Manager position opened up, I thought I would apply for it. I like challenges and I thought this would be a definite challenge. Everybody I work with here has been great – in the field and in the office.”

In his new job, he organizes schedules, fields phone calls, visits job sites, researches projects, and submits bids. “I work on smaller projects for our commercial clients, builders, and handle our residential customers.”

Cal-Tex is the largest company Gerry has worked for, and he says it’s a “wonderful company that puts out a great product.”

Gerry lives in Prior Lake with his wife Summer. They have four boys– the two youngest are involved in soccer, baseball, and basketball. Gerry enjoys spending time with his family.

Jennifer Stone joined Cal-Tex Electric in 2012 after two decades in the trades because she was looking for something more challenging and more flexible.  “I was happy to take a job at Cal-Tex as an Assistant Project Manager because I liked the challenges the job offered,” says Jennifer, who brought many years of experience as a service manager.

Jennifer was promoted in 2017 to a full Project Manager position, and works primarily on fully-engineered projects that have already been designed. “I project-manage a lot of coffeeshops and restaurants and a lot of office build outs. I work with general contractors and our team does the electrical work on the project. The work is always changing and always evolving and I love it.”

The flexibility and freedom to do your job are both reasons why Jennifer enjoys working at Cal-Tex so much. “Here you are in charge of yourself and no one micromanages you. That means you control your own destiny and can have a greater impact on the projects you are responsible for.”

The Cal-Tex team that Jennifer works with – both in the office and in the field “are great. They are always polite, nice people who are pleasant to work with. You don’t find that in many workplaces anymore. Our leadership makes sure that they hire the right people who will fit into this environment and thrive in their role.”

Jennifer wants to continue to grow in her role as a Project Manager and “keep pushing myself to do bigger and more complex projects.”

Jennifer lives in Lakeville with her husband Ben (who is an electrician) and their son Gabe, who is in high school.  The family loves to travel and downhill ski together; Jennifer also enjoys watching her son play Lacrosse and spending time being active with her family.

Jim is a working project manager for Cal-tex. “I’m self-motivated; able to work independently or as a team to meet operational deadlines.”

After being honorably discharged from the Marine Corps. Jim found his way into the electrical trade. He now has over two decades of electrical experience, ranging from residential, commercial, and industrial applications. He has a strong commitment to ensuring the job gets done right.

“Whenever I start a project, I always remind myself that I’m building someone’s dream”.

Jim lives in Savage with his wife and two daughters.

Josh has been “living electric” since he graduated from high school in Elk River, where he grew up. He started working as an installer and quickly was promoted to designing projects and managing installations on-site by the time he was 21. He earned a degree in electrical construction at Saint Cloud Technical College to enhance his knowledge base and joined Cal-Tex in 2008, just a couple of years after it opened for business.

Josh believes that a key reason why Cal-Tex has continued to grow into one of the Twin Cities leading electrical service providers is the company’s approach to its clients.  “Because our project managers design, estimate and manage a project, our clients receive superior overall service and quality. It’s one of the areas that really sets us apart from much of our competition, which divides each of those phases in a project to different people.”

The quality of the on-site teams of electricians that Cal-Tex assigns to a project are unmatched in the industry, Josh notes. “I’ve seen a lot of companies, and I’ve worked with a lot of electricians, and the Cal-Tex team is by far the highest in terms of teamwork and quality of work. Let’s face it, those guys are the reason we have grown to where we are today!”

Cal-Tex gets a lot of repeat business from clients because of “our unwavering devotion to the successful completion of their project. I talked with a contractor recently who said that we may not have had the lowest bid, but he was going to go with our bid because no one else could pull the whole project together from design to installation and do it under budget and on time.”

A big motivator for Josh is the ability to help other members of the Cal-Tex team grow in their jobs. “It’s all about giving back to the people around me, and helping other people grow and succeed.”

Josh lives in Becker with his wife, Laurie, and their two daughters and one son. He loves to deer hunt, go ice fishing in the winter and walleye fishing in the summer, and spend time with his family outdoors. He coaches his younger daughter’s softball team and teaches a religion class at his church to 2nd graders every week.

“I love to contribute to our customer’s success. They look to us to be a trusted resource and I want to help Cal-Tex grow on that until we are the largest electrical provider in the Twin Cities.”

If it’s an emergency, a small project, or involves something “old school” (think circuit breakers from the ‘70s) then Matt Bright is the guy to call at Cal-Tex Electric. Matt’s the Service Manager, and he handles a little bit of everything.

Matt joined Cal-Tex Electric in 2013 as an apprentice electrician. A career working in the field as an electrician wasn’t Matt’s original goal. He has a master’s degree in teaching from Ohio State University. That was his second master’s degree – his first was from Minnesota State Mankato -and both were completed on full scholarships.  Matt joined Cal-Tex after college looking for another type of educational experience and soon fell in love with the trade.

Matt was promoted to the Service Manager position in 2017 after working in the field as an electrician. He enjoys his new job immensely. “There is something new to challenge me daily, I rarely receive the same phone call twice. The position offers me the chance to perform many types of problem solving, which keeps the job fresh and motivating.”

The work that Cal-Tex’s electricians do is superb, notes Matt. “Our guys really deliver a high standard of craftsmanship.”  And the people in the company, both in the field and at the home office, are outstanding, he adds. “The people are what makes Cal-Tex such a great place to work.”

Matt grew up in Eden Prairie and now lives in Lonsdale, MN. He has had a life-long passion for being a “maker”, always building new things from guitars to arcade cabinets. Currently he has been focusing on building mid-century modern furniture and a 3D printer

Brandon Block joined Cal-Tex Company in October 2016 after working in a public accounting firm as a senior tax accountant. He wasn’t looking for a new job, but a family friend told him about the Controller job at Cal-Tex and Brandon decided to apply for the position. He interviewed with Owner Ronnie Bassett and liked his vision for Cal-Tex.

“I liked Ronnie and the other people I met during the interview process,” recalls Brandon. “It was a very attractive opportunity for me to be a part of the vision they had for growth and excellence.”

Brandon, who has a bachelor’s degree in accounting and earned his CPA license in 2013, says that is has been “really rewarding seeing the direction the company is growing and heading and being a part of that progress. A couple of months after I started they added a tech company and It surprised me how fast they were able to take on these new challenges. Ronnie and Matt Trevis are calculated risk takers, which I really appreciate, and they are always looking at new business opportunities. We really know where our ‘compass’ is pointed now.”

“The people here are #1”, notes Brandon, who in his role as Controller is responsible for financial statements, managing relationships with bankers and external auditors, and Cal-Tex’s cash flow. “I really enjoy working with our management team and being challenged by them and challenging them. Our management team values are excellent and that’s a big reason why this is such a dynamic organization.”

Brandon points to Ronnie’s background as an electrician as being a central reason for the company’s explosive growth. “He understands every facet of the company, from the bottom up, and he purposefully puts people in positions where they can help take the company to the next level. He understands that you have to add people with expertise he doesn’t have.”

Brandon lives in Lakeville with his wife Janelle, his son Braxton and their dog Dobby. In his spare time, he likes to run, do jiu-jitsu, and watch the Minnesota Vikings.