High-Profile: October 2026 | Page 20

20 High-Profile: Built Leadership Forum: Feature Interview
October 2026

From Intern to Owner: Michael O. Davis Leads Flow Tech

Anastasia Barnes, publisher at High- Profile, recently sat down with Michael O. Davis, PE, president of Flow Tech, Inc., a South Windsor, Connecticut-based HVAC manufacturer’ s representative. Davis joined the company as an intern and now leads it as a 100 % employeeowned firm that has built a reputation in Connecticut and western Massachusetts and recently opened a Boston office as it expands across New England. In this conversation, Davis talks about what growing up inside one company taught him about leadership, how five years of employee ownership has shaped Flow Tech’ s culture and why the wave of retirements across the industry is changing what clients need from partners like his. Flow Tech is the Sustainability & Building Performance sponsor of the Built Leadership Forum, and readers can meet Davis in person at the event on Nov. 16 at The UMass Club in Boston.
Anastasia Barnes: You started at Flow Tech as an intern and now serve as president. That’ s rare! How has that journey shaped the way you lead the company today?
Michael O. Davis: Being at one company for my entire career has its advantages and disadvantages. Because I grew up
Michael O. Davis
in one business, the culture has had as much impact on me as I’ ve had on it, and I“ bleed Flow Tech blue.” However, I’ ve also had to make a conscious effort to broaden my worldview beyond the walls of Flow Tech, whether by networking with other reps( salespeople and leaders) across territories, reading books about sales and business or attending seminars and courses.
AB: Flow Tech has changed quite a bit since you first joined the company. How has the business evolved? What has remained consistent about the way you work with clients?
MD: I don’ t believe our culture has fundamentally changed since I started, but perhaps we’ ve done a better job of recognizing and formalizing it and baking it into the way we hire, evaluate and move on from employees. Because our staff, especially our sales and tech staff, has grown over the years, we can offer more to our end users, engineers and contractors than ever before. That said, our method of delivery, our commitment to value and quality and how we treat our customers have improved or, at the very least, remained unchanged.
AB: Flow Tech is 100 % employeeowned. What does that ownership model mean for the company’ s culture, and how does it influence the way your team approaches its work and client relationships?
MD: At this point, our ESOP culture is nearly indistinguishable from Flow Tech’ s culture as a whole. We can say with certainty that we expect everyone to act like owners— because they are! Five years into our ESOP journey, there is still room for that culture to flourish, especially as account balances grow, we mint ESOP millionaires and those legends spread. Even now, we treat each other as owners and hold each other accountable for their part of the business.
over decades. So they are filling the gaps with less experience and expertise, which leads to missed opportunities. That creates challenges for us when our manufacturers and even our customers lack that background, but it also gives us an opportunity to take the initiative and provide products, systems and an experience for our customers that is unmatched in the industry.
AB: As you look ahead, what are you most excited about for Flow Tech, both in terms of the company’ s growth and the opportunities you see in the industry?
MD: For Flow Tech specifically, we are beyond excited to take our reputation in Connecticut and western Massachusetts and not only dig deeper in that territory but also expand to customers throughout the rest of New England. We believe all of New England deserves to be served by a company like Flow Tech, and we can’ t wait for those customers to experience us. As for the industry, there is endless opportunity. Whether you cite climate change, energy costs or just aging infrastructure, there is so much work to be done in the built environment, especially in a region as old and established as New England, to improve the safety, health and efficiency of buildings. We’ re looking forward to being part of the solution.
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Corporate / Industrial / Lab
Academic / Cultural
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The Car Barn
AB: As you talk with building owners, engineers and contractors across New England, what changes are you seeing in what clients expect from companies like Flow Tech today?
MD: In some ways, I think it’ s easier than ever to impress our customers. I’ ve shared this in other media, but I believe the silver tsunami of baby boomers and other generations leaving the workforce is taking with it an immeasurable amount of knowledge and experience that is increasingly hard to replicate. Younger generations( mine included!) may be too impatient, or may not have the opportunity, to build that deep expertise
As for the industry, there is endless opportunity. Whether you cite climate change, energy costs or just aging infrastructure, there is so much work to be done in the built environment, especially in a region as old and established as New England, to improve the safety, health and efficiency of buildings. We’ re looking forward to being part of the solution.
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