EL SEGUNDO HERALD November 4, 2021 Page 7
Jim Miller from front page
and accounting services” for rising companies.
He has also penned a book entitled “Budgeting
Doesn’t have to Suck: For Young Adults
Who Want More Money,” which is a quick
read, coming in at around one hundred pages.
Miller said that effective budgeting is not difficult,
especially with the technological tools
available to set up a budget template that will
allow one to have “a better life, a better future.”
Always looking to branch out, Miller is also
tapping his inventive side and has a new product
in the works, which he calls the “Handie
Towel.” The towel is still in the development
and patent-pending stage, but Miller hopes that
the towel will function as “an update to your
gym towel, with many other uses, hoping to
make your life easier and cleaner.”
Miller has displayed a knack for seizing
business opportunities ever since he was a
youngster. He hails from Lake Forest, Illinois,
about thirty miles north of Chicago. He
moved to SoCal in 2002, initially landing in
Newport Beach. He later moved to the Sawtelle
area of West Los Angles, where he lived for
seven years, before moving to El Segundo in
October of 2016.
“I started my first business when I was
twelve, a lawn mowing business,” he said.
“Before long, I had a group of neighborhood
kids with different tasks, spanning mowing to
trimming. We had a lot of happy customers
and made decent money. I have always been
a ‘doer’ and actively preach the importance
of creating more than consuming.
“Since then, I have worked with some amazing
companies,” Miller said, “and I have built
some amazing companies and have learned a
lot along the way.”
So how and why did the Miller family decide
to call El Segundo home?
Miller said he had a friend who had been
living in El Segundo for a while, so he was
vaguely familiar with the town. But what sold
Miller on an El Segundo residency was an
experience he had with the El Segundo Police
Department. Miller said his wife Janet had lost
her engagement and wedding rings while sitting
for a manicure. After backtracking, it appeared
that finding the rings was a lost cause.
Not a quitter, Miller kept trying to locate the
ring, and lo-and-behold, he went online and
found the rings posted on Craigslist. Miller
then scheduled a meeting with the person who
now had the ring. But when he said, he asked
the LA Police Department to help facilitate
the meeting, he said that they told him “good
luck.” He tried to get help from the Hawthorne
Police Department, because that was where the
manicurist shop was located and again was
cheerfully informed, “good luck.”
Since the meeting spot for Miller and the
Craigslist holder of the ring was in El Segundo,
he called the ESPD, who were much more
helpful, and aided him in securing the ring.
He said he was asked to “come on down”
by an ESPD rep and met with a couple of
undercover detectives, who helped set up a
sting at a local Starbucks.
At this point, Miller said he was not sure
who had the rings and envisioned a possible
dicey confrontation with “five gangbangers.”
But that did not occur; the rings had been
inadvertently dropped near the curb of the
Hawthorne manicurist salon and had been
scooped up by a young college student. She
posted the ring on Craigslist to make extra cash.
All is well that ends well. Miller got the
rings back and did not press charges against
the young, distraught woman. Miller said he
took notice of the “above and beyond service”
he received from members of the ESPD. He
called that a “driving factor” in his decision
to relocate his family to El Segundo.
Cindy Takeda works at the Astero Group in
administration and nominated Miller for this
profile. Though she has known Miller for less
than a year, she sings the praises of her boss. “I
oversee much of the company and deal directly
with the employees,” Takeda emailed. “I wear
many hats and have seen the company grow a
lot already. I communicate daily with Jim and
help him to execute his vision.
“Working at Astero Group is honestly such
an exciting experience,” she added. “We work
really hard to hire good employees, but also
(select) good clients. Jim makes sure that we are
super-selective about who we work with, and
this makes sure that everyone loves the work.”
Noting Miller’s drum pounding background,
Taketa said that “not a lot of business owners
are heavy metal drummers, especially accountants!
Aside from that, he is extremely
passionate about creating a work environment
that makes everyone look forward to each day,”
while adding that, sharing a secret, Miller is a
“major neat freak and germophobe.”
Chimed in Amber Reedy, a client of the
Astero Group and CEO of a local COVID
testing company: “I have known Jim for
about three years now. We met at a previous
company, Choura.
“Jim was the CFO at Choura and managed
business affairs. He was an integral part of daily
operations and future planning. Not only is he
a respected colleague,” Reedy emailed, “he is
a great guy and someone who you want on
your team. When I started my own company,
I reached out to Jim for advice. He was more
than generous with his invaluable insights and
even helped me to secure the accounting support
that I desperately needed.
“His contribution to my company has provided
much-needed clarity and increased my
productivity. I am now able to focus on growing
my business, not just managing it.
“The advice and guidance that I have
received from him are detailed and thoughtful,”
Reedy continued. “When it comes to
financials, every penny matters to Jim. I have
found it rare to meet people in business who
are genuine, straightforward, and truly care
about your success. That is Jim. I leave every
conversation feeling confident and comfortable
in the next steps.
“In all my dealings with Jim, he has been
fair, honest, and thorough. When it comes to
financials and business decisions, I do not know
anyone better. Also, it is worth mentioning, he
is a good time to grab a drink with!”
So, what drives Miller to be successful? He
said he likes to frame his forward-looking actions
through the lens of “whatever I can do
to make the world better for people.” He likes
to ask the question “Why?” when pondering a
new project. On his website, Miller posts that
“My “Why” has changed over time, and I realize
that is not a popular thing to admit. From
age 5-25, my why was music and performing.
From 25-35, my why was personal growth and
ego. At age 35, I became a parent. (His son
Jetson attends Center Street School). Everything
shifted to my son and to me to create a legacy
for him. That continues to be the case, and it
also moved me to want to create a better world
for him when he grows up.
“That is now the lens through which I make
decisions,” Miller writes. “Is what I am doing
with my valuable time helping to make the
world better? If the answer is yes, I do it. If
the answer is no, I do not do it. It’s simple,
and I am grateful to have that clarity.”
When he is looking for that clarity, sometimes
Miller will attempt to get “centered,” as
he put it, and reconnect with his musical side.
Though he performed in college bands years
ago, he now considers himself “a basement
drummer.” When he is not pounding his drums,
Miller said that he likes to roam the street,
listen to Podcasts, and partake in hikes, with
the Will Rogers State Park being his “go-to”
hiking destination.
Miller has never regretted settling in El
Segundo. “I never felt at home since leaving
Illinois in 2002, until my family moved to El
Segundo,” he said, mentioning the local sense of
community, the top-notch school system, quality
neighbors, and attentive police department.
“I try to give back as much as I can,” Miller
said, noting that he joined the local Rotary Club
about six months ago, which has allowed him
to “meet a lot of awesome people.”
So why name your company Astero, Miller
was asked? Well, Astero is a word of Greek
origin that means “star.” Miller said he selected
that name for his company because
he envisioned a constellation of clients and
Astero employees working together to create
an environment beneficial to both clients and
employees.
Shooting for the stars. That is El Segundo’s
Jim Miller’s avowed mission. •
Astero Group CEO Jim Miller. Photo provided by Jim Miller.
Chargers from front page
Inc., and the Los Angeles Chargers to prepare
this development application. City staff will
submit recommendations to (the) Planning
Commission and City Council for their review.”
The project is scheduled to be considered by
the Planning Commission via a public hearing
on Nov.18. The City Council will review
the Planning Commission’s recommendations
through a separate public hearing on Dec. 7,
with another “reading” anticipated to take place
two weeks later.
The Charger management team was pleased
with the decision to make El Segundo their
permanent home. “When searching for a
location to establish our hub of football and
business operations, we didn’t leave a single
stone unturned,” said owner and chairperson
of the board Dean Spanos. “This process
played out for more than four years because
we weren’t willing to settle. Good enough was
not going to cut it. We wanted great, and we
finally found it,” Spanos said.
Continued Spanos: “To be able to develop 14
acres of prime real estate – with the proximity
to LAX, SoFi Stadium, more Fortune 500
companies in the state than anywhere except
San Francisco and, of course, neighbors like
the Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles
Kings – it’s another major step toward building
a perennial contender and further rooting
ourselves in the community we serve.”
Los Angeles Lakers CEO and co-owner Jeanie
Buss and LA Kings President and Hockey
Hall of Famer Luc Robitaille were among local
sporting bigwigs to welcome the Chargers to
town, issuing statements touting their satisfaction
in moving their organizations to El Segundo.
“The Lakers welcome the Los Angeles
Chargers, and Dean Spanos and his family,
to El Segundo,” said Jeanie Buss, Governor,
and Co-owner of the Los Angeles Lakers. “El
Segundo is a great place to be, and it’s exciting
that our city will now host the headquarters
and training facilities of the Lakers, Kings
and Chargers.”
“El Segundo has been a tremendous home
for the LA Kings for more than 20 years, and
throughout this time, the City and the community
overall have been outstanding partners,” said
Robitaille. “Our hockey club is now thrilled to
help welcome the Chargers to the South Bay,
joining us and our life-long friends, the Lakers,
in this affable community we call home.
The Chargers – their players, their staff – are
perfectly suited to add so much to El Segundo,
and we look forward to partnering with them
as we continue to seek opportunities to make
positive contributions to the local community.”
“El Segundo is quickly becoming America’s
#1 small town for professional sports,” CDC
president and CEO Richard Lundquist said.
“The Chargers, Lakers, and Kings form the ‘Big
Three.’ These sports powerhouses contribute
to our El Segundo schools and our recreation
programs and energize the local economy.
The Chargers are eager to become active
participants of the El Segundo community. I
want to welcome the Chargers to El Segundo
and applaud their decision to bring their new
headquarters to this great community. They are
joining a growing number of companies and
national organizations,” said Lundquist, “who
are recognizing the advantage of relocating to
the South Bay, where professionals at the top
of their industries want to live and work. El
Segundo will soon have bragging rights that
rival any other city in America.”
The proposed project, designed by the Gensler
Sports architecture firm, includes a three-story
main building, three full-sized practice fields,
on-site parking, and other state-of-the-art facilities
that should allow the Chargers to compete
in the NFL for years to come.
The Chargers plan to begin construction
during 2022 and complete the project in time
to move into their new facility prior to the
start of the 2024 NFL season.
So, what will the Charger squad that will
assemble to hit the gridiron in the 2024 season
expect to see when they arrive at their new digs?
According to published reports, the facility
will emphasize “player efficiency and movement
between spaces that includes direct access to
the fields from all player and coaching spaces
as well as a direct connection between team
meeting rooms and exterior walk-through
space; specific locations within the new team
headquarters include a roof-top hospitality club,
full eSports gaming, and content studios and
a 3,100 square foot media center.”
First-year coach Brandon Staley sees the new
facility as an extension of a continuing effort by
the Chargers to become an elite NFL franchise.
“When our staff and I first started here, we
talked a lot about possibility,” Staley said. “You
could just see it coming. The possibility of this
team. The possibility of LA.
“The goal is for the Chargers to become
the standard of excellence in the NFL. This
new facility demonstrates our organization’s
commitment to that standard.”
More on the proposed structure(s). The
facility will span 145,000 square feet. There
will be three natural grass fields with an artificial
turf perimeter with 7,600 square feet of
elevated outdoor terrace space. An additional
3,400 square foot elevated outdoor turf area
and a two-lane lap pool for player rehabilitation
are among the various outdoor amenities
in the blueprint.
“The look, feel, and functionality of your
training facility means more today than it ever
has in professional sports,” said Charger General
Manager Tom Telesco. “Being able to create a
building that can grow with technological advances
– especially regarding nutritional needs,
strength and performance, injury prevention,
medical treatment, and game planning – is
crucial to sustained success. Everyone knows
the margin between wins and losses in the
NFL is razor-thin. Any advantage you can
create for your coaches and players, you will
take it. Having a world-class training facility
definitely falls into that category.”
With the field area designed to accommodate
bleacher seating for more than 5,000, 348
on-site parking spaces, and accommodations
available for offsite parking, the Chargers will
be able to host their public training camp at
the El Segundo complex.
“This is much more than a training facility,”
said Ron Turner, Principal of Gensler Sports.
“This is one of the very best buildings we’ve
ever designed.” •