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When the Founder Is the Rainmaker: How to Scale Without Losing the Spark
In many founder-led businesses, the founder isn’t just the leader—they’re also the best (and often only) rainmaker. They land the big deals. They have the trusted relationships. They know the pitch inside and out because they are the pitch.
It works—until it doesn’t.
As the business grows, this model creates a bottleneck. Every new opportunity depends on one and only person. And it’s the same person every time. But there’s a downside. When that person is also responsible for running the business, mentoring the team, and shaping the vision, something eventually gives.
Is Your Business Planning or “Strategically” Planning?
Mon, Jan 9, 2017 — You might be thinking… “This is the year that my business really focuses on developing the best strategic growth plan.” Then the process starts and the questions surface… Am I developing a strategy or a plan? What’s the difference? If they are different, does my business need both?
As the World Turns: What Globalization Really Means to Your Enterprise
Wed, Jan 4, 2017 — This could very well be the shortest blog you ever read – this New Year, or last! That’s because, at the moment I decided to begin a series of blogs covering the megatrend of globalization, the New York Times decided to announce that it is dead. Though the sentiment of this particular New York Times feature was fueled by the recent U.S. election of Donald Trump, I wanted to make sure that my particular viewpoints on globalization were still valid.
5 Steps to Building Credibility
Fri, Dec 30, 2016 — It’s hard to build a name for yourself when you’re brand new. There’s always the catch-22 of needing a foundation of customers to develop credibility, but needing credibility to attract new customers. You can have the most innovative, honest and necessary product on the market, but if no one knows about it – it’s time to get people talking.
A Dog’s Eye View of Marketing: Six Steps To Ensuring Customer Delight
Thu, Dec 29, 2016 — Dogs, it is said, are man’s best friend. Exceedingly loyal, our four-legged canine buddies want to follow us when we walk, doze when we nap, and sometimes plop themselves at our feet when we are busy writing blogs. But, heaven forbid, if we were to slide over to them a bowl of dog food that they found to be appalling, they become quite single-minded. They protest. They turn away. And all that loyalty? Pfft. Out the window.
A Christmas Carol: Mr. Fezziwig’s Lessons for Management and Marketing
Tue, Dec 20, 2016 — Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol” is a much-loved staple of the holiday season, and a personal favorite of mine from one of my favorite authors. Presented for the first time in 1843 to wide acclaim and commercial success, the short novel or one of its many adaptations still entertains millions all over the world over a wide variety of media. It’s easy to see why. The story’s message of forgiveness, generosity, hope and redemption resonates with people of many backgrounds and traditions. To this day, it possesses life – and business – lessons that are every bit as relevant as they were in Victorian England.
5 Ways to Drive Business Growth from the Outside
Mon, Dec 12, 2016 — There are two critical elements to achieving your business growth goals: One, you must successfully run your business from the inside. Two, you must monitor the external environment. While most CEOs know the inner workings of their businesses, they are less in touch with the outside factors that affect it. Case in point: In a recent webinar I hosted, “External Factors that Stall Growth and How to Combat Them,” I asked participants, “Do you have a system to identify and monitor external factors that affect your business?” One-hundred percent of participants responded, “No, but I do want to create a system.” The presentation then focused on helping to identify the external factors businesses should be monitoring and how to monitor them.
9 Ways to Improve your Marketing Dashboard
Wed, Nov 30, 2016 — A marketing dashboard holds every measurable piece of data that is relevant to the growth of your business. Dashboards of the past were often uneditable screen shots, or endless Excel columns that blurred into mind-numbing statistics. The truth is, your dashboard is the star of the show, and can be a revenue-building machine if done smartly.
How to Survive the 5 Fatal Factors that Threaten Your Business
Fri, Nov 18, 2016 — Understanding the external factors that hinder your growth and survival The Bureau of Labor and Statistics in 2016 reports that only two-thirds of businesses will survive 2 years, half of all businesses will survive 5 years, and a mere one-third will survive 10 years or more. Most of us have heard these statistics, or at least a version of them. In the modern market, the success of a business depends on its growth. But why do some businesses successfully grow and survive while others become a failing statistic?
Timing is Everything: Three Ways to Set the Clock to Your Advantage
Tue, Nov 8, 2016 — Flash back with me for a moment to the 1980s. The decade of big hair, Reaganomics and the DeLorean, the 80s was also the cherry on top for more than three decades of stupendous growth in the music industry.