.png?width=1500&height=398&name=CO_Corporate%20Logo%202021_4C_HOR_FNL-1%20(1).png)
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.
Create and Activate Visioning to Inspire Your Organization
Thu, Mar 14, 2019 — Not too long ago, there was an exchange on Twitter between Tom Peters and others debating Vision vs. Excellence. Rather than thinking about this as an either/or proposition, a third path – Vision with Excellence – will create the greatest value for your organization. As stated in a Japanese proverb – “Vision without action is a daydream. Action without vision is a nightmare.” Success requires both. Having a clear Vision of the future you want to create, taking the necessary steps to activate it and exhibiting the behaviors needed to make things happen are a powerful formula for driving growth and prosperity for your business. The following are steps that you can take to leverage visioning to drive value in your organization.
Finding the Value Proposition Bullseye For Your Business
Mon, Jun 11, 2018 — Recently, the management of the Tsukuba Express train line, between Tokyo and the city of Tsukuba in Japan, had a serious problem. This “problem” was grave enough to warrant a public apology and touched off a wave of social media attention, in Japan and around the world. What was this grievous issue that required a public issuance of corporate regret and captured the attention of a global audience? Astonishingly, the “offense” was one that would be lauded in about 99.99999 percent of the remainder of the world: One of Tsukuba Express’s trains had departed Tokyo 20 seconds earlier than its scheduled departure time. Worldwide reaction ranged from amazement at the commitment of the Japanese railway to service times, to surprise that such a minor deviation from precision would be headline-making news.
What do Dynamic Value Hierarchies and Power Windows Have in Common?
Thu, May 18, 2017 — Do you ever wonder how power windows on cars and trucks came about? Try to buy a vehicle with hand crank windows today. Good luck with that. The story of power windows is also a story about value hierarchies. Value hierarchies are graphic depictions of your value proposition. Value hierarchies are usually organized as pyramids with three tiers of value:
What do Value Propositions, Word Clouds, and Before/After Diet Ads have in Common?
Thu, Jan 19, 2017 — As consumers, we can’t miss the constant series of “before and after” adverts promoted by diet product companies. You know the ones I mean. Big and unhappy before, slim and smiling after. The long-term and continuing use of this approach can be explained by only a couple of reasons: (a) either these companies can’t think of any more creative ways of marketing their products, or (b) the ads actually work.
How to Leverage Visioning to Drive Value
Tue, Aug 11, 2015 — There was a recent exchange on Twitter between Tom Peters and others debating Vision vs. Excellence. Rather than thinking about this as an either/or proposition, a third path – Vision with Excellence – creates the greatest value. As stated in a Japanese proverb – “Vision without action is a daydream. Action without vision is a nightmare.” Having a clear Vision of the future you want to create, taking the necessary steps to activate it and exhibiting the behaviors needed to make things happen are a powerful formula for driving growth and prosperity for your business. The following are steps that you can take to leverage visioning to drive value in your organization.
Are You Going To "Finish Big"?
Wed, Oct 29, 2014 — I had the opportunity to hear Bo Burlingham speak last year about his upcoming book, Finish Big: How Great Entrepreneurs Exit on Top. Many of you might be familiar with Burlingham from his groundbreaking work, Small Giants—Companies That Choose To Be Great Rather Than Big. In his latest book, he takes an in-depth look into the specific phase in a company’s life when its Owners/CEOs/Partners begin to consider exiting their business. His relevant ideas and sharp insights in this discussion of Finish Big were so compelling to me that I wanted to share highlights with you. I encourage you to get the book when it is released at the end of November 2014 so that the concepts below can come alive for you as well.