John Brandt, CEO and founder of The MPI Group and author of Nincompoopery: Why Your Customers Hate You—and How to Fix It, recently answered questions on customer satisfaction, hiring, innovation and leading change. What is Nincompoopery?It’s the corporate stupidity that drives customers crazy, and keeps everyone—customers, employees, managers and business owners—from getting what they want. It’s what happens every time you expect a company’s service or product or process to work, but it doesn’t—and nobody can seem to fix it, even though everybody knows what’s wrong. For example: Have you ever taken your car to get fixed, been inconvenienced for several hours as you waited, only to discover that the repair was done badly or not at all? Not only do you have to take the car back; you also have to wait again as the car is fixed a second time, or else drive an unsafe vehicle. You’re irritated, the shop loses money, the mechanic’s boss is frustrated, and the mechanic is told that he or she is a nincompoop, or at least feels like one. But it’s never the nincompoop, it’s always the Nincompoopery. Because if the repair shop had trained and trusted the mechanic on more than just technical skills—for example, process improvement methodologies or the revenue and profit implications of his or her work—then he or she might have created an innovative way to review his or her work (a checklist, maybe?) to prevent sloppy errors and wasted time. Satisfied customers would feel more confident in their repairs, the shop would make more money, and the mechanic wouldn’t look or feel like a nincompoop. Why is Nincompoopery more rampant now than ever?Mostly because it’s more difficult to lead an organization than ever before, due to a confluence of leadership trends and external factors. Think about the amount and speed of change we’re wrestling with: The number of internet users reached 3.9 billion in 2018, roughly half the world’s population.
Yet even as we connect to others, we’re individually dazed and confused. With more than six billion smartphones projected worldwide by 2020, we’ve created an environment in which we and our employees can, if we want, work 24/7, checking our phones up to 150 times a day. We think we’re all more productive, thanks to all this connectivity and multitasking, but research says we’re not. In fact, we lose up to 40 percent of our productivity by switching between tasks; the more we switch, the worse our performance. And that’s just scratching the surface of what we’re trying to manage. Employees and managers feel overwhelmed, which leads to decision fatigue and paralysis—and Nincompoopery. You state that innovation is one of the keys to creating an Anti-Nincompoopery plan. What advice would you offer to small business owners trying to be more innovative?I can’t stress this enough: if your organization doesn’t have a program in which every employee—from CEO or owner to frontline worker—spends at least some time with a customer at least once per year, you can’t innovate. And this time can’t be spent pitching or selling or attending the big game together. You have to figure out how to work directly alongside the customer, in his or her workplace or home, observing how he or she operates in his or her own environment.
This is the only way to identify nagging problems and new challenges that you can solve via innovation. Too many leaders rely solely on satisfaction surveys or net promoter scores to judge how well their organizations are doing with customers. I mean: It’s nice to get a good grade from your customers on what you did yesterday, but how does that tell you what they might buy tomorrow—whether from you or a competitor? Small companies, which are typically closer to their customers than large companies, should have a huge advantage here. Use it. Forty-one percent of U.S. firms lost more than US$25,000 from a bad hire in the last year, and predictions are being made that there will be a shortfall of some five million skilled workers by 2020. How can companies find and retain the best talent?It’s hard to find the right people because they only become the right people after they’ve been hired the right way, trained the right way and gained the right experience at your company. Great employees and leaders are made, not born. But this doesn’t mean that you can hire just anyone and then magically transform them into model employees. So, who should you hire? Skills and experience matter, but character matters more. This may seem old-fashioned, but when that moment of truth with a customer arrives and you’re nowhere to be found, who do you want making decisions? Someone with a good-looking resume but no empathy or spine? Or someone less experienced but who cares desperately about doing the right thing? Leading companies recruit for smarts, diligence and caring. For more than forty years, Southwest Airlines’ success has been built on finding people with the right priorities. It’s not easy: in 2015, the company received nearly 300,000 applications, interviewed more than 100,000 candidates, and hired less than 7,000 employees (roughly two percent of all applicants). Here’s what Julie Weber, their VP of people, wrote: “We talk about hiring not for skills but three attributes. A warrior spirit (that is, a desire to excel, act with courage, persevere and innovate); a servant’s heart (the ability to put others first, treat everyone with respect and proactively serve customers); and a fun-loving attitude (passion, joy and an aversion to taking oneself too seriously).” You describe three requirements for change in the book. What are they, and how can leaders manage them?Whenever you lead change, you have to expect—maybe even embrace—resistance. Why? Because it’s a warning sign that you need to pay attention to something deeper than the change itself. Resistance isn’t usually about you or the change itself, but about the anxiety that change inspires among your bosses, colleagues and employees. This anxiety usually correlates closely with three primal needs:
For security, people need to feel safe. They need to know that their incomes and their persons are secure, and that change won’t increase their level of worry or insecurity in the long run. It’s helpful if you can truthfully outline how, in a best-case scenario, change could increase their security and comfort. Unfortunately, during change, you may not be able to guarantee security. For relationships, people need to know that their feelings, relationships and social status will be considered during change, even if they can’t be preserved or protected in their current states. Given a chance, people are generally reasonable and understand that during change, roles and relative statuses may evolve; this is uncomfortable, but can be accepted if they know that they’ll be respected. For meaning, ten thousand years of history teaches us that once we know that we’ll survive, and that our relationships are secure, we turn our attention to meaning: What is my life about? In asking this question, most of us seek to find how our existences connect to something larger. For most people, primary meaning can be found in a combination of faith, values, family and community. But a secondary longing for meaning relates to our schedules; given that most of us will spend 90,000 hours at work, we hope that it will serve a purpose deeper than just money. Any time you lead change, you need to pay at least as much attention—maybe more—to these three needs as you do to the change itself. John R. Brandt, CEO and founder of The MPI Group, has devoted more than two decades to studying leadership in effective, purpose-driven organizations. Brandt is an accomplished management innovator and an internationally recognized expert on manufacturing, technology and performance measurement. The post How to Spot and Eliminate Nincompoopery at Your Business appeared first on Octane Blog – The official blog of the Entrepreneurs' Organization. via Octane Blog – The official blog of the Entrepreneurs' Organization https://ift.tt/2YepctB
0 Comments
Written for EO by David Disiere. Fear of failure can have significant sway over entrepreneurs wanting to launch their own startups. But imagine what would be possible if failure were completely and utterly avoidable. Further, imagine what would be possible if failure did not hold anyone back. I spent decades as a sort of an insurance vagabond, drifting from role to role. This path certainly gave me a much broader view of the industry, and the experience was invaluable for my development as a leader. But it was not easy. To this day, I come into the office ready to listen, observe, and learn because of the time I spent navigating the uncertainties and mistakes of those early days. Accepting risk as part of entrepreneurship took time. Even now, it can be difficult to deal with ambiguity. But accepting risk as an inevitable part of starting a business is key to your success as an entrepreneur. It’s all in how you frame the challenges and learn to maximize your chances of success. Here are the three steps to moving forward while factoring in that element of risk: 1. Know that uncertainty is different from risk.People often mistake uncertainty for risk. While both terms relate to the “unknown,” there is at least one characteristic that makes risk much different: It can be quantified. You do not build a business knowing you have a 90 percent chance of success; rather, you go into the venture knowing there will be some uncertainty involved. As economist Frank Knight puts it, uncertainty cannot be quantified and is not susceptible to measurement. Because entrepreneurs often thrive in uncertain conditions in which the chance for success might not be clear but is not impossible, uncertainty can be a driver, not an obstacle. 2. Prepare thoroughly.Even though 50 percent of small businesses fail within five years, entrepreneurs have the ability to prepare for the risks that might come their way. Calculate how risk might affect you by conducting market research, tracking business trends and pulling together as much information as possible about the industry you are entering. The goal is to mitigate your risk through learning and thorough preparation. That way, you can make informed decisions and take only the most well-thought-out chances without letting fear control your actions. 3. Embrace risk.Because risk is inevitable, you are left with two options: Avoid it or embrace it. I cannot emphasize enough how important it is to choose the latter; your ability to embrace anything that comes your way will make your entrepreneurial journey less intimidating. I would even go so far as to say it should be a part of your business strategy. Failure can always teach you something valuable. As long as you are willing to learn, you are far less likely to make the same mistake again. If you truly possess an entrepreneurial spirit and dream of starting your own business, the potential for failure will never keep you from pursuing your passions. Risk might give you a moment of pause, but the potential regret of not taking a chance should be the thing that keeps you going. Do not stop dreaming of ideas for your next venture. Trust me: A time will come to seize an opportunity for launch and make taking the chance more than worth it. David Disiere is the founder and CEO of QEO Insurance Group, an agency that provides commercial transportation insurance to clients throughout the US. He has launched business endeavors in the real estate, oil and gas, agriculture and automotive sectors. David also works to help underprivileged children through the David & Teresa Disiere Foundation. The post How to Accept Challenges and Thrive Alongside Business Risk appeared first on Octane Blog – The official blog of the Entrepreneurs' Organization. via Octane Blog – The official blog of the Entrepreneurs' Organization https://ift.tt/2Yo3GO6 Written for EO by Manny Padda an entrepreneur, angel investor and philanthropist who won the 2016 Canadian Angel of the Year Award. As an EO Vancouver member, he was the 2017 Entrepreneurs’ Organization Global Citizen of the Year Award. If you’re from Canada and have traveled abroad, you’ve probably got one somewhere—a beat-up maple leaf patch that is sewn onto your backpack or jacket. In a world that can seem big and scary, that little insignia opens doors and lets the world know we want to engage, learn and maybe have some fun. The question is, how can Canadian entrepreneurs bring that same spirit to doing business abroad? That sense of adventure, that ability to open doors for one another? In an era when most business is global, that ability to forge connections abroad can make all the difference. Most Canadian entrepreneurs I meet with today know this, of course. They realize they have to look outside our borders to truly grow. But when you’re starting out, it can be hard to know where to begin making inroads in foreign markets. How do you find investors and partners abroad? How do you compete against those VC-backed behemoths in Silicon Valley? How do you make connections with buyers, suppliers and partners in other countries? Going global in the digital age doesn’t necessarily mean selling everything you own and moving to San Francisco (although spending a little time there can help). As an entrepreneur and angel investor, I’ve built a network that spans dozens of countries. Here are a few tips from the front lines to help Canadian entrepreneurs expand beyond our borders: Leave Canada for a little while (and find other Canadians)The best way to gain international exposure for your business is to travel internationally. It might sound obvious, but there should be a strategy for your travel. I don’t mean backpacking across Europe post-university. Planning trips with business expansion in mind is a more focused endeavor—you have limited time and money, and you need to make certain to get in front of the right people in the right place. Just like when you were hostel-jumping on a few dollars a day, your greatest resource for making connections can still be other Canucks. The flipside of Canada’s multicultural identity is that we have expat communities almost everywhere, which can be a huge leg up for expanding abroad. Whether it’s tapping into the C100 in Silicon Valley or finding an industry-related group through the Canadian Expat Association, asking for input, insight and introductions from compatriots in target markets can fast-forward your efforts. Another oft-overlooked tool is trade commissioners—the people whose job it is to bring new business to target countries. In fact, I ended up making several new business connections on a recent trip to the UK, through a dinner organized by Canada’s trade commissioner service. It’s a great resource that is active in many countries and a good place to start your research.
Join an international accelerator or entrepreneur groupWhile there’s plenty of positive momentum in Canada’s accelerator ecosystem, the reality is that programs with truly global reach—equipped with battle-tested mentors and a robust partner network—remain few and far between. For startups looking to fast-track their international acumen, entering international pitch competitions produced by the likes of Get in the Ring, SaaStock or SXSW can put you on the radar of international investors—or at least provide a master class in what you need to do to get there. Similarly, accelerator programs like YCombinator and 500 Startups have gold-star reputations for a reason. The Canadian startups I’ve invested in that have gone through these programs, companies like Blume and ShareShed, come out not just ready to take on the world but equipped with the skills and confidence to do it. For more established companies looking to strengthen international networks, joining entrepreneur organizations like EO or YPO can instantly give you a seat at the global table. Case in point: As president of EO’s Vancouver chapter, I’ve built business ties with colleagues around the world, from London to Hong Kong. Bake global into your business planOne pattern I see in Canadian startups is that too many wait too long to think about global expansion. As an investor, I want to see that you’re internationally oriented right from the beginning, with specific profiles of foreign markets that make sense for your business. It’s always a warning sign when I see a digital company whose TAM (total addressable market) doesn’t extend much beyond Toronto, Vancouver and Montreal. Part of this might just come down to Canadian modesty: For whatever reason, it’s often not in our nature to aim for world markets right out of the gate. Home turf can be your test market, but don’t stop there. And don’t stop at the US, either. Our neighbors to the south might dominate much of our news cycle, but there’s a whole world of untapped markets out there—and many are a lot easier (and more lucrative) for Canadian startups to access. For instance, both the UK and Australia have similar demographic profiles to Canada and can offer a less competitive international entry point. Think international when hiringWe hear a lot about the shortage of tech talent in our local ecosystems. True, there may be a gap in Canadian senior tech leadership in 2019—from operations and marketing to sales and engineering. But just because you’re based in Vancouver, Ottawa or even St. John’s, doesn’t mean you can’t have senior international talent on your team. The rise of remote working allows any company equipped with a Zoom account to get access to international expertise, without necessarily breaking the bank or footing relocation costs. I’ve even found that professionals abroad often look at remote working as a perk, which can set your recruiting efforts apart from competitors’. By the same token, Canada is one of the most multicultural nations in the world—our greatest strength is truly our diversity. Leverage that when you’re hiring. Chances are, there’s someone with firsthand knowledge of the market you’re trying to reach within your immediate community, so tap into the diversity on your doorstep. Pay it forwardTo be clear, thinking globally doesn’t mean turning your back on Canada. Sure, some companies end up setting up shop in Silicon Valley or London or Singapore. But there are lots of advantages to living and doing business here: a strong labor pool, educated population and great quality of life, to name a few. When we build businesses here, we’re building our future—strengthening the ecosystem of entrepreneurs, talent and investors that are needed to take Canada to the next level and shine on the world stage. Manny Padda is the founder and chief people connector at New Avenue Capital. Find him on Twitter at @mannypadda. The post Practical Ways that Canadian Startups Can Go Global (Without Leaving Home) appeared first on Octane Blog – The official blog of the Entrepreneurs' Organization. via Octane Blog – The official blog of the Entrepreneurs' Organization https://ift.tt/2SBw9ia Carlos Rivas was a student in El Salvador when he competed in the 2012 EO Global Student Entrepreneur Awards (GSEA). After earning a spot as a finalist, he traveled to New York City to take part in the Global Finals. He didn’t win the global competition that year, but Carlos went on to participate in GSEA in a variety of roles—first as a special guest in the 2013 finals, then as a jury member in the 2015 semi-finals in Thailand and, most recently, as a jury member in the 2017 semifinals in Germany. Carlos says he was inspired to become an entrepreneur so that he could follow his passions and rely on his own hard work. He also hopes to make an impact on the world. Today, he considers one of his goals is to become an EO member. We caught up with him to discuss how he looks back on GSEA from a few years further in his entrepreneurial journey. What company were you running when you competed in GSEA?
I participated with my company, Kadevjo Studio, which continues growing to this day. Kadevjo develops applications for mobile devices and games. The company was born from a board game—literally paper and cardboard game—project in university. When we created its digital adaptation, it was the first digital game developed in my country. In this way, we started a new industry in El Salvador. Kadevjo has won many entrepreneurship and technology awards. We’ve been recognized by Microsoft and nominated by Forbes Mexico, among others. Where are you now?I continue at Kadevjo Studio in El Salvador as its creative director. I have also started with my partner from Los Angeles the company 360 Media Studios, a multimedia company. Describe the experience of GSEA.Without a doubt, it was a unique experience. Knowing that we were selected from so many talented people in my country is unique. And, in difficult times, it encourages me to remind myself of that. Meeting other student entrepreneurs was extremely good, too. It was as if I had met other people who were just like me, but from other countries. They had the same vision and desire to take on the world. My greatest skill as an entrepreneur is my charisma and empathy toward people, and I used that resource, making great connections with many of the competitors. Now, I have the opportunity to know people in many different countries!
How did GSEA change you?This competition changed me in many aspects of my life. I realized that we are all equal. We all have the same potential—although some of us have more resources. Opportunities are for everyone, especially for those who seek and fight for them. GSEA helped me to never feel less than anyone. It’s inspiring to learn the stories of people who came from behind, and how they have changed their lives. The experience also reminded me to treat everyone with kindness and always be willing to help. If business owners who are currently billionaires treated us young entrepreneurs so well, how can we not treat others well, too? As a businessman, I learned to accept advice from other people with more experience. I learned that businesses are born in less expected places and that the charisma of a person can be more valuable than a numerical valuation of a company. As a citizen, GSEA encouraged me to support the new generations of entrepreneurs. Undoubtedly, entrepreneurs are the ones who will bring the world forward. And the most valuable thing that I learned and that I still think about these days is that it’s not about money. It’s about our character, our essence as an entrepreneur, the passion we put into our work and the way we treat others! What is the coolest thing you’ve done as a result of being an entrepreneur?Being able to employ more than 20 talented young people in my country—young people with desire to learn, to improve themselves and to contribute to the country. Indirectly, we have changed the lives of these young people and their families. This is what I like most about being an entrepreneur. What is the one thing that you wish you knew back when you were a student entrepreneur?Limits do not exist, except in our mind. If we want something, we fight with all our strength and we make the world conspire until we achieve it. GSEA helped me open my mind to that.
The post No Limits: Looking Back with GSEA Finalist Carlos Rivas appeared first on Octane Blog – The official blog of the Entrepreneurs' Organization. via Octane Blog – The official blog of the Entrepreneurs' Organization https://ift.tt/2XVwDFX Written for EO by Sarah Fruy, director of online marketing at Pantheon Platform. I admit it. I was a traditionalist. For a long time, I followed a one-step-at-a-time approach to project management. All my efforts went to seeing the end product through—not knowing whether it would even be successful after launch. I would spend lengthy cycles working toward a goal. I found it difficult to say no when new projects came across my desk, and my timelines would get derailed. If the project succeeded, it made a tremendous impact. But if the big idea failed, my whole quarter was ruined. Clearly, something needed to change. Shawn Livermon, director of product management at my company, had seen great success running his division using an iterative approach and felt that roles outside of his department could benefit as well. With his encouragement, our entire marketing team and several colleagues from other departments enrolled to become certified facilitators of the agile mindset. Having an agile mindset means working through an implement-measure-learn feedback cycle. It requires constant testing and reworking to get the end product just right. An agile mindset should have a dedication to experimentation and learning, a willingness to collaborate, decisiveness, adaptability and a desire to deliver results. The Impact of an Agile MindsetHaving an agile mindset means being fluid enough to make adjustments to a changing situation. An agile mindset breaks down a major project into measurable tasks: Present the concept, refine the idea with a few rounds of testing and then move to the next iteration. I immediately saw the impact of going agile. When stakeholders had new requests, I could point them to my to-do list within the workflow and then prioritize their new initiatives. A workflow chart allowed me to update project statuses for real-time viewing. This streamlined communication and alleviated the need for unnecessary and costly project update meetings. As we further integrated the agile mindset, I saw other benefits as well. I was no longer focused on having a fully functional program ready for a single launch. I had the ability to test, measure and iterate my marketing programs, and my competitive nature pushed me to find improvements with every new launch. I also developed a better understanding of the amount of work my team can handle at any given time. 3 Ways to Apply an Agile Mindset to Achieve SuccessThere are multiple ways you can use an agile mindset to improve your personal and professional lives: 1. Never consider a project finished. Constant iteration means less pressure to be perfect and allows you to focus on what can be accomplished during a given timeframe. You also avoid the drama of a big launch initiative. I once was tasked with sponsoring a live event to promote a new product. I had little time to research the event, but we were promised press coverage and more than 20,000 attendees, so I took a risk and signed up for a booth. While we got some foot traffic, the attendees were the wrong demographic for us and did not generate the expected sales. With an agile mindset, I could have done more ahead of time to confirm that the event and the potential clients were a good fit for us. 2. Clearly and regularly communicate with your team. Consider holding weekly stand-ups to keep your team and stakeholders informed on the status and priority of their projects. When run effectively, these meetings reduce the need for other external meetings and free you up for higher-value conversations. In fact, the top five techniques for an agile mindset, according to the “13th Annual State of Agile Report,” center around communication: 86 percent of companies incorporate daily stand-ups; 80 percent use retrospectives at the end of each iteration; and 80 percent obtain feedback through iteration reviews. 3. Stay focused on your consumer. The agile mindset allows customers and companies to learn valuable insights. By being customer-centric, you can find the most cost-effective solutions, share the responsibility for launching a successful product that meets consumers’ needs while also being motivated by knowing exactly who your product helps. The agile mindset allows for teams and customers to follow the project as it progresses, allowing for immediate feedback and multiple iterations. The time to market is faster than other project management methodologies, as you can launch and continue to build upon previous projects. It’s a win-win for all involved. As the director of online marketing, Sarah Fruy leads the strategy, goals and road map for Pantheon’s public-facing website and online programs. Fruy is a certified ScrumMaster.® The post 3 Ways to Apply an Agile Mindset appeared first on Octane Blog – The official blog of the Entrepreneurs' Organization. via Octane Blog – The official blog of the Entrepreneurs' Organization https://ift.tt/2xY9xPA Lesley Waterkeyn together with her sister Sandy van Dijk published an easy-to-follow reference guide for all those “what-ifs” experienced along the entrepreneurial gauntlet—from startup phase and on. We asked her more about her new book, The Entrepreneur’s Playbook: From Rookie to Rainmaker in Seven Steps. You recently released the book The Entrepreneur’s Playbook: From Rookie to Rainmaker in Seven Steps. Apart from startup owners and rookies, who can benefit from your book?It’s geared to all entrepreneurs in any stage of their business journey. We cover seven stages (seven colors), and each stage can be applied depending on where the entrepreneur is in the lifecycle of his or her business. From finding your passion and tackling marketing, to best practices in sales, leadership and finance—there is something for everyone, no matter what country your business is in or what stage you’re in. How did you arrive at these seven steps? Can you discuss how you developed them?We used the seven colors of the rainbow to explain the different stages of a business journey. Everyone knows that the pot of gold is at the end of the rainbow, but we believe the pot of gold is within you. You just need to unlock it. Red: Find your passion, find your true north and live the life you were meant to. Orange: Your marketing plan—how to build your promise, create credibility and trust for your brand. Yellow: Sales—commit to action, back yourself and do whatever it takes. Green: Cash in on your passion—make money doing what you love. Blue: Leadership —think forward, create value and thrive. Indigo: Your business plan—maximize and manifest abundance. Violet: Make a difference, and pay it forward. We’ve made the layout of the book visually appealing and easy to reference. We want our book to be a quick and easy guide for any entrepreneur. Part of your book addresses how to meaningfully contribute to the wider business community. Why do you feel this is an important step in today’s entrepreneurial journey?I do believe that there is an awakening today. There’s a greater awareness among people about contributing to a wider cause—to do good and do well, and to be socially aware and solve global problems. Is there any overlap between your experience as an EO member and the insights you share in this book?Most certainly. I don’t think that I would have had the courage, wisdom, insights and experience to write this book without EO in my life. EO’s core values—which include Boldy Go, Make a Mark and Thirst for Learning—are some of the key values that drove me to accomplish writing this book. Lesley Waterkeyn is the CEO of CWDi, a marketing agency based in Cape Town. She is also a member of EO’s Cape Town chapter. She says she credits EO with being fundamental to both her professional and personal development. The post From Rookie to Rainmaker and Over the Rainbow appeared first on Octane Blog – The official blog of the Entrepreneurs' Organization. via Octane Blog – The official blog of the Entrepreneurs' Organization https://ift.tt/2GgVgC7 We recently spoke with Rosemarie “Bubu” Andres about her term as the FY2018/2019 EO Global Chair. Bubu is a proud EO Philippines member and co-founder of Candy Corner, the number one source of quality candies and chocolates in the Philippines. What inspired you to seek the position of Global Chair?There were many things. One factor was the realization that, since I was the only female Global Board member at that time, not seeking the position would mean there would be no female Global Chair again for at least four years. I also wanted to show the world what Filipinos can do—Philippine pride. Another factor was the change that EO was going through at that time. Building on that could take the organization toward the next level. The opportunity to impact that change was clear if I invested the time and energy. What specific actions did you hope to accomplish during the year?I really wanted the board to unite toward moving EO forward. I thought, “EO is like a start-up company that experienced accelerated growth without its systems catching up.” We needed to organize ourselves to prepare for taking the organization to the next level. That meant many improvements in policies and procedures, processes and governance, as well as a mindset toward one of structure and discipline. We were also becoming somewhat of a government institution—slow and resting on our laurels. The world is changing at such an accelerated pace. If we didn’t innovate, we would be left behind. Lastly, I was getting tired of hearing of the different biases among members around the world: black or white, man or woman, east versus west. It was causing discrimination and fractures in our community. We needed to build our one EO community. There was so much good within EO and among our members. We needed to let the light shine on the good all-around and be stronger as one. As a board, we agreed on 5 goals for the year and we all worked towards achieving those goals, with the help of our Tier 1 leaders and succeeded. As you look back on your time as Global Chair, what stands out as a primary lesson?I saw the power of a good, positive culture: the value of an inclusive, supportive culture within the organization, and even within the Global Board. Culture truly trumps strategy every day. What shining moment stands out as your personal highlight?Did you know that my first time ever speaking in front of a crowd was at GLC Toronto? And I did it! That was a shining moment, I thought. Add to that, being able to dance onstage beside apl.de.ap [pictured at right, with Bubu], with members of the Philippine chapter, the Global Board and member leaders from around the world! That finale to my speech at GLC Toronto was a truly memorable moment. It highlighted the sense of community and showed the great things that come out of supporting one another and working together for a common cause--the Bayanihan spirit! It seems like you were everywhere during your Global Chair year! Did you keep a tally of all of the events you attended?It’s interesting that people thought I was everywhere, but I may have been one of the Chairs with the least amount of travel. I was strategic about my travel! I attended only one regional event—EO Unlimited in Hamburg, simply because it was close enough to Portugal University that I could easily attend within the same trip. I even made our third in-person meeting and Annual Planning Meeting (APM) in the Philippines because I knew it was the best way for people to discover my beautiful country and meet my amazing chapter! I feel fortunate that I could work my EO travel and still have regular family travels. In the end, I suppose it did seem like I was everywhere this past year! I planned ahead for my term as Chair. I talked to my family about the time commitment for EO. Of course, I couldn’t stop my now son-in-law from proposing to my daughter, so that was one joyful event we had to work out during my Chair term! Boy, THAT was a challenge! I also talked to key executives in my company and asked them for only two things: They knew they had to run everything without me, and I knew they were capable of doing so. How do you feel this role has changed you personally?This role has helped me mature in more ways than one. I learned to rise above negativity and focus on the good and the positive in all people and all things. I learned to focus on goals yet be mindful of people. I remember something a friend told me: If you speak the truth with love, it will be okay. So, whether it was bad news or difficult conversations I had to have, I did it nicely, honestly, and with respect. We have to speak the truth because it is the only way we can get better. In the spirit of experience share, what might you share with future Global Chairs?Many, many things! Now that you’ve given back to EO in such a significant way, what’s next for you?It is time to focus on family, our home, our business and our community. There are so many changes in the business environment now, and I have learned so many things the last few years. We have begun conceptualizing great goals to pivot our business toward exponential growth; I am excited about guiding our team toward achieving them. We also have new businesses we want to take on as a family. Then, there is our family travel… Now, we can go back to our usual haunts. I’m quite excited! I end my term as Global Chair with so much joy, a sense of fulfillment and no regrets. Everyone on the FY2018/2019 board left it feeling happy and fulfilled. We’ve become good friends and our relationships won’t end with board service. We trust the incoming board will continue with any unfinished business, in addition to everything they are planning to accomplish! It is going to be a very exciting FY2019/2020 under Jason Sze’s leadership. I look forward to watching, supporting and cheering him on from the sidelines! Since joining EO in 2001, Bubu Andres has made a mark at all levels of the organization, both as a passionate member of EO Philippines and in various leadership positions. When she’s not making a mark within EO, Bubu serves as the co-founder and CFO of Candy Corner Philippines, Inc., as well as CFO of Global Beer Exchange, and co-founder and general manager of Snapsnack Foods Corp. Outside of entrepreneurship, Bubu is celebrating life with her husband, Ricky, and their three children: Rina, Robbie and Rissa. The post My Journey as EO Global Chair appeared first on Octane Blog – The official blog of the Entrepreneurs' Organization. via Octane Blog – The official blog of the Entrepreneurs' Organization https://ift.tt/2jWhi59 David Cusimano shares how he worked through the stages of hearing and actually doing a key piece of advice for business owners. If you’re like most business owners who often search for opportunities and business advice at odd hours of the night, you’ve probably come across the advice that you should spend more time “working on your business, not in your business.” Hearing this advice, accepting it and actually living it are three distinct stages. I hope my story of working through these stages can assist others in their quests to create scalable businesses they will one day be able to sell and, in turn, create a legacy for their families. Within a few months of starting my first business (a flight training business), I was regularly working six to seven days per week and often ten to twelve hours per day. Success was within reach, and like most young entrepreneurs, I thought if I could just squeeze another few hours into a week, I would obtain it. I fell into the E-Myth trap, as described in Michael Gerber’s book by the same name. Fortunately, I had a client who had successfully navigated the same entrepreneurial journey I was embarking on. He was one of my flight students who had started his business from scratch and had grown it to over 50 locations in several states. I’ll never forget our conversation spurred by my usual small business owner complaints. He asked, “David, do you want to be a flight instructor or do you want to grow a business?” Puzzled as to why these would be mutually exclusive I answered, “I want to grow a business.” “Stop flying airplanes and work every day to ensure you’re offering compelling value to the community in a way your competitors will have trouble duplicating. Take a week off and make sure your model is profitable and scalable before wasting any more time.” “You’re crazy. I can’t take a week off. I’ll lose customers. You don’t understand.” I was telling the successful millionaire entrepreneur he was the one who didn’t understand! He didn’t give up and beat this message into me for months. Finally, after several months, I realized he was right. There weren’t any more hours in the day for me to work. While I had been flying airplanes every day in a business that had grown only slightly, my competitors (some of whom weren’t even pilots) had been busy growing businesses that were surpassing mine. Even this epiphany didn’t drive me to immediate action. Entrusting all frontline client interactions to employees was terrifying to me. But I finally did it. One momentous day I felt I was playing Russian roulette and removed myself from our list of active flight instructors. It was the single most transformative day of my career. While our revenue and my personal income did take a hit for a few months, I quickly adjusted to my new, more valuable role and our business began an upward trajectory. Several years later I reflect back on that experience. Creating a growing business is different than being a professional in a particular field. Both are equally noble career paths, but the daily work of each is drastically different. Frustration arises if we attempt to continue the normal tasks of working in our field while we fool ourselves into thinking we are growing a business that will create value that lives beyond us. While industry knowledge and expertise are certainly valuable in excelling in a particular industry, unless we spend our days finding unique ways to organize our resources into a scalable platform for delivering compelling value for our customers, we’ve created a job-with-no-boss-and-a-few-employees for ourselves in our chosen field, not an independently valuable business. Even those who have created organizations generating several tens of millions of dollars can have trouble selling for a desired price if they haven’t realized which path they are actually on. There is nothing wrong with this. Successful doctors, lawyers, plumbers and electricians do it all the time. They have rewarding careers and build nice retirements. But we must recognize that this is a different path from one on which we work “on our business” and create scalable value beyond ourselves that we will be able to realize upon an eventual exit from our business. David Cusimano has spent years working with small and middle-market private companies in capacities ranging from entrepreneur to an investment banker and mergers and acquisitions (M&A) advisor. His business advisory firm, Emerge Dynamics, is on a mission to improve the lives of business owners and their employees by increasing the market value and wealth transfer-ability of the private middle market around the world. The post Work On Your Business, Not In Your Business appeared first on Octane Blog – The official blog of the Entrepreneurs' Organization. via Octane Blog – The official blog of the Entrepreneurs' Organization https://ift.tt/2JCRtjy Written for EO by Todd Smart, an experienced entrepreneur, the co-founder at Traction® Tools and an EO member since 1992. Are you a small business entrepreneur whose leadership team lacks cohesion or focus? Or maybe you’re running a start-up that can’t reach your next revenue goal? Is your company’s leadership team constantly seeing the same issues popping up? You’re not alone! But it doesn’t have to be that way. There are best practices you can put into place to solve your toughest business problems—and solve them for good. Ready to quit solving and re-solving the problems in your company? Follow these five steps and you’ll see a lasting change that can help take your company to the next level of growth. 1. Get to the Root CauseProblems create pain, but the pain is just a symptom. Most leadership teams react to the pain and solve the symptom. They don’t take time to dig down and explore the real issues at root that are causing the pain. Root cause analysis can be painful in itself, because you might discover dysfunctions or systemic issues that are messy and complicated. But solving those issues—really addressing the root causes—will end your pain and solve your problems for good. 2. Get Everyone’s InputIt’s not always easy to get to the root cause of an issue—especially if you have members of leadership that are hesitant to speak up. They may have an insight into the problem or the solution that no one else is considering. People don’t speak up for a number of reasons: they aren’t confident, they don’t want to rock the boat or they don’t realize they have valuable insight. Go around the room. Get everyone’s opinion before making a final decision. 3. Make It Safe to SpeakBefore everyone speaks up, they need to feel like it’s safe to be open and honest. The team needs to trust one another enough to be vulnerable with dissenting opinions or criticisms. This means purposefully fostering a culture that makes it safe to speak—and walking the talk at every meeting. Respect every opinion, thank people for their contributions, and always treat each opinion with thoughtful consideration. 4. Agree to the AgreementEstablish an agreement on your team, and hold each other accountable to it: agree to an agreement. In other words, you won’t always get 100 percent agreement on a solution, but you can all agree to support the decision that’s made. Make an upfront commitment that all of your leadership team members will stick together and be united in the agreements that are made to solve your company’s problems. If you have a silent dissenter who doesn’t buy into a solution, you’re just asking for trouble later on—especially if the solution has a consequence. Your company can’t succeed if your leadership team is made up of individual kingdoms and agendas. 5. Use a Proven SystemAt our organization, we use a simple, holistic system—an operating system for our business—that helps us identify, discuss and solve issues for good. Our system is called the Entrepreneurial Operating System® (EOS), but there are other business systems as well—such as Gazelles, Strategic Coach and Tony Robbins Business Results Training. What’s most important is to find a proven system that fits your company—and stick to it! You don’t have to keep dealing with the same problems time and time again. Start implementing these steps at your next leadership team meeting. Establish the ground rules, list your issues and dig in until you’ve solved the root cause. And start enjoying fewer business problems! Todd Smart has been a founder, co-founder or partner in eight businesses since 1991. He is currently an EOS Implementer as well as a co-founder for Traction Tools software for EOS and a partner in OSM SolutionsFirst. Todd joined EO in 1992 as part of the founding group in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He later transferred to the Chicago chapter. The post 5 Critical Steps to Solving Your Business Problems for Good appeared first on Octane Blog – The official blog of the Entrepreneurs' Organization. via Octane Blog – The official blog of the Entrepreneurs' Organization https://ift.tt/2JmyMS8 Written by Michael Weitz, co-founder of Virtuozo and EO Israel member. What advice would I share with young entrepreneurs today? That’s easy to answer. Follow your strange curiosities. For me they have been, as in the Harry Potter realm, a veritable Felix Felicis (though without the possible toxic side effects). For example, in high school I was strong in leadership and biology. I’m sure my parents had fantasies about me going into medicine or perhaps biotech. But what did I choose? Theatre. I pursued this interest even though I knew it was a long shot to be successful, and that even “successful” theatre people didn’t necessarily make money. So why did I do it? To be honest, I don’t know. At the time it was strange and interesting to me. I figured I’d do it for a few years and then perhaps get a “real job.” Deciding to pursue a career in the theatre turned out to be one of the three best decisions of my life. In the theatre I earned an MBA from the school of life—learning first hand about human psychology, leadership, management, recruiting, talent development, creativity, budgets, negotiations, raising capital, hustling, marketing, pitching, contracts, politics, fraud and betrayal. All the booms and busts that you find in the worlds of business and entrepreneurship. Unbeknownst to me, theatre turned out to be a perfect laboratory where I learned about life and myself. Could I have predicted all of this when I was graduating? No way. A similar thing happened when I changed careers to executive development out of a strange curiosity about how leaders are made. And again when I decided to follow a girl to her home country because I’d never lived abroad. I didn’t speak the language, but we wound up falling in love and having a family. The country turned out to be the perfect place to co-found the business I have now, much to everyone’s surprise. Sometimes the effects of following your strange curiosities are quickly realized—for example, when you take a course unrelated to your field and discover a talent you didn’t realize you had. And sometimes the effects may take decades before they become fully ripe. For me, the movement improvisation class I took while an undergrad would prove invaluable 17 years later while working with a Fortune 500 CEO on how to come across with more power and authenticity just by using some basic principles from modern dance. So, as you carve out your place in the world, gathering advice on the right path for you, and the right way to get there, pay attention to those strange curiosities that pop up from time to time. Exploring them may lead you on your own lucky path, and bring you to the life you want to create. Michael Weitz is a speaker coach and co-founder of Virtuozo, a boutique training and consulting company that specializes in bringing out people’s unique presence and enhancing their impact as communicators and leaders. Michael is a member of the EO chapter in Israel. The post Follow Your Curiosity and Success Will Follow appeared first on Octane Blog – The official blog of the Entrepreneurs' Organization. via Octane Blog – The official blog of the Entrepreneurs' Organization https://ift.tt/32bW98v |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. Archives
November 2020
Categories |