I’ve worked in a leadership role with many businesses over the last four decades – service providers, mature operating companies, turnarounds, and high growth startups. For me, startups were the most fun – I guess I enjoy managing chaos? For this article, my focus is on startups that have made it past the starting gate. […]
CEO Job Description?
Some time ago, I was helping a small business onboard a new chief executive. While we were negotiating the CEO’s employment agreement, the CEO’s attorney asked if we could prepare a detailed job description outlining all of the duties and responsibilities of the CEO. I think I had a mic drop moment as I thought […]
Rise to Your Level of Incompetence? Why Not?
A while back, I was on the periphery of a conversation about people “rising to their level of incompetence.” Although this is usually thought of in a negative context, I believe that this can be a great thing — if done the right way…
Creating Extraordinary Transferable Value in Your Closely Held Business
I recently attended a business panel presentation, and the topic was “navigating business lifecycles – from early stage, to maturity and beyond.” During the Q&A session, one of the attendees asked about attributes that can create significant business value in the eyes of an acquirer. This made me think back to some mental notes that I have made over the years. Some […]
From Pride to Arrogance – The Fine Line
I’ve worked with a number of small businesses that have a strong culture founded on excellence. In these companies, a key piece of this culture is company pride. In one company I worked with, employees even joked about getting tattooed with the Company’s Pantone color code!
Stop Selling After You’ve Closed the Deal
First, I’m not a salesman, a sales coach or a sales consultant. There are many people who are far more qualified than me to explain the sales process and closing techniques. That acknowledged, I have had two sales experiences over the last few weeks that compel me to write this. In both cases, the salesperson […]
Cavalier about lawsuits? Think again – a defendant’s perspective
Often times during business disagreements, I hear owners and executives say “let them sue us — bring it on!” While that might be our initial response in the middle of a rip-roaring business dispute, trust me — don’t let feelings and emotions drive your actions when lawsuits are involved. Why am I writing this? I have been a […]
Productivity & Execution: Speed Up By Slowing Down
It happens all the time, especially in start-ups and high growth companies. We’re juggling multiple priorities, we’re understaffed, and we’re bombarded by emails and other media. Everyone wants a chunk of our time. In the quest to generate new business, there’s also the temptation to chase all the shiny new objects and say “no” to nothing. […]
Career Growth – Your Three Circles
A while back, I saw a tweet by Michael Hyatt that reminded me of three questions I like to ask employees and colleagues that come to me to discuss their careers. During these conversations, I frequently hear some combination of the following: What is my place in the company? What does my future here look […]