Sustainable growth is built upon the bedrock of uncompromising team alignment. As a strategic business coach, I've observed that organizations thriving in today's environment possess a distinct ability to establish and maintain a strong operational rhythm. One highly effective tool for achieving this is the implementation of daily huddles.
As a strategic business coach, I've seen firsthand how recurring hassles can cripple an organization. They drain productivity, frustrate employees, and drive customers away. Let’s dive into six powerful problem-solving guidelines from Verne Harnish's "Start to Scale" that can help you de-hassle your organization and turn feedback into positive change.
Imagine a jar. You have a limited amount of space, and you need to fill it with important things. Do you start with the small stuff – pebbles, sand, even water? Or do you begin with the largest items – the boulders? This simple analogy, famously illustrated by Stephen Covey, perfectly captures the essence of effective time management and goal setting. In this blog post, we'll explore the concept of 'Big Rocks' and how prioritizing them is crucial for scaling up your leadership and achieving your most ambitious business goals.
The corner office can be a lonely place. With decreasing tenures and increasing demands, today's CEOs face unprecedented challenges in leading their organizations. While McKinsey's groundbreaking research in "CEO Excellence" reveals six fundamental mindsets for success, what truly stands out are the counterintuitive lessons beneath the surface.
In the dynamic and demanding landscape of modern leadership, the power of connections is often overlooked. Yet, it's the threads of relationships that weave together the fabric of our success. Your network isn't just a collection of names; it's a reservoir of knowledge, support, and opportunity. By strategically building and nurturing your leadership network, you can unlock doors, amplify your impact, and drive your career forward.
Could your team make it to the Final Four?
It’s March Madness, and I can’t help but draw parallels between the teams on the basketball floor and the executive teams I see in the business world. They both operate off the same set of basic principles:
1. Get the basics right. Know your core values and stay true to them. Stay positive and work together on shared goals instead of personal, isolated goals. You can’t win the game alone.
Apple, REI, Walt Disney, Nordstrom, Starbucks…
When you walk into any of these businesses you immediately feel their company culture. It hits you the moment you step inside. It’s in the way their team members greet you, their level of service and the subtle behaviors you might not even notice.
All of these companies take their cultures seriously. They make trust, transparency, respect and pride all non-negotiable, and these qualities get mirrored in their customer-facing interactions.
As we enter 2018 and all the promise a fresh year brings, it’s the perfect time for leaders to develop their company’s Vivid Vision.
What’s a Vivid Vision? Cameron Herold, the former COO of 1-800-Got-Junk who increased revenues from $2 million to $105 million in 6 years, describes it in his book Double Double. It’s painting a picture of what your business will look, feel and act like three years down the road. It’s not about how you will get there with defined goals and metrics — we’ll save that for the strategic planning sessions with your leadership team. It’s imagining where you want your company to be in three years. To communicate this picture, you’ll need to envision success and provide ample details, using expressive language.
One of the biggest — and most common — pitfalls in business is a lack of accountability. You can have a rock-solid strategic plan with clear areas of responsibility and measurable metrics, but if you don’t hold each other accountable, you won’t reach your goals.
If that sounds like your team, you’re not alone. I uncover accountability issues in many of the teams I work with, including some who are otherwise highly functional. The good news: It’s a relatively easy fix if you’re not afraid to say “the buck stops here”, “you can’t blame others” or “it’s your issue.”
What’s the greatest differentiator when it comes to achieving your company’s ambitious growth goals? There’s no question: It’s a tightly aligned, high-performing leadership team. You can have the most eloquent vision statement and a well thought-out strategic plan to back it up, but if you don’t have a strong team to execute, you won’t reach your goals.
Steve Jobs said, “Great things in business are never done by one person. They’re done by a team of people.” I couldn’t agree more.
Are you going to reach your 2017 growth targets? Were you and your team focused on all the right actions this year to meet your goals? Did you stick to your plan? Was it really a plan or just a long to-do list?
The 4th Quarter of 2017 is fast approaching. What does success look like in 2018? 20% annual growth, 10% increase in margins, 2 times cash flow, double the number of “A” player employees, record number of customer acquisitions and retention and additional new markets and products/services? What can you do now to set yourself up to achieve those goals in 2018.
