Getting It Done Or It's All About Execution.

Getting It Done Or It's All About Execution.

by Elisa SpainNo Comments

One of my Vistage members asked me this question this week, “What is the common theme among the businesses you know that have grown significantly?”

Or to ask the question another way, why is it that less than 1.5% of  U.S. companies are greater than $25mm in revenue and less than .27% are greater than $100mm*. And, why is it that Vistage members outperform their counterparts in their same industries?

The answer quite simply is the combination of a scalable business model and ruthless execution.

Peter Drucker says businesses have more than enough leaders; what they really need are “competent managers who can do the hard work of decision making, planning, and coaching”.

The leaders of companies I know that have scaled understand this.  These are the companies that develop plans and execute on those plans. They follow the DIME method – continuously Design, Implement, Monitor and Evaluate.  For more on the Dime Method, see 7/22/12 blog – Is Your Leadership Team Your Co-Advisor.

Elisa K .Spain

*Source Keith McFarland, Breakthrough Companies

Economic Uncertainty… What To Do, What To Do?

Economic Uncertainty… What To Do, What To Do?

by Elisa SpainNo Comments

As summer winds down and attention focuses back on business, the subject on the minds of business people continues to be economic uncertainty. We lived in a world of prosperity for such a long time, prior to 2008, that many of us forgot that the economy moves in cycles.

The Vistage economists, Brian and Alan Beaulieu from the Institute for Trend Research tell us the next recession is not until Q3 or Q4 2013 and yet, any softness in the economy is read by the general press as a beginning of a recession. In some cases, the perception exists that the recession of 2008 continues, despite results that prove otherwise.

So what’s my point?

While macro-economic factors will impact all businesses, what matters most is what we do each day. One of my Vistage CEO members who owns a commercial construction business said it well. When asked the reason for his success during the real-estate debacle, his answer was simply, “While we are one of the largest privately held businesses in our industry, we do business nationally. We are a small % of the overall construction business in the country and therefore there is and was plenty of business out there for us. Our team recognizes this opportunity. And every day, we deliver world class service to our current customers and continually focus on acquiring new ones.”

  • What is your story of prosperity?
  • How are you benefiting from the current economic uncertainty to gain an unfair advantage in your business?

Elisa K. Spain

 

Coaching Companies To Greater Sales & Profits….And An Invitation

by Elisa SpainNo Comments

We hear a lot about sales strategy and sales management, as though it is something separate from business strategy.   Vistage Speaker Jack Daly encourages us to think of it this way, “a great place to work is a great place to buy”.

If you are a CEO qualified for Vistage membership and would like to hear Jack’s  indepth treatment of this topic, I am inviting 3 CEO guests to attend the September 12th meeting of my Vistage CEO group.  Please contact me at (312) 421-1813 if you would like to see if your company has what it takes (or if you would like to refer a guest).

Elisa K. Spain

What Is The Business Practice All Leaders Do And Everyone Says They Hate…

What Is The Business Practice All Leaders Do And Everyone Says They Hate…

by Elisa Spain1 Comment

What is the business practice everyone does and everyone says they hate? MEETINGS!

How often do we hear, I hate meetings? And yet, how do most leaders spend most of their time? In meetings.

Most of us accept that, as leaders, we need meetings to communicate and get things done through other people. And yet,  most leaders, say they dread attending meetings, even the ones they are leading.

As a leadership coach, I enjoy my meetings. I draw energy from the peer group meetings I lead and from the coaching sessions with my Vistage members.  Some meetings, of course, are better than others and I find value in all of them. I  enjoy the interchange, the questions, the sharing, the challenging and the learning. And, my members tell me that meetings inside their companies sometimes have these characteristics and sometimes they do not.

I am curious to hear from you. What’s working for you in meetings and what is not?

For those who hate meetings, here are my questions:

  • When you say, “I hate attending meetings” what would you rather be doing?
  • What is it about one-on-one meetings you don’t like?
  • What is it about group meetings you don’t like?

And, for those of you who like meetings and find them to be productive:

  • What is it about one-on-one meetings you like? What makes them work for you?
  • What is it about group meetings you like? What makes them work for you?

And, for those of you who want to learn more about leading productive meetings, one of my favorite books on the subject is Death by Meeting, by Patrick Lencioni.

 

Elisa K. Spain

Is Your Leadership Team Your Co-Advisor Or ?

Is Your Leadership Team Your Co-Advisor Or ?

by Elisa SpainNo Comments


Businesses are assets, right? What might happen if we followed the best practices of investment management in running them?

When we hire an advisor to manage our traditional portfolio of stocks and bonds, the first thing they want to know is the answer to the following  two questions:

  1. Will you delegate full responsibility for managing your portfolio to me? or
  2. Will the account be co-advised, meaning, before I make a purchase or sale in your portfolio,  I must consult with you?

When the owner of the portfolio chooses #1,  the client and the advisor work together to design a portfolio that meets the risk tolerance of the client, the advisor constructs the portfolio and typically the advisor provides reports, usually monthly or quarterly, that inform the owner of the status of their portfolio. Additionally, the advisor’s reports include a comparison of their performance to that of their peer group.

The full process is based on the DIME method (coined by my friend Scott Morgan, author of an out-of-print book by the same title).  DIME: Design, Implement, Monitor, Evaluate.

Sometimes, the owner of the portfolio chooses #1, but instead of delegating authority, monitoring the performance of the portfolio, and periodically evaluating the portfolio manager; the owner abdicates, i.e. moves on to other things and ignores the portfolio manager.

I heard a sad story from a friend recently who chose option #1, neglected the monitor and evaluate part, and didn’t discover the result until he needed the money and discovered it was gone. The advisor was not dishonest, he simply made poor investment choices.

Ok, so what does this have to do with leadership and running a business? Here is what I have learned as a Vistage Chair and leadership coach.

The “portfolio managers” of our business are our leadership team, our key executives.  Each business owner has a risk tolerance that leads them to be more or less involved in activities in their businesses. The result sometimes is key executives either feel micromanaged or business owners abdicate  instead of delegate, only to jump back in when things are not going as they expected (but didn’t verbalize).

This seesaw drives both owners and key executives crazy and leads to outcomes neither wants. What if instead owners and key executives sat down together and asked the investment manager questions. These questions might include some of the following:

  • What decisions will I have full responsibility for?
  • Which decisions do you want to co-advise?
  • What risks are you most concerned about?
  • What kind of reporting works best for you? Written, verbal?
  • What do you want to monitor, and on what frequency?
  • How will my performance be evaluated?

And finally the most important question,

What is our agreement as to how to give each other feedback when the outcomes or the process didn’t go as we expected?

Elisa K. Spain

 

Consensus Equals Beige

Consensus Equals Beige

by Elisa Spain2 Comments

When a leader asks for input and then makes a decision, the result is vivid color, i.e. a better decision. It is a better decision for lots of reasons.

First and foremost, your team feels valued when they are asked to participate in the decision process.

Second, there is value in the wisdom of crowds, many times the group will surface ideas that the leader hasn’t thought about. As a Vistage Chair and leadership coach, I see this happen each month during the executive sessions  I lead  with CEOs and Key Executives.  This, of course, is why 15,000 people around the world are members of Vistage – because we know the value of seeking input from others.

Where it all goes awry, is when we seek consensus either from our team or from our Vistage group (or our family, friends, book club, etc).  With consensus all the colors get mixed together, resulting in a dull beige, i.e. a mediocre, watered down decision.

Next time you are asking for input, ask yourself  if what you want is color. And, if it is color you want, don’t settle for beige.  Make the final decision yourself.

Elisa K. Spain

 

Vistage Confidence Index Results – CEO Confidence Dips

Vistage Confidence Index Results – CEO Confidence Dips

by Elisa SpainNo Comments

The quarterly Vistage CEO Confidence Index is now available  Here are some highlights:

The  Confidence Index was 92.8 in the 2nd quarter 2012 survey, down from 105.1 in the 1st quarter of 2012, repeating the same pattern of decline recorded in the first half of 2011 (105.2 in the 1st quarter of 2011 to 92.9 in the 2nd).  This is the third year that a mid-year slump in confidence has been recorded. The common elements in each year’s retreat have been weakening conditions in the economy as well as concerns over economic policies. Despite the retreat in confidence, the Confidence Index is much closer to its ten-year peak (115.6) than to its low point (48.7).

Below are some key highlights from the Q2 Vistage CEO Confidence Index:

  • 30% of CEOs expect overall economic conditions to improve in the next 12 months,
  • 66% of CEOs anticipate sales revenues will increase in the next 12 months.
  • 50% of CEOs expect to add to their staff during the next 12 months.
  • 26% of CEOs say customer retention and lead generation are the biggest challenges they are facing right now.
  • 21% say their biggest challenge is managing costs.

Click here for the full report.

Elisa K. Spain

Leadership Quote: I Am Part Of All Whom I Have Met….

Leadership Quote: I Am Part Of All Whom I Have Met….

by Elisa SpainNo Comments

This month’s leadership quote:  I am part of all whom I have met. – Alfred Lord Tennyson.

One of the greatest lessons I have learned since becoming a Vistage Chair is this one. How many times do we as leaders say to ourselves,  “I am different, they are different, that is the reason we cannot communicate.”

What if instead, we asked ourselves the following questions when dealing with a difficult communication challenge:

  • What can I learn about the person I am dealing with that will give me insight into them as a human being?
  • What life experiences do we share?
  • What personality traits, interests, passions do we share?
  • How might what we share, help us to communicate?

Elisa K. Spain

 

Does A Business Have To Grow?

Does A Business Have To Grow?

by Elisa SpainNo Comments

This is a topic often discussed amongst my Vistage members. Some want to grow, others like the idea of maintaining a controllable size. There is no one-size-fits-all answer. What I do know is that businesses are organic, and therefore static is not sustainable. We’ve all seen businesses disappear over time when the owner was not engaged, unaware of changes in the industry, lost a key employee, a new competitor entered the market with a game changing idea, etc.

If you accept that static is not sustainable, what to do?

If you find that you like the entrepreneur culture, with everyone playing a part in the business, be intentional about it. While you may not want fast growth or a large company, a business has no choice but to continue to evolve and grow, even if it is at a steady pace. If you are in this place, here are my questions for you:

  • Do you have a diversified client base?
  • If not, what steps are you taking to diversify and reduce this risk?
  • Where is your business and your product(s) in the business life cycle? If you are in a mature industry, with mature products, what is your “digital camera” and what are you doing about it? see March 11, 2012 blog, Innovation vs Discipline: Kodak vs Fuji 

If, on the other hand, you have the opportunity to scale and want to, be intentional about that as well. The challenge for many entrepreneurs who want to grow is making that transformation from an “entrepreneur culture” to a professionally managed culture. If you are an owner with a growth plan, here are your questions:

  • Do you want to be the CEO of a professionally managed company? Does the thought give you energy and play to your genius?
  • If you would rather leave the management to someone else, is there someone on your team that could be your COO?
  • Are you open to accepting that your business is going to change and some of the people will have to change as well?
  • Are you willing to invest the time and the money to get there?

Whichever path you choose, make it an intentional one.

Elisa K. Spain

Leadership Quote: The Key Is Not To Prioritize What Is On Your Schedule..

Leadership Quote: The Key Is Not To Prioritize What Is On Your Schedule..

by Elisa SpainNo Comments

This month’s leadership quote:  The key is not to prioritize what’s on your schedule, but to schedule your priorities. – Stephen Covey

We often hear time management tips about taking time to plan your schedule. What we often hear is to prioritize what is on the schedule. What Stephen Covey reminds us with this quote, is to pause, choose our priorities and then schedule them.

As a leadership coach, I recommend the following 5 step approach to my Vistage members and coaching clients:

  1. Start with the wheel of life, what are my “spokes”?
  2. What do I need to feel in balance with each of the spokes on my wheel? Remembering that balance is different for each person, see 2/5/12 blog: The Ever Elusive Search for Work/Life Balance
  3. What are my 3 or 5 year goals for each spoke?
  4. What actions do I want (need) to take this year to move me toward those goals?
  5. Each day, when planning the day, ask this question: How do I want to spend the 16 hours I am not sleeping so that I complete the actions I set for myself this year?