Posts Tagged ‘ceo’
Why top performing project managers produce top level profits
New projects are exciting and new business is necessary for survival. If you don’t take the time to scope the project and price it right, you’ll lose more than profit. Can your firm afford to lose its good reputation, be known for providing poor service and, thus, create low staff morale? A lesson I learned…
Read MoreHow to turn on a dime, seize market opportunities and maximize profits
California’s historic drought is all over the news. You can’t escape it. And, for those people and businesses affected, it’s a tragedy. Like any natural disaster, there are industries, such as engineering and energy in this case, that can benefit from them. How can your firm make a much-needed difference and grow profits? When working…
Read MoreIt takes a village– how to develop your own personal community of advisors
It can be lonely at the top but it doesn’t have to be. Just as your employees rely on each other for collaboration, brainstorming, feedback, etc., you too, as the leader, need this support. But it doesn’t always come naturally when you’re the CEO. For example, since employees won’t necessarily feel comfortable providing you honest feedback,…
Read MoreSecrets of 7 successful companies that do some things badly
Is being bad part of your strategy? It seems counter-productive, doesn’t it? But it’s not. Successful companies know this secret and practice it so that they can be the best at their priorities. The concept of focusing on a single business model is not new. In 1995, Treacy and Wiersema wrote “The Discipline of Market Leaders.” They…
Read MoreLessons on CEO burnout, how to spot it, how to resolve it
Part of being an effective leader is to constantly evaluate yourself. It can be difficult to objectively determine how you’re doing– to see yourself as others see you. The problem of leadership burnout is that no one is going to tell you. No one is going to come into your office and tell you that you’re…
Read MoreThe life or death of an exit strategy
Over my 35 year career, I learned there is one challenge firm owners face that is most prevalent, that negatively impacts their wealth and the stability of the firm. The challenge is created by being too caught up in the day to day business. Thus, there is little thought given to exit strategies– until it…
Read MoreCEOs’ top role: Get the most out of your employees
When talking strategic direction, we often talk in terms of the role of the CEO and what he or she must do to encourage greater productivity and alignment. We don’t focus as much on the role of the employees, although we all know we’d be nowhere without them. We understand leadership starts at the top and an effective leader encourages employees to act…
Read MoreStrategic Execution– What 4 things must you do to “make it so”?
The planning process is essential to establishing broad goals, but it doesn’t just start or stop there. Next, you must execute consistently on clearly identified steps that build to the ultimate goals identified in your strategic plan. In the case study below, you’ll see innovative actions that ultimately led to the firm’s success. They include: hiring…
Read MoreCEOs and CFOs can endear their creditors by sharing their sales process
CRMs have been a tough sell for many professional services firms because they were seen as adding work. So, I often end up implementing a simplified system that mainly used the Opportunities tracking module. I think that the newer cloud based systems have overcome many objections and their use is finally starting to sink in.…
Read MoreTo broaden sales participation, the CEO must remove barriers
As a principal in charge of the largest division of a 130 person firm, a first step in implementing a highly efficient sales program was to make sure everyone knew the latest sales methods and spoke a common sales language. Since operations and finance managers were a potential barrier to broaden sales, all senior managers went…
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