Leap: How to Thrive in a World Where Everyone Can be Copied

It’s the age-old question: how can companies succeed and maintain that success long-term? In Howard Yu’s 2018 highly rated book, Leap: How to Thrive in a World Where Everyone Can be Copied, he strives to answer that question. He takes into consideration the ever-evolving world of business and technology. Yu argues that by incorporating reinvention as a priority into an organization’s system, businesses will be able to stay above the competition and at the top of their field. Expert companies have done it in the past, and are still doing it today.

 

To be a successful, lasting business, it’s not enough to be good in the chosen field or have a great product. Businesses must also acknowledge how easily they can be copied by their competition (and (often foreign) latecomers). Businesses have to keep changing it up and balancing the task of mastering the old and inventing the new. That often involves reimaging products and services and learning to market them in new ways in order to overpower the competition.

 

Yu uses captivating case studies that demonstrate both successes and failures in the business industry to present a model for achievement. He stresses five principles for success that can be applied to countless industries. He doesn’t just use current examples either. He details effective tactics from numerous eras. We tend to think that a strategy used in the 40’s would be ineffectual in today’s technologically advanced world, until we take into consideration that that company is still standing strong today. Yu also makes a nod at the need to use multiple disciplines to stay relevant. As a prime example, he cites top pharmaceutical companies that didn’t simply rely on chemistry, but began using microbiology and genomics to lead to groundbreaking drug discoveries.

 

The lesson in Leap is clear: leap. Make leaps and bounds in business. Take risks that may seem impossible; it may be the only way to outlast the competition and prosper in this ever-changing world.

 

7 Words CEOs Should Avoid When Giving Employee Feedback

Your team is important to you. They’re your backbone. So the last thing you need is a team that’s upset with you for using words or phrases that make you appear passive aggressive or worse, weak. As the boss, discussing job performance with your employees is inevitable, but you can avoid offending them by throwing these 7 words (and phrases) out of your vocabulary.

 

“If you want to succeed”

There are many definitions of success, and your employee might define success differently. Your definition of success does not determine how or if your employee is successful. Not only can this phrase come off as passive-aggressive and offensive, it may also sound threatening if it’s used in a job performance review.

 

“Fine”

‘Fine’ can make you sound weak and mediocre, not to mention indecisive. No employee wants to hear that the project they’ve been working on all week is just “fine.” It also doesn’t provide the employee with much of a gauge as to how to improve, or if they even need to. Try being more specific instead.

“Seems”

Using “seems” seems to be weak and indecisive, much like using the word ‘fine.’ It’s weak if you’re using it to avoid being honest about employee work not being up to par, and it’s indecisive if you’re using it because you can’t make up your mind about how you feel about something. Try saying exactly what you mean instead.

 

 

“Be more like”

They say that comparison is the root of all evil. Don’t compare people, especially not your employees during a performance review. If you think an employee would do better if they behaved or worked a certain way, get to the root of the problem and provide concrete examples for improvement.

“Always”

‘Always’ is a strong word, and you should avoid it when speaking to your employees. It’s probably not true that they are “always late” or “always moody” or “always forgetting to save files to the network.”  

 

 

“Never”

Just like with the word ‘always,’ avoid speaking in absolutes whenever possible. You immediately lose credibility when you tell an employee that they’ve never done this or never done that. Soften your word choice and use something like ‘rarely’ or ‘often’ or ‘consistently’ instead.

You

It might seem impossible not to use the word ‘you’ or some variation of it when providing feedback. After all, you are speaking directly to someone. However, constantly saying ‘you’ or ‘your’ puts the employee on the defensive; it comes off as accusatory. It might sound awkward and unnatural to refrain from the word, but it makes difficult feedback a little easier to swallow. Consider using “I’m noticing a lack of communication and I wonder if it’s because the workload is too high” versus “You are not communicating and I think it’s because you can’t handle the workload.” See the difference?

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/8-words-avoid-when-giving-john-blakey/

 

 

If necessary, write these phrases down so you remember to avoid using them. Better yet, write a script or bullet points about what you’re going to say so that you aren’t making it up as you go along. Even practicing your feedback out loud can be helpful. Oftentimes, hearing the words out loud sounds differently than how they did in your head.

Breaking the Employee Disloyalty Cycle: How to Retain Our A Players

In almost every client session I have these days, the top area of concern is staffing. We all want to know how to attract the best talent and how to keep them around. Almost invariably, the conversation drifts into the ‘kids these days’ realm as we discuss generational differences in working style and company loyalty.

 

The challenge I have with this conversation is that it is unproductive. It’s true that employees are less loyal to single companies. 41% of Millenials expect to be in their current job for 2 years or less. (source: https://blog.accessperks.com/millennial-employee-engagement-loyalty-statistics-the-ultimate-collection0). But it’s also true that companies are less loyal to employees. In fact, the average salary for a millennial today is 20% less than a boomer had at the same age. (source: https://smartasset.com/retirement/the-average-salary-of-a-millennial) This is a chicken and egg problem; in essence, a Disloyalty Cycle. Which came first, the lost loyalty of employees or the lower value from the employers?

 

Asking who to blame is asking the wrong question. You know that there are great people out there of every age. It’s about understanding what motivates and inspires your employees to do their best, regardless of age. The right question is, “How do I end the cycle and build a company where people want to work?”

 

At the end of the day, business decisions are about money. But personnel decisions are rarely that cut and dry. For the CEO or business owner, how much to pay an employee is a business decision. This role is worth X to my business. For an employee, working for company A or B is about more than money. After basic financial needs are met, where to work is a personal decision about one’s quality of life. 78% of millennials say workplace environment affects their decisions to stay at a job, and 88% of millennials want their coworkers to be their friends (source: https://blog.accessperks.com/millennial-employee-engagement-loyalty-statistics-the-ultimate-collection).

 

With the average cost of replacing a salaried employee at 6-9 months of salary, retaining key staff is incredibly important. So how can you bridge the business to personal gap? How can a CEO build a culture that attracts and keeps the best and brightest in a generation motivated by overall quality of life?

 

With CEOs paying more and more attention to culture, new members are being added the executive leadership team to reflect this business priority. You may be familiar with the CPO as a Chief Procurement Officer, but there’s a new CPO in town. The Chief People Officer.

 

For some organizations, the title of Chief People Officer (CPO) has simply replaced the title of Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO) as the head of a department responsible for recruiting, hiring, on-boarding, training, and firing staff. But at some emerging growth companies, the CPO role is less about traditional HR business operations and more about organizational design, executive coaching, and implementing learning and development programs.

Another title for this role is Vice President of Culture, and these members of the executive leadership team are responsible for building a culture designed to improve employee retention as well as aid in talent acquisition. In addition, the CPO or VP of Culture works to develop an ROI model for your business’s hiring and retention efforts, helping you understand the exact impact of the wrong hires on your business.

 

This shift has helped business’s stray from the ‘need a body’ hiring mentality and into the investing in the right staff mentality. It shifts us from seeing our workforce as a red entry in our business ledger to a black entry – from a liability to an asset. And when we treat our employees as an asset to protect, we break the disloyalty cycle. And save our businesses money and time in the long-run.

Executive Evolution: How 2-D diversity helps accelerate growth.

The diversity conversation has changed. The old view of diversity, focusing on adding women and people of color to an organization, missed the mark in a big way. By focusing on physical characteristics, the well-meaning became the irrelevant. The current culture asks for authentic identities and potential clients can quickly locate mimics in the digital era.

 

Businesses have taken note.

 

With many chief diversity officers, as well as greater involvement from the CEO, background diversity, rather than physical diversity, has climbed up businesses priorities, and there is a method for how. It’s called 2-D diversity.

 

According to the Harvard Business Review, the model for 2-dimensional diversity is gaining a full head of steam as of late. In the 2-D model, there are two forms of diversity: inherent and acquired. Inherent diversity refers to an individual’s gender, or ethnicity. Acquired diversity is gained from unique experiences Companies that have three traits from inherent diversity and three traits from acquired diversity are considered as 2-D.

 

The benefit of 2-D is to capture markets in different demographic, as customers are more likely to buy from members that have a deeper understanding of their general background. In certain cases, 70% of businesses that practiced 2-D captured a new market, according the Harvard Business Review.

 

Employees within the company are also more confident to express new ideas. Leaders encourage their teams to be innovative and to make themselves heard. They search for the authentic market, and the authentic market requires the authentic voice. Companies that value difference are sure to support ideas from outside the usual perspectives, making funding for diverse employee projects attainable. The effect trickles down, as members from diverse backgrounds that take on larger roles set an example for entry-level employees.

 

Essentials of the 2-D model include:

 

  • Allowing each employees voice to stick.
  • Apparent support for the proposal of original ideas.
  • Giving team members the authority to make impact decisions.
  • Sharing credit for team achievements.
  • Offering abundant feedback.
  • Allowing and acting on critique from teams.

 

Companies that stress the importance of diverse output can see a greater response from their current staffs. It is not a process that requires to reach for rosters exclusively outside of their business, although, it may draw better prospects in.

 

True 2-D diversity impacts decision-making and builds implicit trust between team members and layers of management. It opens new markets, new ways of thinking, and creative problem-solving for your company. What could be better for a high-growth oriented, driven company?

Who Should I Have on My Executive Leadership Team?

Everyone’s answer is different. And every business’s situation is different. In the first days of running your business, it is natural to want to do everything yourself. From strategic planning to calling clients, to taking out the trash, starting a business is about a willingness to do anything and everything to get it off the ground.

 

As a business grows, founders and owners find themselves stretched thinner and thinner. You will find that you just can’t continue to oversee operations, marketing, cash flow, and fulfillment yourself. It’s time to bring on a senior team that’s able to manage all the critical areas of your business at a much higher level. Obviously, the individuals and job titles that are needed on your team will be different by company size, industry, and goals. Here are few essential roles to consider as you get started.

 

Chief Financial Officer (CFO)

This is about handling the money. Bottom line, top line, regulations, and strategic spending decisions all flow through this office. Most businesses start with outsourced accounting, tax preparation, and legal compliance teams. This officer handles those issues and more.

 

Chief Operations Officer (COO)

This role is all about measurements and details. Can’t figure out why your profitable business becomes less and less profitable as you grow? Bring on a COO. A Chief Operations Officer will develop the ability to measure things like employee efficiency and spending trends to find ways to shave dollars off the bottom line as your business scales. This is a great person to have by your side.

 

Chief Marketing Officer (CMO)

Many current business battles are battles of marketing. Because of this, corporate strategy becomes marketing strategy. Instead of a VP level marketing professional, your head of marketing should be a key player in your strategic team. This role is especially important for any business or industry that plays out primarily online.

 

Chief Technology Officer (CTO)

Security is huge for growing businesses. Most may assume CTO’s are early members of executive leadership teams for technology businesses, but consider a CTO for other industries as well. Technology systems continue to be some of the highest cost investments that businesses make and missteps in technology investments can cost a growing business in time and money. The Chief Technology Officer is there to represent you and make sure your technology partners are delivering on their promises.

 

Chief Executive Officer (CEO)

Wait, you say. I’m the CEO. I founded the company so I will lead it as the CEO. Maybe that’s the best way, but maybe it’s not. As time moves forward, you may discover that your skills and talents are better used elsewhere – sales and business development or new product engineering for example. The best of us recognize our weaknesses as well as our strengths. And you may discover that hiring an experienced CEO whose skill sets lie in business strategy frees you up to enjoy your favorite aspects of the business you started instead of trying to steer a ship you’ve never steered before.

 

After realizing just what skills you need on your executive leadership team, the next challenge comes in finding individuals that can fill those roles. CEO Solutions can help with both. We specialize in helping emerging growth businesses plan and build their leadership teams, partnering with them at every stage. We know great people. And we can introduce you to the ones who fit your business.

Attract and Retain Employees

1. It’s Not Just About the Money

To start, recognize that money, by itself, will not do it. High performing employees are searching for something more than just a high salary. The typical employee compensation plan should include a total package of rewards, recognition and environment. Some of the elements are in place to satisfy that allow a firm to keep their employees such as benefits, flex-time and training. Other elements of compensation are for motivating such as bonuses, incentives, challenge and opportunity. A well-designed plan will have a mix of both types of compensation components.

2. Manager Training

Have you ever worked for a bad boss? One of the main reasons new employees quit is because of the relationship with their direct supervisor. The fact is many supervisors and managers are unaware how their actions and decisions affect employee turnover. A critical aspect of an effective retention strategy is manager training. Properly trained managers play a major role in an effective recruitment and retention strategy. Managers need the skills, tools, and knowledge to help them understand their employees’ retention needs and be able to implement a retention plan designed to increase employee engagement in the organization.

3. We All Love An Award

Non-cash recognition awards are very effective in reinforcing the company’s values while also connecting co-workers. They can be a low-cost, high-impact element of the compensation package. For example, employees who provide outstanding or innovative customer service receive become eligible for certain awards. Another way is for employees to be nominated by customers or their peers. Through having employees and management recognize good work, employees will continue to value their jobs.

4. Flexibility is Key

Today’s workforce is looking for flexibility on the job and balance within their life. Management needs to acknowledge this and evaluate ways to realistically provide this flexibility in work. Tradition has it that the employees work in an office with established work hours Monday through Friday. Can your company allow for variations, such as 4-day workweeks, working at home two days a week or job sharing? Flexible work hours are becoming a steadily rising tool to attract and retain good employees.

5. Creativity and Autonomy

Regardless of the job and its related duties, new talent has to be sold on the fact that there will be creative thinking involved. This allows them to feel connected and enjoy their work. Studies show that 50% of today’s workforce is not engaged at work. This means they are simply “showing up.” That also means that a good portion are actually dissatisfied. It’s up to the leaders to provide opportunities for creativity. If you can get that right, everyone wins.

A good principle to follow is that if you want amazing results, you need to be prepared to put resources towards an amazing culture. Great companies find the time and resources to make all of these components happen. Not investing in this will deter potential new hires and send your existing talent to your competitors. Carving out the time and budget for professional development within your business will pay dividends in the end.