How to Instill Purpose

I am a firm believer in the "soft" management skills.  I believe too many business managers, myself included from time to time, lose focus when leading a business team toward a goal.  Sometimes, it's good to remove focus on every day tasks to focus on the big picture vision of the company, and determine if the course that is set is the best course for the time.  This requires the ability to instill purpose in those who are working in concert toward this end goal.  The article, "How To Instill Purpose", by John Baldoni, a blog contributor for Harvard Business School, was a great read for a Monday morning, and reminded me what I needed to re-focus my energy toward.

Baldoni goes on to say very articulately,

"Purpose, as savvy leaders know, is the foundation for creating vision, executing the mission, and abiding by the values of an organization. Culture emerges from purposeful organizations, because purpose is what shapes individual's beliefs and organizational norms. That foundation is essential, because it opens the door for organizations to do four important things, all of which are vital to success." 

He goes on to describe these four vital keys to instilling purpose effectively:

1. Provide Purpose: Give employees something to work toward and empower them to be significant in the process.
2. Provide Clarity: Lead by being open, honest and forthcoming about the company and its goals.  And, don't be afraid of ambiguity, as it may be harnessed as a strength more than a threat.
3. Provide Stimulation for Innovation: Empowering employees gives the team a sense of ownership and accountability, and can ultimately lead to new leaders stepping forward with new and fresh ideas.
4. Groom the Next Generation of Leaders: It's no secret that employers and employees are more fickle now than in the past.  Providing the support system to nurture a career in the company will further promote and define purpose and could ultimately turn out the next CEO of your company.

There are countless guides and motivational leadership books that help promote the interpersonal skills necessary to lead new teams and companies, and seemingly everyone (including me) has their opinions that they enjoy opining, at times ad nausea.  Regardless of what you think, it never hurts to have a refresher, and John Boldoni's was short and sweet. 

Handing Over The Crown

Last year, Wild Creations was recognized as the #1 fastest growing company in South Carolina for 2011 by the SC Chamber of Commerce and the Capital Corporation.  We were honored to be invited back to the SC Chamber Annual Meeting this past Thursday, 11/10, to celebrate the 2012 winners and hand over the crown.  Congratulations go to Robert Bush of Barling Bay, this years #1 fastest growing company.

Congratulations are also in order for the Pamela Lackey, state president of AT&T, who was recognized as the Business Leader of the Year, as well as Kenny Bingham, SC House Majority Leader, who was recognized as the Public Servant of the Year.  Indeed, their achievements and contributions were incredibly exciting to hear about.

Also, many thanks to the departing chairman of the SC Chamber, Dick Wilkerson, and welcome to the income leadership of Jim Reynold.

Lastly, I would be falling short if I did not also offer thanks to Otis Rawls, the President of the Chamber of Commerce, for allowing me to participate and, hopefully, contribute to the board, as well as to Chris Barras, for the kind invite to the luncheon and dinner.  Thank you, gentlemen ... it was much appreciated!

Say It Ain't So, Joe

As a huge fan of college football, the news from the Penn State football program of sexual abuse of young children by a Penn State coach in 2002, and the subsequent cover up by the men in charge of the program, was in my opinion one of the darkest weeks in college football history. 
Amidst it all are the allegations that Joe Paterno, the head coach at Penn State who has served the program for over 60 years and is the single winningest coach in all college football, has been aware of the scandal since 2002, when it was first reported to him by an assistant coach.  Although Joe reported the charges to the athletic director and president of the university at that time, all of these individuals failed to report it to the authorities.  Instead, the predator was reprimanded, leaving him free to continue abusing more boys.  After being fired as the head coach last week because of the scandal, Joe received a tremendous amount of support by fans and supporters, with many students protesting and rioting in the streets of University Park ... which for me, is just downright disgusting.

Although Joe has not been charged with anything, and it is still unclear exactly what he knew and when he knew it, he did say publicly, "I wish I had done more" about the accusations of his one-time assistant coach.  This, to me, says enough.  As well, the grand jury documents, which describe the eye-witness event reported to Joe in 2002 in disturbing detail, only begs the question: How could anyone who knew about this, much less even hear about this, sit and do ... nothing?

I am from the old-school style of parenting.  I was brought up sitting in the back window of my dad's car, riding my bike to the mall arcade and home on my own, trick-or-treating on Halloween with a parent-less group of friends.  I was allowed to make mistakes and hurt myself (mildly of course) in an effort to teach me life lessons and encourage independence.  I truly want to hang on to this style of parenting, as I feel it raises a better balanced young adult than having a kid on a leashed-backpack and with a constant flurry of "no"s.

But the one thing I fear the most, for my own kids and for those of others, is sexual abuse.  Ariel Swang, CEO of Safe Horizon, who provides services to young victims of sexual abuse, reports that 6 out of 10 young boys will be are sexually abused by the time they are 18, with 90% of these acts committed by someone the boy knows and trusts, like a friend, teacher or coach.  I find it difficult to believe the numbers, but even at half ... or even a quarter ... or even 5% ... it's still remarkably disturbing.  Sexual abuse is the one thing I hate being over-protective about, but it's the one single act in a young boy's or girl's life that will fundamentally alter the rest.  I want to encourage my children to be smart and independent, but I never want to think to myself, "I wish I had done more."

With that said, I like to believe that other people are looking out for my children, as I try to look out for all children myself.  It bothers me to no end that someone could have helped protect other children, but instead did nothing.  What if it had been my child?  Or yours?  If there is only one take-away from this Penn State story this week, I hope it is this:  It is NEVER acceptable to turn a blind eye to the sexual abuse of a child.  Report it at every cost.

I had the greatest admiration for "Joe-Pa" at Penn State, but the news that he knew of this scandal and his subsequent lack of action to avoid it in the future ... for 9 years ... has completely lowered Joe-Pa in my mind to the worst coach in football history.  He is, as are the rest of the individuals involved with this scandal, repulsive.  Even with all of his accomplishments, for the rest of time and history, this one black mark will now be what he is remembered for.  And I say ... so be it.

UPDATE: I was trying to find a way to express my disgust with the Penn State riots, but of course, John Stuart did it for me ...

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Penn State Riots
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Wall College Key Note

I am humbled to have been asked by the Wall College at Coastal Carolina University to share the stage with my business partner and good friend, Rhett Power, as the Key Note Speakers for the university's conference on November 16, 2011 regarding "Sustainable Business Practices in a Changing World".    To say the least, this is a tremendous honor, and as always, I look forward to talking business with anyone who is willing to listen and talk back!

This particular topic is very dear to me, and as anyone who has ever sat down to discuss with me knows,  there is no shortage of things to talk about.  It is open to the public, so if you happen to find yourself in Myrtle Beach next week, please stop by and say hello!!

Entrepreneur's 4 S's for Business

Anyone who has gone to business school knows that professors love to teach about quadrants.  It would even appear that all business problems would actually fall into one of these four quadrants, and following the footnoted text would solve any business issue that arises.  I jest, but in a sincerity, these quadrants, like so many other frameworks learned at the McDonough School of Business, actually help create a foundation upon which to build the skills of an entrepreneur.  In fact, I've actually developed my own framework, from which I think I can base much of the success we've had at Wild Creations.


The Entrepreneur's 4 S's

1. SERVICE - All good companies need to offer something that consumers want.  Be this a service or a product or both, the service has to be differentiable and value-driven.  We actually look for product with three basic elements:
   Winnable - Can the product or service win in the industry in which it competes?  Pretty simple.  If the industry is large and saturated, your service better have a unique feature or distinction that will allow it to compete.  If the industry is young or fragmented, the service better have a strategy to capture the available market share.  Also, you should be able to charge a premium for your service with margins that permit continued growth and R&D.  In the end, ask the question ... is it worth it?  If the answer is, "eh ... (shrug)", then don't bother.
   Defendable - Can the product or service be easily defended against competition?  If it is not patented or unique, you better have a winning proposition that makes consumer purchase this service over the competition.  Too many people use "brand loyalty", which is a valid argument if you are Coke, but consumers are fickle these days, and if your Google returns negative feedback, forget about loyalty.  There are plenty of ways to defend against competition, but you better be sure to understand what those are and how to capitalize on them.
   Scalable - Is your goal to grow your company?  If so, then you will need to know how to scale your business in manner that is fast and efficient.  I am a big fan of KISS ("keep it simple stupid", not the band, although a Kiss concert was one of the earliest childhood recollections, and I'm still a fan), and if a service can't be easily scaled up, then the business model doesn't work.
   Adaptability - If you are building a business and/or a portfolio of services, every new one should be able to quickly and simply fit into your business organization.  You shouldn't, for example, try to merge, say a toy company with a tequila company.  As much as I hate using "synergy", this doesn't have that.  Regardless, too many entrepreneurs reach, and reach real far, to justify bringing a service into a business model that just doesn't work.  Remember what Steve Jobs seaid ... "Say "No" to a 1,000 things, for what you DON'T do will affect your success and legacy as much as what you do do."
2. SYSTEMS - A good service is nothing if you can't get it into the hands of consumers and increase the value for your shareholders.  As much time and effort needs to be put into the operational side of a business as does the product and R&D side.  Of course, providing exactly what a consumer wants is important, but equally important is being able to get it to them and provide support.  This includes understanding the basic functions of a business:
   Finance - Pretty straight forward, but often overlooked as least important by entrepreneurs, which is why I put it first.  Let's face it ... you have have the next great product or company, but without fuel in the gas tank, you are going to be confined to your parent's garage until they make you go out and get a real job.  Entrepreneurs need to at least understand the basics of finance, given it is the global language used for business.  As well, if not understood and set up properly at the beginning, then fixing later is a huge hassle, not to mention expensive.  If you don't have the finance prowess, and have no willingness to learn it, then at the very least, hire a capable and trustworthy person to do it for you.  Just make sure it's in the budget.
   Human Resources - HR is another part of a business that is often undervalued by entrepreneurs.  I would say, in fact, that if there was one aspect of the business system that could be most refined is the understanding of leadership.  Of course, there are legal and tax issues that must be understood when considering your HR strategy, but most important is creating a culture that attracts and keeps your most valued employees.  Sometimes, this just comes down to being a good leader.
   Operations - How does the company source, produce, and delivery its service?  How does in forecast and control inventory?  What technical infrastructure is needed increase efficiency and reduce waste and redundancy?  How much warehouse and office space do you need?  What is your approach to handling vendors?  What are the operating hours?  You get it ... the basics.
   Marketing - Although part of the "service" part of this diatribe, marketing has to be figured into the overall scheme of the business.  Ideas in marketing need to be integrated with operations (to make sure they are realistic), with finance (to make sure they can be paid for), and with HR (to make sure that the people are available to pull it off).  Additionally, marketing is changing in today's business climate.  Understanding the impact of social media, the advanced and ever changing preferences of young consumers, the amount of information and data online ... it all has to be considered in a marketing strategy.
   Technology - This is fairly new to the mix, but as technology continues to define the business, as well as personal, environments in which we live, understanding the impact of technology on a business is a must.  This is true not only externally (understanding how customers are consuming technology and using it to make buying decisions) but also internally (understanding how technology can be used to increase efficiency in the business, communicate with customers, etc.)  Regardless, the type of business ultimately will dictate the amount of resources needed toward technology, but any company wishing to grow, operating globally, and be a leader, needs to understand its impact. 
3. STRATEGY - Of course, have a great service and system of delivery is great, but without a strategy and vision for the business, it will undoubtedly get garbled (business term).  The business climate is changing every day and at a pace most of us are having difficulty to fathom.  These days, it is no longer valid to ask, "Where will your company be in five years?"  Visions and strategies need to focus on the long term strategy of the company but with the understanding that, more than likely, the "who, what, why, when and how" of the company will be different.  This isn't true of all companies, but entrepreneurs who wish to lead the business change and grow a business will need to understand and expect this.
4. SPINE - I can credit my business partner, Rhett Power for this.  I still remember sitting around a bar table discussing over Sierra Nevada's the then "2" s's (service and systems), and joking that, in order to be a real business school philosophy, it needed at least 3 s's.  That's when he boldly said, "spine ... you need to have spine."  Instantly, I knew he was correct.  Entrepreneurs are different than business managers or CEOs of Fortune 500 companies.  Most top level managers actually consider their position a job, one that requires a salary and bonus, an office and steady hours.  Most probably believe that they can leave to find another at any time, and spend most of their time building a resume.  An entrepreneur understands that being the CEO of his/her company is not a job.  It is a lifestyle.  There is no "quit and put your resume on Monster.com".  Failure is not an option, because often a home mortgage or a vast amount of borrowed money is at stake.  The only option to an issue is "how do we get out of this mess".  Understanding this and actually going through with it takes courage ... and arguably a little mental imbalance.  I can say from my experience that it is a trait that is not easily learned, but can be refined.  It demands perseverance, thick skin and an desire for mental anguish at times.  I often think of entrepreneurs as marathon runners.  Most of these physical marvels were not born to run 26+ miles.  They trained.  They understood the time and effort and, yes pain, needed to succeed in this endeavor.  More important, they had the will power to follow through.  In the end, each new marathon gets little easier (if you don't blow out your knee) and the runner gets a little better ... just like starting and running a new business.  If you don't have the spine for this kind of physical and mental torture, then more than likely upper management is your gig ... which ain't such a bad thing!