No Plan, No Quality Time

I believe strongly in the value of a company operating daily to the beat of a well thought out strategic plan. Without the plan beat, a CEO is left with daily activities being driven by the beat of short term need, i.e. reactive fire fighting. This mode is myopic by nature and becomes all consuming leaving little time for anything else. Companies in this state are generally mediocre at best and often times fail.

With a plan driving daily company activities, there's purpose and time to function with peace of mind; one knows they're doing right by themselves, employees, customers and other stake holders. Quality of personal life also benefits as well . . . one is usually a much more productive person across the board. The daily purpose that results from this mode makes it much easier to say no to those demands and people that are inconsistent with purpose.

While the above is not rocket science, many small business owners, especially, fall prey to the time dilemma created by lack of a plan that drives daily activities.

Selling to CEO's

Based upon my personal experience as a CEO and coaching and advising them over the years, I've concluded that there are a few important interests nearly all share in common from a business perspective:

• CASH


• TIME


• VISION

When selling to CEO's, if they can't quickly relate us and what we represent to these interests, we'll be done in short order; they typically have very short attention spans. This is especially germaine when dealing with CEO's of smaller businesses.

Consequently, the impact of a strong positioning statement that encapsulates these interests is paramount. Without it, there's a tendency to ramble and present too soon, which will result in a quick "thanks, but no thanks" decision. My experience has further taught me that, once we're out, CEO's will rarely let us back in . . . they're quickly on to all the other stuff they deal with daily that impact CASH, they're TIME and VISION for the business.

Winning the Ryder Cup

As most golfers know, the Ryder Cup golf match is a team event played every two years between the USA and Europe. While golf is predominately an individual sport, most of the best golfers in the world come together as team mates bi-annually for what has become golf's premier event. In watching the USA win for the first time since 1999, having lost three straight and five of the last six matches, I was struck by frequently verbalized words and phrases that also apply to success in business:

• vision and a plan;
• strategy;
• we came in here with a concept and stuck to our guns/stayed on point;
• the guys bonded and bought in as a team;
• we had a great system;
• CEO (referring to team captains);
• forward looking;
• leadership and respect for individual skills;
• picked players that were right for the situation;
• coaching leadership;
• put my heart and soul into this for two years;
• committed;
• practice, practice, practice;
• winning attitude.

A business without most or all of the above in play will probably be mediocre at best, and may well fail in due time.

Hats off to Captain/CEO/Leader Paul Azinger of USA for a job very well done.

"Customer WOW Factor" the rest of the story

My last blog described how my Dad's supermarket focused on getting customers out of the store when they we're ready to go, and did so in a way that exceeded their expectations thereby contributing to the creation of a WOW factor.


This didn't casually happen . . . it was ingrained in the culture of the business:

• All employees understood that hearing the word "FRONT" over the store loudspeaker meant that most stopped what they were doing and quickly went to the "FRONT" and assumed predetermined roles. The store office was on an elevated level and the manager could see the entire store operation. It was quite a sight to see as he would switch on the store loudspeaker and say "FRONT" please, people moving to the "FRONT" to assist customers . . . like a call to arms.


• People were hired based primarily upon their customer service profile fit . . . it wasn't about stocking shelves and running a cash register;


• The "FRONT" was kept clean and neat at all times, as was the rest of the store. The red carpet was cleaned frequently (at night only) and replaced every six months at considerable cost.


• And so it went leading to more profit per square foot than any other store in the chain most years.

The important lesson to be learned here is that my Dad and his management team clearly understood what made money, had figured out what they could do better than any other competitor and developed a passion for doing it 24/7. They were very careful to ensure that all employees drank this cool aide. This focus remained at the core of the store's operation from day one to the day my Dad passed on. By the way, Dad never graduated from High School; to him, it was basic common sense.

Stay tuned as in the future I'll relate how this 1960's - 1970's business success story employed most of the modern day business concepts described by three successful authors and business gurus:

• Dave Kurlan, author of "Baseline Selling"
• Verne Harnish, author of "Mastering the Rockefeller Habits"
• Jim Collins, author of "Good to Great"

Growth Strategy: Customer Service WOW Factor

I was talking with a client recently regarding customer service and how to exceed customer expectations, and was reminded of a lesson I learned from my father many years ago.

My Dad owned a TOPS supermarket franchise in Western New York; his was one of approximately 50 stores. There were many years when his store was #1 in the chain when it came to profit per square foot.

How did he do it?

Primarily, I believe the answer lies in the way he viewed repeat shoppers . . . people who did their weekly shopping at his store, which generated the bulk of volume. When he saw a person at the check out counter, he didn't see someone buying $100 worth of products. He actually saw a $50,000 customer in the form of a person who had the potential of spending $100 per week for 10 years. Whether they became that 10 year loyalist depended upon how they were treated week in and week out.

He went on to observe that a shopper would casually wonder through the store filling their basket, checking items off of their list as they progressed. They were in no hurry and would often stop to talk with friends and neighbors along the way. However, when they were finished and headed for the checkout counter, they wanted out as fast as possible; no more leisure and casual conversation . . . "IT'S TIME TO GO."

He clearly understood the "IT'S TIME TO GO" mood and played to it big time. All employees understood the importance of doing everything possible to help the shopper exit the store as quickly as possible including helping them load their cars. Stocking shelves and store cleaning were done at night so that ALL employees were available during prime shopping hours to converge on the FRONT of the store and assist customers who had made the decision, "IT'S TIME TO GO"

This focus created a customer WOW factor that was the primary contributor to My Dad's store being the most profitable in the chain year after year.

The CEO Getting People Right

Do you have the right PEOPLE in the right seats doing the right things . . . RIGHT?

Would you enthusiastically rehire all of your key players?

There are four critical CEO decisions that determine the fate of a business over time:
1. People
2. Strategy
3. Execution
4. Cash
Get 'em right and your a winner; get 'em wrong and your a loser.

The order of these is always gris for the debate mill, but I doubt that company's dubbed as successful over time are staffed with C and D players. To the contrary, they're typically loaded with A players with a few B's that have A level potential. And the A player scenario always starts with the CEO.

So, if your company is under performing, take a hard look in the mirror and ask yourself; would I enthusiastically rehire all of my key people?

Mike's Thoughts about CEO's of Growth Companies

During my career I've had the pleasure of associating with a number of CEO's who have demonstrated track records of growing their companies over time surpassing industry averages, i.e. gaining profitable market share. Of course, it's not a revelation that they share common traits. They see "learning as a competitive advantage" and one of the common learning methods is through the utilization of advisers, consultants and coaches. Coaches in particular ask relevant questions and impart knowledge and, in the process, provide accountability and discipline.

These CEO's are always on the prowl for knowledge and willing to pay others to provide it. They are smart people getting smarter through a commitment to self and employee improvement. When presented with a new idea, they immediately look for the good versus finding fault. Their egos tend to be socialized as opposed to self centered; all innovations don't have to be their own. They are inherently curious and encourage others to speak out; they are quick to compliment.

The CEO of Starbucks was once asked to what did he attribute the companies success? His answer was essentially - "I hire people smarter than me and let them do their jobs"

Bill gates turned the Microsoft reins over to Bruce Balmer and also spends two full weeks per year behind closed doors reading, thinking and learning.

Tiger wood's use of coaches is celebrated. He has won for more often when working with Butch Harmon and Hank Haney than when going it alone.

Michael Dell employs a number of coaches. "Start with smart people and keep them smart" is a quote.

And from Verne Harnish, founder of Gazelles International and author of "Mastering the Rockefeller Habits - What you must do to increase the value of your growing firm"

LEARNING + COACHING = GROWTH