Reprinted from Inc. Magazine LINK
In a business sense, I did everything right when I sold my company. But I forgot to ask myself one essential question.
In 2007, I had a great chance to sell my business, and I did. I asked all the right questions before I made the move, except one: How did I really feel about it? And that was a mistake I regret to this day.
Exiting the company you founded is a natural part of entrepreneurship, and it can provide great financial rewards. It has great consequences for your successors in management and the employees you leave behind. And I made sure to attend to those. But the exit also has consequences for you. I took them too lightly.
Why Selling Seemed Like a Good Idea
In my case, everything pointed towards the wisdom of selling the natural disaster mitigation and reconstruction business I had founded 26 years earlier. I had built the company into a valuable, profitable powerhouse, but I felt I was burning out. My partners were aging. I sensed opportunities elsewhere, and my efforts to keep the staff together and engaged were wearing me out. I knew I could sell, which made all these headaches seem unnecessary.
Shortly after announcing the sale, we were contacted by three interested parties. Everything went smoothly. We even managed to miss the 2008 recession and, according to our consultants, we received an above-market price. As a businessman, I had done everything right.
Inside, though, I was wracked by regret. What I forgot to consider were the things I enjoyed at work. I didn’t ask myself the hard questions about why I was selling, what I wanted to gain—and most important, what I would miss if I sold. And I don’t think I’m alone in this oversight. Many of my fellow business owners who jump ship, it seems, likewise failed to ask themselves what they would be giving up.
Before You Do What I Did…
My advice to you—before you do what I did—is to stop and think. Go back to the fundamentals of your business, way back if you need to. You must first understand why you created your business. And I don’t mean just the value proposition. I mean why are YOU there? What do you gain from continuing to stay with the company and what would you lose if you left? Be honest. If you can fully realize what you will be giving up, you will be able to envision the future.
Finally, go one step further and ask what else matters to you. What else do you want to accomplish in life, and will it be easier to do that with our without your company? This is by no means an easy question, but even success can’t extinguish true passion: This is your chance to chase after your dreams.
I didn’t ask myself these questions, and after I sold the company, I soon realized that to be captain of my own ship was my dream. I missed leading my team, charting the company’s course, and responding to challenges at a moments notice. Today, four years after selling, I have learned that the riches of a successful exit can’t replace the rewards of leadership.
In hindsight, I should have looked to someone outside the organization that could offer me perspective. A coach, perhaps, someone to ask me why I was selling, what I wanted to gain afterwards and most importantly, what I would be missing.
Excerpt from Inc. Magazine LINK
Finding the right advisor for your company can make all the difference.
Here’s the beauty of a top-notch advisor: They can make a big difference to your leadership team without breaking the bank. They can expand your network, fill gaps in your own knowledge, and just generally provide a sanity check.
But to get a good advisor, and to have a good relationship with them, you need a good fit. So what roles might an advisor play, and why might anyone be interested in being an advisor in the first place?
First, let’s look at some of the specific ways a good advisor can help your company:
Avoid potholes. Advisors who have “been there, done that” as serial entrepreneurs have seen the common pitfalls and can alert you before you even get close to falling down. This can save you a lot of grief and help maintain your positive momentum.
Expand your network and make key introductions. Your advisor should be willing to introduce your company to key people in his or her network. Think customer introductions, investor introductions, or connections to critical talent. Nothing beats introductions from a well-respected person in the industry. Use them wisely.
Serve as sounding board. A small team can’t possibly be up to speed on everything. Advisors can help fill gaps in your team’s expertise, or may know a ton about a market you’d like to get into.
Represent “the other side.” One of the most difficult things to do as a small business is truly understand your value to a customer. Some of the best advisors will not only have specific industry experience, but they may have worked at a key target customer. Their insights can be invaluable, their perspective on the value of your small business spot on.
The winter webinar series concludes on Monday, February 27th with the winter “Minding My Own Business Workshop” and Business Roundtable. Registration for this event went fast—it was filled back in January! If you missed it—look for next summer’s event. The all-day event hosted by The Fremont Group includes the 2 1/2 hour workshop covering the six responsibilities of the small business owners tracing the book, “Minding My Own Business” authored by Dirk Dieters our Executive Director. Following lunch is the roundtable. Always one of the most popular events, the Fremont Business Roundtable solicits issues from the participants and puts them up for open discussions between the participants and the Fremont Success Partners. It is always amazing the ideas that come from these discussions. Due to our budget constraints, we have to limit the participants to 12. We are looking for ways to expand the number of owners who can take part this summer. If you have interest, send us an email and get on our pre-registration list for summer!
One of the many benefits of membership in The Fremont Group is an Annual Physical for your business! Just as your health requires an annual physical by a physician, the health of your business requires an annual physical by an independent professional. Our members can receive this benefit at no cost but it is available to all small business owners.
In the physical your Success Partner meets with you to clearly identify your business and personal goals. They then interview your key employees and get to know your business. They review your financial statements and ask for other pertinent information as they poke and prod you to establish your current health. In a second session they review with you’re the results of your “tests” and give you both a “diagnosis” and a “treatment plan.” The treatment plan is converted by you and your Success Partner into an Action Plan designed to take you from where you are to where you want to be addressing the issues that could cause future ill health.
Call Dirk Dieters, Executive Director today! Membership at any level can give you this benefit at no fee. Unless you know more than the doctor…..
There’s no such thing as too much employee recognition. Learn five ways to reward your team.
By Jay Love
I hope you’ll agree with me after reading this post that there is no such thing as too much employee recognition. In fact, I would imagine that the average employee at most companies is starving for recognition of any type. Heck, most of them rarely see any feedback at all except for the “dreaded annual review,” but that’s a subject deserving of its own blog post.
Over the course of leading numerous organizations I’ve had the privilege of being a part of, our teams used personality testing to supplement our training of staff. For every type of role, 85 percent or more of the people tested replied that they would be much happier and would work harder if they were recognized for their efforts. This seemed like a no-brainer to me since most of my teachers—at every level of my education—used this strategy wisely.
If you’re familiar with The Carrot Principle, you probably remember reading about how beneficial employee recognition can be to a company’s bottom line. The authors described a study of 200,000 employees that revealed that employee recognition not only increased efficiency, but paid off significantly for the companies that effectively implemented them. In some cases, these companies’ return on equity and assets were as much as three times as higher than that of other companies.
So, why are so many leaders still neglecting this invaluable practice? I believe many do for various reasons. Here are a few that immediately come to mind:
- That is precisely how they have seen it done time and time again in previous organizations.
- Most leaders received so little recognition on a regular basis themselves that they have no idea how powerful it can be in growing and retaining staff.
- It takes extra effort.
If you’re among the leaders within your organization, you may be able to initiate some change at your workplace. Start by sharing this list of five ways to boost employee recognition. I hope you and your co-workers will like them as much as our staff here at Slingshot SEO does! Here goes…
5 ways to provide recognition for your team:
- Quarterly reviews. Mandate one-on-one feedback sessions between each supervisor and team member on a quarterly basis. To ensure these are effective, have each manager carve out one hour for each employee. (At Slingshot SEO, we review the status of each quarterly goal and career objective, as well as take the time to chat to know each other better. The goals and any progress are summarized in a simple feedback form.)
- Peer recognition. Each month, I solicit open nominations for Slingshot SEO’s Outstanding Team Member of the Month. Each employee with at least 60 seconds to spare can e-mail me with their recommendations. Although just two are publicly honored at each monthly meeting, many others are encouraged by this program: I always forward the e-mails of the remarkable kudos to all the nominees along with a few comments of my own.
- Team highlights. Insist on your department heads sharing stories from their departments and highlighting the achievements of team members at the monthly All-Company Meeting. Lively presentations that include photographs, videos and client comments make this one even better!
- Yearly awards ceremony. Hold an Annual Award Event for your organization. (We award a Rookie of the Year, Most Improved, Innovator of the Year and Employee of the Year, plus we invite our Customer of the Year and Partner of the Year to make the event memorable.)
- Spontaneous kudos. Insist that every supervisor works hard to catch a team member doing something right or special as they wander around or peruse communications. When they do, have them point it out in front of the person’s peers or via departmental e-mail. (The more often the better, but beware… large smiles might take over your office.)
Be bold and give one or all of these a try, then please let me know if any of these suggestions are making a difference at your organization.
They reinforce positive behaviors, boost motivation, and build employees’ self-esteem. Bonus: They won’t cost you anything.
By Jeff Haden
Formal employee recognition programs can be effective, but many formal programs only pay lip service to recognizing employee performance.
Real praise should reward effort and accomplishment, reinforce positive behaviors, build self-esteem and confidence, and boost motivation and enthusiasm.
Do your formal recognition programs accomplish all that?
I’m guessing no.
Here are four informal and powerful ways to praise your employees:
Ask for ideas. Don’t just ask, “Do you have any ideas for how we can help you do your job better?” (Certainly ask that, but sometimes go farther.) Build off skills or insights they possess to use them in other ways.
Say a warehouse employee is incredibly organized. Say, “I am always impressed by how organized you are. I wish there was a way to clone you.” Then ask if she has thoughts about how to streamline order processing, or ways to reduce the flow of paperwork, or how another department could more efficiently collect data.
Not only will you get great ideas, but you also recognize skill and ability in powerful way.
Ask for help. Asking another person for help is one of the sincerest ways to recognize their abilities and value. Ask employees for help and you show you respect their skills and you extend a measure of trust.
The key is to ask for help partly or totally unrelated to their function, and to make the assistance relatively personal to you. I once went to a meeting to talk about layoffs; by the time I got back to the plant word had already spread that cuts were coming. One of my employees said, “So, layoffs, huh?” I didn’t have to confirm it; he knew. I said, “I have no idea what to tell our employees. What would you say?”
He thought and said, “Just tell everyone you tried. Then talk about where we go from here.”
Simple? Sure, but powerful too. He later told me how much it meant to him that I had asked for his opinion and taken his advice.
Create informal leadership roles. Putting an employee in a short-term informal leadership role can make a major impact. Think how you would feel if you had a boss and she said, “We have a huge problem with a customer. If we don’t take care of it we may lose them. Can you grab a few people and handle it for me?”
Informal leadership roles show you trust an employee’s skills and judgment. The more important the task, the higher the implied praise and the greater the boost to their self esteem.
Team up. You and your employees are on unequal footing since you’re the boss. A great way to recognize an employee’s value—especially to you—is to take on a task together.
What you choose to do together doesn’t have to be outside work, of course. The key is to do something as relative equals, not as boss and employee. Unequal separates, while equal elevates.
Years ago my boss said, “I’m thinking of joining Toastmasters to improve my presentation skills. Would you be interested in joining with me? It might be good for both of us, since someday you’ll be making lots of presentations.” I was flattered he asked and flattered he saw me as someone who would someday be in a position to speak to groups of people.
Verbal praise is great, but at times implied praise can be even more powerful. Ask for help or ideas, put an employee in charge, drop hierarchical roles, and work together. Each is a powerful way to recognize the true value of your employees—and to show you trust them, which is the highest praise of all.
The Fremont Group provides Success Partners–former small business owners dedicated to the achievement of your goals. Become a member and take advantage of your Annual Business Physical!
Your general manager just quit; you need emergency surgery; a fire has destroyed your inventory; your computer system has crashed; your wife has filed for divorce; the bank has called your line of credit; or any of a thousand other possible crisis has just slapped you in the face—you need help and you need it now! You might need only the reassurance of a phone call or you might need someone in your office for the next week. The Fremont Group is announcing the formation of their “911 Crisis Management.” Small business owners in need of emergency support of any kind are encouraged to call The Fremont Group at 303 338 9300 for and ask for Crisis Management or email us and put Crisis Management in the caption. Together we will immediately assess the situation and get you the help that you need.
Your emergency becomes our emergency. You will be pleased to know that for members of The Fremont Group, Crisis Management services do not carry emergency pricing. Members who use our emergency services are charged only our basic rates. Of course, for non-members there is a premium for rearranging our schedules, however, in a time of crisis, the focus should be on the amount “saved” as well as the amount invested. This benefit of membership can be the difference in your company’s survival.
The Fremont Group is a non-profit organization supported by donations and memberships. Memberships start at as little as $9.99 per month. For more information look to the Membership pages on the web site.
The Fremont Group conducts an annual survey of small business owners. There will be additional posts on other aspects of the survey. With January posts devoted to financial control of your company we will start releasing results in that area. SEVENTY-TWO PERCENT OF ALL RESPONDANTS INDICATED THAT THEY NEITHER HAD A BUDGET NOR PROJECTED THEIR CASH FLOW!
- No regularly produced job costing or tracking reports
- No regular use of a budget
- Variance analysis reports are not regularly generated
Is there really any wonder why so many small businesses fail? Ironically not a single member of The Fremont Group gave any of these responses.
Are you ready for 2012? Has the last year gone as you planned? Measure twice; cut once is an expression that applies just as aptly to your business as it does to construction. You may not have achieved all you thought you would in 2011 but don’t let a lack of preparation be the cause of a repeat in 2011. You can decide to do everything possible to change in 2012 or choose to just see what happens. Start off right
The Fremont Group offers their “Business Boot Camp” to all members. You will be assigned a Success Partner who, in one week, will tear your business apart and lay out a plan for SUCCESS IN 2012. They are not “yes men” so be prepared. The Fremont Business Boot Camp is not a seminar—it is an intensive implementation package designed to implement change; not talk about it. If you are not committed to change you should not enlist.
Who is eligible:
Your company must have more than 5 employees and have been in business more than two years. (Call for separate camps for start-up and small firms.)
You must be a “working owner” who is open to change.
You may not have more than 100 employees.
What you will get:
- Your entire company will become focused and “on the same page.”
- Obstacles to achieving your results will be aired, addressed and the entire organization will be utilized to eliminate those obstacles.
- Employee productivity will increase through “buy in” and proper use of accountability and incentives.
- You will have a clear game plan that is designed to “win the game.” You will no longer be the football coach with a game plan that says, “if everything goes right we will only lose by a touchdown.”
- What the bank wants to know and how to present it.
- You will have a foundation for long-term success.
- Your organization will have a new appreciation of your role as owner of the company.
How you will get it (Sample Agenda):[1]
Monday
Morning: Introduction to staff and tour facility. Meet with owners and key employees and distribute Minding My Own Business questionnaires. Gather financial information.
Afternoon: Identify your goals for 2012 and become familiar with your operations. Gather questionnaires and any additional information needed to complete a SWOT analysis of the company.
Evening: Success Partner completes financial analysis and analysis of the company and analysis of company morale and organizational issues.
Tuesday
Breakfast: Success Partner and Head of Accounting
Morning: Meet with owners to review their analysis of current financial position. Present Accounting 101 to owners and financial staff (if required). Establish company budget and KPI’s. Assign Head of Sales to prepare a summary of the company’s “Sales System” for presentation on Wednesday.
Afternoon: Review the findings from the Employee questionnaires and interviews with owners. Contrast those findings with the owner’s perceptions. Identify current methods of employee accountability and incentives and develop the framework for desired methods of employee accountability and incentives.
Evening: Owners take Success Partner and key personnel to dinner—informal discussion.
Wednesday
Breakfast: Success Partner and Head of Sales
Morning: Review with owners the presentation of the current “Sales System”
Review company goals and re-write them as required. Present SWOT analysis for discussion (Strengths; Weaknesses; Opportunities and Threats). Determine how these should be presented to the staff.
Afternoon: Company meeting. Present SWOT analysis. Review findings of the first two days. Solicit input from the organization. Conclude with the establishment of a management committee (companies with more than 10 employees) and their first meeting.
Evening: Success Partner completes first draft of Action Plan.
Thursday
Breakfast; Success Partner and Head of Operations.
Morning: Meet with Management Committee (or owner in companies with fewer than 10 employees) to identify the five greatest issues facing the company and potential solutions. Review with owner and head of sales critique of the “Sales System.”
Afternoon: Meet with owners to develop a plan to address those issues. Develop a complete Action Plan for 2010. Establish benchmarks for progress.
Evening: Success Partner prepares formal Action Plan for presentation.
Friday
Breakfast and Morning: Meeting with owners to review presentation of Action Plan to the company. Presentation of the Action Plan in full company meeting. Wrap up.
How to enlist:
Call The Fremont Group at (303) 338 9300 and tell them you are ready for Boot Camp. Registration Fee is $9995 plus $500 for non-local travel; $100 for local travel. The travel and $4,000 non-refundable deposit is required to hold a date; balance due at the first meeting. Preferred method of payment is PayPal on this site. Companies who are members receive their discount.
[1] The agenda assumes that you business has a person who is the head of accounting; head of sales; and head of operations. In smaller companies the owner may double as this person. Other “tweeks” in the agenda normally have to be made to accommodate the unique situations in each company.
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