Commanding Business

Geoffrey Parker is a Professor of Engineering at the Thayer School at Dartmouth College, where he also serves as the Director of the Master of Engineering Management Program. In this podcast, he joins Tim to discuss his recent book, The Platform Revolution: How Networked Markets Are Transforming The Economy And How to Make Them Work for You. He also offers insights to business leaders who may be in the process of transitioning their existing data, from an informational intercompany resource into a new product offering or service.

Key Takeaways:

[1:38] Geoff Parker defines a platform.

[5:38] A real life business example of how Marriott International controls every aspect of the customer experience vs. Airbnb who controls very little.

[10:00] The platform is part of a longer arc, which started with global outsourcing.

[15:30] Industries with regulations and high failure cost will be disrupted first and it will affect their end markets.

[24:52] How does the globalization movement affect local economies?

[27:22] How can leaders mitigate risk through this transitional period and should they develop their own platform strategies?

[33:07] Incumbent firms have an opportunity to repackage and repurpose their existing data into new products and services.

[39:31] How to best connect with Geoff Parker and join the Platform Revolution community.

Mentioned in This Episode:

The Platform Revolution

The Platform Strategy Institute

Praxent

This is Mike Michalowicz's second visit on the Commanding Business podcast. During this episode, we announce the release of and have an in-depth conversation about his new book, Surge: Time the Marketplace, Ride the Wave of Consumer Demand and Become your Industry's Big Kahuna. Mike describes why companies who want to succeed need to commit to a niche and then master it to attract customers, why a general practitioner doesn't experience the same surge as a specialist and why he vows to eradicate entrepreneurial poverty.

Key Takeaways:

[1:00] A reader's question led Mike to write a book to help businesses find explosive growth by correctly timing the market.

[3:55] Mike describes the process of selecting a narrow niche and identifying its potential.

[4:29] In his personal mission to eradicate entrepreneurial poverty, Mike identified bookkeeping as the niche with the most potential.

[6:16] How to overcome a scarcity mentality when picking a focus.

[10:39] S is for Separate. When clients are selective they are invested in the outcome.

[19:25] U is for Unify. What movement does a business need to unify their offering?

[24:33] R is for Rally Cry. A reason or purpose to defend yourself and your product.

[28:37] G is for Gather. Evaluating what is working and what is not working through observation.

[34:49] E is for Expansion. Find what is working and duplicate it in complementary niches.

Mentioned in This Episode:

Mike Michalowicz

Mike Motorbike

Surge: Time the Marketplace, Ride the Wave of Consumer Demand and Become your Industry's Big Kahuna

Praxent

After graduating from the U.S. Naval Academy at the top of his class, David Marquet was asked to become the Captain of a nuclear-powered attack submarine. One year later, Captain Marquet was given an opportunity to lead a different submarine, one which had the worst performance record in the fleet. It was on that ship Captain Marquet realized the leader-follower environment was inadequate for his organization to perform at a top level. He shares his story with us today and takes us through the journey which is documented in his book, Turn the Ship Around, a book USA Today has named one of the Top 10 Business Books of all time.

Key Takeaways:

[1:30] Captain Marquet describes his leadership experience on the worst performing submarine in the Navy, at the time.

[7:24] How did eliminating the task and report policy help to turn the ship around?

[14:14] What are the rituals, habits and protocols of all organizations?

[18:03] What is wrong with being told to "Be Empowered"?

[22:20] Defining businesses in a two-dimensional space and why your team should function diagonally.

[28:50] Ask your people "What is the timeframe you want to win over?"

[34:21] Giving up control in very small steps and evaluating the outcome is the first step to implementing Captain Marquet's practices.

[39:38] Give people permission to give you feedback about your performance.

Mentioned in This Episode:

Captain David Marquet

Turn the Ship Around

Today's guest, Danny Gutknecht is an expert in all things, talent. He is CEO of the HR Management company, Pathways and is the author of a new book - Essence: Meaning at Work. He shares his model of Essence mining, a way for companies to uncover key information used to drive higher productivity, collaboration, and innovation within their organizations. In addition, he defines organizational meaning language and gives real world business examples of how to incorporate aspirations, beliefs, and values into core principles and goals.

Key Takeaways:

[1:05] Find out how to build cohesive, productive teams if you understand your organizational meaning language.

[7:09] There are 3 consistent themes shared throughout organizations: aspirations, beliefs and values.

[10:17] So, is it still important to post a company's mission statement and values for all to see?

[15:40] What is an Organizational Dynamic Lingua Franca and how does it apply to business today?

[23:17] A structured natural conversation is the best way to get to the "meaning language" and the passion with an organization.

[28:29] The connection of meaning shows that meaning can be pulled out as a separate entity.

[36:24] Contact information for Danny Gutknecht and how to pre-order his book, Essence: Meaning at Work.

Mentioned in This Episode:

Essence Mining

Essence: Meaning at Work

Pathways

Human Fugue

Bijoy Goswami joins Tim to discuss his ideas on bootstrapping as an entrepreneur, the Human Fugue philosophy and his book The Human Fabric: Unleashing the Power of Core Energy in Everyone. Bijoy helps entrepreneurial companies in Austin, Texas, to grow into what they want to become by creating communities, like Bootstrap Austin, which take on a life of their own after members advocate for their continuation. Tune in to hear about Bijoy's ideas on processes and how they are ever evolving and improving.

Key Takeaways:

[1:19] Bijoy shares his journey and how Bootstrap Austin evolved into a community.

[10:13] Comparing a Steve Jobs quote to Bijoy's methodology.

[13:23] What are The Four Houses of the Human Fugue?

[25:22] An authority based system of resource allocation doesn't work.

[29:40] When we ask "What's the meaning of life?" we have already misunderstood the word "meaning."

[36:24] The U.S. as a society tends to process things in the third house, which leads to incredible outcomes.

[41:08] How does value get created?

[42:25] What differentiates the Maestro personality from the Practitioner and the Steward?

[46:57] Models are fundamental to being human.

[50:07] The fourth house is about finding models to fit you better by discarding other models that aren't relevant for you.

[53:33] The 3-step process for meaning is the next step of the human journey.

[58:02] Contact information for Bijoy and links to the projects discussed during the podcast.

Mentioned in This Episode:

Praxent

Bijoy Goswami

Human Fugue

Bootstrap Austin

The Human Fabric

Tim’s guest, Mark Moses, has had two ultra-successful businesses, starting his first at the tender age of 19. He is a long-time entrepreneur who is now coaching CEOs from all over the globe. He says, creating specific measurable results based on your company’s vision is the first and simplest step for an effective leader to take. According to Mark, putting the right people in the right positions will assist in driving business growth. If you follow the guidelines of his book, Making Big Happen, you too can create a billion dollar business.

Key Takeaways:

[1:11] Mark decided to jump into the mortgage business after his student painter business took off.

[3:16] The theme of the book is how to live, work and give big.

[4:31] Knowing the specific and measurable activities – real life examples.

[9:48] The 5 things that drive business growth.

[12:01] Mark brought in Jack Daly by selling him on our vision.

[16:02] Business needs may trump personal relationships.

[18:59] Get the best coach you can and make a vision you can follow.

[21:30] What will get in the way of your vision and figuring out how to overcome it.

[23:40] Measurable activities, which will lead to the business results you want.

[26:18] Blind Spots.

[28:15] Contact Mark Moses.

Mentions:

Praxent

Make Big Happen

Grasshopper

CEO Coaching International

Improving business processes can be a difficult task if management approaches it without first determining the needs of the stakeholders. Gathering information from this group will help the improvement team to understand what drives your business's profit and loss. From there, creating baseline metrics will help the team to measure their progress towards improving processes. The Lean Six Sigma framework takes all of this into consideration when assisting companies with doing what they already do, only better. Kimberly Watson-Hemphill of Firefly Consulting talks with Tim about the commitment needed for a company to reach peak efficiency, implement continuous improvement and sustain the benefits of these important qualities over the long-term.

Key Takeaways:

[1:05] Helping companies do what they do, even better!

[2:54] What are the symptoms I need to look for if I think my business needs improvement?

[4:28] What drives revenue and profit?

[7:17] Empowering employees to make decisions.

[12:06] Good old fashioned communication makes everything better.

[13:44] Lean Six Sigma gives the team tools and a framework.

[15:47] Solving a problem with recruiting - a real life example.

[21:10] When Lean Six Sigma is implemented it is a win for everyone.

[23:10] Linking continuous improvement to all important business problems.

[24:31] Define, measure, analyze, improve and control.

[27:41] Stakeholder analysis!

[30:39] Contact information for Kimberly.

Mentions:

Firefly Consulting

Praxent

Lean Six Sigma

Smart Tribes

Innovating Lean Six Sigma book

Kimberly Watson-Hemphill

New managers often find themselves tangled in a web of different processes. If they are joining an existing organization, the processes that might have worked for their predecessors, often don’t fit current business needs. If they are entrepreneurs starting from scratch, they are tasked with finding the right framework to assist them in leading the company forward. Having disarmingly honest conversations with employees will help to align the interests of clients, employees and the business as a whole. Once leaders have a functioning framework in place, their task then become executing their strategies with clarity and purpose.

Key Takeaways:

[1:09] About John’s impressive background

[3:25] A disarmingly honest conversation leads us to aligning interests

[5:59] Pushing people until they quit gave me a chance to grow as a leader

[12:25] Connecting with people, systems & processes, and the job of the leader

[14:15] Clarity – Execution – Sustainability

[15:37] Defining core values and creating purpose

[20:30] Leaders need to have a strong system of execution

[23:28] The proper framework will reduce stress and keep you balanced

[27:01] Getting help

[29:29] Levels of Sustainability

[32:20] John’s contact information: John@ms-tx.com, (512) 922-6225

Mentions:

Praxent

Market Sense

Who Hiring Method

If you are the guy who is in charge and accountable, everyone will be looking to you for guidance and strength. Understanding your endgame will help you to prioritize and focus in times of high stress and responsibility. Today’s guest, Nick Norris, knew he wanted to be a Navy Seal from a very young age. While he was at the Naval Academy the unthinkable happened, the twin towers were attacked and Nick’s perspective about his career changed. He was thrust into a place of leadership from the very beginning of his service. He shares his insights about how to shift your purpose, gaining knowledge from mentors and making split decisions when they are needed most. He is the thought leader and entrepreneur behind the revolutionary Predator War Paint.

Key Takeaways:

[1:05] A mission to become a Navy Seal changed dramatically after 9/11

[5:13] An involuntary shift in purpose - it all became real

[8:50] A leader should put others before themselves

[13:01] The heavy burden of being a true leader

[15:42] Situational awareness is something which is gained through experience

[18:00] I would feed off of other people’s knowledge but make my own decisions

[21:44] In the pursuit of entrepreneurship the ability to prioritize is beneficial

[26:36] Entrepreneurs need to be clear about their end game first and then execute

[30:07] The “how” is somebody else’s job

[37:53] Predator War Paint is a superior product which is Made in the U.S.A.

[40:15] Contact Nick or contribute to his Kickstarter campaign

Mentions:

Praxent

Predator War Paint

Nick@predatorwarpaint.com

Naval Special Warfare for Family Foundation

Founder, Arnie Malham, of CJ Advertising seems to have done everything right while growing his business. He founded his niche advertising agency with the help of others. After proving his worth to his initial clients, they introduced him to other prospective clients within the same industry. He used his private business book collection to start an education movement within his company, which then led to another revenue stream, the Better Book Club. Also, when he hit the 10 million dollar/25 employee mark, instead of getting stuck in mire he joined EO, which helped him to propel his company forward. “Courage is a key component to success”, he says. Arnie shares which books influenced him and his organization in today’s episode.

Key Takeaways:

[1:11] Founding and growing CJ Advertising

[3:38] Employee education was a struggle until we built software which helps to reward readers

[5:50] Changing the mindset of an entire organization

[7:54] The importance of recognizing the title of Founder

[9:58] You must have courage when struggling to grow your new business

[14:31] Live or Die - Jumping over the 10/25 hurdle

[15:51] Using pattern recognition to find solutions faster

[17:37] Resilience

[19:12] The art of letting go

[21:26] ‘Now Arnie’ would tell ‘Past Arnie’ to chill

Mentions:

CJ Advertising

Better Book Club

Legal Intake Professionals

EO

Tipping Point

Great By Choice

Scaling Up

Good to Great

Double Double