FIR Podcast Network

Make your company more profitable by solving people, process, and technology issues. This episode features #ThoughtLeader and #Expert Sean Driscoll http://aha.pub/SeanDriscoll, president of Driscoll Organizational Solutions, which helps companies improve profitability by taking their executive leaders to the next level.

Sean helps company executives and leaders discover inefficiency and ineffectiveness issues within their operations so they can address them and grow their company.

If you’re sitting on the board and don’t think that the plans, actions, and results are operationally efficient in your company, you need to reach out to Sean Driscoll at http://aha.pub/SeanDriscoll.

Here are a couple of AHA messages from this episode:

* Companies that are experiencing inefficiencies and ineffectiveness in their operations should check the work being done by Sean Driscoll at http://aha.pub/SeanDriscoll. #OperationalEfficiency

* Every company has a unique way of delivering value. What we do is to dive into the nuts and bolts of operations to see how they’re delivering value through their plans, actions, and results. #OperationalEfficiency http://aha.pub/SeanDriscoll

* We dig deep into our clients’ business systems, including their strategic, structural, and operational components, to see where the inefficiencies or ineffectiveness happens. #OperationalEfficiency https://driscollsolutions.com/ @DrOrgSolutions

* Companies usually get two of these — plans, actions, and results — correct. We come in to find out which one they don’t and help them close gaps in performance or expectations. #OperationalEfficiency https://driscollsolutions.com/ @DrOrgSolutions

* Sometimes, the sales will get ahead of the business, and you start selling things that the business cannot deliver. We help improve the communication between sales and operations. #OperationalEfficiency http://aha.pub/SeanDriscoll

To learn more about Thought Leadership and how it can help you be successful, visit: https://thoughtleaderlife.com/.

Welcome to our second EE Voice CLIP – our Quora for communicators — where we answer a listener’s question in less than 8 minutes.

Today’s question is: How can I create an effective 2020 employee comms strategy?

Sharon and I are always surprised how many companies we speak to don’t have a full year communications plan – and it’s critical. A solid strategy gives you the journey map to success – both personally as a leader and for your employees — and done right – ultimately to drive business success.

So here are some quick tips and tricks to start or improve upon your 2020 comms plan … wrapped up in just 5 minutes.

For the past decade, Rohit Bhargava has written about non-obvious trends in an annual book series. He recently capped it off with a final volume: Non-Obvious Mega Trends. A self-described “reluctant futurist,” Rohit went from working in agencies to examining the trends that impact business and society.

In this episode, he and Chip discuss some of the observations, as well as an approach to looking at trends that may help agency leaders be more effective. One of the best pieces of advice he offers is this: “being more observant really is about paying attention to detail.” Sometimes it takes the realization of the obvious to discover the non-obvious.

RESOURCES

* Non-Obvious Mega Trends

* RohitBhargava.com

* The Non-Obvious Company

ABOUT ROHIT

Rohit Bhargava is a leading authority on marketing, trends and innovation. He is the Founder of the Non-Obvious Company and previously spent over 15 years advising large organizations on digital and marketing at two respected global agencies: Leo Burnett and Ogilvy. Rohit is widely considered one of the most entertaining and original keynote speakers on marketing disruption and innovation in the world. He is the Wall Street Journal bestselling author of six books on topics as wide ranging as the future of business, building a human brand with personality, and why leaders always eat left handed. He has been invited to deliver sold-out keynotes and workshops to change the way teams and leaders think at the World Bank, NASA, Intel, LinkedIn, MetLife, Under Armour, Univision, Disney and hundreds of other well-known organizations. Rohit also teaches a popular course on marketing and storytelling at Georgetown University in Washington DC and writes a monthly column on trends for GQ magazine in Brazil.

[read the transcript]

They say that if you’re wearing rose-colored glasses, red flags just look like flags. It’s also true if you stick your head in the sand. You don’t see any flags at all—red or otherwise.

That’s no way to run your professional life.

It’s important to be realistic and weigh risks against the opportunities—against new business, a new job, a promotion, or even continuing on with a client.

Looking for red flags is the best way to do that.

A red flag is a sign, signal, or symptom that a person does not fit your ideal profile. What might be a red flag in one situation is not in another.

Red Flags In the Communications Industry

Red flags in our industry can take many forms, but the most common are that executives:

* Often want more than they will pay for or that your team has the resources for.

* Have unrealistic expectations.

* Don’t want to put in the work or time necessary for success.

* Want things that are not possible in their timeframe.

It’s our job to find out what they want ahead of time—and help set expectations. But sometimes we miss them. Or, we see them and we ignore them

Develop a System

Ideally, you should develop a system to identify red flags.

You should have a goal to disqualify every opportunity in front of you.

If you’re on the agency side, this means you should attempt to find a reason NOT to work with every, single prospect you talk to. I know, I know. That sounds ludicrous. But if that’s your goal, you’ll get better and better at meeting ONLY with your ideal clients and, no matter how hard you try, you won’t be able to disqualify them.

If you’re on the corporate or non-profit side and you’re interviewing for a new job or a promotion, treat it the same way. You want to find reasons not to accept the job or promotion. If you can’t find any, you know the job is right for you.

There are, of course, situations where red flags are acceptable. In those instances, obey your gut.

Even if it’s your very first job interview or your very first new business meeting, your gut will tell you whether or not something feels right.

Find reasons to disqualify the job, the candidate, or the client.

Ask questions and dig deep to find red flags.

And then obey your gut. It will never, ever steer you wrong.

Have Your Say

What types of questions do you ask to find red flags? What are your red flags? Share your thoughts in the Spin Sucks community.

Overcome leadership challenges with a global mindset by bridging generational gaps in your organization. This episode features #ThoughtLeader and #Expert Professor M.S. Rao (http://aha.pub/ProfessorMSRao), a sought-after keynote speaker, international leadership guru, executive coach, and C-Suite advisor and best known as the “Father of Soft Leadership.”

He has authored more than 45 books, including “Vision 2030: One Million Global Leaders.” He also writes actively on in his blog of the same title, where he shares free knowledge with the world.

To learn more about Professor M.S. Rao and to get in touch with him, go to http://aha.pub/ProfessorMSRao.

Here are a couple of AHAmessages from this episode:

* The pain point of many global organizations is the generational gap and how young people are not trained to take leadership roles. #GlobalMindset http://aha.pub/ProfessorMSRao

* Many young people, especially millennials, take leadership responsibilities without the skills and abilities to lead. Do your young leaders need training in your company? #GlobalMindset @ProfessorMSRao

* Shaping young leaders with a #GlobalMindset can create a harmonious community of exemplary leaders. Partner with an expert in the field with many years of experience in coaching both students and professionals. http://aha.pub/ProfessorMSRao

* Leadership is becoming more demanding today than before. Are you a business leader who can benefit from expert advice to run your company in today’s evolving society and environment? #GlobalMindset http://aha.pub/ProfessorMSRao

* Endorsements from a credible advisor can build confidence in young leaders to build relationships with like-minded individuals. #GlobalMindset @ProfessorMSRao

To learn more about Thought Leadership and how it can help you be successful, subscribe to the channel: http://youtube.com/user/thoughtleaderlife.

Discover the purpose and activators of success in your life with meaning and purpose. This episode features #ThoughtLeader and #Expert Dr. Richard Shuster (http://aha.pub/DrRichardShuster), a licensed clinical psychologist, the founder and CEO at MARS Industries LLC, and host of “The Daily Helping” podcast.

Dr. Shuster’s passion is in helping make a difference in other people’s lives as he generously shares his clinical expertise in his podcasts and speaking engagements online or otherwise, as well as inspiring stories of himself and of other thought leaders and influencers all over the world.

If you desire to unlock the greatest potential within you to be a better version of yourself and need a push in the right direction, consider reaching out to Dr. Richard Shuster by visiting his website, http://drrichardshuster.com, and going to https://aha.pub/DrRichardShuster.

Here are a couple of AHA messages from this episode:

* Many individuals who are feeling out of balance and unproductive and want to be the best version of themselves to help make a difference in others’ lives should reach out to Dr. Richard Shuster. #Purpose https://aha.pub/DrRichardShuster

* Many people, especially working parents, can be successful in their careers but have failing health and relationships. Are you focusing only on your work, or are you concerned about the wholeness of your life? #Purpose https://aha.pub/DrRichardShuster

* If you’re a working professional, you likely feel successful in one area, but not in many others. What steps are you taking to improve your situation? #Purpose http://drrichardshuster.com

* I have credibility as a licensed clinical psychologist, so I can guide you in looking at what things you can improve on. Life assessment can help bring out a #PurposeDriven life in you. http://drrichardshuster.com/

* People can help other people and share in each other’s success. Having a support system can help you understand your true strengths and core competencies. #Purpose https://aha.pub/DrRichardShuster

To learn more about Thought Leadership and how it can help you be successful, visit: https://thoughtleaderlife.com/.

Let your organization thrive in multigenerational workplaces. This episode features #ThoughtLeader and #Expert, Jeff Butler http://aha.pub/JeffButler, speaker, author and passionate millennial who helps bridge generational gaps between millennials and companies looking for their talent and patronage.

Jeff helps organizations improve their relationships with millennial employees by presenting tangible solutions for attracting, retaining and engaging millennials as employees and customers.

To learn more about Jeff Butler, go to http://aha.pub/JeffButler. To get in touch with him, visit http://www.jeffjbutler.com/.

Here are a few AHA messages from this episode:

* The pain point of some organizations is that they have a difficult time attracting, understanding and engaging #MillennialEmployees which results in retention and engagement issues. http://aha.pub/JeffButler

* Technology has affected people and workplaces exponentially. #MillennialEmployees can have a different perspective on what’s expected in the workplace. http://www.jeffjbutler.com/ @JefferyJButler

* There can be a big difference between senior executives and #MillennialEmployees who are new in the workplace. This may lead to clashes and a culture of animosity. #MultigenerationalGap http://aha.pub/JeffButler

* Some companies may be using 1980s recruitment techniques which can hinder their goal of bringing more talent to their organizations. #MultigenerationalGap http://aha.pub/JeffButler

* Are you having a difficult time understanding your #MillennialEmployees? Consider learning tips on how to attract, engage and retain them. http://aha.pub/JeffButler

To learn more about Thought Leadership and how it can help you be successful, subscribe to the channel: http://youtube.com/user/thoughtleaderlife.

Execute operational initiatives through change management solutions that create lasting impact on your people. This episode features #ThoughtLeader and #Expert Neysha Arcelay (http://aha.pub/NeyshaArcelay), founder and CEO of Precixa. Her expertise lies in improving efficiency in processes and change management for companies struggling with strategy and execution.

Neysha targets alignment of employees’ goals with the company’s priorities and helps the leadership address critical challenges, not limited to short-term solutions. She believes that operational strategies and initiatives should be people-centered to create a happy, inclusive and engaged culture that can lead to excellent performance, accountability, and profitability.

To learn more about Neysha Arcelay, go to http://aha.pub/NeyshaArcelay. To get in touch with her, visit http://neyshaarcelay.com/ and http://www.precixa.com/.

Here are a couple of AHAmessages from this episode:

* The pain point of many organizational leaders is not knowing what to do to keep people engaged when the company is going through #TransformationalChange. http://neyshaarcelay.com/ @precixapgh

* Many companies are not looking to get help with translating strategies into achievable plans. Consider getting someone credible to help you achieve #TransformationalChange. http://aha.pub/NeyshaArcelay

* Change in a programmatic approach can help all employees see that each person can have an impact within the organization. Do you have strategic advisors guiding you through #TransformationalChange? http://aha.pub/NeyshaArcelay

* Any change that you bring into your organization will have risks involved. Working with experts in #TransformationalChange can help you form strategies, execute the plan, and monitor results. http://aha.pub/NeyshaArcelay

* With the influx of technology and market diversification, many employees can easily lose focus of the company’s initiatives. Getting support from a strategic coach can cause effective change implementation. http://aha.pub/NeyshaArcelay

To learn more about Thought Leadership and how it can help you be successful, subscribe to the channel: http://youtube.com/user/thoughtleaderlife.

Peanut butter and jelly; Bert and Ernie; Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen; Marketing and sales. Some of the greatest duos have the greatest results when working together. But what happens when these duos don’t work together?

Sometimes they do just fine (I mean, peanut butter and banana is pretty awesome) but other times, they realize they are better off working together (Michael Jordan’s post-retirement three-peat). That’s kinda how D. Fish sees the world of marketing and sales. A marketer can be a better marketer by walking in the shoes of sales, and sales can be a better salesperson understanding the data marketers need to bring successful leads to the sales team.

In this episode of AMP Up Your Digital Marketing, we meet D. Fish, author of the book Hyper-Connected Selling, who discusses how marketers needs sales and vice versa, and how we can do our jobs better with each other.

Transcript:

Glenn: Welcome back to the show. Today we’re speaking D. Fish. D., welcome to the show.

David: Thank you for having me. I’m excited to be here.

Glenn: D., tell us a little bit about who you are and what you do?

David: Yeah. I’m a speaker, coach, author, consultants. I help organizations and individuals really harness digital tools and old-school human-to-human communication skills to build better customer relationships and move business forward.

Glenn: Wait a minute, you can’t mix technology and old-school techniques, can you? Is that possible?

David: Well, I’m going to suggest that you have to in today’s world. And I won’t say it’s easy, but technology is not going away and neither is thousands and thousands of years of human evolution. So, we have to figure out how to marry those two things together.

Glenn: You know, it’s always interesting to me is, like, so many times when people get technology, they kind of start with the solution rather than the problem they’re trying to solve. And as a result, what happens is, you’re like, oh, we’ve got some great technology, it’s going to solve the world’s problems. They bring it in and nobody uses it.

David: Right.

Glenn: Is there a way to think about it differently, particularly I mean, you spend a lot of time on the sales side and coaching sales people. How do you connect with sales people to get them to buy in to whether a program or – usually some program that marketing is asking them to be involved in, involves with some technology, right?

David: Right. And that idea of going to the problem first, I think, is so important. And I’ve seen this play out time and time again, where it’s the latest, whether it’s a social media platform or another great video platform or there is this new bright, shiny object, and marketing is always on the forefront. And they go, wow, this can really be fantastic! And then they do this whole rollout to the sales team and it’s just crickets. And I think what it really has to be is more – as you said – problem-oriented, but it really requires – in this the marketing team going and the sales team going, hey, what would make your life easier? What would make your life better? What would actually help you have more conversations, better conversations, bring in more revenue? Which is all of our responsibility in this organization. And I think when you kind of go with that kind of service mentality, it then allows, in this case the marketing team to go, oh! you want to be able to share content more easily. Hey, let’s first of all make sure we got the content for you. And then it might be something like GaggleAMP or another tool that will be useful. And so, instead of just going, I’ve got a hammer,

Accomplish the mission of your business with help from investors while creating an impact on the world. This episode features #ThoughtLeader and #Expert Luni Libes (http://aha.pub/LuniLibes), a serial entrepreneur, educator, author, mentor, advisor, and investor.

Luni is the founder and managing director of Fledge, a conscious company accelerator that helps mission-driven companies earn profit and revenues while making an impact on the world.

He helps these entrepreneurs to connect them with investors and make them into even more investable and impactful companies.

To learn more about Luni Libes, go to http://aha.pub/LuniLibes. To get in touch with him, visit http://www.lunarmobiscuit.com and http://fledge.co/

Here are a couple of AHAmessages from this episode:

* The pain point of many mission-driven entrepreneurs who want to grow and solve problems in the world is looking for funding. http://aha.pub/LuniLibes

* Many businesses driven by their mission to alleviate poverty problems can benefit from getting support from experienced professionals to increase their odds of success. http://fledge.co/ @Lunarmobiscuit

* Do you have a startup company for finding answers to improve the lives of other people? Getting ideas and real-life lessons about operations and investing can help you help others. http://fledge.co/ @Lunarmobiscuit

* Being a company accelerator with many years of experience in entrepreneurship can give one the credibility to help impactful startup companies get the support and funding they need. http://aha.pub/LuniLibes

* Receiving valuable funding, guidance, and mentorship from an entrepreneurial advisor can push more projects for mission-driven organizations. Are you connected with a reliable one? http://fledge.co/ @Lunarmobiscuit

To learn more about Thought Leadership and how it can help you be successful, subscribe to the channel: http://youtube.com/user/thoughtleaderlife.