First Time CEO

Jim Crocker, CEO of Boardroom Metrics has posted a YouTube video on tips for running an effective planning process.

Having watched many clients waste time and resources on planning that goes nowhere, Crocker’s tips are (once again) simple:

1. start early - planning for 2009 in February is a little late!
2. make planning a priority - there will always be more important things to focus on for the company that isn’t really committed to planning
3. planning is lead by senior management - the CEO in particular should have a clear perspective on what needs to be accomplished in the upcoming year and the key strategies for getting there - engaging the rest of the organization in the process is important but simply tossing planning to others in the organization never works
4. planning and budgeting are inextricably linked - which sounds obvious but gets overlooked - budgets should reflect the allocation of resources necessary to execute the planning priorities - if they don’t, then the plan priorities are just imaginary ideas for making something happen
5. follow-up to make sure the plan is working - too many organizations spend resources on planning then NEVER revisit the plan to measure accomplishments or check direction - which makes planning pretty much a complete waste of time

For people and organizations used to organized, well run planning processes, Crocker’s tips must seem overly simplistic. Unfortunately, they reflect reality - based on Crocker’s experience more companies fail at effective planning than succeed - usually because the simple approach required to execute properly is overlooked.

The video is posted here.

The Boardroom Metrics blog is here.

Another video by Jim Crocker of Boardroom Metrics on YouTube. This one titled CEO Tips for Managing in Tough Times.

Crocker has picked up on a theme that is everywhere right now. His spin is to simplify by focusing on four key things:

1. core business
2. core customers
3. core suppliers
4. core employees

He also points out that focus isn’t just a best practice for managing a business in tough times, it’s a best practice all the time.

The link is here.

Jim Crocker, CEO of Boardroom Metrics has started posting some helpful insight on management and leadership on YouTube. His first post on this topic is describes the 5 key elements of the role of the CEO. According to Crocker, they are:

1. defining the vision for the organization
2. assembling (and leading, managing) the management team
3. leading the planning process
4. monitoring progress and reporting to stakeholders
5. articulating the vision to employees, customer, suppliers and investors to engage them in the success of the business.

Obviously, Crocker is simplifying for affect and brevity - the role seems much more complicated than that - but when you think about it, if more CEO’s stuck to what he’s suggesting, they might do a better job.

The YouTube video is here.

A key question when engaging a consultant is their fee and how the project will be priced. In another of his YouTube videos to help manager’s use consultants effectively, Jim Crocker of Boardroom Metrics has posted a video on consulting pricing options.  He lists three options to consider for pricing a consulting project:

1. hourly basis
2. project basis
3. performance basis

The third, involves giving the consultants a share of the upside created by their work. This is a very effective incentive.

The video is posted here.

Jim Crocker, CEO of Boardroom Metrics has posted a series of helpful videos on YouTube about working with consultants. His latest is ‘What to Look for in a Consultant’.  Crocker lists five attributes:

1. expertise
2. experience
3. time to do the project
4. affordability
5. working with relationship

The video can be found here. All of Crocker’s videos can be found by searching Crockbiz.

Jim Crocker, CEO of Boardroom Metrics has posted another helpful video on YouTube about working with consultants.

Titled ‘How to Engage a Consultant’, Crocker provides some simple tips for finding and setting up a relationship with a consultant.  They include:

1. talking to multiple consultants to ensure that you have the right one before engaging
2. clarifying with the consultant what the outputs of the engagement will be - ensuring that you are not disappointed down the road
3. clarifying the terms of the engagement including outputs, fee and timing
4. putting the terms in writing and getting the consultant to sign it

Again Crocker has kept it simple but there are a couple of things that could be added.

First,  the terms should include the conditions for terminating the engagement with the consultant - usually some kind of ‘break up’ fee, or notice period.

Second, although Crocker says “you don’t need a lawyer” when putting the terms in writing, he’s not precluding the idea that you may want to engage a lawyer, particularly for significant engagements.

Finally, he fails to mention that the consultant should always sign a confidentiality agreement before beginning the engagement.

Jim Crocker, CEO of Boardroom Metrics posted this helpful video on YouTube ‘When to Hire a Consultant’.  Crocker, who has been a consultant for 25 years, keeps it simple. From his perspective, there are 4 key times for hiring a consultant:

1. when you need an answer
2. when you have the answer but need help selling it
3. when you have the answer, but it’s bad news and it’s better for someone else to deliver it
4. when you need help implementing change

Crocker points out that based on his experience, hiring a consultant to help with necessary change has a much greater chance of succeeding than hiring a consultant for ‘nice to do’ change.

If you are starting as CEO in the third quarter of the year chances are you are going have to give a speech at your Christmas party.  You may be new to the company or to the role, either way it’s up to you to set the tone at the event.  I’m not much of a speech writer but I did find a post on this very subject over here:  Christmas Letter.The author of that post (Jim Crocker) encourages you to lift the content that he wrote and use it as your own.  Even if you don’t use his speech / letter it might just help you over come the inertia that is a blank piece of paper. Good luck and Season’s Greetings! 

Many CEOs understand that importance of hiring good employees. Good employees will make a CEO’s job much easier. The same is true of vendors or as some people call them “partners”. If you create a good partnership with your vendor you will be rewarded in ways you didn’t anticipate.

I picked up a great pearl of wisdom from a VP of Marketing. She said “partners should make your job easier, not harder.” I’m sure we’ve all been there when we were working too hard to make something work for our company and our partner. A good partner will make it so you don’t have to work that hard.

In getting this blog going I looked up some other blogs to get their take on what would be some good tips for a first time CEO. Jeff Richards came up with a list of seven tips for the first time CEO that is trying to raise money.

Here is a brief summary of his seven tips:

1. Create several financial models and options.
2. Nail the financials and legal.
3. Build the team.
4. Craft a marketing plan.
5. Nail down your sales process.
6. Build a Board.
7. Get your personal house in order

On the face these would appear to be fairly straightforward tips but don’t be deceived. Building a team sounds easy but finding the right people is difficult. What ever the first time CEO does they should not hire weak performers.

I was in a discussion with a colleague yesterday about a his new business idea. The one comment that stuck out for me was his insistence that marketing was the easiest part of this start up venture. My experience tells me a good marketing plan doest not materialize easily.

I could probably elaborate on all the points that Mr. Richards makes but the two listed above are aspects that appear easy but are not.