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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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