The Agile Scaleup

Scaling Bernie Meme; Teamson 10x; Prolonged Masking; April 6 – 8 Asia Master Class

Some people walk in the rain, others just get wet.

Roger Miller, singer-songwriter

Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.

Thomas A. Edison, inventor

Asia Scaling Up Master Class (Virtual) April 6 – 8 – Singapore Time
90-minute CEO-only session April 6; then 3 hours April 7 and April 8 for the entire exec team – same as the Scaling Up Master Class we hosted last December. Taught by Verne and his partners, immerse you and your team in the tools/techniques that have helped 70,000+ mid-market firms scale successfully. Hosted at convenient times for Asia/Oceanic firms. For more info and pricing, click here.

Taipei-based Teamson 10x Profit/Revenue (Scaling Up Case Study)
This 8-minute video details how William Su, CEO of Teamson, and his team have scaled their global firm 10x in both profit and revenue since 2017 (actually 11x and its significant revenues) using Scaling Up/Rockefeller Habits. Supported by Singapore coaching partner Jeremy Han, William also explains how Scaling Up has helped him navigate the crisis – the meeting rhythms, especially the daily, being the most critical (4:20 in the video). Huddles and habits are the key in good times and bad!!

Scale Through Acquisition – 5x in 36 months
Nathan Spearman, a veteran manufacturing CFO, made the leap and purchased a plastics extrusion firm doing $2.5 million in 2017. Using Scaling Up with the coaching support of Rob Garibay – and purchasing a rival firm – he reached $13 million in 2020 and is on track for $19 million this year. Acquisition is an excellent way to both launch and scale a business if you can get the integration right. Please take 2-minutes to read this detailed article on how Nathan scaled and the Scaling Up tools that have been the most helpful. Values, innovation, and cash flow have been key.

Mindset and Motion
The lens through which you see things/events/people/situations (re: the first quote above) and your willingness to put in the effort (second quote) summarizes success. Enjoy more quotes/music in this “Daily Minute” to kick off your weekend. 

Prolonged Mask Usage – Care for Your Employees
Even doctors/nurses never wore masks for extended periods in “normal” times – not like the 8 hours/day some people are enduring. Here’s a link to Dr. John Briggs’ latest blog on the health effects of extended mask wearing and some ways to address as a business owner.

EOer Mandy Gilbert’s Just Go with It
A quick read, Mandy Gilbert has written a book, Just Go with It,* sharing her entrepreneurial journey as she’s scaled Creative Niche which uses the latest in digital, marketing, and creative recruiting to land you talent – over 14,000 placements. Stephen M.R. Covey’s (Speed of Trust author) endorsement provides a nice reason to read her book over the weekend:

A very real and honest take on the peaks and valleys of the entrepreneurial journey. A clear example of why vulnerability is a major strength, not a weakness. Every leader should take a page out of Mandy's book. 

Congratulations, Mandy, on sharing your journey with all of us. 

Our Bernie Meme – Now We Know!!
What's your favorite Scaling Bernie Meme? We've posted our favorites to our new instagram account, here. 

* As an Amazon Associate, I may earn revenue from qualified purchases made through this link.

Order a box of 20 Scaling Up books
Want to save 50% over the price on Amazon? Go to this link.

TECHNOLOGY: 

ScalingUp Scoreboard
Integrated with Salesforce, Slack, and Zapier (allowing it to connect with 1000s of systems), use Scoreboard to provide your team (working remotely even more important!) a real time visual dashboard of cascading priorities and metrics. Get a personalized tour of Scaling Up Scoreboard to see how you can use it to better implement Scaling Up in your business.

EDUCATION: 

We’re still in business coaching and training firms:
New Orleans, LA - Feb 12, 2021 (Virtual)
Newport Beach, CA - Feb 18, 2021 (Virtual)
Chapel Hill, NC - Feb 23, 2021 (Virtual)
Irving, TX – Feb 25, 2021
New York, NY - March 3, 2021 (Virtual)
Lowell, MI - March 4, 2021
Lancaster, PA - March 9, 2021 (Virtual)
Sydney, Australia - March 10, 2021
Wellington, NZ - March 11, 2021
Columbus, Ohio - March 12, 2021 (Virtual)
Salisbury, England - March 18, 2021
Brisbane, Australia - March 24 & 25, 2021 (2 Day Master Class) 
Los Angeles, CA - March 25, 2021 (Virtual)
Oklahoma City, OK - March 26, 2021 (Virtual)
Scottsdale, AZ - April 1, 2021
San Antonio, TX - April 7, 2021
Ann Arbor, MI / Indianapolis, IN - April 15, 2021 (Virtual)
Sydney, Australia - June 9, 2021
Salisbury, England - July 6, 2021
Sydney, Australia - Aug 25, 2021

Lancaster, PA - Oct 26, 2021
Sydney, Australia - Oct 27, 2021
Salisbury, England - Nov 18, 2021

Growth Institute Online Executive Education:
Master of Business Dynamics
Scaling Up Master Business Course
Exponential Organizations Master Business Course
Topgrading Master Business Course

Better Book Club – What's your team reading? Increase your books read per team member. Easy, Proven, and in the Cloud at http://www.BetterBookClub.com.

Write Your Own Book
Whether you want to make it to the bestseller lists or just sell a lot more of your goods or services, with a profound competitive edge over the competition, Book The Business: How to Make BIG Money With Your Book Without Selling a Single Copy is for you! Request your free copy of this ground-breaking book at advantagefamily.com/scalingup.
Did you miss previous insights? - read here 

COACHING:
Have you ever wondered if working with a coach might accelerate your company's growth, exponentially? Do you have what it takes to move the dial from good to great? The Scaling Up team is prepared to support you. We have helped 40,000 other organizations over the past 30+ years, in scaling up their organizations through coaching, workshops, online training and more.

We would like to offer you a complimentary, personal follow-up from our Scaling Up team to share how we can support you in scaling your organization. 

YES! I WOULD LIKE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT COACHING & RECEIVE A COMPLIMENTARY FOLLOW-UP (CLICK HERE)
For questions or more information contact us at [email protected]

Read Verne's Insights on Kindle http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003SX13YI 

Sign up for Verne's Weekly Insights  

 

Secret Dinners; Jerry Threat; Culture Renovation; Feb 24 Summit

We met at the YPO event in Melbourne, just before the COVID shitstorm hit. I must thank you. We implemented the techniques you taught, and we grew our revenue by 120% in our Asian offices (SG, HK, KL, TH) and hired over 350 new staff, whilst others in our industry downsized.

Nick Bell, Director, Australia-based Appscore (email Tuesday)

Spurs Secret Dinners
Sometimes the title of an article says it all “Michelin restaurants and fabulous wines: Inside the secret team dinners that have built the Spurs' dynasty.” Carey Smith, iconic founder of Big Ass Fans, used weekly dinners with employees to do the same. It’s a lengthy 6-minute ESPN article, but a great lesson in generosity, passion, connection, and success.

Jerry Threat
And the article above has a great side story – how a server named Jerry Threat rose to restaurant fame just by doing a little research – it’s the opening story of the article – 30 seconds! And a powerful lesson of how you can capture the attention of anyone (and your boss!).

Culture Renovation – Finally a Great Culture Book
I have about as much disdain for books on culture as I do leadership books! So, when I heard Kevin Oakes, who is one of us – a successful CEO and founder of Click2Learn, SumTotal, etc. – had a new book coming out, I figured it would be fantastic – and it is.  First, take the title Culture Renovation* – like me, he thinks the term “culture change” is misguided – so he’s chosen a more precise term “renovation.” There are lots of parts of a culture you want to keep, so keep them!

18 Leadership Actions
Again, he got it right – it’s the actions you take, like Ben Horowitz suggested, that matter when it comes to culture. Each of the 18 leadership actions he details are anchored with a real case story of how it’s implemented – and ALL are entertaining and instructive. I appreciate that Kevin has worked with many of the most recognized companies in doing this work so its real-world stuff! I learned so much that was insightful about these various companies. It’s like reading 18 mini-company biographies – stealing ideas from the best. 

If Employees Work for Your Organization the Next Two Years…
…Will They Be Healthier? This is one of six key questions Tom Rath, who wrote the Foreword to Kevin’s book, asks about your culture. Start with Rath’s Foreword, then keep reading (though Chapter 4 is my favorite if you want to skip to it!). 

Feb 24, Complimentary Webinar with Kevin (and two others)
This is why I booked Kevin to keynote, for 25 minutes, our next Scaling Up+ Summit. Kevin, along with Emily Balcetis and a mystery celebrity CEO, will round out 90 minutes of fresh new ideas – and all at no charge. Register to be there LIVE and/or get the recording – 2:24pm – 4:04pm ET Wednesday, Feb 24. 

* As an Amazon Associate, I may earn revenue from qualified purchases made through this link.

Order a box of 20 Scaling Up books
Want to save 50% over the price on Amazon? Go to this link.

EDUCATION: 

We’re still in business coaching and training firms:
Atlanta, GA - Jan 26, 2021 (Virtual)
Ontario, Canada Region - Jan 28, 2021 (Virtual)
New Orleans, LA - Feb 12, 2021 (Virtual)
Newport Beach, CA - Feb 18, 2021 (Virtual)
Chapel Hill, NC - Feb 23, 2021 (Virtual)
Irving, TX – Feb 25, 2021
New York, NY - March 3, 2021 (Virtual)
Lowell, MI - March 4, 2021
Lancaster, PA - March 9, 2021 (Virtual)
Sydney, Australia - March 10, 2021
Wellington, NZ - March 11, 2021
Columbus, Ohio - March 12, 2021 (Virtual)
Salisbury, England - March 18, 2021
Brisbane, Australia - March 24 & 25, 2021 (2 Day Master Class) 
Los Angeles, CA - March 25, 2021 (Virtual)
Oklahoma City, OK - March 26, 2021 (Virtual)
Scottsdale, AZ - April 8, 2021
Ann Arbor, MI / Indianapolis, IN - April 15, 2021 (Virtual)
Sydney, Australia - June 9, 2021
Salisbury, England - July 6, 2021
Sydney, Australia - Aug 25, 2021

Lancaster, PA - Oct 26, 2021
Sydney, Australia - Oct 27, 2021
Salisbury, England - Nov 18, 2021

Growth Institute Online Executive Education:
Master of Business Dynamics
Scaling Up Master Business Course
Exponential Organizations Master Business Course
Topgrading Master Business Course

Better Book Club – What's your team reading? Increase your books read per team member. Easy, Proven, and in the Cloud at http://www.BetterBookClub.com.

Write Your Own Book
Whether you want to make it to the bestseller lists or just sell a lot more of your goods or services, with a profound competitive edge over the competition, Book The Business: How to Make BIG Money With Your Book Without Selling a Single Copy is for you! Request your free copy of this ground-breaking book at advantagefamily.com/scalingup.
Did you miss previous insights? - read here 

COACHING:
Have you ever wondered if working with a coach might accelerate your company's growth, exponentially? Do you have what it takes to move the dial from good to great? The Scaling Up team is prepared to support you. We have helped 40,000 other organizations over the past 30+ years, in scaling up their organizations through coaching, workshops, online training and more.

We would like to offer you a complimentary, personal follow-up from our Scaling Up team to share how we can support you in scaling your organization. 

YES! I WOULD LIKE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT COACHING & RECEIVE A COMPLIMENTARY FOLLOW-UP (CLICK HERE)
For questions or more information contact us at [email protected]

TECHNOLOGY: 
ScalingUp Scoreboard
Integrated with Salesforce, Slack, and Zapier (allowing it to connect with 1000s of systems), use Scoreboard to provide your team (working remotely even more important!) a real time visual dashboard of cascading priorities and metrics. Get a personalized tour of Scaling Up Scoreboard to see how you can use it to better implement Scaling Up in your business.

  
Read Verne's Insights on Kindle http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003SX13YI 

Sign up for Verne's Weekly Insights  

#1 Gift; Wooden Chargers; Mike Maddox; Jan 20 Cash Webinar

Service to others is the rent you pay for your room here on earth.

Muhammad Ali

Grace is a gift that seasoned leaders give themselves first.

YPOer Michael Maddox

Look at Cash Daily
If you’ve ever run out of cash, you never want to experience that again. It happened to me in 2001, losing a million in a few weeks following 9/11. That is when I woke up and got serious about “following the money.” It helps to figure out anything – your business, politics, cheats, etc. I started literally tracking my cash on a daily basis – seeing what was flowing in and out. And for the first time I had a real feel for the dynamics of my business model. With banking apps on your phone, it makes it even easier. Are you tracking your cash daily?

20,000 Firms Using the Cash “Power of One” Tool – Latest Firm 5x EBIT/Cash
We’re writing up the case study of how one Scaling Up client, focusing on just one of the 7 Levers of Cash, drove EBIT in 2020 from $8 million to $40 million – which is generating them a lot of cash. Cash has never been more vital to your business. As the leader, you are responsible to have the cash flow needed to keep the company operating. However, your leadership team needs to have a deep understanding of the company's financials, in order to make decisions that support increasing your cash flow. 

Wed 3pm ET, Jan 20^th, 7 Levers to 2X Cash
To help you and your team get control of your cash, we’ve partnered with Alan Miltz (he wrote one of the key Cash chapters in Scaling Up) for a free training on Jan 20th: The 7 Levers to 2X Cash Flow, 3X Profit, & 10X Your Valuation. His Power of One Tool, which he will dive into during the training, has been a game-changer for the over 20,000 companies already using it. Click here to save your seat and I'll see you there!

From 112 Hours to 18 Hours Time to Ship (Scaling Up Case Study)
John Webber’s Elkhart, IN based firm Carved (love the name of the company!), which creates one-of-a-kind wooden products – iPhone cases, bracelets, even phone chargers! – is successfully utilizing Scaling Up, with the help of mentor Doug Rassi, to navigate the crisis. This article, details how a focus on cash allowed his team to pay off two new CNC machines in 30 days; and reduce from 112 hours to 18 hours the time to ship a custom product, which also speeds up cash flow. What is your 10x internal improvement for 2021? Please take two minutes to pick up some ideas to improve your firm.

Heartfelt 10 Lessons from 2020
As if 2020 wasn’t tough enough, YPOer Michael Maddox’s wife was diagnosed with brain cancer a couple months ago. In the spirit of “for the good of the whole…” last week Michael wrote a very personal article for Forbes detailing 10 lessons he’s carrying into 2021. Please take 2-minutes to scan down through the ten – #1 being the importance of giving ourselves the gift of grace. Thank you, Mike, for giving back to our community.

Order a box of 20 Scaling Up books
Want to save 50% over the price on Amazon? Go to this link.

TECHNOLOGY: 
ScalingUp Scoreboard
Integrated with Salesforce, Slack, and Zapier (allowing it to connect with 1000s of systems), use Scoreboard to provide your team (working remotely even more important!) a real time visual dashboard of cascading priorities and metrics. Get a personalized tour of Scaling Up Scoreboard to see how you can use it to better implement Scaling Up in your business.

EDUCATION: 

We’re still in business coaching and training firms:
Ann Arbor, MI / Indianapolis, IN – Jan 20, 2021 (Virtual)
Washington, DC - Jan 21, 2021 (Virtual)
Oakland, CA - Jan 21, 2021 (Virtual)
Columbus, OH - Jan 21, 2021 (Virtual)
Atlanta, GA - Jan 26, 2021 (Virtual)
Ontario, Canada Region - Jan 28, 2021 (Virtual)
New Orleans, LA - Feb 12, 2021 (Virtual)
Newport Beach, CA - Feb 18, 2021 (Virtual)
Chapel Hill, NC - Feb 23, 2021 (Virtual)
Irving, TX – Feb 25, 2021
New York, NY - March 3, 2021 (Virtual)
Lancaster, PA - March 9, 2021 (Virtual)
Sydney, Australia - March 10, 2021
Salisbury, England - March 18, 2021
Brisbane, Australia - Mar 24 & 25, 2021 (2 Day Master Class) 
Oklahoma City, OK - March 26, 2021 (Virtual)
Sydney, Australia - June 9, 2021
Salisbury, England - July 6, 2021
Sydney, Australia - Aug 25, 2021

Lancaster, PA - Oct 26, 2021
Sydney, Australia - Oct 27, 2021
Salisbury, England - Nov 18, 2021

Growth Institute Online Executive Education:
Master of Business Dynamics
Scaling Up Master Business Course
Exponential Organizations Master Business Course
Topgrading Master Business Course

Better Book Club – What's your team reading? Increase your books read per team member. Easy, Proven, and in the Cloud at http://www.BetterBookClub.com.

Write Your Own Book
Whether you want to make it to the bestseller lists or just sell a lot more of your goods or services, with a profound competitive edge over the competition, Book The Business: How to Make BIG Money With Your Book Without Selling a Single Copy is for you! Request your free copy of this ground-breaking book at advantagefamily.com/scalingup.
Did you miss previous insights? - read here 

COACHING:
Have you ever wondered if working with a coach might accelerate your company's growth, exponentially? Do you have what it takes to move the dial from good to great? The Scaling Up team is prepared to support you. We have helped 40,000 other organizations over the past 30+ years, in scaling up their organizations through coaching, workshops, online training and more.

We would like to offer you a complimentary, personal follow-up from our Scaling Up team to share how we can support you in scaling your organization. 

YES! I WOULD LIKE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT COACHING & RECEIVE A COMPLIMENTARY FOLLOW-UP (CLICK HERE)
For questions or more information contact us at [email protected]

  
Read Verne's Insights on Kindle http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003SX13YI 

Sign up for Verne's Weekly Insights  

Buffett/Bezos Fail; Cred Killers; USC Success; Quail Ridge Lodge Jan 19 - 22

The bad news is time flies. The good news is you’re the pilot.

Michael Altshuler

I don’t know where I’m going from here, but I promise it won’t be boring.

David Bowie

YPO-Only CEO/#2 Boot Camp – Quail Ridge Lodge
2 spots left – Jan 19 – 22. Join 8 other YPOers and their #2s at YPOer Davis Taylor’s hunting lodge in Mississippi. Enjoy three days of learning, conversation, and fun as John Ratliff and I go deep with the Scaling Up tools/techniques – bringing millions of dollars of value as it has the past five years to hundreds of CEOs. We also have 2 seats left for our “public” CEO Boot Camp Feb 2 – 5, Marathon, FL. For details www.ceo-bootcamp.com  

7 Things You Say That Kill Your Credibility
“I know how you feel” is just one of several phrases we often (and naturally) use in conversation – yet hurts your credibility. This Forbes article details six more dangerous phrases and what you should say instead. Give it a one-minute scan. 

USC Group Scales from $70 million to $120 million (Scaling Up case study)
Stephen Ellich’s Australia-based USC Group has continued to scale in this pandemic, like most of our clients. Coached by Rob Nankervis, this article details their specific People, Strategy, Execution, and Cash (a “culture of cash” as they call it) decisions that have continued to propel the business – worth 2-minutes to reinforce the fundamentals as you go into 2021. My favorite specific:

…emblazoning its walls with graffiti art made by street artists. The artists created four separate but linked murals depicting the Brand Promise, Purpose, Core Values, history and service lines. 

Read the article to see what their 3 brand promises, core values, and purpose are – three of the key components of an effective vision.

Make it Local First – Why Buffett/Bezos/Dimon Failed
Haven, the healthcare company Buffett, Bezos, and Dimon launched with famed MD Atul Gawande is shutting its doors in a few weeks. Why did it fail? Setting aside that healthcare in the US is so lucrative that no one, including our Congress, wants to fix it (we pay the most -- $1.3 trillion/yr -- and get the least outcomes of any western country in the world); the other reason is Haven tried to be too big from the start! No less than a dozen times over the last few months I’ve had calls discussing this same issue with a bunch of entrepreneurs. You have to make it local first!! In the end, each of the companies – Amazon, Berkshire Hathaway, and JPMorgan – ended up doing their own thing – and Amazon was most successful in their Seattle-only pilot program.

Airbnb Made the Same Mistake
The three Airbnb founders tried to be global from day one as well – and it would seem to make sense given their business model. However, after wasting five years trying, Y Combinator’s Paul Graham advised them to go to New York, where they had 20 “beds” and figure out how to make it work in that one market. They did, grew NYC to 200 “beds”, and the rest is history – they are a public company as of a month ago. 

I Learned the Same Lesson
It wasn’t until I focused on “making it” in Washington, DC – hosting local workshops and coaching local firms – that Gazelles (now Scaling Up) was able to gain momentum.  Interestingly, I grew my local workshops from 20 to 200 attendees, almost the same dynamic as Airbnb, though I’ve yet to go public! There is something about building a local “tribe” first – a tribe being 150 – before going bigger. Another way to think about it is “securing a base.”

Even Intel Tested Local
One of my favorite stories in The Greatest Business Decisions of All Time,* which I authored with Fortune magazine, is how Intel arrived at the decision to spend $250 million on a consumer ad campaign to brand “Intel Inside.” It’s a crazy idea to think they could get the consumer to care!! Yet they did – and it started with a series of billboards in Denver, CO. It was a low-cost local campaign (shoot bullets vs. cannon balls) they tweaked until they could see positive results – then they went big. Where are you being too ambitious – and need to test/stay local first? 

Happy New Year Scaleups!
Scaleups are the key to our economic recovery – so thank you to the thousands of firms our 190+ coaching partners had the privilege of working with in 2020, including the 738 leaders that participated in our last Scaling Up Master Class. You’re “doing the work!”

* As an Amazon Associate, I may earn revenue from qualified purchases made through this link.

Order a box of 20 Scaling Up books
Want to save 50% over the price on Amazon? Go to this link.

COACHING:
Have you ever wondered if working with a coach might accelerate your company's growth, exponentially? Do you have what it takes to move the dial from good to great? The Scaling Up team is prepared to support you. We have helped 40,000 other organizations over the past 30+ years, in scaling up their organizations through coaching, workshops, online training and more.

We would like to offer you a complimentary, personal follow-up from our Scaling Up team to share how we can support you in scaling your organization. 

YES! I WOULD LIKE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT COACHING & RECEIVE A COMPLIMENTARY FOLLOW-UP (CLICK HERE)
For questions or more information contact us at [email protected]

TECHNOLOGY: 
ScalingUp Scoreboard
Integrated with Salesforce, Slack, and Zapier (allowing it to connect with 1000s of systems), use Scoreboard to provide your team (working remotely even more important!) a real time visual dashboard of cascading priorities and metrics. Get a personalized tour of Scaling Up Scoreboard to see how you can use it to better implement Scaling Up in your business.

EDUCATION: 
We’re still in business coaching and training firms:
Oxford, UK - Jan 13, 2021 (Virtual)
Colorado Springs, CO - Jan 13, 2021 (Virtual)
Waltham, MA – Jan 14, 2021
Louisville, KY - Jan 15, 2021 (Virtual)
Oklahoma City, OK - Jan 15, 2021 (Virtual)
Ann Arbor, MI / Indianapolis, IN – Jan 20, 2021 (Virtual)
Washington, DC - Jan 21, 2021 (Virtual)
Oakland, CA - Jan 21, 2021 (Virtual)
Columbus, OH - Jan 21, 2021 (Virtual)
Atlanta, GA - Jan 26, 2021 (Virtual)
Ontario, Canada Region - Jan 28, 2021 (Virtual)
New Orleans, LA - Feb 12, 2021 (Virtual)
Chapel Hill, NC - Feb 23, 2021 (Virtual)
Irving, TX – Feb 25, 2021
Lancaster, PA - March 2, 2021 (Virtual)
Salisbury, England - March 18, 2021
Brisbane, Australia - Mar 24 & 25, 2021 (2 Day Master Class) 
Oklahoma City, OK - March 26, 2021 (Virtual)
Salisbury, England - July 6, 2021

Lancaster, PA - Oct 26, 2021
Salisbury, England - Nov 18, 2021

Growth Institute Online Executive Education:
Master of Business Dynamics
Scaling Up Master Business Course
Exponential Organizations Master Business Course
Topgrading Master Business Course

Better Book Club – What's your team reading? Increase your books read per team member. Easy, Proven, and in the Cloud at http://www.BetterBookClub.com.

Write Your Own Book
Whether you want to make it to the bestseller lists or just sell a lot more of your goods or services, with a profound competitive edge over the competition, Book The Business: How to Make BIG Money With Your Book Without Selling a Single Copy is for you! Request your free copy of this ground-breaking book at advantagefamily.com/scalingup.
Did you miss previous insights? - read here 
  
Read Verne's Insights on Kindle http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003SX13YI 

Sign up for Verne's Weekly Insights