…hire professional fakers and let them drive the company into the ground.
Paul Graham (context below)
Your customers will never be any happier than your employees.
John DiJulius
An invitation to invest 2 to 22 minutes in your executive education this week.
John DiJulius – Customer Experience Revolution – Sept 19 Free
I’m noticing my own behavior – and veering toward firms that provide a better customer experience – and that requires a workforce willing to deliver on that experience. See below info on author John DiJulius’s Sept 19 webinar – no cost.
Founder CEOs 20x the Valuation – Fortune 500
Continuing the conversation around Paul Graham’s Founder Mode vs. Manager Mode, this Fortune article looked at the cumulative returns generated by the 22 Fortune 500 firms still run by the founder (Michael Dell, Mark Zuckerberg, etc.) and found:
The founder-CEOs’ companies delivered a median of 1,129% vs. 57% for the rest of the 500.
That’s 20x. They also outperformed their sectors by a median factor greater than 6x. Please invest 1-minute to read the article for the details.
Professional Fakers?
Paul Graham, founder of Y-Combinator, which has birthed thousands of firms including Airbnb, DoorDash, Reddit, etc. shared, after hearing Brian Chesky, founder/CEO of Airbnb describe the awful experience he’s had bringing in outside managers. Notes Graham:
Hire good people and give them room to do their jobs. Sounds great when it’s described that way, doesn’t it? Except in practice, judging from the report of founder after founder, what this often turns out to mean is: hire professional fakers and let them drive the company into the ground.
Let’s also suggest “professional interviewers” as one of our CEO Boot Campers noted this week in Vail.
Likable Badass: How Women Get the Success They Deserve
Warmth and Competence – the two dimensions most people are immediately judged on – is the basis for noted research psychologist, professor, and consultant Alison Fagale’s new book Likable Badass (I’m halfway thru – its excellent). Recommended by Adam Grant, Fagale’s book makes a key point – that status (perceived competence) is how you get influence and power vs. the opposite. How you attain this – along with warmth – makes you a Likeable Badass. This interview (start at 9:06) flushes out her many insights.
To Double Your Revenue, Stop Selling by Half
Terakeet, a leading SEO marketing firm, was selling $100,000 contracts with a 30% close rate. By weeding out every possible “no” before presenting, they were able to increase their average contract size to $800,000 and double their close rate using the Hunt Big Sales Process.
Mark Kennedy, the President, stated:
“We were going to double our sales staff until we used the Hunt Big Sales Process. It’s changed our whole revenue game plan.”
Hunt Big Sales is a key strategic partner helping our clients significantly increase revenue at a time sales seem to be getting tougher to make. They make it easier to double revenue.
Elevate Your Customer Service – Free Live Webinar Sept 19
Delivering exceptional customer service is non-negotiable in competitive environments. The challenge: How to train our employees in the top service aptitude skills to consistently meet and exceed customer expectations? The answer is crucial for every business, yet so often overlooked.
Join us September 19th at 2 PM ET/11 AM PT/8 PM CEST for the Customer Experience Revolution Free Live Webinar with John DiJulius. During this 90-minute session, you’ll discover how a thriving workforce translates directly into customer satisfaction and business success. Register for free here: https://hubs.li/Q02N_7qM0
Order a box of 20 books
Save 50% over the price on Amazon for Scaling Up, Mastering the Rockefeller Habits, and 12 Habits of Valuable Employees books here for less!
Additional Books
Scaling Up Compensation, a quick read helping you get much greater impact and outcomes from one of your largest expenses; and The Greatest Business Decisions of All Time, which provides you with some great ideas to borrow/steal for your own business are available on Amazon.
SCALING UP WORKSHOPS:
Engage your team with interactive Scaling Up workshops. Here's our list of workshops
Denver, CO – Sep 17, 2024 (In-Person)
Adelaide, Australia – Sep 23 & 24, 2024 (2 Day, In-Person)
San Francisco, CA – Sep 24, 2024 (Virtual)
Nottingham, UK – Oct 1, 2024 (In-Person)
London, UK – Oct 2, 2024 (In-Person)
Brisbane, Australia – Oct 2, 2024 (In-Person)
Jeddah, Saudi Arabia – Oct 7, 2024 (In-Person)
Phoenix, AZ – Oct 10, 2024 (Virtual)
Ontario, Canada - Oct 10, 2024 (Virtual)
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia – Oct 14, 2024 (In-Person)
Chile – Oct 15, 2024 (Virtual)
Fort Lauderdale, FL – Oct 15, 2024 (In-Person)
San Francisco, CA – Oct 16, 2024 (Virtual)
Columbus, OH – Oct 25, 2024 (In-Person)
Chile – Nov 12, 2024 (Virtual)
Melbourne, Australia – Nov 12, 2024 (In-Person)
Sydney, Australia – Nov 14, 2024 (In-Person)
Ontario, Canada - Nov 14, 2024 (Virtual)
San Francisco, CA – Nov 19, 2024 (Virtual)
Franklin, TN – Dec 5, 2024 (Virtual)
Chile – Dec 10, 2024 (Virtual)
San Antonio, TX – Dec 10, 2024 (In-Person)
Ontario, Canada - Dec 12, 2024 (Virtual)
San Francisco, CA – Dec 18, 2024 (Virtual)
Washington, DC – Jan 28, 2025 (In-Person)
Planning to Exit – Critical Whitepaper
Selling your firm, for its maximum value, is the most important negotiation in which a business owner will participate. You are typically negotiating with sophisticated buyers who have done hundreds of acquisitions whereas this is often your first rodeo. And these buyers have a formula for ripping you off – and it works, stealing tens of millions from you. Seeking help, owners discover the big M&A firms, especially those specializing in your industry, are more beholden to the buyers than the sellers (they will tell you otherwise). Email me to get a whitepaper on how to maximize your valuation and avoid the psychological games buyers play [email protected].
TECHNOLOGY:
Scaling Up Scoreboard is AI-enabled and 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!) with a real-time visual dashboard of cascading priorities and metrics. Get a personalized tour of the Scaling Up Scoreboard to see how you can use it to better implement Scaling Up in your business.
EDUCATION:
Scaling Up Master Business Course
Scaling Up Free Mini Course
COACHING: Unlock Explosive Growth with a Scaling Up Coach
Is your business hitting a growth ceiling? Break through with a Scaling Up Certified Coach™. Our elite coaches master the Scaling Up methodology to reignite growth, align your team, and chart a clear scalability path. From day one, we provide a custom-tailored approach - conducting a comprehensive diagnostic, hand-picking your perfect coach match, and providing dedicated support. Whether a $5M or $250M firm, invest in coaching to propel your business to extraordinary new heights.
Schedule a complimentary follow-up or check out our FAQs. Additional questions can be sent to [email protected].
Have you considered becoming a Certified Scaling Up Coach?
Learn more about what it takes to certify and what being a coach is like. Pop into our Coach Office Hours to talk with our coach certification coordinator and a certified Scaling Up Coach. Learn More & Register for Office Hours here >
Sign up for Verne's Weekly Insights
*This may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. If you choose to purchase after clicking a link, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.