Gateway Ticketing Systems is the

 Led by Michael Andre, Darryl Moser and Peter Grumblatt, Gateway has successfully grown for over 20 years by focusing on three critical “success” factors:

1)  Developing a great client base of marquee customers (check out Blueprint to a Billion for more on this…)

2) Generating lots of positive customer referrals and success stories and,

3) Having a fabulous group of dedicated employees. 

Then came “the recession of 2009”.  Parks and attractions reacted to falling attendance as unemployed consumers stayed home.   Sales to new customers trailed off as the credit crisis set in overseas.    Their employees were losing steam and reacting to what they perceived as a lack of progress in the business.

As Michael Andre said, “We knew that something needed to change.  What got us to where we were over two decades obviously wasn’t going to get us to where we wanted - and needed - to be.”

So what did the partners decide to do?  Like Gary Reggiani and the gang at ETI whom I blogged about a few weeks ago, they decided to invest in a proven, structured methodology – the Rockefeller Habits - which they had heard about thru several sources.  And after hearing more about the Business Excellence program at the Greater Reading Chamber   - they decided to attend - along with their seven person executive team.

Now, one year later, they AND their management team have come away with a new sense of commitment to their business and their employees…as well as a better understanding of business as a whole and concrete, practical tools like the One Page Plan that are keeping them on track and focused….

But what were their 4 “tickets” to success? 

Look for their business success “secrets” in my blog early next week!  There’s more to come on Andre and his team! 

AND a PS for those of you who read to the end - take advantage of a GREAT OFFER to get back on track yourself!  Sign up for our next “Un-Marketing” event - “Playing to Win” before this Friday, September 2nd and get 15% off the regular price of both the breakfast briefing and a fabulous workshop designed to help you take control of your future business success.  Click here to register!

So what did Gary Reggiani and his team learn “on the fly” this past year as they participated in the Greater Reading Chamber’s Business Excellence program?  Here’s five “business best practices” that helped them affect change and get them on track for the future.

1)      First things first – he and his team attended a Habits Boot Camp and developed their One Page Strategic Plan –

“We never really planned for our future in a systematic way,” says Gary. “Now, we’re planning using a sustainable approach and updating it as necessary.”

2)      Implemented regular meetings including daily huddles and weekly tacticals – with their plan in front of them to keep them focused and on track.

3)      Developed a business “dashboard” to track key indicators - and - they’re working to figure out what their leading indicators need to be to help them get to their goals. 

3)      Started working proactively with their customers to find out their needs and issues and are making adjustments to their strategy because of what they’re finding out….and finally…

4)      Evaluated their people to make sure that they had the right people doing the right things.  In the process, they identified the need to hire a Purchasing Manager and used biographical interviewing techniques to bring on the right person to manage their supply chain and their vendors, which is already making a difference to their operation.

The Results?

“Now”, says Gary, “We’re doing things “on purpose” and getting them done through a more formal approach that enforces personal accountability and commitment.  Our management team is aligned.  They’re bought into the plan.  Responsibilities and expectations are better defined and people know what each others’ goals and targets are as well as the company’s.”

And revenues and profits continue to grow…what could be sweeter?

Want to learn more?  Email us at info@ceothinktank.com and learn how to “learn on the fly” too!

Members of the ETI team

As a newly promoted CEO of Eastern Technologies (ETI) Gary Reggiani had a lot of questions. 

*  How could he affect change in an organization that was doing well (growing on average of 10% a year) but needed to change in order to be successful for the long haul? 

*  How could he more effectively deal with the people issues that came along with the increase in headcount because of the growth?

*  How could he instill more accountability and reduce the “reactivity” that characterized the culture?

*  And most of all, how could he learn what he needed to learn ”on the fly” since he certainly didn’t have time to go back for his MBA?

“We were great at getting the day to day work done,” he says, “But it just got done and if we were going to be successful and not implode as we grew, we really needed to do things differently.”

Gary has a great technical background and expertise BTW plus strengths in sales and marketing but he doesn’t have the formal “business” background that in his opinion was required of a CEO of a growing company.

His solution? 

Well, first he read “Mastering the Rockefeller Habits“…of course…

…then he talked with a group of CEO’s who were considering a new Business Excellence program that the Greater Reading Chamber was running.   That’s when I met him.  

After talking with several of the participants, he and his management team came on board the year long program dedicated to helping CEO’s like Gary answer the questions that were keep them up at night.  What did they learn?  And what was the business impact?

Stay tuned - the answers are coming Monday. 

But if you want “sneak peak” - click here.  And if you can’t wait for the answers email us at info@ceothinktank.com !

After taking July off, it’s time for me to get back to the keyboard…and share with you the TEN great business success stories we’ve encountered this year….

from Gateway Ticketing to Eastern Technologies to Superior Tube  and Spike’s Trophies…

..with an eye towards giving you some helpful hints - about what to do AND not do to manage a successful business in a “slow growth” economy.

From now thru December, I’m planning on sharing their “keys to success”…the challenges they’ve had to overcome, the strategies they’ve designed and insights they’ve had as well as the solutions they’ve discovered. 

Some great best practices that these small companies have put “into” practice!  And you can too!

So stay tuned!

1)   Recognize when it’s time to get stuff off your plate - and onto someone else’s 

Courtesy of Aldonna Ambler, aka “The Growth Strategist” and one of my advisors who said over a year ago that it was time to find a marketing assistant, and that an intern might be a good place to start.  Took a while, but I’ll never go back to not having this position filled.  Having good marketing help is critical in this economic landscape.

2)   Never hesitate to reach out for help

I’ve had some difficult organizational transitions to make over the last few months, and I am deeply grateful to two of my colleagues, Ted Lebow - who has been a wonderful sounding board and crisis helper and John Gerber - who had stepped up to the bat for me when I required legal advice and counsel.  It’s been great having people like them in my life.  Their support has been invaluable!  Thanks guys!

3)   In economic times like these, be willing to experiment with new marketing and sales tactics

We’ve certainly been experimenting - a lot!  From blogging about our story - thanks to Kevin Daum and his advice and counsel back in January…to utilizing the telemarketing services of Corporate Call Centers (thanks to another advisor - Claudia Timbo - and her great marketing right hand person Jean Dilley) - and getting their assistance running our first lumpy mail campaign…to having the opportunity to speak at Square 2 Marketing’s University last week, we’ve been strategically reaching out and “touching” people.  And it’s keeping us in the game!

4)   Find partners with sympatico - and form strategic alliances

The relationships which we’ve forged with Jim Devine and his crew at the Mid-Atlantic Employers’ Association as well as Karen Marsdale at the Greater Reading Chamber of Commerce have been key to expanding our reach in the Greater Philly area.  We’ve really enjoyed partnering with both organizations - and our partnership has resulted in more business for all of us!

5)   Define (and discover) your ideal client

And there’s no way that we could have done what we’ve done without the help of our clients.  From giving us feedback on our value prop,  to participating in video interviews,  and even taking the Caliper Profile (thanks to Dave Griffith of Modern Group - another informal advisor) who suggested that we use the profile to more closely identify our ideal client - Great idea!

So that’s some of our “pearls”.  What are yours?  What have you learned and to whom have you reached out this year?  Drop us a line or give us a call if you’d like to learn more at   ckuchler@ceothinktank.com ….

u’d like to learn more…   ckuchler@ceothinktank.com

For those of you who missed the fun…and the education – thought that I’d share seven pearls of entrepreneurial wisdom from the Co-Founder of Jiffy Lube, Philadelphia University’s President, Steve Spinelli, from Tuesday’s “Dining with the CEO”…

·       Entrepreneurs need Hearts on Fire and Brains on Ice.

·      Never forget the wisdom of the great World War II General, George C. Patton, “Untutored courage is useless in the face of educated bullets.”

·       Thought to an entrepreneur without action is frivolous.  Action without thought is dangerous.

·       Entrepreneurship is opportunity obsessed, holistic in approach and leadership balanced.

·       The Field of Dreams was wrong.  If you build it, they may never come.

·       Get VERY CLEAR on your market demand, market size and structure and your margin analysis but…

·   Be careful that you don’t get so complicated that you work yourself out of a great business model.

And if you’d like some more “tidbits” about what it took to grow one of the most successful franchises ever…drop me a line at ckuchler@ceothinktank.com and I’ll share the rest! 

That’s the quote that I continue to remind myself of as I work with our Marketing intern Alessandra.  Bringing a new person into a company takes time, commitment and planning - but not everything can happen at once - so…one brush stroke at a time.

I wrote a couple of weeks ago about the need with new employees - with every employee actually - to be clear about expectations.  Now we’re working on the next part of the canvas. 

So what are three Key steps to creating an “engaged employee”:

1) Making her my priority - Too often new hires aren’t given the time that they need with their hiring manager.  I’ve worked hard to clear my own schedule since she came on board - at least a 1/2 day a week - more at the beginning to have the meetings and answer the questions that all new employees have. 

Spending time with her each week is one of my top 5 priorities each week.  And touching base at least once a day - even if it’s just a quick email - when we don’t meet.  Not necessarily easy - but absolutely necessary if I want to get the most from my investment!

2) Helping her to clarify her priorities - I’ve only got Alessandra for 20 hours every week.  She’s naturally organized - something that I looked for when I hired her - so I asked her to come up with monthly goals and priorities (which we reviewed) and then we’re breaking them down by week. 

The benefit of this to me?  She’s staying focused and on track and knows what she needs to do even if she gets ahead.  Last week she got done everything that she was supposed to do in two weeks in one week - so we came up with another list!  Very cool!

3) Asking her what she’s learning - and having her document it too!  This is a Gallup question by the way that will help you to measure the level of employee engagement in your company. 

“In the last year, have I had opportunities at work to learn and grow?”  And there’s another one too about having someone at work who encourages an employee’s development.   

Have your employees set learning goals for themselves and debrief with them about what they’ve learned and how they’ve grown.  And if you have them document the information, you have a ready-made training manual for the next person who comes along!

Intrigued?  

If you’d like to meet Alessandra, she’ll be at our next “Dining with the CEO” event on June 8th with Philadelphia University President and Jiffy Lube co-Founder Steve Spinelli!   Plan on coming and I’ll introduce you!  Click here for more info and to register! 

Hope to see you there!

1) He’s got a wealth of knowledge and experience… 

From his early days (he was just 24) when he co-founded Jiffy Lube International and went on to become the chain’s largest franchisee to his tenure teaching future business leaders entrepreneurship at Babson College (he’s even worked with Verne Harnish) to his current role as President of Philadelphia University.

2) He’s a great example of someone going for the gold - throughout his career.

After Jiffy Lube, he went on to get a PhD in Economics at the University of London.  Then, during his entire tenure as the Director for the Arthur M. Blank Center for Entrepreneurship and the Chair of the entrepreneurship division at Babson College, U.S. News and World Report ranked Babson number one in entrepreneurship.

3) He’s also willing to share his mistakes and his lessons. 

In an interview last year with Bloomsberg Business Week, he shared the following thoughts:

·           What has he learned about being an entrepreneur?

     Never get cocky!   “We were doing so well [at one point], we started having this mentality: “This is easy. If we build it, they will come.” If you start thinking that way, jump in a pool, cool off. That is a huge mistake.

         How important is education – and a good business model - to an entrepreneur?

           “I don’t think you necessarily need to be in college to do this.  But you need to be a lifelong learner to survive.  I think you will have to evolve your business model five times - and maybe five times in 5 years!”    

Intrigued?  Me too!  So join us on Tuesday, June 8^th to hear him – from 5:30 to 8:30pm at the Union League in Philadelphia.

And get a chance to ask your question!

p.s.  And if you missed our last “Un-Marketing” event with Kevin Daum, checking out his presentation, “Creating the Awesome Experience”.

In addition to our continued emphasis on bringing great speakers and resources to our community – (Check out our upcoming Dining with the CEO Un-Marketing Event on June 8th with Philadelphia University President and former entrepreneur Steve Spinelli) – we’ve been redefining our value proposition and our tactics. 

To help, as I shared with you last week, I’ve brought on an intern, Alessandra from Drexel.  And planning her onboarding process has been a great lesson in “practicing what we preach”. 

Since many of you have been asking about what we’re doing with her, here’s four key questions that we’ve been asking  to get her off on the right foot.  And hopefully - as you add people - or even cultivate the ones that you have - you can use some of the following ideas…

1) What are our expectations?  

As the folks at Gallup have said for over a decade, clear expectations are the bedrock of a good management system.  Make sure that you’re clear about the behaviors and results that you’re expecting - and communicate them over and over again.  For Alessandra, I ultimately need her to increase our lead generation and close ratios by increasing website hits, helping us to qualify prospects, implementing the value prop and getting our name out into the Social Media world.  That will get her an “A” grade in my world.  

       How do YOUR employees earn an “A”?  

2) What are our Core Values and and how do I expect them to show up in her behaviors?

We’re about Creating a Community with our members and alums.  We also feel very strongly about “walking the walk”.  I never want anyone to say that we don’t practice what we preach to our clients.  What does that mean for the behaviors I expect to see in Alessandra?  How will her performance be measured against our Core Values?  That’s also an ongoing conversation that she and I will be having over the next six months. 

       How do you enforce and reinforce your Core Values with your people?

3) What are her expectations? 

Employment is a two way street.  It’s not just about us.  Knowing what she’s enjoyed about previous jobs, what her goals are in this one and where she wants to go in the future are all critical questions that I’ve been asking her.  I”ve also had her take the Gallup StrengthsFinder and the Myers Briggs Type Indicator to help us both understand what talents she has and what her preferences are and quite honestly, how I need to manage her based on who she is. 

       What do your employees expect from you?

4)  What’s the best way to work together? 

How often she wants to meet to discuss her progress and what’s been the best form of recognition that she’s received are also things that I want to know about her.  Alessandra’s a college student.  Part of the Millenial generation born from 1977 to 1997.  As many of you are finding, they’re a different breed.  But highly enthusiastic. 

Harvard Business Review has a great article this month on Mentoring Millenials for you to check out.  One of their research findings?  Millennials view work as a key part of life, not a separate activity that needs to be “balanced” by it. For that reason, they place a strong emphasis on finding work that’s personally fulfilling. They want work to afford them the opportunity to make new friends, learn new skills, and connect to a larger purpose. That sense of purpose is a key factor in their job satisfaction…they’re the most socially conscious generation since the 1960s. 

        How are you helping your 33 and under employees connect to their larger life purpose thru your company?

That’s it for now…more to come in our next post.  And let us know what you’re learning as you try out new practices in this post-recession world!

But I’m not doing it alone.  My marketing analyst started this week - Alessandra - a co-op student from Drexel.  Took a bit of time to find her and was certainly an investment to go thru the hiring process but I’m excited to have the help - and another pair of hands.

Since many of you have been asking - I’ll be sharing what we’re doing over the next few months including what she’s working on and what we’re finding is helping us to create an efficient, standardized marketing process. 

I’ll also be sharing with you how I found her and what you should look for in your marketing people. 

In the meantime, a few tips from Brian Halligan, CEO and Founder of Hubspot and author of Inbound Marketing: Get Found Using Google, Social Media and Blogs:

1) Hire marketing people using the following acronym - D - a Digital Citizen , A - Analytical mind, R - Reach (with an “electronic” rolodex) and C - Content Creator. 

2) Organize your marketing department into 3 Groups - Get Found, Convert, Analyze.

3) Assess your Inbound Marketing mojo by running your company through www.websitegrader.com (free tool) and find out whether your website makes the grade!

More to come…stay tuned! 

And if you’d like to hear how other successful entrepreneurs have grown their businesses, plan on coming on June 8th to our next Un-Marketing Event featuring Stephen Spinelli, founder of Jiffy Lube and now the President of Philadelphia University.

For more info or to register, click here.