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Your Board Position is Waiting for You

September 20, 2023 by DERGEL Executive Search Leave a Comment

Looking to join the board of directors?

Enjoy this free resource, a branding guide [https://resources.pointroadgroup.com/board-director-branding-guide] thanks to Alyssa Gelbard and the Point Road Group.

109888971 © creativecommonsstockphotos | Dreamstime.com

This resource was released to help expand your career!

Our friends at the Point Road Group are experts in helping you deliver your message to plant your key points that you want people to hold onto. Additionally, they come with a deep understanding of the mediums involved to deliver the messages themselves.

Here is an excerpt directly from the branding guide

“Stand out as a strong board candidate with a personal brand that sends the right message and creates the right impression.

Be able to clearly articulate why you want to serve on a board and what value you bring to the boardroom.

Focus on board-relevant experience including things like corporate strategy, financial performance, governance and creating shareholder value.”

There are many reasons to join a board of directors including gaining experience guiding an organization, further building your network, furthering an initiative you connect to, and earning more income.

Point Road Group is a personal branding firm that helps companies make better brand impressions through their people. They sharpen how employees present themselves in-person and virtually, so they always demonstrate brand excellence. Their programs educate and train your team now and for the future, so as your company continues to evolve and grow, your brand and people are set up for success.

Alyssa Gelbard and The Point Road Group understand that Brands Begin With People.

Do you have comments, questions, ideas, or suggestions? Share with us at: [email protected]

Filed Under: Board of Directors, Executive Leadership Blog, Executive Search, Leadership, Leadership Abilities, Leadership Knowledge, Leadership Skills, Opportunity Tagged With: Alyssa Gelbard, Board, Board of Directors, board of trustees, board room, branding, branding guide, brands begin with people, DERGEL Executive Search, DERGEL Media, effective, executive, executive branding, executive growth, executives, investing, leaders, leadership, leading, Point Road Group, Point Road Group Branding Guide, the board, The Point Road Group

Sharing Your Story: Addressing the Difficult Aspects with Positivity

September 18, 2023 by DERGEL Executive Search Leave a Comment

We all like to share our stories. One of the most difficult aspects of leadership revolves around being open with your employees and others.

Photo by Alex Andrews on Pexels

Not every experience is a positive one. These conversations can dredge up bad memories, foul emotions, and may come off as bitter to your listeners. Being honest about the darkest moments of our careers can feel like a slippery slope to drag us back to that place. With the right techniques, we can embrace and share our previous setbacks with grace and humility.

Keep your tone light/neutral. People quickly take notice of tone of voice. Speaking in a light or neutral tone will undercut any tension others might take away from your story. Laugh it off even. People will be more inspired by the ability to recognize the situation for what it was, and success may have been delayed, but never completely hindered.

Be sensitive of directly using names. Unless you are endorsing the other party in the story, try to avoid using names. We are all human and we all make mistakes. Directly using names of the people, places, or organizations can sound like an attack. That should not be the intention of telling one’s story. You made it through those rough times and that should be the main focus.

Take responsibility for your end. There are three sides to every story: your side, the other persons, and somewhere in the middle is the truth. Address where you fell short. Where there may have been miscommunication. Simply putting the blame on others without recognizing your part comes across as playing the blame-game. Taking responsibility for your side exhibits humility and a growth mindset.

Express gratitude for the learning opportunity. It is important to note the lessons you took away from the experience, as well as for the other parties. Even if there is no more communication between parties, it does not mean that anyone’s journey stopped there. Reenforcing the mutual growth from the situation will showcase continued respect and support from having the opportunity.

Try not to spend too much time harping on past mistakes and struggles. Convey these moments as speedbumps along the way that needed to be managed, then move on. People will always have their own, natural reaction and oftentimes this will lead to further questions. Be receptive. The tough times do not define us, they help use become stronger and wiser along the way.

Do you have comments, questions, ideas, or suggestions? Share with us at: [email protected]

Filed Under: Acts of Leadership, Executive coaching, Executive Leadership Blog, Executive Search, Human Resources, Leadership, Leadership Abilities, Leadership Skills, Opportunity Tagged With: business story, CEO, DERGEL Executive Search, DERGEL Media, effective, elevation, executive, executive mindset, failure, leadership, mindset, perserverance, resolution, success, telling your story

Gaining Traction: Understanding The Bullseye Framework

September 13, 2023 by DERGEL Executive Search Leave a Comment

No matter how great of a product or service you may be offering, it is essential that customers are aware of what you’re providing and the value you are delivering. This is why gaining traction is essential.

92525623 © Publicdomainphotos | Dreamstime.com

Traction is defined as “how consistently you can grow and acquire new customers (or, for a free service, users),” stated by Penguin Random House, “Talk is cheap, but traction is hard evidence that you’re on the right path.”

Gabriel Weinberg and Justin Mares’s Bullseye Framework breaks down what could be chaotic, finding fitting marketing channels, into a step-by-step systematized process.

This framework is best used to identify the most effective channel for customer engagement, no matter the development stage of the organization. Let’s explore their methodology:

Understanding the Three Rings

The Bullseye Framework consists of three concentric rings, what is possible, what is probable, and what is working. For your convenience, the nineteen channels are listed at the bottom of this article.

Outer Ring: What’s Possible

In the initial step, the team will embark to brainstorm and explore every conceivable traction channel. This process involves traversing each given channel and envisioning what success might look like in each. Then document how these approaches might look.

What if you made a billboard with your product?

What would your ideal speaking engagement look like? Who would be in the audience?

It’s important not to dismiss any traction channel during this stage. The outer ring serves as a counterbalance to any preconceived biases, ensuring that all channels are considered. By thoroughly brainstorming ideas for each channel, leaders can overcome the tendency to prematurely eliminate potentially valuable avenues.

For every channel, it is crucial to identify at least one viable channel strategy that has the potential to drive significant results. This could include specific tactics within social ads, search engine marketing, or any of the other nineteen traction channels.

To inform your brainstorming process, it’s essential to conduct research specific to your industry and company. Understanding successful marketing strategies in your field and analyzing how similar companies acquired customers can be invaluable in this stage.

Middle Ring: What’s Probable

The second phase of the Bullseye Framework involves practical experimentation. Team members promote the most promising traction channel ideas from the outer ring to the middle ring.

Often, some channels will stand out as particularly exciting and promising. Focus your efforts on these channels, avoiding those where enthusiasm diminishes rapidly. Then, conduct multiple experiments concurrently, optimizing efficiency. This is different than shotgun marketing as channels are tested and measured in parallel, as opposed to trying multiple avenues blindly.

For each traction channel within the middle ring, create cost-effective traction tests that address three critical questions:

a. How much will it cost to acquire customers through this channel?

b. How many customers can be acquired through this channel?

c. Are these customers aligned with your current goals and target audience?

The specifics of how to test each traction channel can vary significantly from one business to another. The Bullseye Framework emphasizes the need for smaller-scale tests that yield quick results and insights. Speed is paramount at this stage, as the goal is to gather data and validate assumptions on the effectiveness of a channel.

Inner Ring: What’s Working

The final step of the Bullseye Framework focuses on the most promising channel, the “core channel.”

“If all goes well, one of the traction channels you tested in your middle ring produced promising results. In that case, you should start directing all your traction efforts and resources toward this most promising channel. You hit the bullseye! You’ve found your core channel,” as Weinberg said, potentially alluding to why it is called the Bullseye Framework.

The key objective in this phase is to maximize growth within the core channel through continuous experimentation and optimization. Every effort is directed towards extracting the maximum value from this channel.

A common pitfall at this stage is the temptation to maintain efforts in other traction channels that showed some success. However, it’s essential to prioritize the core channel, as it is likely to deliver the most significant impact on growth.

This framework is robust. Although it could be intimidating at first as it incorporates nineteen channels and categories to sort through, with a team involved in the process and eliminating options in the second round, the list will quickly turn into a manageable endeavor.

Gaining traction allows customers and clients to be effectively informed of the value you’re delivering. Using measurable results and proven methodologies attracts growth in a reliable and predictable way.

Do you have comments, questions, ideas, or suggestions? Share with us at: [email protected]

Here are the 19 channels of traction as given by the authors:

Targeting Blogs

Publicity

Unconventional PR

Search Engine Marketing

Social and Display Ads

Offline Ads

Search Engine Optimization

Content Marketing

Email Marketing

Viral Marketing

Engineering as Marketing

Business Development

Sales

Affiliate Programs

Existing Platforms

Trade Shows

Offline Events

Speaking Engagements

Community Building

Filed Under: Leadership Abilities, Leadership Knowledge, Leadership Skills, Opportunity Tagged With: asking, asking impactful questions, being organized, Bullseye Framework, CEO, CFO, CHRO, CIO, CMO, communicate the vision, communication, COO, core focus, creating cohesion, CRO, CxO, DERGEL Executive Search, DERGEL Media, digital organization, divest from secondary pursuits, effective, effective workplace culture, efficiencies, efficiency, elevation, employee, employee led initiative, employee retention, employee-led, employer brand, enhanced productivity, executive, Gabriel Weinberg, gaining traction, healing, impactful questions, initiative, investing, Justin Mares, laughter, leader, leaders, leadership, leading, measurable results, media, opportunity management, optimized systems, organization, organized workflow, outperforming expectations, partnerships, physical and digital organization, physical organization, predictable way, proven methodologies, resolution, resource accounting, resource allocation, sharpen focus, sharpen focus divest from secondary pursuits, skill, skill sets, steer towards success, strategic investing, strategic partnerships, strategic thinking, sustainable workplaces, talent, time management, unearthing opportunities, what is possible, what is probable, what is working, work smarter, work smarter not harder

Strengthening the CHRO’s Strategic Role

September 11, 2023 by DERGEL Executive Search Leave a Comment

Photo by Sora Shimazaki on Pexels

Over the last two decades, the market has indicated a rise in number of Chief Financial Officers (CFOs) and Chief Human Resources Officers (CHROs), while the adoption of automation tools has caused a decline in the retention of Chief Operating Officers (COOs) and Chief Marketing Officers (CMOs). Despite the increase in CHRO retention, there still remains some pushback from CEOs in regard to their strategic acumen.

According to recent data presented at the Visionaries Summit by Professor Rick Smith, Johns Hopkins University, Faculty Director, Human Capital Development Lab:

  • 55% of CEOs view CHROs as being a key player in strategy.
  • 48% of CEOs view CHROs as having strategic business skills.
  • & only 36% of CEOs think that the CHRO role is clearly understood by fellow leadership.

What steps can be taken to help the CHRO role become more strategic and more clearly defined?

Understand the business as a whole. The main focus of a CHRO lies with the people inside the organization. One of the most beneficial ways to support fellow colleagues is to understand the challenges they face. Ask guiding questions regarding the situations and people that affect their role in the workplace, whether that be: co-workers, clients, Sales Goals, etc. This will aid the CHRO to better understand: What are the different viewpoints? Are there cultural/religious differences? How do they communicate best? How can I best guide them to connect on the same level?

Sit with the different teams and learn from them. Sit with different team members in all of the departments to fully grasp the full scope of their role. Understand any and all challenges they may be facing, the different team dynamics, realistic timelines for operations, and what tools each team utilizes. Additionally, through attending department meetings, there will be a deeper understanding of all operations to better navigate and strategize strengthening the team.

Create a growth roadmap for employees. Take the initiative to help develop employees’ career path. Offer continued learning opportunities to further enhance your teams’ skills. Speak with team members regarding their career goals and make a plan with them to achieve each victory on the road to success.

Throughout each of these steps, it will be important to understand “why” colleagues operate in the manners they do and how to best support them. Employees will find a new appreciation for their CHROs as they will be considered more of an active member of the leadership team. Adapting small changes to include the Human Resources more in the day-to-day of all departments can help close the disconnect between their team and other leaders in the organization.

Do you have comments, questions, ideas, or suggestions? Share with us at: [email protected]

Filed Under: Acts of Leadership, Careers, CEO, Chief Human Resources Officer, Chief People Officer, CHRO, CPO, Culture, Diversity & Inclusion (D&I), Executive Careers, Executive coaching, Executive Leadership Blog, Human Resources, Leadership, Leadership Skills, Opportunity, Training and development Tagged With: elevation, employee retention, skills, strategic skills, strategy

Core Focus & Letting Go Of Secondary Investments

September 6, 2023 by DERGEL Executive Search Leave a Comment

Focus on what is most important, steer the ship towards success.

99197681 © Publicdomainphotos | Dreamstime.com

It is important chart a course that resonates with the majority of the team in order to receive organic buy-in. Here are some good strategies to implement & grow along this path:

Regularly Assess Core Strengths and Company Wide Focuses

Check in with and evaluate the organization’s core strengths & competencies, values, mission, and vision, on an ongoing basis to ensure relevance. Market dynamics can change, and what was once a focus may become less relevant, or more.

Resource Accounting

Have we made sure to take an accounting of our workforce, our digital, physical, & financial assets, as well as our personal and team wide energy levels? To be aware of the status, condition, and availability of these (and any other relevant resources) allows for proper and intentional allocation and application towards the organizational mission and vision. Keeping up with resource status and maintenance protects the resource condition and usage potential.

Communicate the Vision

Clear communication is key. Leaders should articulate the vision and why streamlining focus to it matters to the organization’s success. Transparency & high quality communication engenders buy-in, not only from the team, but from the public as well.

Avoid “Shiny Object” Syndrome

Resist the temptation to chase every new opportunity that arises. Especially when the opportunity is particularly tempting, evaluate the opportunity carefully to determine if it aligns with the company core strengths and overarching vision.

Anticipate and Limit Distraction

Just as one would take care to turn their phone notifications off before engaging in uninterruptable work, one could also anticipate when those “shiny object” temptations may cross our paths. If it is known that a skilled salesperson calls each year with a compelling and relevant pitch, direct that call to a teammate who is better equipped to politely decline the “shiny new development” that the salesperson is presenting.

Perceive Limiting Secondary Opportunities as Risk Management

When a presented focus divergence or new opportunity is brought to the table, it can be easy and natural to see the situation as an investable opportunity.

However, it may be helpful to adopt an additional perspective on the matter.

We only have a finite amount of energy available to our organization at any given time. By choosing to pursue a new opportunity, we can no longer invest that same energy into the regular operation that the organization stands upon and provides. It may be that the new opportunity develops upon the core output of the organization, and it therefore may be worthwhile to say yes and invest. However, it could pay off to be initially critical and see a new opportunity as a secondary usage of resources, a risk and liability, or even as a threat to the organization’s highest value creation.

Sharpen your focus & divest from secondary pursuits.

Keep to the core strengths of the organization, and only intelligently and intentionally make divergences, to further enhance your ability to focus, develop growth, and sustain success.

Do you have comments, questions, ideas, or suggestions? Share with us at: [email protected]

Filed Under: Board of Directors, CEO, Chief Human Resources Officer, Chief People Officer, CHRO, CPO, Culture, Human Resources, Leadership, Leadership Abilities, Leadership Knowledge, Leadership Skills, Opportunity Tagged With: asking, asking impactful questions, being organized, CEO, CFO, CHRO, CIO, CMO, communicate the vision, communication, COO, core focus, creating cohesion, CRO, CxO, DERGEL Executive Search, DERGEL Media, digital organization, divest from secondary pursuits, effective, effective workplace culture, efficiencies, efficiency, elevation, employee, employee led initiative, employee retention, employee-led, employer brand, enhanced productivity, executive, healing, impactful questions, improv comedy, initiative, investing, laughter, leader, leaders, leadership, leading, media, opportunity management, optimized systems, organization, organized workflow, outperforming expectations, partnerships, physical and digital organization, physical organization, resolution, resource accounting, resource allocation, sharpen focus, sharpen focus divest from secondary pursuits, skill, skill sets, steer towards success, strategic investing, strategic partnerships, strategic thinking, sustainable workplaces, talent, time management, unearthing opportunities, work smarter, work smarter not harder

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