Category: Planning

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The Return of Inflation Market Commentary – March 15th, 2021

Inflation is not dead. It is not gone. It has not been tamed. I know it seems like it, especially after the past few decades which generated in many an “inflation-complacency” that feels justified. After all, following the 2008 Financial Panic, many predicted Quantitative Easing would cause hyper-inflation.

When the Fed boosted the Monetary Base by more than $3 trillion dollars during Quantitative Easing 1, 2 & 3, and the federal budget moved to a huge deficit, gold and silver commercials proliferated. So did predictions of a collapsing dollar. But inflation never came. Since the end of the 2008-09 financial panic, the Consumer Price Index has increased by an average of just 1.7% per year, falling short of the Fed’s 2% target.

During the 2020 COVID-induced round of Fed money printing, instead of using QE to put reserves in the banking system, the Fed financed government programs to fund loans to businesses and direct payments to individuals. As a result, the money supply as measured by M2 has grown 26.3% in the past year, the fastest annual growth I can find in US history, and roughly double the pace of M2 growth the US experienced during the 1970s.

According to those who believe in Modern Monetary Theory – (which isn’t all that modern, btw), and is just vaguely a theory – the US can increase real output enough to absorb it. In other words, they say that while inflation is “too much money chasing too few goods” – they expect the output of goods to increase enough to keep inflation low.

I find this impossible to believe. In fact, I think many are living in denial. Inflation is already on the rise. In the past six months, the Consumer Price Index is up 3.6% at an annual rate and if it rises a modest 0.2% per month between January and May, it will be up 3.4% over 12 months. Part of this is because COVID shutdowns led to weak inflation in early 2020, but I expect inflation to move higher in 2021.

But, in addition to M2 growth, incomes and savings have increased, while production has not. Demand is exceeding supply. All personal income combined – wages & salaries, employee benefits, small business income, rents, interest, dividends, and transfer payments – was up 6.3% in 2020 versus 2019. Total after-tax income was up 7.2% in 2020, the most for any year since 2000.

Combined, Americans saved about $2.9 trillion in 2020, more than doubling the previous record high of $1.2 trillion in 2018. As of the third quarter of 2020, the amount Americans held in checking accounts, savings accounts, time deposits, and money market funds was up $2.8 trillion from the year prior. Add another $1.9 trillion in federal government stimulus spending (borrowing from the future, to spend today) and the US is awash in cash.

Unfortunately, in spite of a strong recovery in output, industrial production is 3.3% below pre-COVID levels, while real GDP is 2.5% below. In other words, demand is OK, it is supply that’s still hurting – a perfect recipe for inflation.

All this money printing threatens to eventually create a sugar high in equities. We aren’t there yet, but markets are floating on a sea of new money. Inflation hedges (real estate, commodities, materials companies) will do well. Traditional fixed income (long-term bonds) is at risk. The return of inflation is a very real threat to the long-term health of the US economy, and something you will hear me talking about more in the months ahead..

Integrated Financial Group

Kevin Garrett – Integrated Financial Group

My firm specializes in working with people that experience what we call “Sudden Income.” Typically the income came from one of these events:
1) Accessing and Managing Retirement Assets
2) A Performance Contract (Typically a Sports or Entertainment Contract)
3) Divorce Settlement
4) Inheritance or Insurance Payout
5) Sale of a Business or Stock Options
6) A Personal Injury Settlement

I believe the unique nature of these events requires specialized professional experience, empathy, and communication to deal with both the financial changes and the life changes that inevitably come with them.

My clients value my ability to simplify complex strategies into an actionable plan. They also appreciate that I am open, non-judging, and easy to talk to about their dreams and fears. Each client defines financial success differently and my goal is to guide them from where they are now to where they want to be. As my client’s advisor, my goal is to provide them with a lifetime income stream, improving returns, protecting their funds, and managing taxes.

Firm Specialties:

    • Retirement Planning For Business Owners & Executives
    • Woman’s Unique Financial Planning Needs
    • Professional Athletes
    • Investment/Asset Allocation Advice
    • Estate Planning
    • Risk Management
    • Strategic Planning

Kevin was listed in The Wall Street Journal as “One of the Financial Advisors In The Southeast That You Need To Know”

Kevin was listed in Forbes Magazine’s Annual Financial Edition as a Five Star Financial Advisor

Kevin has been awarded the Five Star Professional Wealth Manager in Atlanta Magazine in 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017,2018, and 2019.

Award based on 10 objective criteria associated with providing quality services to clients such as credentials, experience, and assets under management among other factors. Wealth managers do not pay a fee to be considered or placed on the final list of Five Star Wealth Managers.

KEVIN GARRETT, AWMA, CFS
Integrated Financial Group
200 Ashford Center North, Ste. 400 | Atlanta, GA 30338
Phone | 770.353.6311
Email | kgarrett@intfingroup.com
Website | kevingarrettifg.com

 

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Reading – Stephen H. Dawson, DSL

“A capacity, and taste, for reading gives access to whatever has already been discovered by others.” Abraham Lincoln

Dr. Stephen H Dawson

I do not know why the Steven Spielberg film skipped over the assassination event of Abraham Lincoln. I am not a huge fan of Daniel Day-Lewis’s work, nor do I have anything against him. I believe Day-Lewis portrayed Lincoln with excellence. Lincoln shared in this film he studied the work of Euclid in his Elements writings. I think, but I do not know, that both Spielberg and Day-Lewis were attempting to make the point that understanding their work required the audience to do some supporting reading on their own to grasp the magnitude of the story presented in the film. This postulate of mine brings me to the topic for our time together this week. Specifically, making good on my commitment to you to discuss how diversity, inclusion, and what Chesterton talked about with the human species will help you get out of the circumstances hindering your strategic planning work.

I shared last week about the need to look should one want to see. I looked over some of Euclid’s Elements recently, remembering how they helped structure my thoughts years ago when I first studied mathematics. Mathematics helped me learn how to read. I needed the means to get through spelling, grammar, and punctuation learning obstacles to accomplish writing assignments of the materials I read. I was able to approach the skill of outlining what I read more effectively, as I had a formula for how to accomplish the outlining. It led me to help me read more effectively. The simplicity of logic apart from rhetoric found in mathematics helped me understand better how to form my messages to convince readers my points were valid, doing so with either reduced or no conflict. I enjoy conversing, but I enjoy writing more than public speaking. Both have proven to me I need to plan what I communicate by being sure of what I have read in my life.

I also shared last week realizing strategy work is not progressing as desired means either your people do not have the time to do the work, or they do not have the skills to do the work. This condition, at its root, is an organizational design problem. No credible leader will ever find they are in this position. A successful leader knows their people, their abilities, their conditions, and operates their organization accordingly. Spielberg’s success in his film work tells me he is a successful leader in film work. I view Lincoln as a successful leader of a nation. I am convinced without reservation that reading is a critical success factor for staying out of the mess I identified as the cause of strategy work not progressing as desired.

WHAT READING?

Reading can occur in many different forms, such as letters, numbers, symbols, colors, or hand and arm signals. Effective reading involves not only considering a text in the original language but also translations of the text. Euclid’s Elements is the second most published book in history. Consider reading this text in another language to see how it reads to you. Consider also the value of a translation that is not literal but paraphrased.

Take the daily newspaper and look at any topic from different writers. The reporting on the same topic will often vary widely. Take some time and read how the Wall Street Journal article and the Financial Times article regarding the McKinsey leader’s recent dismissal differ. Think about bias and diversity as you read these articles. How did each writer look to help their reader understand what has happened with McKinsey’s performance as of late? Does either of these articles help you want to change your staffing choices? My point is you will see quickly how learning can continue on any topic and how miscommunications can occur from what seemed to be a clear and understood text.

HOW MUCH READING?

Kate Northrup wrote about the viability of planning when the future is unclear. She gets into the topic of strategy. She implied reading is required to accomplish her recommendations. I am of the position that reading should be perpetual. There is no shortage today of material to read. There is a distinct decline in the credibility, meaningfulness, and associated value in most of the material available to read today.

I did an Internet search for images of reading. All of the images I found involved only people looking at physical books. Looking at a computer screen is called viewing. So, there is a belief growing in our society that reading can only occur in books. I disagree with this claim. The definition I provided of reading did not include reading expressions on a person’s face. I can view an expression, but I do not know for certain there is a message attached to an expression. Hence, it is best to keep reading to letters, numbers, symbols, and colors that can be referenced later when you need to come back to them. I equate reading a book with viewing letters, numbers, symbols, and colors on a computer screen. The answer to how much reading you need to do is this: whenever you have enough proof to know you have the facts to do what you need to do.

I have shopped exclusively at Men’s Wearhouse for suits, shirts, and ties since 1999. They impress me with their overall experience. The people both in the stores and on their telephones who have helped me over the years sometimes have my skin color and gender; other times they do not. I care about getting the suits, shirts, and ties that I need and want more than I care about a particular skin color or gender helping me. Their industry has suffered from the cutback on social outings and workplace gatherings last year. They went into bankruptcy in 2020 and are emerging through restructuring. They have an idea to help increase their sales by doing measurements of a customer’s body dimensions by scanning, matching these measurements with inventory, and deciding how to serve their customers best. It is an impressive undertaking. Imagine how much reading they had to accomplish to come up with this system. Then, imagine how much they have invested in this system. They, as a company, are at the point of either growing much more or dying. I cannot imagine their debtors would have approved their restructuring plan to include this new system without sufficient credible belief the plan will return a suitable profit. The Men’s Wearhouse story is an example of how much reading is necessary to run your organization effectively.

AM I SURE?

I believe, based on the espoused morality of my worldview found in my ethics, there is never a valid reason to be either rude or disrespectful. Seattle Mariners chief executive Kevin Mather resigned recently due to disparaging remarks he made about player English skills. His career-ending event could also mean Mather is finished as a leader. I have two good friends, both in their thirties, who are illiterate. One is a carpenter, the other a welder. They struggle to have enough income. They are both happy, each with a small family. They both want to learn to read. You are looking to now restructure your organization with those who have the skills you need to do the work you need to accomplish. Do you want to have a literate person who you have to terminate or an illiterate person who does a great job for you? I am of the position you need literate members in your organization, and you do not need problems. How can you differentiate when a literate person will make an unpreferred choice such as Mather did, or that an illiterate person can make preferred choices?

I do not have the skills to operate heavy equipment. Do you want me to come near your house operating either a bulldozer or an excavator until I gain such skills? Do you want me to sit atop the running equipment and read the owner’s manual as I figure out how to use the heavy equipment near your house?

Heavy Equipment

WIND UP

Your acting on your realization you need to alter your organization members who have neither the time nor the skill to do their assigned work is too late to accomplish this repair with discretion. You must take corrective action in public light to achieve the necessary changes. The terms diversity and inclusion, terms I have yet to define to you, are what you look to address to alter your organization effectively. The only way and I mean the o-n-l-y way, to go through this process effectively is first to understand the topic of evil. I also need to define the term evil to you from my understanding of it. Succeeding in making these people change is not about removing or adding more of skin color or gender. Do you want anyone who does evil as a part of your organization? Do you care about their skin color or gender if they have the skills you need to do the work you need to be accomplished? Do you have the means to measure the skills your people claim to possess? Are you, in the espoused morality of your worldview found in your ethics, able to prove you both need and want your people to have the skills they need to do the work you need to accomplish more than you desire for skin color or gender headcounts in your organization?

Deriving Definitions

Next week, we will begin to tear apart the fabric comprising the terms diversity, inclusion, and evil as an exercise in research. This week, I encourage you to spend time contemplating how much you care about skin color and gender in comparison to relevant skills you need your people to have to do the work you need to be accomplished.

So, I ask you: where do you want to go? I hope your answer is to develop the plans necessary to accomplish the strategy you know you need to achieve to arrive at your desired destination. If this is the case, then let’s get to work. If not, then I wish you the best of everything.

I hope we will see each other here next week. Email me if you need to talk before then.

Dr. Stephen H. Dawson, DSL

Executive Strategy Consultant

Stephen Dawson, DSL

Stephen Dawson is an executive consultant of technology and business strategy, serving significant international organizations by providing leadership consulting, strategic planning, and executive communications. He has more than thirty years of service and consulting experience in delivering successful international business development and program management outcomes in the US and SE Asia. His weekly column, “Where Do You Want To Go?,” appears on Thursdays.

Dr. Dawson has served in the technology, banking, and hospitality industries. He is a noted strategic planning visionary. His pursuit of music has been matched with his efforts to lead by service to followers. He holds the clear understanding a leader without followers is a person taking a long walk alone.

Stephen has lived his life in the eastern United States, visiting most of the United States and several countries. He is a graduate of the Regent University School of Business & Leadership. Contact him at service@shdawson.com.

Thank you for visiting our blog.

 

Jim Weber, Managing Partner – ITB Partners

Jim Weber – Managing Partner,  ITB Partners

I hope you enjoyed our point of view and would like to receive regular posts directly to your email inbox.  Toward this end, put your contact information on my mailing list.

Your feedback helps me continue to publish articles that you want to read.  Your input is very important to me so; please leave a comment.

 

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Looking

Men differ LITTLE on what things they will call EVIL. They differ GREATLY on what evil they will call EXCUSABLE.” G. K. Chesterton

Stephen Dawson, DSL

We only see if we look. We only look by choice. We may glance at or skim through what we read, but neither of these actions results in seeing.

G. K. Chesterton made a point about humanity in his observation of men and how they differ. I understand that Chesterton uses the term man in his statement as mankind, the human species. I interpret one of his unstated points as this: a little evil brings great inexcusability. I wonder what a lot of evil would bring. I choose not to look for more evil. Chesterton did not make it clear what evil is and is not. I wonder how many people today care to look into what he meant.

I got new eyeglasses last year, the kind that reminds me I am not a kid who did not need eyeglasses. They look good on me. I see better with them. I do not like to wear them. I only wear them when necessary. Additionally, I am unable to discern evil with them.

I shared last week about being scared. I used this condition in the context of you being unsure of the strategy you propose to plan. We were going to talk next time about making people changes to your strategy work. Let’s have this talk now.

Making changes to the work assigned to your followers, your people means one of two things. Either they do not have the time to do the work, or they do not have the skills to do the work. If they are not interested in the work of their role, then that is another matter. It is part of my work to help my customers discern between these conditions. We look at the facts, then we call it for what it is. Many of my customers are afraid they will be calling their people evil when their people do not get their assigned work completed. A common term used today is optics. It is a subjective term. It is a horrible term, from what I see. Facts are facts. They are absolute. Nothing absolute needs perspective to understand the fact. We need to understand the repercussions of facts to know their value, and those repercussions require various perspectives to comprehend the complexities of their collective impact. Facts are not subjective. Hence, the difficulty in assessing the people productivity part of strategy work.

LOOKING

Looking at anything displeasing can be difficult. Looking at evil, for me, is displeasing. I cannot say a person is evil, as I do not believe it is possible. I can say their actions are or are not evil. I make this determination based on the espoused morality of my worldview found in my ethics. Meaning, my definition of evil is not necessarily the same as anyone else’s. I do not consider evil when I look at the research. I look for facts. Helping my customers do the same involves many prior discussions to learn their abilities, perspectives, and positions to comprehend their research abilities. It is not a quick look, a glance, or a skim of the research we accomplish to evaluate either the facts of their strategy or the work of their people to plan their strategy. It is a series of discussions.

No alt text provided for this image

SEEING

Seeing an opinion unsupported by facts, to me, is a form of evil. I am allowing the person to share their opinions with me to convince me without relevant supporting evidence. Sure, there are times when this scenario is necessary for my best interests. HEY STEPHEN, GET DOWN! I confess that hearing these words, regardless of vocal tone, would at least put my head down. I would, once I am sure it is safe to raise up again, either thank them or ask them why they told me to get down. This simple example is to help you see how much time you could be wasting looking at work accomplished by your people but not seeing enough value from it. The intentional circular effort I shared about last week is what I am describing here. If you do not see value in your people’s work, then you either have a communication problem or a worker skills problem. I set aside the possibility of a worker not having time to do their assigned work because you already took care of that problem earlier…didn’t you? I cannot imagine you would have miscommunicated with your workers, as you have a written plan to accomplish work assignments…don’t you? Did you talk with them, or did you send them an emoji hoping they understood what you intended to say to them?

What is your intended message?

INTERPRETING

If your people have the time and skills to do their assigned work, then the work will be accomplished as planned. If your strategy work is not progressing as communicated in your plan, then you have a people problem. It is not a technology problem. If it were, then you are executing the wrong plan. It is not a workplace problem. If it were, then you are executing the wrong plan. I could go on presenting examples here, but Pilita Clark explains it pretty well.

So, we have a people problem. Is it their fault they do not have the technology they need? Is it their fault they do not have the workplace they need? No, these are your problems as their leader. Perhaps they do not have the skills to use the technology. Perhaps they cannot get to the workplace. These are their problems. They will have to solve them to remain employed with you. It is not a matter of evil versus good, fair versus unfair, or happy versus sad. They are the facts you face while attempting to complete your strategy work. If the work must be accomplished, and your workers cannot complete the work as planned, then you must get other workers assigned to the strategy you need to have planned.

I tell you, from the position of both a professor and as a management consultant, the problem I just described to you is widespread today. We have not prepared today’s students with enough skills to do the work in many roles involving strategy development. We have provided them pieces of education in the form of shorter degree program course durations with the expectation they will assemble these skills effectively into pertinent credentials. An outcome of these conditions over the past three decades is a student’s inability to absorb the lesson material deep enough to achieve the transformational experience of education. This change occurred about the time microcomputers showed up in commonality. There is a direct connection between increased access to learning and learning deficiency caused by information overload. It is a realization of analysis paralysis. Meaning, many degree programs in the past few decades do not have enough analysis instruction contained within them. Those who experienced high achievement did so outside of a single degree path. See if the article by Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic and Becky Frankiewicz rings a bell with you for how you look at your workers’ circumstances. I recommend you get to the point of interpreting it.

Next week, we will begin to talk about how diversity, inclusion, and what Chesterton talked about with the human species will help you get out of the circumstances hindering your strategic planning work. Specifically, how to go about staffing your organization to do the work you need to be accomplished. We will approach the balance of emotion and logic by considerations of needs and wants.

So, I ask you: where do you want to go? I hope your answer is to develop the plans necessary to accomplish the strategy you know you need to achieve to arrive at your desired destination. If this is the case, then let’s get to work. If not, then I wish you the best of everything.

I hope we will see each other here next week. Email me if you need to talk before then.

Dr. Stephen H. Dawson, DSL

Executive Strategy Consultant

Stephen Dawson is an executive consultant of technology and business strategy, serving significant international organizations by providing leadership consulting, strategic planning, and executive communications. He has more than thirty years of service and consulting experience in delivering successful international business development and program management outcomes in the US and SE Asia. His weekly column, “Where Do You Want To Go?,” appears on Thursdays.

Dr. Dawson has served in the technology, banking, and hospitality industries. He is a noted strategic planning visionary. His pursuit of music has been matched with his efforts to lead by service to followers. He holds the clear understanding a leader without followers is a person taking a long walk alone.

Stephen has lived his life in the eastern United States, visiting most of the United States and several countries. He is a graduate of the Regent University School of Business & Leadership. Contact him at service@shdawson.com.

Thank you for visiting our blog.

 

Jim Weber, Managing Partner – ITB Partners

Jim Weber – Managing Partner,  ITB Partners

I hope you enjoyed our point of view and would like to receive regular posts directly to your email inbox.  Toward this end, put your contact information on my mailing list.

Your feedback helps me continue to publish articles that you want to read.  Your input is very important to me so; please leave a comment.

 

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Scared – A New Post on Strategic Planning from Stephen H. Dawson, DSL

“Fear is nothing more than an acronym: False-Evidence-Appearing-Real.” Unknown

A friend of mine passed a week ago. He worked himself to death, literally. He worked 80 to 90 hour weeks intermittently for the past 15 years. He was quite good at what he did, but he overdid it to the point of costing him his life. His passing helped me remember to not work so hard but to work smarter each day so I can work less overall.

I shared last week about the concept of spending time to gain the required perspective to go about the necessary work you have at hand. I thought more over the past few days about the fear I saw in 2020 held by many folks both near and far and how it often played out into anger by acting as a defense mechanism. I put down fear decades ago by learning from the wisdom held by one of my first mentors. “Fear is nothing more than an acronym: False-Evidence-Appearing-Real.” Fear occurs during a state of confusion about facts. Fear is not scared, nor is it anxiety. Anxiety can cause confusion, but scared alone is not anxiety. Scared is known by the paralysis it causes in someone who is scared. Anxiety is a slow wear on the whole person. Meaning, scared is a present tense term.

Anxiety

I saw an episode in a situation comedy television show years ago that grips me to this day. Frankly, it scared me stiff. It scared me because I saw how accomplishing all of the work conceivable to be wise does not assure success. My friend who died recently was one of my mentors. He helped guide me through my graduate and postgraduate years. He was a wise man. A coach is not a mentor. Suffice it to say, one has to succeed in receiving mentoring first to succeed in receiving coaching. I prefer mentoring over coaching, for many reasons. We can cover the differences between coaching and mentoring in a future column.

I received comments regarding the column last week that matched the next healthy step in the strategic planning work. The step we are at now is knowing the defined strategy that needs to be planned. There is an intentional circular effort in strategy where an idea is formed and research occurs to support developing the idea. The strategy is then refined, perhaps redefined, then planned, then perhaps refined and redefined again, to its final planning, and then executed by way of strategy process realization. This circular effort is not unique to strategy. There is a research condition known as analysis paralysis. Essentially, too much analysis is occurring to the point the research is stalled by figurative paralysis. There is much work occurring to accomplish the strategy effort, perhaps with good intentions. However, the collective work effort is not advancing by realizing clear and healthy organizational growth. Things are stuck. This research condition is not unique to strategy. The best action to resolve analysis paralysis is to stop the research work. Take inventory of where the work stands, determine the clear facts held, and assess if the work is worth continuing at the time with the people assigned to the work.

We realized earlier we were going to an unknown destination, deciding we did not like that address. We took some time and breathed, gaining the necessary focus to begin the planning work. You wonder if the idea outlining your proposed strategy has merit. What exactly is the strategy we are to plan out for others to follow? You now do not know the defined strategy that needs to be planned. You cannot proceed to the intentional circular effort in strategy. We have come to the realization you are now scared, as you are unsure of your idea forming your strategy. Hence, fear pushes this person to be scared. How do I know you are scared? I know because you do not have the research to support planning your strategy. If you did, then you would not be reading this column.

I view there are three options available to resolve this matter.

QUITTING

The act of quitting can be called regrouping. I call this equivalence a falsehood. Quitting is quitting, and regrouping is regrouping. If one does not want to develop a strategy, then say it. The decision to quit is not about some type of size or power. It is about being unwilling to look at the problem and resolve it productively. Move on, do something else. If shame or embarrassment go with quitting, then that is part of the package. Jimmy Dugan in A League of Their Own said it well. “It’s supposed to be hard…The hard is what makes it great.”

DENYING

The thought of not having a strategy to fulfill a goal is an excellent means to have followers walk away from their leader. These followers do not know what work they should be accomplishing, how they will benefit from whatever work they do, guess what they should do next, believe their leader has a plan, and wonder why their leader cannot communicate the unknown plan being executed. They deny the reality their leader is not leading by believing they are executing a plan they have not been given to follow. This condition is where the credibility loss for the leader occurs and ends their time in leadership.

Denying

FACING

If bravery is doing what is necessary when afraid, then strategy work is an act of bravery. I have not known a successful leader either first-hand or by distance who has not been afraid at some point in their leadership work. Afraid is not fear. Afraid is a healthy response to danger. A crucial success factor for the strategist I defined as successful was their not letting fear be a part of their work. False-Evidence-Appearing-Real. Those leaders worked to gain facts by eliminating opinions not supported by facts. If a tree is known by its fruit, then a tree is a good example of work productivity. Be the proverbial tree you were meant to be by putting down roots and taking the time to do the work needed to grow your harvest.

It is probable a person or organization new to strategic planning needs help with their work. I encourage you not to be either fearful or afraid of this need. I recommend you gain the help of a qualified strategist. Review their credentials, interview the credentials they provide to confirm their work, and select a strategist to help you.

What to buy, what to sell, what to change, are the easy parts of a strategy. They are easy because the accomplished research used to define your strategy reveals what to buy, sell, and change. The hard part of the strategy is knowing you know, for certain, what strategy first to form and then to execute. I say it is hard because of False-Evidence-Appearing-Real getting in the way of going about the strategy work. Looking back, you will be amazed at how simple your strategy is once it is defined. It is a matter of setting aside fear with each action you take.

I intentionally did not state the obvious point that many people are involved in any strategy formation shy of a person who lives alone. I set aside those living in solitude for the final point I bring to you for consideration this week. It is probable your analysis paralysis means you have someone, perhaps several people, working on your strategy effort who do not hold the required qualifications to do the collective work you need to accomplish. Does this scare you? It should. It means you are not willing to stay paralyzed. Scared is known by the paralysis it causes in someone who is scared. Meaning, scared is a present tense term. We will talk next week about making people changes to your strategy work. Forget the realities of male versus female, older versus young, and skin color. Look at people from the perspective of the skills they hold to help accomplish their part of your strategy effort. Try to work through the thoughts of what it will take for you as their leader to separate the unproductive people assigned to your strategy work from the work you need to accomplish. There is no need to be fearful.

So, I ask you: where do you want to go? I hope your answer is to develop the plans necessary to accomplish the strategy you know you need to achieve to arrive at your desired destination. If this is the case, then let’s get to work. If not, then I wish you the best of everything.

I hope we will see each other here next week. Email me if you need to talk before then.

Dr. Stephen H. Dawson, DSL

Executive Strategy Consultant

Dr. Stephen H Dawson

Stephen Dawson is an executive consultant of technology and business strategy, serving significant international organizations by providing leadership consulting, strategic planning, and executive communications. He has more than thirty years of service and consulting experience in delivering successful international business development and program management outcomes in the US and SE Asia. His weekly column, “Where Do You Want To Go?,” appears on Thursdays.

Dr. Dawson has served in the technology, banking, and hospitality industries. He is a noted strategic planning visionary. His pursuit of music has been matched with his efforts to lead by service to followers. He holds the clear understanding a leader without followers is a person taking a long walk alone.

Stephen has lived his life in the eastern United States, visiting most of the United States and several countries. He is a graduate of the Regent University School of Business & Leadership. Contact him at service@shdawson.com.

Thank you for visiting our blog.

 

Jim Weber, Managing Partner – ITB Partners

Jim Weber – Managing Partner,  ITB Partners

I hope you enjoyed our point of view and would like to receive regular posts directly to your email inbox.  Toward this end, put your contact information on my mailing list.

Your feedback helps me continue to publish articles that you want to read.  Your input is very important to me so; please leave a comment.

 

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Breathing

“We’ve got to try. Do you know what happens if we don’t try?” “What?” “Nothing.” Braveheart

Dr. Stephen H Dawson

I only have time now to watch movies on Saturday nights. Not every week, but when I can. I turn off the world by throwing my phone out the window, getting away from my laptop, and remember when life was simple enough to enjoy two uninterrupted hours of rest. I breathe easier when movie time arrives, as it is a pivotal stopping point in my week. I like movies that have a historical significance. They help me understand more of the historical topic, though I remember theatrics could skew the facts. The act of muddying facts with opinions is an activity found in theology, philosophy, and even unstructured discussion. Sometimes, we realize we are only opinionating. Other times, we are able to stay grounded in facts. The rest of the time, it seems like we do not care enough to do either.

I shared last week the perspective I hold of 2020 from the strategic planning position. Everyone, for the first time in world history, had to throw the majority of their plans out the proverbial window, as I do my phone on Saturday nights. We were all trying to come up with a new plan to face the events of 2020. We wondered last year if trying to have a plan was worth it anymore. I faced that question myself. I learned this past week several readers of last week’s column also faced this question. Some of them shared with me a few of their recent experiences. We all stand in 2021 with the same multi-pronged question: do we need to plan, or can we even plan anymore? I am sure the reasoned response to this matter is a resounding yes.

UNASSURED SUCCESS

Yes, there are plenty of smart folks who fail at their strategic planning, who then try to abandon planning. The Wall Street Journal reported Vale settled for $7 billion this past week for their part in a collapsed dam. The same periodical also reported McKinsey settled for $573 million this past week for their part in the opioid epidemic. Singapore reported this past week they will need twice as much fresh water in 30 years than they have now. These stories represent significant failures by professionals in their practice areas. I hope they work things out for the best. Their failures do not limit my life. I hope they will not limit yours, either.

OPINIONS VERSUS FACTS

I read a recent opinion on when to change a strategy during a crisis. The opinion operates by first achieving four measurements, then responding to each measurement accordingly. I practice strategy. I sell what I practice. I spend several hours each week reading. I read weekly many facts, statistics, reports, and opinions. Sometimes, these items are even assembled into a form of foresight. I read an article this past week in the Harvard Business Review about why it is challenging to have workers operate using quality data now that computing has been around for decades. I also face this challenge in my work to serve my customers. The reason for the workers not using quality data difficulty is the lack of belief held by both the workers and their leaders to change their culture to only have and use quality data. It is a failure of leadership.

I read an article this past week in the MIT Sloan Management Review about growing a human-centered business. The term data does not show itself prominently in that article. Can we ever establish a productive organization without first having quality data? Can we ever have a productive organization without it also using quality data? It is doubtful. Again, more evidence of the need for facts in hand versus operating only by an opinion.

I do not remember reading the professional report on what to do when we all have to stay home for weeks. Neither do I remember hearing an opinion from those older than me about what to do when a global health crisis occurs. I provide guidance to folks. It is my advice based on the best research and recommendations I can deliver to them. I would commit a critical error if I stated facts and opinions could be separate in the practice of any field of work. What I can tell you with certainty is planning is easy when the necessary facts are in hand. What is difficult is assuring any fact is not in actuality an opinion.

A lifetime can be spent to accomplish what seems to be only a bit of fact-finding. Think back to the time when it was unclear if the world was flat or round. Think back to life before antibiotics. The rush to get something productive accomplished is neither bad nor good. It is a reasonable tendency to want to demonstrate productivity. “We’ve got to try. Do you know what happens if we don’t try?” “What?” “Nothing.” I agree life does not always let us wait for research to occur before action must occur. Thankfully, planning to get facts often helps us stay out of a mess by working continuously to know we hold facts. Note, I did not say work endlessly and never rest.

WHAT NOW?

I hope I have sold you by now on the need to plan the strategy you want to accomplish. I realize you may be feeling overwhelmed now. I offer the best advice I can to those in this condition. The advice is to follow a two-step process.

Step one, breathe. Step two, repeat step one. No smug intended here. Realizing the unquestionable need to undertake strategic planning can lead to the thought of quitting the work before beginning the work. My first trip to Chicago happened in early grade school. I first saw a train rail yard there. The operation’s size taught me a bit about the thinking, planning, and work required to build a railway that would help build a nation. Today, most trains are operated by electric engines. A steam locomotive needs oxygen to operate. It needs to breathe. The industrial revolution is filled with images of steam locomotives. Sometimes the train tracks are elevated. I cannot imagine how much fill dirt and gravel hold up an elevated railway system.

I am reminded of rail stressing when I look at older railway systems. It was not until hydraulics were invented before the rails could be treated to handle a railway system’s stress. I can only imagine the number of train wrecks on railway systems that were not treated with rail stressing. Take some time, breathe, think about living without a plan to accomplish your strategy, and see if you want to advance beyond a steam locomotive to execute your strategy.

STRESSING BREATHING

Doing the work to accomplish strategic planning involves research. The plan you write helps to inform others what they must do as a group, a team, a department, a company, a family, or even a country to achieve the strategy. A human-centered plan may include technologies. The research work could be boring at times, but it is not boring for those who need a viable plan to carry out their proposed strategy.

The endurance metaphors abound at this point in your decision to not quit on your strategic planning work. Pressing onward. Get up a head of steam. Get on track. Then, the big one: fight the good fight. Again, as I shared last week, I am not sure what fight is being fought in our contemporary society, but it is appropriate to include it in this list of go-get-’em slogans. I hope to focus you now on breathing leading to trying.

Gloria Gaynor asserted, “I will survive.” It seems as though she did, based on how many times I have heard her say those words over the years. A good way to get out of desperation is to form a plan, work the plan, and rejoice you are no longer desperate. I shared last week if you, at your lot in life, can understand strategic planning as a series of plans involving simple communications, then you have the necessary understanding to undertake your strategic planning efforts. I stand by these words. I urge you to spend time this week alone, breathing, and focus your thoughts on trying to begin to accomplish your research work to support you in carrying out your strategy by working on your plan. Yes, we should be breathing all of the time. Yes, I am saying to de-stress instead of distress. Yes, we are talking about your strategy as a metaphoric train to carry out your strategy. I am hopeful I can help you train yourself to breathe relaxingly, to consider the work you need to accomplish deeply, for you to undertake your work diligently, and for you accomplish your work with excellence.

So, I ask you: where do you want to go? I hope your answer is to develop the plans necessary to accomplish the strategy you know you need to achieve to arrive at your desired destination. If this is the case, then let’s get to work. If not, then I wish you the best of everything.

I hope we will see each other here next week. Email me if you need to talk before then.

 

Dr. Stephen H. Dawson, DSL

Executive Strategy Consultant

Dr. Stephen H Dawson

Stephen Dawson is an executive consultant of technology and business strategy, serving significant international organizations by providing leadership consulting, strategic planning, and executive communications. He has more than thirty years of service and consulting experience in delivering successful international business development and program management outcomes in the US and SE Asia. His weekly column, “Where Do You Want To Go?,” appears on Thursdays.

Dr. Dawson has served in the technology, banking, and hospitality industries. He is a noted strategic planning visionary. His pursuit of music has been matched with his efforts to lead by service to followers. He holds the clear understanding a leader without followers is a person taking a long walk alone.

Stephen has lived his life in the eastern United States, visiting most of the United States and several countries. He is a graduate of the Regent University School of Business & Leadership. Contact him at service@shdawson.com.

Stephen Dawson, DSL

Vice President Strategic Planning or Business Development
by Dr. Stephen H. Dawson, DSL
February 4, 2021

Thank you for visiting our blog.

 

Jim Weber, Managing Partner – ITB Partners

Jim Weber – Managing Partner,  ITB Partners

I hope you enjoyed our point of view and would like to receive regular posts directly to your email inbox.  Toward this end, put your contact information on my mailing list.

Your feedback helps me continue to publish articles that you want to read.  Your input is very important to me so; please leave a comment.

 

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Destination Unknown

 

The Sky Above

“He who angers you controls you.” Unknown

Stephen Dawson, DSL

I am a planner, a work-the-plan, a get-it-done kind of guy. I’m not particularly eager to live without a purpose helping to guide me to a predetermined destination. I modify the plan when it is suitable. However, I adjust the plan with justification for the change. I work on the concept of mapping out where I want to go in comparison to where I am from a figurative standpoint. It works for me and for the customers I have served over my years of caring for them.

2020 had me in the company of what seemed like the majority of the human population. I had more people coming to me for my advice on what they should do amid global health, economic, and political upheavals than I have experienced in years. It became clear to me the pattern resident in these inquires was an espoused anger hiding their genuine fear of the unknown. These people had an unquestionable problem. The answer to this problem was clear: help them with the strategic planning of their circumstances.

I considered at length the anger I witnessed. The Latin adage si vis pacem, para bellum is translated as “if you want peace, prepare for war”. I also heard the angry people tell me they were fighting this and that. They were fighting against COVID-19, fighting for a political agenda, fighting to stay in business, fighting to either have or prevent this or that. It was not clear to me who they were fighting, how they were fighting, and often why they were fighting. I found the deeper I went to understanding their fighting, the more I could see their fears. They were trying to get back to peace by fighting in some type of hostility. I understood this condition, as I struggled with it myself for years.

There are many clear reasons before us today as to why anger has advanced to fighting. A 2020 report from the Corruption Perceptions Index published annually by Berlin-based Transparency International ranked global regions where corruption occurs. A summary review of these regions also found strong economic growth where there is little corruption. The Wall Street Journal reported this week McKinsey is in settlement talks with states over how they advised Purdue Pharma to boost their OxyContin sales. I will spare us both the heartache of addressing the drama trauma of the 2020 US election events. Suffice it to say, there is quite a bit of undeniable defiant aggressiveness by those we are to be trusting for leading us to cause their followers to be upset with their performance, upset to the point of angry, and angry to the point of undertaking some type of fight with them.

WHAT IS THE POINT?

I both read and hear from those around me, and abroad, they feel burned. Burned, in terms of being misled by their leadership. Misled, to the point of metaphorically having their hand burned by being told to trust touching the pot that is quite hot. Misled, in terms of not having income anymore from employment that is no more. Misled, from not being sure what political topic we are working on now as there are so many topics, and a good leader would have the decency to tell their constituents what topic to work on for the moment. Being burned, as it were, is no justifiable reason not to have a plan to carry out the strategy you need to accomplish for your life and for your followers, for you to realize success. I get mad when I burn my hand. I release adrenaline to deal with the pain. It is a form of controlled anger. It is an act of survival, as I am not sure how badly I hurt myself from the burn. I have not cut my hand off as of yet to respond to any burning, any pain, or perhaps the shame of having burned my hand. It took me years to learn being burned, as it were, by an unhealthy relationship is not a justifiable reason to not continue to relate to people. The example I present here is both literal and figurative. They both hurt, and they both changed my behavior. The point is to use the pain of your being burned, perhaps by yourself from not having a plan to accomplish your strategy, to change your behavior now for the betterment of you.

WHAT TO DO?

The most direct form of counsel I can provide anyone undertaking strategic planning is to calm down, eliminate anger, and move to a reasoned position. “He who angers you controls you.” I make this statement because those who have no plan to determine and accomplish their strategy have come to me in a state of calamity. I have no reason to believe this combination will change based on what I know of human behavior. I cannot overstate the value of a calm approach to accomplishing strategic planning. I have seen people achieve this counsel somewhere between a matter of seconds and a matter of years. Sure, some parts of strategic planning can be accomplished from an upset, angered, and even unreasonable position. However, I am talking about getting out of the mess you find yourself in sooner than later. It is not my place to judge how anyone arrived at their lot in life. It is my place to help them move to a better place should they want my help. Better, what is better? We all follow someone, one way or the other. Defining betterment is a question only a follower can answer. Only the follower can answer it because they decide with each step they take to continue following their leader once they have determined their leader is leading them to a place more preferable than where they stand now.

WHERE TO START?

I lived near the ocean for many years. I would spend time daily looking at the beauty of the clouds. The ocean always seemed to have more clouds than land areas. The sky above us, the unknown. I have flown in planes and jumped out of them by parachute. Looking at the sky helps me have a more refined view of the circumstances I face, to help me put things into a more healthy perspective. The sky over the ocean is so much different from the sky over land, such as Tennessee’s mountains. A recent morning had frost in the backyard, reminding me both warm and cold days have colors to alter my perspective of the moment. A significant difference is the amount of heat coming off the continent to the ocean’s vast openness. Get the heat off of you by putting aside anger, deciding to stop traveling to an unknown destination, and begin the work of determining where you want to go. Sure, read the thermodynamics laws as the starting point for your strategic planning if this will help you. However, please do not decide you need to master them before undertaking your strategic planning efforts. The key here is to take action now with your first step. Putting aside anger to meet the fears you face of not having a well-prepared strategic plan now to live this thing called life is a huge step. Take a moment and give yourself the credit you deserve for taking this step.

My journey with music had me performing as an instrumentalist for several decades. I learned so many crucial lessons about enabling followers, those attending my concerts, to appreciate my work by understanding the material I performed with greater depth. They understood it more when I spoke for a minute or two about the song I was to play, either before or after playing each song. It was not me bragging about my greatness or diminishing the listeners who did not know all of the finer points of a tune I would play for them. It was bringing new insight to them about what they were hearing. It matched a story to the song, perhaps a current event, along with what I knew of the audience in that moment, which helped form my spoken words to them. It was augmenting their ability to listen to what they were there by their choice to hear.

It saddens me when someone comes to me and tells me they need strategic planning, want strategic planning, are unsure what they will do without strategic planning, but are afraid they will not do strategic planning well. A music producer I worked with would go and sit with his daughter at her house, who had given up her career as a stockbroker to be a stay-at-home mother. The producer’s grandchildren invariably had other children around. He would attempt to make a point to the toddlers about something he had on his mind. He concluded that if he can get his point across to toddlers, then he has succeeded in his messaging efforts. He used his powerful messaging ability to help me understand how to record better some of what I called pretty good music. If you, at your lot in life, can understand strategic planning as a series of plans involving simple communications, then you have the necessary understanding to undertake your strategic planning efforts. Note, I did not say you have the understanding of a child. What I am saying is you have the innocence of a child. This innocence is a critical success factor in accomplishing effective strategic planning.

The planning of your strategy most likely involves more people than just yourself. It is reasonable to hold a bit of fear that you will harm them by planning poorly. I encourage you not to become angry at them as you find a way to tell them you did not yet prepare the strategy you need to accomplish. Such anger will only harm the relationship you have with them. How many press conferences have you watched in the past few months where either the speaker or an interviewer was angry? How many excuses have you read in the recent business news where low earnings are not the business leadership’s fault? How many times have you seen children trying to learn virtually their school work from home and decide schooling is not worth the pain? There are more than enough examples around us today to understand the gains from having strategic planning more than justifies the pain of getting your first planned strategy written down and executed. Think about you living out 2021 without accomplishing strategic planning. How do you think you will enter 2022 with two concurrent years of little to no strategic planning accomplishments?

So, I ask you: where do you want to go? I hope your answer is to develop the plans necessary to accomplish the strategy you know you need to achieve to arrive at your desired destination. If this is the case, then let’s get to work. If not, then I wish you the best of everything.

I hope we will see each other here next week. Email me if you need to talk before then.

 

Dr. Stephen H. Dawson, DSL

Executive Strategy Consultant

Dr. Stephen H Dawson

Stephen Dawson is an executive consultant of technology and business strategy, serving significant international organizations by providing leadership consulting, strategic planning, and executive communications. He has more than thirty years of service and consulting experience in delivering successful international business development and program management outcomes in the US and SE Asia. His weekly column, “Where Do You Want To Go?,” appears on Thursdays.

Dr. Dawson has served in the technology, banking, and hospitality industries. He is a noted strategic planning visionary. His pursuit of music has been matched with his efforts to lead by service to followers. He holds the clear understanding a leader without followers is a person taking a long walk alone.

Stephen has lived his life in the eastern United States, visiting most of the United States and several countries. He is a graduate of the Regent University School of Business & Leadership. Contact him at service@shdawson.com.

Stephen Dawson, DSL

Vice President Strategic Planning or Business Development
by Dr. Stephen H. Dawson, DSL
February 4, 2021

Thank you for visiting our blog.

 

Jim Weber, Managing Partner – ITB Partners

Jim Weber – Managing Partner,  ITB Partners

I hope you enjoyed our point of view and would like to receive regular posts directly to your email inbox.  Toward this end, put your contact information on my mailing list.

Your feedback helps me continue to publish articles that you want to read.  Your input is very important to me so; please leave a comment.

 

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Looking Back to Move Forward

Planning Requires a Learning System

Jim Weber – Managing Partner, ITB Partners

I began 2020 with a great sense of optimism.  However, within weeks of my New Year’s post, the world was in lockdown.  Was I ever surprised!    I did not anticipate the Covid-19 Pandemic.  Honestly, we were all surprised.  Sure, we knew it was a possibility.  The concept had been discussed in the culture, complete with dire warnings mostly ignored.

I had just completed a COO search when the lockdown began.  My placement’s start date was March 16.  I was sure that my client would rescind their offer.  But I was wrong.  The new COO became an integral part of their organization, helping them navigate through the challenges created by the pandemic.

Great companies create a learning culture that guides their planning. Share on X

My first blog post of the year is meant to establish a theme for the New Year.  It is somewhat different this year.   It seems appropriate to put 2021 into greater context, given our experience in 2020.  As we begin 2021, we are into the second flair-up of Covid-19, tracking the normal influenza cycle.  The residual effects of 2020 will be with us for a while, certainly through 2021.   Companies are still looking for a handle on the situation. They have learned much but need more time to adapt and thrive.

My  ‘beginning of the year message’ of 2020 was a typical opener, The setup spoke to the importance of planning and goal setting.  I wrote that companies are more likely to achieve their objectives, whereas individuals abandon their New Year’s Resolutions within a few short months.  I observed that the difference might be due to a lack of systems.  Goal attainment requires a system that incorporates learning.   Creating virtuous habits is the key to success.  That was my thinking at the beginning of 2020.

A chronological review of the topics for my 2020 posts is revealing.  In the first quarter, I was writing about making a productive start to the new year.  Pre-pandemic thinking.  In the second quarter, I was writing about situation awareness.  I wanted to understand the effects of the pandemic and assess the needs of our clients.  By the third quarter, I was writing about developing strategies to reconnect with customers.  The fourth quarter was the setup for 2021.  I wrote about the need for a clear positioning statement, supported by a communications program.

My 2020 Blog Themes by Quarter

    • !st Quarter Planning and Strategy -Typical Start of New Year Message
    • 2nd Quarter – Understanding/Responding to the needs of clients – Communications.
    • 3rd Quarter – Reconnecting Strategy-Communications
    • 4th Quarter – Positioning Strategy-Communications

A catalog of my 2020 articles is listed at the end of this post.

The lockdown made it clear that business models need to adapt to a new paradigm.  Many trends already working their way through the economy accelerated.  Remote working and internet shopping are obvious examples.  Other changes were not expected, especially health protocols surrounding Covid-19 mitigation.  There was a noticeable impact on the supply chain due to bottlenecks at the manufacturing/production node. The service sector was hard hit as ‘high touch’ retail concepts collided with social distancing, PPE, and sanitation protocols.  Our clients struggled to adapt.  My goal was to help them understand, adapt, and reposition themselves for success.  This is still my focus.  Find a defensible niche, organize around that strategy, and market your brand (communicate) accordingly.

My take-away from 2020 is that most companies are not investing in strategic threat assessments or developing contingency plans.  This leads me to believe that their planning systems are not generating information to protect their flanks.  Actionable information is the foundation for planning. A robust strategic analysis discipline will validate strengths, mitigate weaknesses, identify opportunities, and surface threats.  This approach to planning creates a learning culture.  An effective planning system is a learning system. Good companies employ a planning system.  Great companies create a learning culture that guides their planning.

A Fresh Approach to Strategy!

 

Beginning a new year is still exhilarating.  Maybe even more so this year.  We face a fluid situation as the second phase of the Covid-19 Pandemic takes its toll.  And a new Political Administration will soon be in place.  We know that further change is coming, but its size and scope is unclear.  The challenge is to gain clarity to ensure our continued survival.  This requires more experience and solid analysis.

 My 2020 articles in reverse chronological order.

Write an Impressive Cover Letter, Dec 28, 2020

Your Bio – Why it’s Important, Dec 19, 2020

Position Yourself for Success, Dec 12, 2020

Is Your Job Search Strategy Working, Nov 21, 2020

The Turning Point, Oct 24, 2020

A Crisis Averted, Sept 29, 2020

When Opportunity Presents (Public Speaking)  Aug 15, 2020

Job Search in the “Latest” New Normal – Know Your Options, Aug 1, 2020

Job Search in the Latest “New Normal” – Recruiting and Selection Dynamics. July 25, 2020

Job Search in the Latest New Normal, July 18, 2020

A Compelling Story Is Your Launchpad, July 11, 2020

Job Search – What’s Your Story, May 31, 2020

Things Will Change – New Habits Will Be Created, March 21, 2020

Starbucks Meets WeWork at the Automobile Service Center, March 7, 2020

Part IV – It’s Not Who You Know, It’s Who Knows You!  An Interview with Susan Knox of Corporate Connections, February 29, 2020

Part III – It’s Not Who You Know, It’s Who Knows You!  An Interview with Susan Knox of Corporate Connections, Feb 22. 2020

Part II – It’s Not Who You Know, It’s Who Knows You!  An Interview with Susan Knox of Corporate Connections. Feb 15, 2020

It’s Not Who You Know, It’s Who Knows You!  An Interview with Susan Knox of Corporate Connections, Feb 8, 2020

Identify Toxic Entanglements: Adapt or Disengage, January 20, 2020

Don’t Become Entangled in Their Pathology!, Jan 11, 2020

Do You Plan to Achieve Your New Year’s Resolutions, January 4, 2020

Thank you for visiting our blog.

 

Jim Weber, Managing Partner – ITB Partners

Jim Weber – Managing Partner,  ITB Partners

I hope you enjoyed our point of view and would like to receive regular posts directly to your email inbox.  Toward this end, put your contact information on my mailing list.

Your feedback helps me continue to publish articles that you want to read.  Your input is very important to me so; please leave a comment.

 

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A Fresh and Effective approach to Strategy

How many hours are spent every year in meetings conducting strategic planning sessions only to find the plan ignored? Or, in today’s Agile approach to business, the confusion reigning with a lack of effective and timely communications of shifting priorities. The human element cost can be tremendous with employees left confused with engagement levels constantly fluctuating, impacting output.

Two very successful entrepreneurs have combined forces providing your organization with access to a fresh and effective approach to strategic planning and execution:

Dr. Stephen Dawson is a strategic internal or external consultant who provides exceptional-business building outcomes in the United States and Southeast Asia by utilizing his visionary abilities to design and deliver the next generation business productivity tools to assist regulators in accomplishing economic development. He has maximized his postdoctoral work in ways to blend his exceptional education with his outgoing personality and strong communication skills. He is also an Adjunct Professor with Regent University, serving with the Department of Business, Leadership, & Management.

Dave Daniels (BA/MA) is an accomplished senior business, human resource, and DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) executive. Having held leadership positions throughout the country, Dave’s business approach is intended to exceed financial objectives by inspiring exceptional capabilities on the part of all team members. He is an accomplished facilitator and leader of results-oriented cross-functional teams. Additionally, Dave is a Certified Coach of the IDI (Intercultural Development Inventory) process, the most respected Diversity and Inclusion (D & I) assessment in the world. While he brings a wide range of experience, Dave’s expertise in the D & I space provides for full integration of this critical piece in our approach.

What we do:

    • Troubleshoot (assess) current plans and levels of communications and results
    • Create “real” alignment and commitment to the best actions
    • Become a trusted advisor to the CEO and the Executive Leadership Team (ELT)
    • Define/refine desired outputs and impact

How are we different:

    • Identify and solve key pain points, immediately
    • Provide a strong and relevant D & I lens to every aspect of your organization
    • Access to the IDI process, as a value, add
    • Flexible and Agile customization

Contact Information: Stephen and Dave may be reached via phone or email:

Dr. Stephen H Dawson

David Daniels, Daniels Consulting
Dr. Stephen Dawson David (Dave) Daniels (BA/MA)
Executive Strategy Consultant Diversity & Inclusion Consultant
Phone: 1.865.804.3454 Phone: 1.972.269.3400
service@shdawson.com dave@davedanielsconsulting.com
www.shdawson.com www.davedanielsconsulting.com

 

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Decoding the Engagement Challenge or Why People Leave.

Paula Fowler Presents to The BENG, October 13, 2020

Decoding the Engagement Challenge or Why People Leave is a conversation about the four factors of employee engagement – Job, Manager, Team, and Culture and how they impact productivity. PI’s motto is Better Work, Better World and the premise is that by understanding human needs and behaviors, we can select a job and company that “fits” our natural tendencies and be happier at work, manage people more successfully and drive company success.

Paula Fowler

Paula Fowler is a strategic leader with a proven ability to create a company-wide vision and drive business results. She has a passion for working directly with entrepreneurs to implement strategies for growth and profitability. Paula has over two decades of management and consulting experience in small to mid-sized businesses across a broad range of functional areas, including sales, marketing, finance, accounting, operations, human resources, customer support, and business development.

She is skilled at analyzing existing operations and implementing strategies, processes, and technology to improve company performance. She believes that entrepreneurs often know what to do – but lack the time or internal expertise to accomplish the task at hand. Paula will deftly tackle the project and drive it to completion.

Paula is also a certified Six Disciplines Coach, a management system for purpose-driven leaders of small to mid-sized companies.  Six Disciplines combines on-site business coaching, workshops, and collaborative software to close the gap between the future vision of a company and today’s reality – by engaging the hearts and minds of every employee in the organization and aligning actions.

Contact Paula Fowler

pfowler@fowlerbusinessconsultingllc.com

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When You Hear: “Hey, I Want to Buy Your Business”

Have you gotten this phone call, regardless of where you are in your exit planning? During challenging, tumultuous times, this call comes from many corners. Some are legitimately interested, some are fishing, some are trying to take advantage. It may or may not be the right timing for your exit planning.

Over the last few months, we have heard from several business owners asking for help because they received “the call“.

When this question comes at you, it can be interesting, even exciting. How do you respond?

The best response is to ask for some basic information and let them know you will get back to them. Whether they say they are the potential buyer or representing the potential buyer, ask for their name, phone number, email address, and website. If you can’t get that, politely end the conversation. If they say they are representing another party, ask for the name of that person or company. They may not share this initially but ask. Getting some basic information will help you do some digging.  It may be something like “I have buyers that are interested in your business.” If you hear that, consider ending the conversation!  In any case, do NOT share any information, financial or otherwise, on this first call. Step back and consider your exit plan.

Even if they are legitimate, remember that they are representing the seller. This is a complex transaction, probably the most complicated one you will ever consider. It will impact your life, retirement, family, and employees for the long-term. Succession planning takes some time.

As I discussed in my last blog (Sell My Business Now? Wait for the Economy?), you need to consider so many factors when deciding if this is the right time for you to sell. It may very well be. Even then, you need experienced professionals who provide transaction services to help guide you through this most important decision and avoid the expensive pitfalls of trying to go it alone.

If you are ready to sell, get professional representation to help manage the process. A business sale is always complicated, even more so under current conditions. If you are not ready yet, start with an estimate of value and some advice on preparing your exit plan – whether your target is one year or 10 years. If you do have time, focus on getting through COVID-19 and building business value: Rebuilding Post-Crisis.

Call if we can help you think through your specific situation. Always happy to have a conversation to provide some guidance!

Stay Healthy & Safe!

David Shavzin

David Shavzin, CMC
Exit Strategist – Value Growth, Exit Planning, Succession Planning, Transactions

Founder and President,
 The Value Track, Atlanta, Georgia
Co-Founder and President, 
Recent Blogs:

During & Post-Crisis: Preserving, Rebuilding & Growing Business Value