While I’m partial to our Vistage peer advisory boards in Knoxville, I understand that our approach isn’t always the best fit for some leaders — CEOs, senior executives, and business professionals. To help you find the mastermind or peer group that’s best for you, I’ve created a list of other peer groups in the Knoxville,… Read more »
Category: Leadership
Preparing for 2023: Key Factors for Business Leaders
Recently the Vistage Confidence Index fell to 69.0, one of the lowest Index readings recorded since the Before Times (March 2020). While supply-chain glitches have eased somewhat, recession concerns continue and challenges in finding and keeping talent persist for most employers. Here are three key factors for you to consider as you prepare strategic plans… Read more »
6 Steps to Better Business Metrics
The great 19th-century physicist Lord Kelvin once said, “If you cannot measure it, you cannot improve it.” It’s the O.G. edition of the “measure it – manage it” mantra that many successful businesses embrace in their pursuits of excellence. Most of us are familiar with how using metrics or key performance indicators (KPIs) can keep… Read more »
The Cheapest Way to Improve Profitability
Inflation. Supply chain woes. Gasoline prices. Talent shortages. The R-word That Must Not Be Named (shhh, you’ll make it happen!). Recently Vistage members in Knoxville spent a morning with expert speaker Xavier Douwes. He opened his presentation with this pithy remark: “Operations is really the non-sexy secret to success in every business.” (Proof: 35,000 business… Read more »
5 Common Mistakes CEOs Make When Choosing a Peer Advisory Group
If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together. African proverb Let’s expose a dirty little leadership secret: It’s lonely at the top. Many chief executives—regardless of company size—don’t regularly hear the tough truths about their own performance as chief executives and about their businesses. Human nature being… Read more »
5 Leadership Secrets for Next-Level Business Growth
Stuck. Tapped out. Stagnating. Frustrated. Leveling off. These are some of the words I’ve heard business owners and leaders use to describe their situations when their companies’ growth has slowed or even stopped, despite their best efforts. In most cases this is good news, because if there was growth before, then hitting some sort of… Read more »
The Difference Between Surviving and Thriving
Another year is in the books with a fresh new one now unfolding before us with all its promise. Some organizations were not able to survive the talent and supply-chain challenges and ultimately closed their doors. Others continue to scrape by as best they can, with skeleton crews and material delays that lead to shoulder-shrugging… Read more »
Losing people? Fix the hole in your talent bucket
Many companies are still experiencing acute talent shortages that are seriously impacting business results. While the immediate focus for most leaders is aptly on filling the sometimes staggering number of open positions as quickly as possible, we should also ask ourselves why we have openings in the first place, and what can we do about… Read more »
3 More Types of Leaders Who Should Steer Clear of a Vistage Peer Group
A few years ago, in this space right about this time of year, I wrote a haunting little ditty about the kinds of folks who should avoid looking into a Vistage peer group (check it out here if you missed it). As the Chair for four Knoxville area Vistage groups for almost six years now,… Read more »
Why your recruiting process sucks
In my “Strategies” column in the July 2021 issue of Knox.biz magazine, we mentioned that when it comes to reigniting growth, talent is a key driver. The demand and competition for talent these days continues to be extreme, and companies are working harder than ever on talent acquisition and retention, yet not seeing much improvement.… Read more »
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