S6 E9 (The Smart and Savvy Exit) The Big Turnaround - Community Outreach - Ellen McIlhenny

Ellen McIlhenny - “The Smart and Savvy Exit – The Big Turnaround – Community Outreach

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INTRODUCTION
I was on the road a lot this week and when I am I always try to have a good book to listen to.  This week I revisited a book that first I read a couple of years ago, but I was still able to once again, find some good takeaways.
 
In Ben Horowitz’s book The Hard Thing about Hard Things, the author talks about what he learned while building a couple of successful businesses. Horowitz touches on a subject I dealt with a couple of weeks ago about looking for that “magic bullet” to make your business great. He says there is no ‘magic bullet’ for building a company; there’s no ‘magic bullet’ for leading a group of people out of trouble; there’s no ‘magic bullet’ for motivating people when your business is going down the tubes. That’s the hard thing about hard things. 
 
In the first part of the book, Horowitz tells the story of how he built his businesses and the experiences that formed the ideas he outlines in the book.
 
In the next section he talks about how CEOs need to be problem solvers.  They need to be able to find answers and solutions to the problems. 
 
Next, Horowitz talks about the importance of creating a good work environment and taking care of employees to ensure everyone works effectively and efficiently toward the company’s goals. 
 
Next a CEO needs to worry about how to create quality products which will build a strong customer base.
 
After all of this is done then he or she needs to worry about managing profits. 
 
He then touches on a topic that I know about personally; office politics can do much damage to your company. To be successful, organizations must work on minimizing politics. 
 
There are four rules that make a business successful:

1. Hire employees that reflect and believe in your vision and core values. 
2. Have consistent performance evaluations, organizational policies, compensation, and promotions. 
3. Good employees need to be given a clear path for success after measuring their performance in an unbiased manner. 
4. Communications between managers and employees need to be open to ensure good ideas and problems are brought to light. 

 
Next a CEO must focus on the positive instead of being concerned about the things that are wrong in the company. He or she need to project calm. Horowitz talks about how it is sometimes hard to keep from having a meltdown, but it is important that the CEO learn to control those feelings. 
 
The book talks about the hard things and how one should always deal with the hard issues in running a business directly, instead of giving up. 
 
Last, he mentions something I talked about last week; the importance of having mentors.
 
This is a very inciteful book and I highly recommend it if you are currently running a business or are planning to run a business.

We here at IBGR are committed to helping small business owners with questions you may have about running your business. Whether you are just starting or have been around for many years. We are here for you.

IBGR has a lot of exciting things happening during season 6.  Be sure to become a part of our community so you can be a part of it.  Thanks for listening. 
  
 
Show Objectives - The Why
 
Today we will continue our discussion of my book The Big Turnaround: How bad management nearly destroyed an exceptional company. Today we will be talking about chapter 10- Community Outreach. Burgess gives back to the community in a big way.

Then I’ll talk about another main take-away from the book – Give multiple people in your organization your ear.

Our “Tuesday Tip” – Beginning with the end in mind.

 Shows 

• Previous: Season 6 Podcast Episodes 28-31 We covered Chapter 9, “Whose Core Values?”
• Find My Podcast at https://pod.co/future-financial-confidence-with-ellen-mcilhenny

Next Week: “The New Digs” – Burgess is moving!


Resources:
Written by Ellen McIlhenny 
Owner of CFO Plus Services, a Fractional CFO services firm which also offers Back Office Bookkeeping Services.  Author of the business novel The Big Turnaround; How Bad Management Nearly Destroyed an Exceptional Company. Check it out at https://thebigturnaround.com

You can connect with Ellen on any of her #cfoplusservices platforms or ellen@cfoplusservices.com
https://cfoplusservices.com

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