Informed Decisions: Leadership Conversations and Q&A with Randall Craig (Video)

Getting the Most from an Advisory Board Part 1

Many leaders don’t fully take advantage of their Advisory Board… or even know why they should have one.

Topics include:

↳ Key considerations when setting up an advisory board.

↳ Recruitment, engagement, and Setting the meeting agenda?

↳ Keeping it fresh: board succession planning (and how to off-board “stale” advisory board members?

Conference Planning Part 3

Wrapping up this three-parter on planning impactful conferences with a focus on lessons we can learn from our conference planning efforts. 

Topics for part 3 include:

↳ Reinvent the program anew or rinse and repeat what previously worked?

↳ How do we measure if a conference was a success?

↳ Conference post modems (and what if a conference falls flat…)

Conference Planning Part 1

You are planning a conference and want it to be as successful as possible. This episode will offer some fresh ideas and insider perspectives to help you create a truly memorable conference.

Gain insights about:

↳ Who does it best? Association events vs the corporate world

↳ How long?: The one-day summit vs the multi-day conference

↳ Building the agenda: Networking time vs content

↳ Free Speakers vs Paid Speakers: Why pay when so many will speak for free?

Driving Change, Impact, and Growth in Your Organization: Part 3

Wrapping up with part 3 on creating change that sticks. 

Topics include:

• What is the appropriate timing and method of acknowledging the negative impact of a change?

• Incremental changes vs transformative change?

• Partner Dynamics: How can partners set up their relationship to avoid conflicts and allow for necessary change to roll out?

Driving Change, Impact, and Growth in Your Organization: Part 2

Continuing with part 2 of 3 on driving meaningful and sustainable change towards a more successful organization. C

Topics include:

↳ What happens to objectives and performance reviews when an organization pivots?

↳ Incremental changes vs transformative change?

↳ When and how should an organization communicate change?

Driving Change, Impact, and Growth in Your Organization: Part 1

How can we drive impact throughout the organization, and have it stick? Let’s go beyond traditional change management, and explore a number of additional concepts. 

Topics include:

↳ The impact and role of a multi-modal approach to change management: Communication/Coaching/Training/Monthly reinforcement/Events/etc.

↳ Internal vs external execution: When to use – and not use – external resources.

↳ Getting to neutral vs getting ahead: Using change management to drive competitive differentiation, impact, and growth.

 

Pricing Strategy for Service Businesses: Part 2

Does this sound like you: “Are my rates too low… or too high?” “Is it too soon to raise my fees?” “How do I justify my rates?…. And should I have to?”

Topics include:

↳ Pricing per participant

↳ Subcontracting

↳ The connection between pricing strategy and marketing strategy, and

↳ How to communicate that your organization is a high-end brand (and worth high-end pricing)

Pricing Strategy for Service Businesses: Part 1

Does this sound like you: “Are my rates too low… or too high?” “Is it too soon to raise my fees?” “How do I justify my rates?…. And should I have to?” 

Topics include:

↳ Demystify pricing strategies

↳ Explore the tactical parameters, and

↳ Getting clear on the value your organization offers

Business Development for Firms: Part 3 or 3

More fundamental marketing frameworks to focus your business development strategy. 

Topics include:

↳ How to measure the success of your business development initiatives, and when change may be needed?

↳ Is the juice worth the squeeze when it comes to your bus dev investments?

↳ How might an emphasis on (or lack thereof on) in-house training investment impact the firm brand?

↳ DEI, ESG, and other trends on bus dev.

Business Development for Firms: Part 2 of 3

Building from last week, more fundamental marketing frameworks to focus your business development strategy. 

Topics include:

↳ Business development goals and accountability.

↳ Client experience, client touch points, and referrals.

↳ New geographies, virtual offices, and cultural fit with clients.

↳ The Price/Expertise/Trust Model, and

↳ How IP and thought leadership collateral can be used within the business development process.

Conference Planning Part 2

Continuing on with more ways to design, market, and host a stand-out conference. 

Topics include:

↳ Conference marketing: Attracting the right audience

↳ Panel discussions: Is there a way to make them more engaging?

↳ Conference profits: Reinvest in the conference… or a honeypot for other purposes?

↳ Conference Speakers: What should you be asking speakers to find best-fit talent?

Business Development for Firms: Part 1 of 3

Firms are built through relationships and thought leadership, but can we be more strategic with our efforts? 

Topics include:

↳ Growing your firm through thought leadership

↳ The time investment required to create thought leadership vs billable hours

↳ The shared responsibilities of Marketing, HR, and IT in the bus dev process, and

↳ Business development training opportunities for professional services

Developing Your Culture with Work-from-Home Teams Part 2 of 2

Completing our Q&A on corporate culture and work-from-home teams.

Topics include:

💡The impact that recordings of virtual meetings have had on working relationships.

💡Repurposing the “savings” from work-from-home employees to employee perks.

💡The impact and ethics of “moonlighting” by both employees and organizational leaders.

Developing Your Culture with Work-from-Home Teams Part 1 of 2

Hybrid and work-from-home are here to stay, but how can leaders build a strong culture, and ensure that team members are accountable?

Topics include:

💡 How to create your desired corporate culture.

💡 Hiring for work-from-home roles.

💡 How to teach the right habits and behaviors to work from home employees (and more).

Business Growth Coaching: Worth it or Waste of Time? Part 2

We continue with part 2 on demystifying the coaching industry.

Topics include:

↳ How to find the right fit coach

↳ How to get the most out of that coaching relationship, and

↳ Who should decide what to work on: the client or the coach?

Business Growth Coaching: Worth it? Or Waste of Time? Part 1 of 2

Today, it seems everyone is a coach. So in this session, we are calling out the “coaching industry”… on its proliferation, value, and fees.

We see cheap coaches aplenty, and then there are also exceptionally expensive ones –but are they effective? Let’s put Randall in the hotseat and explore the differences in approach and value, and how clients can get the best from their coaching relationship.

Marketing and Competitive Advantage Part 3 of 3

We wrap up part 3 this week on marketing strategies for competitive advantage. Catch the full episode 👉 https://www.braintrustprofessionalinstitute.com/marketing-and-competitive-advantage

Topics include: Frameworks to refresh your marketing, how to use IP in your marketing strategy, and how our content can compete with the AI “junkification” of the internet.

Marketing and Competitive Advantage Part 2 of 3

We continue this week with how to differentiate yourself and your organization in a complex marketplace. Catch the full episode 👉 https://www.braintrustprofessionalinstitute.com/marketing-and-competitive-advantage

In this episode we touch on building trust, reputation, and content. How to become the “preferred” provider, and how does experimentation fit into the picture.

Marketing and Competitive Advantage Part 1 of 3

Marketing takes time, costs money, and it doesn’t exist in a vacuum... So how can you differentiate? 🤔 Catch the full episode 👉 https://www.braintrustprofessionalinstitute.com/marketing-and-competitive-advantage

In this episode we explore marketing approaches that build competitive differentiation for your organization.

 

Recession-Proofing Your Organization Part 2 of 2

Closing up our Q&A on recession proofing strategies and cash management best practices.

Topics include:

💡Improving efficiencies

💡Scenario planning

💡Back-pocket options to consider if a situation is dire. (And more.)

Recession-Proofing Your Organization Part 1 of 2

Many leaders are feeling the challenge of steering their ship through recession, inflation, and economic uncertainty.

Topics include:

💡The question of cash: What can you do to preserve it?

💡How do you cut your burn rate, while still investing in critical areas?

💡And when things are very tight, what things can you do, right now, to “find” needed cashflow? (And more.)

Powerful Leadership Retreats Part 3 of 3

Here’s our discussion on this important investment in team alignment: leadership retreats, part 3.  Catch the full episode 👉 https://www.braintrustprofessionalinstitute.com/braintrust-institute-powerful-leadership-retreats

Topics include:

• Getting a better ROI from your retreat investment.

• What to do when key employees aren't able to attend a leadership retreat?

• Preparing for what could go wrong… (and more!)

Powerful Leadership Retreats Part 2 of 3

Continuing with part 2 on running a truly impactful leadership retreat.  Catch the full episode 👉 https://www.braintrustprofessionalinstitute.com/braintrust-institute-powerful-leadership-retreats

Topics include:

• Managing poor attitudes and conflict going into a leadership retreat

• Retreats, ESG, and your corporate brand

• When leaders don't have 100% confidence in team members who are at the retreat

• Is a “luxury experience” necessary for impact?

Powerful Leadership Retreats Part 1 of 3

Today we are talking about leadership retreats. “The offsite.” “The team-building getaway.” Whatever your organization calls it, it is a HUGE investment of time and money – the planning, the coordination – not to mention time away from work.

In theory, they are a tremendous opportunity to generate alignment and motivate your team, but why are some retreats transformational, yet others yield no significant impact?

To talk about this gap is hall of fame business speaker Randall Craig who has presented at countless retreats as speaker, and has participated in countless others in his leadership roles.

Driving Your Leadership Performance Part 3 of 3

Rounding out with the final instalment of our 3-parter on Driving your Leadership Performance.

Topics include:

💡 What do it if you “fall out of love” with your business?

💡 When should key performance indicators be changed (and are we measuring the right things)?

💡How to have more effective meetings, and more.