Business X factors

Is it possible to create an organizational culture before you even have a company? Raj De Datta, Co-Founder and CEO of Bloomreach, explains that he developed the cultural framework for Bloomreach before the company launched. 

Tune in to learn:

• How customer personalization changes everything (11:50)
• The importance of frank conversations in leadership (13:48)
• The Flywheel Effect and how it works in business (19:40)
• Why do winners win and losers lose? (22:00)

Business X factors is produced by Mission.org. Mission.org is a media studio producing content for world-class clients. Learn more at http://mission.org

Is it possible that a CEO can get duped into running a company? Joe Walsh, Chairman and CEO of Thryv, shares how he ended up holding the reins of a historic company to pivot it from its phone book past to providing a digital platform that helps small businesses thrive. 

Tune in to learn:

• How a varied education can set you up for success (4:20)
• How to look in unconventional spaces for untapped revenue (14:30) 
• Why a unified team is always a stronger one (17:50)

Business X factors is produced by Mission.org.  Mission.org is a media studio producing content for world-class clients. Learn more at http://mission.org

Jim Kavanaugh knows a thing or two about rising to the occasion. As the CEO and Co-Founder of World Wide Technology – an organization that provides global technology solutions and services – he’s had to prove his mettle more than once. Tune in to this episode of Business X factors to hear about how this St. Louis-based company became a global tech leader, and why Jim Kavanaugh believes the best leaders are the ones forged in fire. 

Tune in to learn:

• Why a “go get it” attitude is one you can create (4:00)
• How choosing your team wisely is a smart long-game move (13:45)
• Identifying where the puck is going in the digital landscape (21:00)
• How to create a diverse organization in the best ways to make everyone better (26:00)

Business X factors is produced by Mission.org 

Mission.org is a media studio producing content for world-class clients. Learn more at 

http://mission.org

Software applications are used by people like you and me. Therefore, shouldn't humans all over the world test them before they launch? Chris Malone, the CEO of Applause, explains how the Applause platform activates a community of experts to ensure applications will truly serve their users.

Tune in to learn:

• How to bring the power of software into the hands of consumers (8:30)
• What does Game Theory have to do with business? (9:49)
• What are the pros and cons of the gig economy? (14:20)
• What is the right way to win? (20:53)

Business X factors is produced by Mission.org and brought to you by Hyland. 

For over a decade, Hyland has been named a Leader in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for Content Services Platforms, leading the way to help people get the information they need when and where they need it. More than half of 2019 Fortune 100 companies rely on Hyland to help them create more meaningful connections with the people they serve. When your focus is on the people you serve, Hyland stands behind you. Hyland is your X factor for better performance. Go to http://www.Hyland.com/insights to learn more.

Mission.org is a media studio producing content for world-class clients. Learn more at 

http://mission.org

A team that’s divided will, ultimately, not be successful. Kevin Haverty, Senior Advisor to the CEO at ServiceNow, reveals that a unified team, as well as a unified product, will earn big wins.

Tune in to learn:

• How do you unify a large corporate team? (10:00)
• What does “interconnectedness” look like across departments? (12:15)
• What methods did ServiceNow use for organic growth? (15:00)
• What is next for cloud-based task streaming? (21:21)

Mentions:

• APA Article: What makes for a great team?

Business X factors is produced by Mission.org and brought to you by Hyland. 

For over a decade, Hyland has been named a Leader in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for Content Services Platforms, leading the way to help people get the information they need when and where they need it. More than half of 2019 Fortune 100 companies rely on Hyland to help them create more meaningful connections with the people they serve. When your focus is on the people you serve, Hyland stands behind you. Hyland is your X factor for better performance. Go to http://www.Hyland.com/insights to learn more.

Mission.org is a media studio producing content for world-class clients. Learn more at 

http://mission.org

For more than twenty years, Jim Ryan has helped shepherd Flexera, a global software company, into massive success. How has he managed to help keep core values in the midst of expansion? He stops by Business X factors to talk about scaling with integrity, following the money, and why bureaucracy might not be a dirty word, after all. 

Tune in to learn:

• How do you simplify complexity? (8:11)
• How is technology just like electricity? (10:18)
• What does it take to reduce IT spend? (11:50)
• What is the human touch you need when looking at IT spend? (13:00)
• How to bring technological innovation into your organization. (15:00)
• Where will the technological landscape be in 10 years? (17:00)
• Which scaling cliches actually have truth behind them? (18:50)

Business X factors is produced by Mission.org and brought to you by Hyland. 

For over a decade, Hyland has been named a Leader in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for Content Services Platforms, leading the way to help people get the information they need when and where they need it. More than half of 2019 Fortune 100 companies rely on Hyland to help them create more meaningful connections with the people they serve. When your focus is on the people you serve, Hyland stands behind you. Hyland is your X factor for better performance. Go to http://www.Hyland.com/insights to learn more.

Mission.org is a media studio producing content for world-class clients. Learn more at http://mission.org

Magic often connotes supernatural powers. In the case of Equinix, magic is an outward manifestation of its work to connect the world that is then internalized into the culture of the company. Equinix’s magic may be super but it is certainly grounded in a positivistic, human value. On this episode, Jon Lin, Executive Vice President and General Manager, Data Center Services & President, Americas at Equinix, reveals Equinix’s most powerful magical quality.

Tune in to learn:

• What does it look like to work at Verizon at the beginning of the tech boom? (4:45)
• How can you move from a result-oriented mindset to a servant-leadership mindset? (8:00)
• How does interconnection change the game for clients? (09:00)
• What does an egalitarian approach to internet access look like? (10:55)
• How do you maintain a healthy corporate culture? (12:00)
• What is “the Magic of Equinix”? (13:45)
• How can a company address mental health? (15:00)
• What does empathy look like on a global scale? (17:00)

Business X factors is produced by Mission.org and brought to you by Hyland. 

For over a decade, Hyland has been named a Leader in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for Content Services Platforms, leading the way to help people get the information they need when and where they need it. More than half of 2019 Fortune 100 companies rely on Hyland to help them create more meaningful connections with the people they serve. When your focus is on the people you serve, Hyland stands behind you. Hyland is your X factor for better performance. Go to http://www.Hyland.com/insights to learn more.

Mission.org is a media studio producing content for world-class clients. Learn more at http://mission.org

Transforming organizational communication can be tricky. It requires an all-in truth and trust effort from everyone involved. In this episode, Robert Glazer, the Founder and Chairman of the Board of Acceleration Partners, discusses how to craft a culture built on “respectful authenticity.”

Tune in to learn:

• Can you be honest with your employer? (0:12)
• What to do when you get to the level of burnout. (7:48)
• Some of the biggest lessons about hiring. (10:10)
• What is the value of affiliate marketing? (12:11)
• Where should trust fit into your operating strategy with customers and employees? (17:46)
• What is the equation that leads to a healthy organization? (19:38)

Business X factors is produced by Mission.org and brought to you by Hyland.

For over a decade, Hyland has been named a Leader in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for Content Services Platforms, leading the way to help people get the information they need when and where they need it. More than half of 2019 Fortune 100 companies rely on Hyland to help them create more meaningful connections with the people they serve. When your focus is on the people you serve, Hyland stands behind you. Hyland is your X factor for better performance. Go to Hyland.com/insights to learn more.

Mission.org is a media studio producing content for world-class clients. Learn more at 

mission.org.

The notion of self-awareness may bring to mind an image of a highly conscious individual meditating on a mountaintop — I’m sure we’d all love to be in that spot right now – taking deep breaths. It’s a nice picture, but self-awareness is not only for exceptional people in an amazingly beautiful environment. In simple terms, self-awareness means to know oneself, and it’s possible that this greater knowing can - and should - occur every day, both personally and in business.

On this episode of Business X factors, David Spitz, the CEO of ChannelAdvisor, gives a sense of how ChannelAdvisor was ideally situated to grow alongside the blossoming ecommerce industry. He also shares how self-awareness can lead to making intuitive decisions. 

Main takeaways: 

• Timing is Almost Everything: We often do not appreciate sufficiently how timing can make a substantial difference in life. For Spitz, his family bought a computer when acces to these machines was only beginning to come into the consciousness of some families in America. The access to this early computer was instrumental to the course Spitz’s life took.
• Knowing Oneself: Spitz discusses having “an irrational fear of failure.” This is surprising because many entrepreneurs and business leaders focus on accepting failure. Spitz makes the point that this self-knowledge allows him to make calibrations in how he responds to certain situations. Knowing oneself allows a leader, and even a company, to make better decisions. 
• Seeing the Connections: A leader can drill down into one area due to what feels like a necessarily intense, narrow focus. According to Spitz, taking a broader view across disciplines can help one see the connections between them. A pattern can then emerge that helps to fuel intuition concerning decisions that otherwise may not be clear cut. These frameworks can act like guides to inform decisions.

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Business X factors is produced by Mission.org and brought to you by Hyland. 

For over a decade, Hyland has been named a Leader in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for Content Services Platforms, leading the way to help people get the information they need when and where they need it. More than half of 2019 Fortune 100 companies rely on Hyland to help them create more meaningful connections with the people they serve. When your focus is on the people you serve, Hyland stands behind you. Hyland is your X factor for better performance. Go to Hyland.com/insights to learn more.

To be successful in business, whether founding a new company or climbing the ladder at one that’s already established, a person has to have a clear motivation. This is also true for a company. The question becomes: What is the strongest motivation for action? Is it ambition? Is it the desire for wealth? Could the answer really be… love?

On this episode of Business X factors, find out how a central value of love can motivate an individual and perhaps even an entire company. Jamie Farrell, the Chief Revenue Officer at Emeritus, explains how operating from a place of love is a core value of hers and how it may be a motivating force for Emeritus too. She chats about her own passion for education and how she determines if potential teammates have a sincere interest in learning. Jamie also discusses the importance of truly demonstrating to people that they are cared about through one’s actions.

Main takeaways: 

• Love as Making a Positive Difference: There can be a tendency at both the personal and business level to avoid talking about love. Perhaps this is because defining love often feels like trying to hit a moving target. That said, an integral part of love is acting to care for others. Farrell explains that Emeritus’s Founder and CEO, Ashwin Damera, defines his success, and that of the company, by how many lives they positively change. Love can be an incredible motivator and it ought to not be dismissed.  
• Placing a Number of Bets: Farrell describes how Emeritus’s business model is different from others. Some companies narrow in on one thing that they do well and then grow that particular business. Alternatively, according to Farrell, Emeritus adds new businesses to its fold to generate opportunities for more learners. Farrell points out that this does increase risk. Of course, greater risk can also mean more reward if the additional business bets prove correct. 
• Global Affordability Plus Access = Success: From Farrell’s perspective lots of education companies talk about providing education at a reasonable cost while also increasing paths to learning. She points out that Emeritus does have a tiered cost for a number of learning products but she describes the mentality about language as breaking the typical mold. Emeritus turns its courses into a variety of languages so that learners all over the world can get involved. The takeaway here is that it is important to think globally and to meet customers on their terms and in their languages.

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Business X factors is produced by Mission.org and brought to you by Hyland. 

For over a decade, Hyland has been named a Leader in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for Content Services Platforms, leading the way to help people get the information they need when and where they need it. More than half of 2019 Fortune 100 companies rely on Hyland to help them create more meaningful connections with the people they serve. When your focus is on the people you serve, Hyland stands behind you. Hyland is your X factor for better performance. Go to Hyland.com/insights to learn more

Identity management issues are difficult for enterprise companies and for consumers. According to Javelin’s 2021 Identity Fraud Study, there was 43 billion dollars worth of identity fraud scams in 2020. Small business owners to c-suite execs are all looking for the answer to security and simplicity, especially in the face of the enemies — bad actors and security systems that are too complicated to use. Everyone wants an answer, but perhaps the first step to a solution is for an identity management company to engage in an ongoing process of active listening.

On this episode of Business X factors, Fran Rosch, the CEO of ForgeRock, shares how ForgeRock, under his leadership, has developed a perpetual process to innovate toward solutions where customers do not have to compromise user experience or security. He reveals how this process includes listening, making decisions and then acting accordingly. Fran also chats about how ForgeRock does more than loftily talk about creativity; instead, it invests in the creative process, including ensuring its people are truly able to be creative. 

Main Takeaways: 

• A Perpetual Refining Process: When Rosch joined ForgeRock, he initiated “Project Rocket,” which was a process to activate change in the company. The process involved listening, making determinations, and then acting on them. The lesson here is not that a new CEO had an initial strategy in order to provide a jolt to a company. Instead, it is that “Project Rocket” has morphed into an ongoing process for ForgeRock’s self-reflection and improvement.  
• Think About Creative Investment: Many companies talk a good game about establishing a creative environment, but some don’t back up these words with actions. Rosch contends that creativity must be something that is actually invested in. Additionally, according to Rosch, supporting creativity is about setting up a culture where people are being listened to and helpful questions are also being asked.
• Diversity Is Key: Diversifying a workforce is imperative for a healthy culture and company, and there are many ways to consider diversity. Rosch speaks about fostering a “diversity of ideas,” and this includes gathering a team from many different backgrounds and experiences. He mentions that this sort of diversity is about getting ”creative ideas on the table.” Diversity and creativity are interconnected and they must both be considered in that manner.

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Business X factors is produced by Mission.org and brought to you by Hyland. 

For over a decade, Hyland has been named a Leader in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for Content Services Platforms, leading the way to help people get the information they need when and where they need it. More than half of 2019 Fortune 100 companies rely on Hyland to help them create more meaningful connections with the people they serve. When your focus is on the people you serve, Hyland stands behind you. Hyland is your X factor for better performance. Go to Hyland.com/insights to learn more

Outsourcing can be an ominous-sounding word. So can technology — especially if these words come to be associated with people losing their jobs. “The Future of Jobs Report 2020,” by the World Economic Forum, suggested that by 2025, 85 million jobs could be shifted over to machines, but, in exchange, 97 million new jobs might be created. Even if more jobs enter the economy overall, a labor force change of that magnitude can be disconcerting. 

Navigating that changing landscape requires new ideas, new systems and new companies. Which brings us to another word that can be frightening — outsiders. If people are on the outside of a system, maybe they’ve been put there for a justifiable reason, right? As any underdog story will tell you, that assumption is far from reality. 

Bryce Maddock is the Co-Founder and CEO of TaskUs, an outsourcing company that has had a winding path from living on the outside of the tech and investment circles to having an international reach, more than 30,000 employees, and using an ideal blend of tech and humanity to serve customers around the world. Find out on Business X factors just how this company that started out as an underdog became successful and how its outside perspective offers hidden advantages.

Main takeaways: 

• A Slow Start Can Be a Blessing: When Bryce and Jasper got started, they were barely surviving. Unlike other start-ups, they didn’t explode. They didn’t have investors pouring money into their ventures left and right. In fact, they couldn’t even afford to pay themselves a salary. But that was one thing that Bryce cites as a moment he wouldn’t trade – it made them very disciplined. In an industry full of jets and champagne and extravagance, they learned restraint – a lesson they’ve kept even as they’ve grown. Even if you have the ability to spend a lot up front… it is wise to act as though you don’t. Pretend you’re broke, and you might avoid actually being broke.  
• Narrow Your Scope: It might be counter-intuitive, but saying no can be just as powerful as saying yes. When you’re just starting, it’s easy to want to agree to take every job, no matter how big, small, or fringe. However, this strategy has a downside: it may stretch your resources too thin. It might take you into waters where your expertise can’t shine the way you need it to when you’re just starting out. Narrowing your scope means picking the projects you know you can deliver on. The ones that make it so that you can show the full extent of what your business has to offer. It might mean less capital up front, but having a strong portfolio and reputation will yield stronger returns in the long run. 
•  People First: It’s easy to let business be all about the numbers. After all, a new venture can’t succeed if the numbers don’t make sense. But investing in people will never be a waste of time. Curating a culture that cares about its workers means that more people will want to work for you, and the ones that do will want to stay. 

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Business X factors is produced by Mission.org and brought to you by Hyland. 

For over a decade, Hyland has been named a Leader in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for Content Services Platforms, leading the way to help people get the information they need when and where they need it. More than half of 2019 Fortune 100 companies rely on Hyland to help them create more meaningful connections with the people they serve. When your focus is on the people you serve, Hyland stands behind you. Hyland is your X factor for better performance. Go to Hyland.com/insights to learn more

Relatively successful businesses know the regulations in their industries and develop processes to work within them. So, they play a status quo-style of the game to some success. But game-changing businesses know the rules so well they actually play the game differently. They play boldly to win big and to scale. 

Rocket Companies is now a number of business entities, including Rocket Mortgage. At the beginning, however, two brothers, Dan and Gary Gilbert, co-founded Rock Financial to be a mortgage brokerage business. Early on there was only a small number of employees and now there are 26,000 across a variety of companies. Bob Walters, CEO of Rocket Mortgage and President and Chief Operating Officer of Rocket Companies, rose through the ranks, and on this episode of Business X factors, he shares the mentality he learned along the way that allowed Rocket Companies to make new rules for the game.

Main takeaways: 

• Remote Possibilities: According to Walters, two big bets on remote opportunities have led to Rocket Companies’ success. The first was when Rock Financial created a mortgage product that could be mailed called “Mortgage In A Box.” Later on, the second was a push, led by Dan Gilbert, to move on from a brick-and-mortar model to lean into the internet to connect to customers. This effort ultimately led to the fully online mortgage experience offered by Rocket Mortgage. Walters describes that some saw the chance of having success by implementing an online strategy as remote. The lesson here is to trust one’s instinct. Especially today, there are many opportunities to innovate with both distance and digital in mind.
• Smart Simplicity: Walters discusses how some people seem to enjoy talking in complex terms, but that mentality can be self-serving. He makes the case that a higher level is to take something that is complicated and then work diligently to make it simple for other people to understand.
• Making New Rules: To work within a regulated industry, it’s necessary to fully appreciate the rules. But it’s also possible to know the rules so well that a company can decide to play the game differently. Walters shares how Rocket Companies has continuously adjusted the game to cater to customers while scaling. Moreover, he suggests that they have redefined the very notion of profitability to include making a substantial, constructive impact on communities and people that can use a boost.

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Business X factors is produced by Mission.org and brought to you by Hyland. 

For over a decade, Hyland has been named a Leader in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for Content Services Platforms, leading the way to help people get the information they need when and where they need it. More than half of 2019 Fortune 100 companies rely on Hyland to help them create more meaningful connections with the people they serve. When your focus is on the people you serve, Hyland stands behind you. Hyland is your X factor for better performance. Go to Hyland.com/insights to learn more

One look at the news today will tell you the world is facing a whole host of problems: from political upheaval to the socio-economic effects of Covid-19 all the way to climate change – it’s pretty clear we have a lot of work to do. At times, it can really feel like we’re being overwhelmed by the issues we have to tackle. 

So, it’s nice to know that there are people who look at these problems not with an overwhelmed sense of dread, but with a deep sense of determination – and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory is full of those kinds of people. 

LLNL is advancing nuclear weapons science, and focuses on a variety of other energy, national security, and technological research problems. The Lab, headed by Director Kim Budil, is staring down the crises that face all of us, and it’s doing so by mixing the realms of scientific exploration and entrepreneurial grit to bring innovative solutions to the table. But how does LLNL find a balance between competition and collaboration? Find out on Business X factors.

Main takeaways: 

• Forge Extreme Partnerships: No company is able to do it all, especially as the challenges of today’s world keep getting more complex. The solution is what Intel’s Jason Kimrey and John Kalvin refer to as “Extreme Partnerships.” To adapt to complexity, they suggest bringing together best-of-breed companies. Acknowledge that you don’t know everything, be willing to defer to the greatest expertise, think service rather than stand-alone systems, and adapt to longer sale cycles. 
• Teamwork = Success: Yuval Noah Harari wrote in his book Sapiens how our ancestors were pretty insignificant animals until they started acting as a collective. All the huge achievements in humankind, he says, are because of the ability to cooperate flexibly in large numbers. In business, teamwork is essential to a company’s success. In a 2020 issue of American Psychologist, a raft of evidence was presented to prove that teamwork can make more people smarter, more creative, and more successful while McKinsey found that diverse teams are more creative and perform better by 35%. 
• Curiosity Marks a Great Leader: Curiosity is regarded by executive coaches as an ‘elite’ communication skill. According to executive coach, Stephynie Malik, curiosity is not merely asking questions, it is targeted, thoughtful questions to verify behaviors and align intentions. Leaders’ questions may be viewed by many as permission to do the same which could unlock transformational results. 

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Business X factors is produced by Mission.org and brought to you by Hyland. 

For over a decade, Hyland has been named a Leader in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for Content Services Platforms, leading the way to help people get the information they need when and where they need it. More than half of 2019 Fortune 100 companies rely on Hyland to help them create more meaningful connections with the people they serve. When your focus is on the people you serve, Hyland stands behind you. Hyland is your X factor for better performance. Go to Hyland.com/insights to learn more.

What if to save and sustain the planet, it meant unleashing creativity with personalized, on-demand fashion? It may sound too good to be true, but Ronen Samuel, the CEO of Kornit Digital, explains why this model is both immensely profitable for business and utterly essential for the world. 

At Kornit, Ronan is combining the concepts of personalization and customization with a mission of sustainability and efficiency. The outcome is a business model that both saves its bottom line and saves the planet in the process. So how exactly is Kornit leveraging these ideas to transform the fashion industry? And in what ways is the company bridging the physical and virtual worlds to create what’s never before been created? Find out on this episode of Business X factors.

Main takeaways: 

• Customization is Key: Custom or luxury experiences used to be available only to the upper echelons of spenders, but ecommerce has made custom experiences more accessible, which is something that today’s consumers require. Research by Accenture has indicated 91% of customers prefer to work with a brand that offers them recommendations and remembers their preferences. Buyers want to feel like they have bought something special, so this should be your priority. 
• The Need For Speed: A survey by BCG found that overlong development times were the most-cited obstacle to generating returns on innovation and product development. On the flip side, the survey found that fast innovators were more likely to be strong innovators and that the benefits of speed are faster innovation, lower development costs, larger market share, and greater forecasting accuracy. 
• Where’s My Avatar?: Forward-thinking brands are starting to push digital avatars into another orbit. Einstein Marketing believes that a customer avatar – a detailed profile of your ideal customer – should be a fundamental element of a marketing strategy. It will help product development, content marketing, help you to target the ideal customer, and improve user experience.

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Business X factors is produced by Mission.org and brought to you by Hyland. 

For over a decade, Hyland has been named a Leader in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for Content Services Platforms, leading the way to help people get the information they need when and where they need it. More than half of 2019 Fortune 100 companies rely on Hyland to help them create more meaningful connections with the people they serve. When your focus is on the people you serve, Hyland stands behind you. Hyland is your X factor for better performance. Go to Hyland.com/insights to learn more.

To reinvent yourself, you must destroy part of yourself. The only way you can do this is by embracing change and creating a culture where innovation can be nurtured and acted on. Ismail Amla, the Executive Vice-President of Professional Services of NCR on how this 130 year old company retained its staying power and harnessed the ability to stay relevant. 

NCR started with a cash register but has expanded far beyond that in the years since. So how is Ismail helping to bring NCR’s 130-year legacy into the modern world and helping NCR’s consumers along the way? How has the company continued to stay at the cutting edge all these years? Find out on Business X factors. 

Main takeaways: 

• Big But Still Bold: Large organizations or companies are often painted as dinosaurs and the overriding narrative is that only scrappy startups are nimble enough to harness innovation for growth. This is rejected by Ismail Amla and Vivek Wadwha in their book, From Incremental to Exponential: How Large Companies Can See the Future and Rethink Innovation. They argue that big companies have boatloads of customer data, decades of brand equity, robust distributional channels, and enormous financial assets that make it possible to remake their businesses. But doing so requires courage and fortitude.
• Sponsor Change: Executives at the top need to be the ones who embrace and create an environment that yields innovation and change. Make it normal practice that different departments interact with each other, even if only informally. The more you can get people to come together, the more that you will find ideas can flow naturally, and executives have to lead the charge in making that happen. 
• The Need for Speed: In the past two years, decision-making, productivity, and the scale and scope of innovation has accelerated, and according to McKinsey, there is no turning back. Technology and people interacting in new ways is at the heart of the new operating model for businesses and as a result, post-pandemic organization should be reinvented for speed. This can be done by rethinking ways of working, flattening the structure, unleashing nimble teams, providing options, and targeting top talent. 

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Business X factors is produced by Mission.org and brought to you by Hyland. 

For over a decade, Hyland has been named a Leader in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for Content Services Platforms, leading the way to help people get the information they need when and where they need it. More than half of 2019 Fortune 100 companies rely on Hyland to help them create more meaningful connections with the people they serve. When your focus is on the people you serve, Hyland stands behind you. Hyland is your X factor for better performance. Go to Hyland.com/insights to learn more.

Some serial entrepreneurs like Sir Richard Branson or Elon Musk captivate the collective imagination and rise to achieve celebrity status. We’re fascinated by those who are able to constantly build businesses or products yet the well never seems to dry up. It’s easy to put charismatic leaders on a pedestal who seem to have limitless energy, but we are only seeing glimpses of people’s lives in the media.

How can business leaders, whether c-suite executives or entrepreneurs, maintain a healthy work-life balance so that they can continue to give back to their work and to the world?

And what cauldron of experience and beliefs drives the sort of business leader who wants to become one of the greatest of all time?

Scott Donnell is a serial entrepreneur with many businesses and projects. Currently, these range from Hapbee, which creates and sells a device that uses magnetic fields to improve a person’s mood; to GravyStack, an app that helps educate kids on finances; to HeroMaker Studios, a decentralized comic’s universe. And just recently, Scott sold off Apex Education, a company that helps kids develop leadership skills and have fun with fitness, all while fundraising for their schools.

But simply selling his diverse catalog of companies isn’t the goal. No, Scott’s ambitions go far beyond an impressive exit.    

Scott wants to be a new breed of GOAT — a well rounded greatest of all time who wins in business but is equally successful in terms of family, faith, and health too. It’s a mission that many overworked business leaders have aspired — and struggled — to achieve… but Scott is actually doing it. Find out how on this episode of Business X factors.

Main takeaways: 

• Find a Coach: When business leaders find themselves in a position where they want to grow or pivot or perhaps want to ensure that they don’t stagnate, finding a life or business coach can be an important tool to get them to the next step. As Einstein famously said, “We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used to create them.” A coach could help business leaders with different kinds of thinking to get out of their comfort zone and give unbiased opinions and direction.  Studies have shown that coaching is effective in reducing procrastination and facilitating goal attainment. 
• Get Your Business to Self-Manage: Micromanaging every detail of a business may be important to get a business off the ground, but the ultimate goal should be a self-managed company where the role of the founder or executives is to let go of the day-to-day tasks. Empower team members to solve problems without constantly reviewing and approving decisions. Stepping back instead of managing from problem to problem allows leaders to focus on the vision of the company. 
• Pass on Generational Wisdom: For the first time, there could be five generations in the workforce. Starting from the youngest, Generation Z, Millennials, Gen X, Boomers and Traditionalists with each seeing the world differently. The benefits of generational diversity is knowledge sharing — this is true whether it is within a family or a business. Deloitte’s Global Human Capital Trends (2020) found that 70% of organizations believe that multi-generational workforces are important for success but only 6% believed their leaders were equipped to deal with it. An inclusive culture that celebrates generational diversity is created by educating employees to understand differences, reject stereotypes and misinformation and to help every generation develop a world view. 

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Business X factors is produced by Mission.org and brought to you by Hyland. 

For over a decade, Hyland has been named a Leader in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for Content Services Platforms, leading the way to help people get the information they need when and where they need it. More than half of 2019 Fortune 100 companies rely on Hyland to help them create more meaningful connections with the people they serve. When your focus is on the people you serve, Hyland stands behind you. Hyland is your X factor for better performance. Go to Hyland.com/insights to learn more.

When Steve Smith joined Zayo as CEO, he found himself at the head of a company that was a Frankenstein of 46 acquisitions. And while the company’s decentralized approach had served it well in the early years, Steve saw an opportunity to take the company further. This time — and almost paradoxically — through centralization.

Zayo is a communications infrastructure company that ensures its customers have the fiber bandwidth they need to achieve their missions. They are a respected team with a business model that’s not going out of style. But they hit a wall in their own development. Find out on this episode of Business X factors how Steve married their decentralized approach with a centralized one -- all while still empowering the innovation and creativity that defines the company.

Main takeaways: 

• Have a Plan for Centralization:  If you decide to centralize the processes of a business after acquisitions or mergers, slogans like “think global, act local” or “create a lean but activist center” may sound good, but they do not provide a recipe in all circumstances. The Boston Consulting Group has identified four principles to create a value-adding corporate center. It includes careful assessment of the situations in which the center genuinely adds value and those in which it does not. Emphasizing strategy over structure; letting the business drive the center — not vice versa — and BCG advises companies to be self-critical about central capabilities. Be prepared to revisit and revise choices when circumstances change. 
• Listen, Learn, Lead: When the heat is on, rally the team or troops around a common mission or a change in strategy. Don’t scare employees into working harder with threats and blame — inspire them to do battle together to succeed. Anchor the organization by focusing on what people need to do differently and lead people into thinking how they can play a role. Encourage employees to speak frankly without finger-pointing, listen to ideas on how to better collaborate and innovate and be clear you are open to two-way conversations. 
• See Around Corners: Risk assessment typically exposes only the most direct threats to a company while indirect ones are neglected. McKinsey has found that while it is not easy to anticipate how risk cascades through a company or economy; executives who systematically examine the way risks propagate across the whole value chain can foresee and prepare for second-order effects more successfully. Investigate competitors, supply chains, distribution channels, customer response and the full impact of a major risk on a company and think about how your risk cascades to gain insight into what is around the corner. ---

Business X factors is produced by Mission.org and brought to you by Hyland. 

For over a decade, Hyland has been named a Leader in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for Content Services Platforms, leading the way to help people get the information they need when and where they need it. More than half of 2019 Fortune 100 companies rely on Hyland to help them create more meaningful connections with the people they serve. When your focus is on the people you serve, Hyland stands behind you. Hyland is your X factor for better performance. Go to Hyland.com/insights to learn more.

In a moment of crisis, some people freeze up. Others spring into action because they’ve learned lessons along the way to help them see their way through tough situations. Even one moment or inch of daylight in the darkness can be enough to hold onto to provide hope. People and companies have risen from the ashes before, and if something amazing has happened once, then certainly that means something beautiful can be created again no matter the challenge, right?  

EideCom is a live production and events company that connects people through online events. When live events were put on hold, Founder and CEO, Charles Eide created a second company, Second Stage, that connects people through online events. It was a key pivot to stay active and serve customers at the cutting edge of creating online and hybrid event experiences – they are very much guiding the future of the entertainment space. Rather than giving up on events, EideCom and Second Stage found a way to keep the spectacle alive. On this episode of Business X factors, find out how EideCom and Second Stage have been able to keep the show going no matter what obstacle gets in the way, and consider what lessons you can apply to your business to stay flexible and dynamic in our ever evolving economy. Plus, stay tuned for more of Charles’s story of how there’s an EideCom event connection involving the pope and Justin Bieber.

Main takeaways: 

• Virtual Has to Be a Spectacle: Hosting a virtual event requires the same care and attention that in-person events would be given as it is so easy for attendees to just switch off. They need to be crafted to become value-added, engagement-driven experiences that go well beyond the computer screen. To ensure engagement, get creative with visuals, live stream on social media, create a personal real world experience by sending a DIY kit for something like wine-tasting, personalize the event with a virtual experience and connect people with others when possible as networking is the major reason why people attend events. 
• Pivot in Times of Crisis: Companies like Spotify and Unilever have successfully navigated the pandemic by pivoting their business model. But not all business pivots have been successful. The Harvard Business Review have identified three conditions for successful pivots. Pivots must align the firm with one or more long-term trends intensified by the pandemic, they should come as a lateral extension of the firm’s existing capabilities that cement its strategic intention and it must offer a sustainable path to profitability that preserves and enhances brand value. 
• The art of Persuasion with Optioning: In most negotiations to secure a deal or an agreement there can be an impasse or a deadlock. It could be Charles Eide who needs haze at an event or a business trying to close a deal that drags on. Apart from applying techniques like taking a break, setting aside anger, getting assistance and changing venues; open-ended brainstorming could be a way of breaking a deadlock. It is also known as optioning which is opening up discussions for options that are either obscure or outside the normal realm of possibility. It is an effective technique to unleash the creative juices and could ensure mutual gains.

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Business X factors is produced by Mission.org and brought to you by Hyland. 

For over a decade, Hyland has been named a Leader in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for Content Services Platforms, leading the way to help people get the information they need when and where they need it. More than half of 2019 Fortune 100 companies rely on Hyland to help them create more meaningful connections with the people they serve. When your focus is on the people you serve, Hyland stands behind you. Hyland is your X factor for better performance. Go to Hyland.com/insights to learn more.

Fate is often associated with the divine. It’s this idea that things are pre-ordained by a higher power and that outcomes are out of an individual’s control. There’s no doubt that there’s a lot of life that can’t be controlled. But there’s another way to look at destiny — it can be about making foundational choices that give a particular vision the best chance to be realized over time. 

Then, the outcome may look predestined to an outsider, but in reality, destiny is being determined by an established mission, the major choices that underpin it, and the many smaller decisions, adjusted as needed, made to achieve it. This does not mean there will never be setbacks or failures. It simply means this mentality increases the opportunities within one’s control to move ever closer to the goal. 

Bruce Baumgartner, the Vice President of Procurement  & Strategic Partnerships at Zoox, a vertically integrated autonomous vehicle company, that appears destined to build a fleet of autonomous taxis. 

But is Zoox’s desire to control its destiny only about succeeding at building autonomous vehicles, or does it have an even higher mission it’s striving to achieve? Find out on this episode of Business X factors how destiny can be controlled by an individual person, and even by an entire company, if that drive is aligned with a higher purpose.

Main takeaways: 

• Vertical Integration Pushes Innovation: To expand businesses, companies can choose to either grow horizontally with acquisitions or vertically, where products are developed in-house. The advantage of vertical integration is more control over product quality, the planning of production and alignment with the needs of the in-house end product. There is less dependence on suppliers, lower shipping costs, more design flexibility and efficient investment. Companies can avoid interference and adapt products faster. 
• Go Big or Go Home: Normally, betting the house is not good advice, but when it comes to start-ups the advice of Theodore Roosevelt that, “You must dare greatly, step into the area and give it your all,” could be a good strategy. To be an entrepreneur, you will find yourself in an arena where the competition is great and standing on the sidelines is not an option. It can be terrifying when you have everything on the line, cash is tight and things are tough when you take big risks, but they can be managed. Make the hard decisions sooner rather than later, consider the consequences of risk, ask yourself the right questions, have a backup plan, plan for all risk scenarios, and understand the odds you are up against. 
• Sustainability from the Word Go: Many companies do not have a comprehensive understanding of the sustainability impacts of their supply chain. If you are an entrepreneur that is growing your business vertically, ensure that sustainability is built into the supply chain right from the start. For businesses that uses suppliers, an early step is to inventory suppliers, identify the most significant environment and social challenges they have, and prioritize suppliers according to that. New Balance Athletic Shoe is an example of a company that has reduced its footwear supply chain by 65% to form strong positive partnerships with its suppliers based on sustainability criteria.

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Business X factors is produced by Mission.org and brought to you by Hyland. 

For over a decade, Hyland has been named a Leader in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for Content Services Platforms, leading the way to help people get the information they need when and where they need it. More than half of 2019 Fortune 100 companies rely on Hyland to help them create more meaningful connections with the people they serve. When your focus is on the people you serve, Hyland stands behind you. Hyland is your X factor for better performance. Go to Hyland.com/insights to learn more.