whatisacoo

Marshall Freeman is the COO of the Atlanta Police Foundation (APF), a non-profit organization on a mission to make Atlanta America’s safest large city. In this episode, he details why the APF’s public-private partnership model enables them to pivot and act quickly leading to one of the lowest reported cases of COVID-19 for police officers. Discover what goes on behind-the-scenes as Marshall describes the crime prevention playbook and business infrastructure that serve as the cornerstone and foundation of the APF’s successes.

TV Producers have more in common with COOs and Project Managers than you might think. As Emmy-nominated producer Janice Jensen explains, “We’re all responsible for putting together the pieces” to deliver a profitable product on time and within budget. In this episode, Janice draws from her experience in producing hit shows like Tiny House, Big Living to explain what goes on behind the scenes in coordinating the people, processes, and tools required from pre- to post-production. You’ll also hear be among the first to learn more about her revolutionary new video-based app.

Jon Reid’s exposure to operations, auditing, and finance began during his tenure at General Electric. That experience serves as the cornerstone of his longevity as a C-suite executive and advisor. In this episode, Jon draws from his experience working with various Fortune 500 companies to give small business owners an operational model to aspire to. He explains why introverts make great COOs, why you should surround yourself with people smarter than you, and why small businesses must be creative when expanding since they can’t always access lines of credit the way enterprises can.

“If you don’t have customers, you don’t have a business,” and this is why “You have to always think about continuous improvement.” Wise words from Adam Hayes, a civil engineer who now consults and serves as an operations advisor across various industries.  In this episode, Adam reveals the three types of customers every business should consider as well as internal questions you should ask yourself as a guide to meet customer expectations, measure what matters, and ultimately increase profitability.

Operational excellence and business infrastructure are common threads throughout Elzie Flenard’s career. As a former electronics engineer and operations manager, turned podcast producer, he can attest to how important company culture along with a validated improvement model is in getting things done. In this episode, Elzie breaks down the correct order in building business infrastructure as he emphasizes the importance of securing the right people first, then processes, and last the tools. Learn why he says operations can be your company’s profitable differentiator.

As technology and customers become smarter so does the expectation for companies to be faster, better, and cheaper. Back-office workflows now go beyond order-to-delivery, procure-to-pay, and intake-to-discharge. They also include customer engagement – a task once owned by marketing. In this episode, David Ellin taps into his experiences as a COO and VP of Customer Success to give a crash course on the importance of retooling processes, measuring what matters, and conducting kaizen events to enhance customer experience and profit.

With a background in cultural anthropology, certified coaching, and leadership development, Marvell Allen brings a distinct perspective to her C-suite clients. She has a particular knack for helping them eliminate egos and silos as barriers to getting things done. In this episode, Marvell explains how COOs (or anyone in charge of operations) can keep CEOs off the ledge. But, she says, they in turn need support in executing on strategy and keeping the entire supply chain intact. Discover the business infrastructure techniques she says can help.

Maria Jones describes Chief Operating Officers (COOs) as the “Innovators of execution.” Their role as second-in-command to CEOs is vital to business continuity and delivering on sales promises. Yet, many leaders don’t understand what they do and overlook operations as the core of any business.  In this episode, Maria kicks off Season 8 by debunking common myths about COOs as well as operations using analogies and examples that make their value undeniable.  She also shares key metrics every business should measure to assess performance.

Wingman. The No. 2. The Second-in-Command – all of these terms describe the Chief Operating Officer (COO). When Bill Shepard pivoted from a 25+ year tenure in the C-suite to independent consulting, he couldn’t find a supportive group of COOs. So he started his own. 15 years later, The COO Forum boasts 35 chapters and 18k members in their online group.  In this episode, Bill describes the three areas that drive businesses forward, debunks myths about COOs, and defines the role COOs play in driving execution.