ReportWire

Tag: Business Culture

  • Retention Starts on Day One — And It’s on Leaders, Not HR | Entrepreneur

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    Research shows that 70% of new employees decide whether a job is the right fit within their first month, including 29% within the first week. Despite this, the conversation around employee retention in many companies starts far too late.

    It often begins only after people have already disengaged and are considering leaving. At that point, HR may step in to address concerns and offer perks that were previously overlooked, but by then, it’s frequently a last-ditch effort.

    These late-stage actions have their place, but the decision to stay or leave is ultimately driven by the leadership people experience every day. Employees stay when they are led well, when they are hired into teams that work, when they trust the tone and consistency of their leaders and when what the company says matches what they live.

    It is observed that 70% of the variance in team engagement, which defines the employee experience, comes from managers. However, most often, leadership treats culture and retention as HR’s function instead of taking ownership of delegating trust.

    But if you want a team that people want to stay on, leadership has to build it every day from the very first hire.

    Related: This Is the Retention Strategy You’re Probably Overlooking

    Why companies get this wrong

    I’ve worked with countless leaders who want to build great teams. But wanting that and knowing how to do it are two different things. Most of us are never really taught how to create an environment where people choose to stay and do their best work. More often, we figure it out on the fly, after years of trial and error.

    And what ultimately shapes that experience is not a formal culture program. It is the everyday signals leaders send, who they choose to hire, how teams are built and how they respond when things go well and, more importantly, when they don’t.

    These are the cues people watch as they tell them what the company values and whether they can see themselves growing here.

    It took me years of pattern-spotting to see which leadership habits improve retention. Five, in particular, have stayed with me as practical ways to do that work. They might help you as well.

    Related: Your Retention Crisis Won’t End Until You Make This Shift

    Practice 1: How you hire determines who stays

    Hiring still relies too heavily on technical skills, which is the easiest part to measure. But it’s not a lack of skills that drives people out the door; it’s a poor fit for the role or the culture.

    When employees leave, they usually explain that the job was not what they expected or that they could not see a future for themselves. Those are hiring mistakes, not performance problems. The people who last see meaning in the company’s direction and feel the team is a place where they can grow. Skills may open the door, but alignment and motivation make people stay.

    Practice 2: How you shape the team determines how it performs

    Every new hire reshapes the team you already have. The wrong hire, even a skilled one, can weaken trust and make collaboration harder.

    A strong hire can lift the team by bringing balance and energy. The difference is not always visible on day one, but over time, it shows in how the team communicates and performs. That is why, before hiring, it’s important to examine the team’s state and ask whether this person will strengthen or disrupt its rhythm.

    Practice 3: What you allow becomes the culture

    The culture is defined by what you reward and tolerate, not what you say. You can talk about collaboration in any way you want. But if managers reward individual heroics and tolerate siloed behavior, that’s your culture.

    You can include “innovation” in your values. But if people are punished for small failures or if leaders tolerate endless risk-avoidance, the real culture is fear. If you want to build a culture worth staying in, be honest about what you are rewarding and what you are letting slide.

    Related: Don’t Underestimate the Power of Company Culture — It Matters.

    Practice 4: Leadership attention drives retention

    As companies grow, the distance between leaders and the rest of the organization grows with them. If you do not close that gap with intention, trust begins to fade, no matter how strong your culture looks on paper.

    You will not hold alignment with a memo or an all-hands. What matters are the signals where you spend time, and how you show up when pressure is high.

    People watch most closely in uncertain moments and leave when the leadership they experience no longer matches what they were promised.

    Culture is held together less by proximity and more by deliberate presence. It drifts when leaders stop showing up in ways that keep people connected to the mission and one another.

    Practice 5: Your energy sets the tone

    One thing that took me years to fully appreciate is that your energy is contagious as a leader. What you project through tone, attention, body language, and behavior directly shapes how people around you feel and perform.

    Calm steadiness builds confidence, while restless energy spreads just as quickly. The people who carry your culture most strongly are usually the first to feel it. They pick up on your tone, and their reaction influences the rest of the team. When they sense balance and clarity, they magnify it.

    Therefore, before stepping into a room, decide how you want people to feel and bring that energy with you. Your tone matters as much as your decisions in moments of change or pressure. When people feel steadiness from you, they find it in themselves and give more of their best.

    Related: Keep Your Top Talent with These 3 Employee Retention Secrets

    Retention is earned or lost in leadership

    Perks and HR policies play a role, but can’t compensate for weak leadership. Retention is built in leaders’ everyday work, including who they hire, what they reward, where they show up, and the tone they set.

    If you want teams, people want to stay on; lead them in a way that makes staying the natural choice.

    Research shows that 70% of new employees decide whether a job is the right fit within their first month, including 29% within the first week. Despite this, the conversation around employee retention in many companies starts far too late.

    It often begins only after people have already disengaged and are considering leaving. At that point, HR may step in to address concerns and offer perks that were previously overlooked, but by then, it’s frequently a last-ditch effort.

    These late-stage actions have their place, but the decision to stay or leave is ultimately driven by the leadership people experience every day. Employees stay when they are led well, when they are hired into teams that work, when they trust the tone and consistency of their leaders and when what the company says matches what they live.

    The rest of this article is locked.

    Join Entrepreneur+ today for access.

    Bidhan Baruah

    Source link

  • Why I Prioritize People Over Profit | Entrepreneur

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    Every business decision reflects a value system, even if it’s not named outright. When sales drop, do you cut costs or beef up your sales team once you’ve confirmed your sales strategy still works? That choice reveals where you put your weight, i.e., what you prioritize when resources are constrained but the company still has room to maneuver.

    For me, the answer is to invest in the right people. However, some organizations make the choice of never calling out which approach is driving their decision-making.

    Instead of making a strategic choice, these companies operate from unnamed assumptions. This leaves their leaders in a precarious situation. When a crisis hits, some choose security while others choose growth, creating confusion and conflict. That is a value killer.

    It’s people who create value, however you define it — be it profit, revenue, standards or culture — and the leader’s job is to give them the clarity they need to align their roles with organizational goals. So here is how to bring those values to the surface to create space for principled decisions, even when the right path isn’t easy or perfect.

    Related: Why Profits Over People Is Destined to Fail

    The cost of unnamed priorities

    Decision-making can be a good gauge of how well an organization is aligning its priorities. The bigger the company, the higher the cost of people pulling in different directions. McKinsey found that fewer than half of the 1,200 global business leaders it surveyed described their decisions as timely, and many of their decision-making processes were ineffective.

    Decision paralysis does not afflict companies because they lack data like sales, profit and headcount, but because they haven’t named their values or aligned their value within the company as part of their culture. When priorities aren’t explicit, people judge each other’s actions through their own value lens. Then they get frustrated when the other party is doing it differently.

    There are exceptions. When survival is at stake due to looming bankruptcy or market crashes, the scope of decision-making narrows and cost-cutting becomes unavoidable. However, in most downturns, I have to align the whole team on what we should do. It’s then that I prioritize people over short-term profit concerns, not because I ignore financial results, but because empowered people build sustainable businesses over time.

    When values clash

    The tension between people and profit isn’t theoretical — it’s a lived reality on a daily basis. Corporate culture is basically an aligned value system that needs to be called out so everyone follows it to maximize effectiveness.

    We need to see value systems not as obstacles, but as guiding forces. They help reveal what matters most when trade-offs feel murky. Think about these clashes of values, which companies of different sizes may face without clear priorities:

    • Speed vs. quality: Do you ship fast or perfect the product before going to market?

    • Innovation vs. efficiency: Explore new markets or optimize current operations?

    • Customer satisfaction vs. margins: Absorb costs to build reputation or protect profitability of the current quarter?

    • Centralization vs. autonomy: Head-office control or local decision-making?

    Confronted with these kinds of tensions, I don’t aim to impose my values, but I also don’t believe avoiding the conversation serves anyone. Instead of choosing between competing values, the goal is to agree on the structure for how we balance them or prioritize one over the other under what conditions. Forget neutrality. Prioritizing and balancing values is not a 50-50 proposition. Instead, we first have to lean into conflict to create clarity.

    Related: Holding True to Your Values Is an Essential Decision-Making Metric

    Bringing values to the surface

    The best approach to get everyone on the same page is practical, although perhaps sometimes uncomfortable. If I am on the management team and there’s disagreement between whether to cut costs or invest in more people, let that argument surface at the table so everyone can discuss it from their own perspective.

    Cost-cutting is not necessarily anti-people. And investing in people is definitely not anti-profit for the long run. But it may feel the wrong way when decisions aren’t grounded in a shared value framework.

    The safety versus speed crisis over at OpenAI showed how misaligned values can play out if leaders are divided. The board operated from OpenAI’s original nonprofit mission that put safety first, while CEO Sam Altman valued speed to market. When Altman was briefly fired in 2023, the chaos that followed — employee revolt and investor panic — put the organization at existential risk.

    The resolution came only when OpenAI built a frame that let them hold both safety and innovation together. To avoid value killers like OpenAI’s one-time crisis, values need to be named explicitly. If there’s conflict over assumed values, this is your opportunity to build structures that hold them in balance.

    Related: How Putting People Before Profit Fueled My Company’s Long-Term Success

    Values as navigation tools

    The lesson from OpenAI was that every growing organization faces moments when values seem to clash. In mission-driven companies especially, scaling brings tension between staying true to purpose and chasing market opportunities. Rather than avoiding that tension, it must be confronted.

    This isn’t about moral superiority or choosing sides in some philosophical debate. The organizations that thrive are the ones that make their priorities explicit and have the agility to balance them when they appear to conflict. That’s what putting people first actually means: giving your team the clarity they need to navigate complex choices and create lasting value together.

    Every business decision reflects a value system, even if it’s not named outright. When sales drop, do you cut costs or beef up your sales team once you’ve confirmed your sales strategy still works? That choice reveals where you put your weight, i.e., what you prioritize when resources are constrained but the company still has room to maneuver.

    For me, the answer is to invest in the right people. However, some organizations make the choice of never calling out which approach is driving their decision-making.

    Instead of making a strategic choice, these companies operate from unnamed assumptions. This leaves their leaders in a precarious situation. When a crisis hits, some choose security while others choose growth, creating confusion and conflict. That is a value killer.

    The rest of this article is locked.

    Join Entrepreneur+ today for access.

    Simin Cai, Ph.D.

    Source link

  • Don’t Run From Failure — Run Toward It. Here’s Why. | Entrepreneur

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    We’re trained to avoid failure like it’s a contagious disease.

    At school, failing wasn’t just about getting a bad grade — it was about getting labeled. If you didn’t pass, you weren’t just “behind,” you were branded. Pulled into extra classes, singled out in front of your peers and whispered about in the hallways. It can feel like public shame dressed up as education.

    When you grow up in that kind of system, what you learn fast is: Don’t mess up. Don’t take risks. Don’t give anyone a reason to think less of you. And the biggest lesson? Stay in your lane.

    The problem is that that mindset doesn’t prepare you for the real world — especially if you want to lead, build or create anything meaningful. Because here’s the truth: If you’re afraid to fail, you’ll never truly succeed.

    Related: Want to Be a Successful Entrepreneur? Fail.

    The fear that holds us back

    Fear of failure isn’t just about the actual mistake — it’s about the imagined fallout.

    • What will people think?
    • Will they see me as incompetent? Reckless? Stupid?
    • Will this cost me my reputation, my relationships, my livelihood?

    And because those fears feel heavy and real, we avoid taking the shot. We stay where it’s “safe,” never realizing that “safe” is just a slow, quiet way to fail anyway.

    As leaders, that fear can be deadly. It keeps us from innovating, from hiring bold talent, from experimenting with new products or ideas. It makes us reactive instead of proactive. And when the market shifts — as it always does — the leaders who’ve been too scared to risk anything are the ones left scrambling.

    How I learned to get comfortable with losing

    The real turning point for me wasn’t some massive success — it was being okay with losing. But that didn’t happen overnight.

    When I started my business, I brought that school-based fear of failure right along with me. I worried about how my decisions would look. I avoided risks that felt “too visible.” I overworked myself trying to make sure nothing went wrong — and when something inevitably did, I beat myself up for weeks.

    But here’s what changed everything: I realized failure without feedback is just a loss. But failure with insight? That’s an investment.

    When you stop seeing failure as a verdict and start treating it as raw material, it becomes the most valuable thing you have.

    Over the last eight years, I’ve:

    • Mismanaged people and learned how to lead better.
    • Made bad hires and learned how to recruit with sharper instincts.
    • Invested in projects that flopped and learned where my market actually is.
    • Lost more money (and time) than I’d like to admit — and learned exactly how to make it back (and more).

    None of those lessons came from the times things went perfectly. Every single one was purchased with the currency of failure.

    Related: 4 Key Strategies to Help Entrepreneurs Cope With Failure

    How school got it wrong

    Part of why this mindset is so hard to adopt is that it’s almost the opposite of what we were trained to believe.

    Our education system rewards perfection and punishes missteps. You’re graded on what you got right, not on how many creative attempts you made. You’re celebrated for the A, not for the questions you dared to ask or the risks you took to get there.

    And that’s fine if your career goal is “ace tests forever.” But in real life, success is about trying, adapting and trying again — fast. It’s about iteration, not immaculate execution on the first go.

    If you’ve ever wondered why so many talented people never reach their potential, this is it. They’ve been conditioned to fear the first step because they’ve been conditioned to fear the stumble.

    The leader’s advantage: Failing faster

    Here’s the mindset shift that’s changed everything for me: Don’t run from failure — run toward it.

    When you take a calculated risk and it doesn’t work out, you gain information your competitors don’t have. You see where the potholes are. You understand the dynamics of your market or your team in a way you simply can’t from the sidelines.

    Failure speeds up your feedback loop. And in business, speed of learning is a competitive advantage.

    When I stopped worrying about how failure looked and started focusing on what it taught, I moved faster. My team moved faster. We became more willing to experiment, to test ideas, to pivot quickly.

    And here’s the irony: The more comfortable I got with failing, the less I actually failed in ways that mattered. Why? Because the lessons compound. The insight you gain from one mistake prevents five more down the line.

    Turning failure into fuel

    If you’re looking for practical ways to reframe failure, here’s what’s worked for me:

    1. Separate the event from your identity. Failing at something doesn’t make you a failure. It makes you a human who’s gathering data.
    2. Ask better post-mortem questions. Instead of “Why did I mess up?” ask “What specifically did I learn, and how will I apply it next time?”
    3. Take the hit, then take the action. Feel the sting, but don’t camp there. Apply the lesson as quickly as possible so it becomes forward motion.
    4. Make it visible for your team. When leaders are open about their own missteps, it gives everyone else permission to try without fear.

    Related: How to Turn Failures Into Wins As an Entrepreneur

    The real goal

    At the end of the day, the point isn’t to fail for failure’s sake. The point is to strip failure of its power over you so you can move without hesitation.

    If there’s one mindset that’s been critical to my success, it’s this: Be okay with failing — because the lesson you learn is worth more than the hit you take.

    The faster you embrace that truth, the faster you’ll grow — not just as a leader, but as a human being who’s willing to show up, take the shot and trust that even if you miss, you’re still moving forward.

    We’re trained to avoid failure like it’s a contagious disease.

    At school, failing wasn’t just about getting a bad grade — it was about getting labeled. If you didn’t pass, you weren’t just “behind,” you were branded. Pulled into extra classes, singled out in front of your peers and whispered about in the hallways. It can feel like public shame dressed up as education.

    When you grow up in that kind of system, what you learn fast is: Don’t mess up. Don’t take risks. Don’t give anyone a reason to think less of you. And the biggest lesson? Stay in your lane.

    The rest of this article is locked.

    Join Entrepreneur+ today for access.

    Ginni Saraswati

    Source link

  • CEO’s ‘Powerful’ Business Change Leads to 8-Figure Revenue | Entrepreneur

    “It’s always been my dream to be a CEO of a fashion brand,” Ginny Seymour, CEO of contemporary women’s fashion brand Aligne, tells Entrepreneur.

    Image Credit: Courtesy of Aligne. CEO Ginny Seymour.

    A fashion industry veteran who started her career as a contemporary buyer at Saks Fifth Avenue, Seymour had an opportunity to realize that goal with Aligne, originally founded by Dalbir Bains as a wholesale women’s fashion brand in London in 2020.

    Seymour envisioned a new era for Aligne — the brand could fill a white space she saw in modern women’s clothing: the need for design-led, wearable pieces at an accessible price point, delivered with an omnichannel approach.

    Related: 5 Things I Wish Someone Had Told Me Before I Became a CEO

    Seymour set out to make it happen, essentially “refounding” the company. She joined the business as managing director in 2022, relaunched Aligne under her vision in 2023 and was officially named CEO in 2024.

    Image Credit: Courtesy of Aligne

    “I felt partners [had to be] a huge part of the story.”

    During her first several years as CEO, Seymour focused on Aligne’s community building online and “design handwriting,” then branched out from a direct-to-consumer strategy to an omnichannel approach with U.S. retail partners.

    In fact, despite being a London-founded brand, Aligne sees a larger part of its business unfolding in the U.S., Seymour says.

    The CEO even recently relocated from London to New York to support the U.S. office and team as the brand continues its expansion.

    “ We’re still based in the UK, so I travel back and forth,” Seymour says. “London to me is our creative hub; it’s part of our DNA being a British brand. That’s super important to me and something we don’t want to lose. So we’re very much creatively driven out of London, but commercially driven out of the U.S.”

    Image Credit: Courtesy of Aligne

    Related: ‘We Got So Many DMs’: This 27-Year-Old Revamped Her Parents’ Decades-Old Business and Grew Direct-to-Consumer Sales From $60,000 to Over $500,000

    As a still relatively young British brand, Aligne gains validation with a U.S. audience through retailers that have loyal customer bases.

    “In  the UK, it’s easier to be direct-to-consumer only because the UK is much smaller and more attainable,” Seymour says. “But in the U.S., to resonate as the next contemporary brand that people should be looking at, I felt partners [had to be] a huge part of the story.”

    Aligne recently launched with Nordstrom, a retailer Seymour says she’d always hoped to partner with one day, after the company direct-messaged her to express its interest in the brand. Aligne is also available at Anthropologie.

    Image Credit: Courtesy of Aligne

    Related: Her Self-Funded Brand Hit $25 Million Revenue Last Year — And 3 Secrets Keep It Growing Alongside Her ‘Mischievous’ Second Venture: ‘Entrepreneurship Is a Mind Game’

    “There’s less visibility [into] the analytics and who your customer is. You have to really listen.”

    Despite the long-term goal to expand in retail, Seymour first prioritized understanding Aligne as a brand and its relationship to customers before tackling those partnerships, appreciating how important that strategy is for sustainable success.

    Whether you’re refounding a business that already exists or starting one from scratch, knowing who your customer is — and quickly — will make or break its growth.  ”And that’s easier said than done,” the CEO notes. “There are so many factors. With every iOS update, there’s less visibility [into] the analytics and who your customer is. You have to really listen.”

    Aligne’s target customers are “confident, working” women, and acknowledging what those consumers wanted in a clothing line helped guide the brand’s design shift and the direction of its collection, Seymour says.

    Related: This Is the Real Secret to Exceeding Your Customer’s Expectations

    Dialing into that customer base is paying off. Aligne ended its fiscal year in July 2025 with 56% year-over-year revenue growth and revenue approaching eight figures.

    Most of Aligne’s pieces are priced between $100 and $300. Although Seymour recognizes why some brands evolve into the “premium contemporary” space amid rising costs and tariff challenges, she says the company is committed to its accessible price point.

    Image Credit: Courtesy of Aligne

    “I quickly had to learn where I didn’t want to lean and how to make sure to get the support.”

    Being a CEO is a lot harder than Seymour thought it would be when she was 20 years old, she admits. But she appreciates how the job has allowed her to draw on her experience as a buyer, which demanded a “balance of art and science” much like the executive role does.

    “[There might be a] week that I’m so artistic and designing the concept and the line, and there’s other days where I’m definitely leaning into the science,” Seymour says. “But I quickly had to learn where I didn’t want to lean and how to make sure to get the support in those areas because a CEO wears so many hats.”

    Related: I Founded a $1.7 Billion Startup for Small Businesses — Here’s the Secret Every Entrepreneur Should Know

    One of the biggest lessons Seymour’s learned during her tenure as CEO so far is the value in listening to her instincts — even when it’s difficult. Over the first couple of months of the company’s refounding, Seymour sometimes hesitated to say what she wanted, then didn’t get the results that she desired.

    “Three months in, I had this moment where I brought the team together and was much clearer about what I wanted,” Seymour says. “That brought them more on the journey with me, and it solidified us as a team and our values. If you have an idea and you’re building your own business, trusting your gut and not being scared to say it is powerful.”

    “It’s always been my dream to be a CEO of a fashion brand,” Ginny Seymour, CEO of contemporary women’s fashion brand Aligne, tells Entrepreneur.

    Image Credit: Courtesy of Aligne. CEO Ginny Seymour.

    A fashion industry veteran who started her career as a contemporary buyer at Saks Fifth Avenue, Seymour had an opportunity to realize that goal with Aligne, originally founded by Dalbir Bains as a wholesale women’s fashion brand in London in 2020.

    The rest of this article is locked.

    Join Entrepreneur+ today for access.

    Amanda Breen

    Source link

  • How Pana Food Truck Started Selling Arepas | Entrepreneur

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    German Sierra, founder of Pana Food Truck in Santa Cruz, California, never imagined his craving for a childhood comfort food would lead him to build a thriving business with a loyal following and the distinction of Yelp’s Top 100 Food Trucks.

    “My brother and I came to the United States in 2016 [from Venezuela],” he says. “There weren’t any arepas. We actually eat arepas every day in Venezuela, so we needed them. My brother was like, ‘Hey, why don’t we make some arepas and take them to the streets, and maybe people will buy them?’”

    Armed with foil-wrapped arepas and homemade Venezuelan juices, the brothers set up outside a supermarket. They didn’t sell a single one. A police officer stopped them, asking for a permit they didn’t know they needed. Instead of giving up, Sierra gave the food away and kept searching for a way forward.

    Related: They Built Their First Restaurant With Their ‘Bare Hands.’ Now They Have 380 Locations.

    “Sometimes there’s a little miscommunication between entities. Sometimes the health department will [have] different rules than the city,” Sierra says, describing the challenges he faced trying to get his business off the ground. “There are specific places to park. You cannot park everywhere because there’s gonna be competition with restaurants.”

    As a business with one core offering, Sierra had to sell the value of arepas to customers who had never heard of them.

    “It was hard in the beginning — and [is] still hard — to convince people why we don’t have other dishes,” Sierra says. “We wanted to focus on arepas [so] there is no confusion of what we sell, and it’s memorable.”

    Small adjustments, like listing arepas as “chicken” or “beef” on the menu, helped introduce the dish to American diners and reduce confusion without losing cultural authenticity. “When customers come, they want 30-second decisions — no half an hour figuring out the menu and what to get,” Sierra says.

    Related: He Grew His Small Business to a $25 Million Operation By Following These 5 Principles

    As word spread, Sierra focused on making connections with customers, pairing education about the food with free samples to encourage repeat visits. Early on, he recognized that an excellent customer experience made people more likely to choose Pana over another restaurant.

    “I didn’t wanna be just in the food truck business,” he says. “I want to be in the heart-warming business, because the food makes your heart warm. That’s the emotion I want to create every time.”

    Now celebrating six years in business, Pana continues to grow while staying true to its roots. In 2025, Sierra and his wife, Gabriella Ramirez, opened their first brick-and-mortar restaurant in downtown Santa Cruz. “It wasn’t an overnight success, and we’re still growing and improving,” Sierra says. “We are just a baby, and there’s so much that we can change and improve.”

    For Sierra, every arepa is a chance to share a piece of home, and to build what he calls “an arepa empire, one arepa at a time.”

    Related: These Brothers Turned a 2-Man Operation Into One of the Most Trusted Companies in Their Area. Here’s How.

    After turning a craving for arepas into one of Yelp’s Top 100 Food Trucks of 2025 and opening a brick-and-mortar, Sierra’s advice for current and future business owners is clear:

    • Start small but stay consistent. Break overwhelming challenges into smaller steps and commit to showing up for your customers every day.
    • Adapt to your audience while staying authentic. Customer education can help your audience understand new offerings and grow goodwill in your community.
    • Lead with generosity. Warm service and meaningful interactions matter just as much as what’s on the menu. Customers return not only for flavor, but also for connection.
    • Think about the big picture. For Sierra, selling arepas was never just about food — it was about creating heart-warming experiences. Any platform, whether it’s a food truck or restaurant, can be a vehicle to share your mission.
    • Play the long game. Building something meaningful takes time, patience and passion. If your business isn’t an immediate success, research the steps you’ll need to take to achieve smaller goals that get you closer to your vision.

    Watch the episode above to hear directly from German Sierra, and subscribe to Behind the Review for more from new business owners and reviewers every Wednesday.

    Editorial contributions by Jiah Choe and Kristi Lindahl

    Emily Washcovick

    Source link

  • My Strategy for Helping Leaders Reclaim 10+ Hours a Week | Entrepreneur

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    Most leaders know the frustration of wasted meetings. Long agendas, too many attendees and little to show for hours lost. For one group of senior leaders I worked with, this wasn’t just an annoyance. It was cutting into strategy time, slowing down decisions and draining energy across the business.

    In less than a year, we cut their meeting time in half. Each leader won back more than 10 hours every week, and the organization became faster, clearer and more accountable.

    Here’s how it happened, and how you can do the same.

    Related: Stop the Meeting Madness: 19 Ways to Make Your Meetings Matter

    The problem: Meetings controlled the leaders instead of the leaders being in charge

    This team was leading a complex global transformation across three regions. Their calendars were wall-to-wall with standing meetings, catch-ups and recurring calls. People often left with unclear decisions, leading to more follow-up meetings just to fix what hadn’t been resolved the first time.

    The result was lost time, slow decisions and a sense that no one could ever get ahead. The leaders were spending more time managing meetings than leading the business. Over time, even talented people became frustrated. Some started blocking out fake “focus time” just to survive. Others disengaged quietly, attending meetings but contributing very little because they no longer believed anything would change.

    That loss of energy was as damaging as the loss of time.

    Step 1: Define what deserves a meeting

    We started by asking a simple question: Does this really need to be a meeting?

    Many recurring calls existed because “We’ve always had them.” That logic had never been challenged. We cut every meeting that wasn’t tied to a decision, a problem that needed solving or collaboration that truly benefited from live discussion.

    Updates that could be shared in writing were moved to a short weekly summary. Everyone received the same information, but they could read it in minutes instead of sitting through another call.

    One senior manager told me later that this was the first time in years he could start his day by planning priorities instead of bracing for back-to-back calls. That shift gave him more control and a clearer sense of direction.

    This step alone cleared out hours from everyone’s calendar. It also reframed meetings as intentional choices rather than habits carried over from the past.

    Step 2: Put guardrails on time and attendance

    Next, we established strict rules.

    Meetings defaulted to 30 minutes. Longer sessions had to be justified. Every meeting required a clear lead who owned the agenda, kept the conversation on track and confirmed next steps.

    Attendance rules changed, too. Instead of large calls with every stakeholder, we invited only the people who were critical to the discussion. If input was needed later, it was requested offline.

    This change reduced group fatigue and raised accountability. Smaller groups made faster decisions. Leaders also realized that not being invited to a meeting wasn’t exclusion; it was respect for their time.

    Related: Data Doesn’t Lie: Shorter Meetings Can Make You 3X More Productive

    Step 3: Standardize decisions

    One hidden reason meetings drag on is that people leave without clarity. That lack of closure is what fuels the cycle of repeat conversations.

    We solved this by introducing a simple “decision log.” Every meeting ended with three key things:

    1. The decision made

    2. The identified owner

    3. The next step

    It took discipline, but once the team adjusted, decisions stopped bouncing around. Follow-up meetings shrank because everyone knew who was responsible and by when. Teams didn’t have to revisit the same issue over and over.

    The decision log also became a leadership tool. Leaders could review it weekly to see what was moving forward and what was stalling. That visibility improved accountability across the entire transformation.

    Step 4: Track the wins

    We measured meeting time before and after.

    Leaders logged their weekly hours, and within weeks the difference was clear. By the end of 12 months, meeting hours had dropped by more than 50%. On average, each leader reclaimed over 10 hours a week.

    The biggest win wasn’t just time. It was energy. Leaders felt less drained and more able to focus on the work that actually moved the business forward. Several commented that they finally ended their week with a sense of progress instead of exhaustion.

    One leader said she could finally prepare properly for board discussions because she had blocks of uninterrupted time again. Another shared that his team trusted the process more because decisions no longer shifted or disappeared. These were small cultural shifts that created lasting impact.

    The human side of fewer meetings

    It’s easy to think of meeting reduction as a numbers game, but the benefits go much deeper. With fewer meetings, leaders gained the space to think, plan and lead. They could show up with more presence in the meetings that remained because they weren’t already depleted.

    This had an impact on trust. People began to believe in the process because they saw that decisions stuck and time wasn’t wasted. That trust built momentum. Leaders became known for clarity instead of endless discussion.

    When people feel their time is respected, they give more energy back to the work. That cultural benefit often matters more than the hours saved.

    From this experience, three lessons stood out.

    • Treat time as a resource. If a meeting doesn’t create value, it’s a cost.

    • Put strict guardrails around time and attendance. Meetings expand to the size you allow.

    • Standardize how decisions are made and captured. Without this, meetings repeat themselves.

    These aren’t complex ideas, but they require discipline. Leaders who apply them consistently change not only their calendars but their culture.

    Related: Our Meeting Obsession Is Hurting Our Work And Our Wellbeing

    What you can do now

    Look at your own calendar and ask yourself three questions:

    • Which meetings exist only out of habit?

    • Which can be replaced with a short written update?

    • Where do decisions get lost, forcing repeat conversations?

    Answering those questions honestly is the first step to cutting your meeting load in half and winning back the hours you need most.

    Try applying one change in the next week. Cancel a standing call that adds little value. Shorten a 60-minute meeting to 30. End every meeting with a clear decision and next step. These small shifts build confidence, and once you see the results, it becomes easier to apply the larger changes.

    The point of cutting meetings is not to slash your calendar for the sake of it. The goal is to create space for the work that matters most. When leaders reclaim their time, they gain clarity, energy and the ability to lead with focus instead of reacting to every demand.

    Start with your calendar. Once you take charge of your time, every other part of your leadership gets stronger too.

    Most leaders know the frustration of wasted meetings. Long agendas, too many attendees and little to show for hours lost. For one group of senior leaders I worked with, this wasn’t just an annoyance. It was cutting into strategy time, slowing down decisions and draining energy across the business.

    In less than a year, we cut their meeting time in half. Each leader won back more than 10 hours every week, and the organization became faster, clearer and more accountable.

    Here’s how it happened, and how you can do the same.

    The rest of this article is locked.

    Join Entrepreneur+ today for access.

    Bayo Akinola-Odusola

    Source link

  • Why Setting Global Ethical Standards Builds Trust and Protects Your Business | Entrepreneur

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    Ethics in business has never been only about compliance. Regulations provide a baseline, but in a global marketplace, that baseline quickly becomes uneven. What is acceptable in one country may be unacceptable in another.

    A company that treats ethics as a box-ticking exercise soon discovers the gaps between jurisdictions create inconsistency and mistrust. To protect credibility and maintain stakeholder confidence, organizations must set standards that travel across borders and remain steady as rules shift.

    In other words, business ethics can’t just mean following rules. Laws differ worldwide, so companies need consistent global standards to build trust and protect credibility across shifting regulations.

    Related: The Ethical Considerations of Digital Transformation

    The foundation of global standards

    A Code of Conduct isn’t just a document — it can be a powerful tool for shaping culture. Writing down principles is one thing, but people need to know how those values play out in real situations. What does fairness mean when you’re explaining a disclosure? How should you handle things when you recognize a vulnerable customer? Without that kind of clarity, values stay abstract and get applied inconsistently.

    Once expectations are clear, credibility comes from reinforcement. When leaders recognize good decisions and address lapses, it shows the standards are real, not optional. Over time, those repeated actions turn into habits, and habits are what define culture.

    Transparency is one of the clearest ways to bring these ideas to life. For instance, when a company explains payback terms in plain language or shares the reasoning behind a pricing strategy, it shows integrity is built into daily operations. These visible actions convince employees, customers and regulators that the standards are genuine — not just words on paper.

    Choosing the highest common denominator

    Global operations reveal just how uneven regulations can be. Some markets enforce detailed disclosure rules, while others offer minimal direction. Meeting only the minimum in each region exposes companies to uneven practices that can trigger regulatory penalties and erode trust.

    Accepting the need for local normalization, the stronger path is to adopt the most stringent rules encountered and apply them everywhere. Debt recovery firms, for example, may align with aspects of the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s Regulation even in markets without comparable requirements. Being careful not to avoid regulatory conflict or overreach, others extend elements of GDPR-level privacy protections globally or adopt Europe’s “opt-in” consent for call recording as the standard.

    This approach requires discipline, which also means committing resources to training, oversight and monitoring systems that may exceed local expectations. But the payoff is substantial. A single consistent playbook builds confidence among employees and demonstrates to both regulators and clients that the organization does not shift its standards depending on geography.

    In practice, this prevents situations where one jurisdiction questions behavior that would never be acceptable at the home office headquarters.

    Embedding ethics into daily decisions and leadership actions

    Values matter only when they guide choices. From induction onward, employees should learn not only their responsibilities but also the reasoning behind them. Training and dialogue help principles take root, but leadership determines whether they endure.

    Employees watch how leaders act more closely than they listen to words. Fairness in negotiation, respect in daily interactions and clarity in contracts illustrate values in ways policies cannot. Research by the Ethics & Compliance Initiative found employees are 68% more likely to report misconduct when they see a strong ethical commitment from leadership, and organizations with robust ethics programs are 42% less likely to experience misconduct. These figures confirm that culture follows the example set by others.

    Leaders establish credibility and set an example for others to follow when they explain the why and when they go above & beyond to explain their thinking and relate choices to shared principles. Ethics evolves from an ideal to a trustworthy framework that guides choices in stressful situations.

    Related: How to Navigate Ethical Considerations In Your Decision-Making

    Why global standards are a strategic advantage

    Applying one standard worldwide creates benefits on multiple levels. Inside the organization, employees gain clarity, confidence and accountability. They know that decisions will be judged by a consistent set of expectations, not by shifting local rules. That predictability strengthens morale and lowers the risk of missteps.

    Externally, the benefits are equally visible. Clients and consumers experience respectful and transparent interactions regardless of geography. Regulators reward businesses that behave responsibly without waiting for coercion. Investors and partners view stability and consistency as markers of reliability, making them more likely to build long-term relationships.

    Maintaining higher standards does require investment. Training programs, audit systems and monitoring frameworks take time and resources. Yet these are far less costly than repairing the damage of a single ethical failure. Remember, one lapse can undo years of credibility. In contrast, steady openness builds trust that compounds over time.

    Raising the bar for global business

    The horizon for business ethics is expanding. Expectations now reach into environmental responsibility, workplace culture, data privacy and supply chain practices alongside regulatory compliance. Meeting this wider standard requires clarity of values, adoption of the highest available denominator, and leadership that demonstrates ethics in action.

    While rules and customs differ from place to place, consistency in these choices demonstrates that values are genuine. When organizations carry their values into every interaction, ethics becomes more than an obligation. It becomes a framework that steadies decision-making, supports resilience and builds trust that endures well beyond any single reporting cycle.

    Ethics in business has never been only about compliance. Regulations provide a baseline, but in a global marketplace, that baseline quickly becomes uneven. What is acceptable in one country may be unacceptable in another.

    A company that treats ethics as a box-ticking exercise soon discovers the gaps between jurisdictions create inconsistency and mistrust. To protect credibility and maintain stakeholder confidence, organizations must set standards that travel across borders and remain steady as rules shift.

    In other words, business ethics can’t just mean following rules. Laws differ worldwide, so companies need consistent global standards to build trust and protect credibility across shifting regulations.

    The rest of this article is locked.

    Join Entrepreneur+ today for access.

    Nick Cherry

    Source link

  • Don’t Just Disrupt Your Industry — Transform It | Entrepreneur

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    More than a decade ago, business gurus were quick to label any idea or development that was mildly novel as “disruptive innovation.” Originally coined by American academic and business consultant Clayton Christensen in his 1997 book The Innovator’s Dilemma, it was used largely to describe how small businesses could challenge larger players within a market, often entering at the low end and moving upmarket and disrupting established competitors’ core business.

    But in the mid-2010s, gone were the days of the so-called disruptors, as critics began noting how the term had become a business buzzword rather than a term that was describing meaningful change. Jill Lepore, a professor of history at Harvard, wrote an article for The New Yorker about how “disruptive innovation” is being used inaccurately in the business world, stating that many companies described as “disruptive” never succeeded in displacing incumbents. Her critique sparked a major rethinking in business circles, which made way for terms like “transformative innovation” in the 2020s.

    Furthermore, when compared with “disruptive,” the word “transformational” helps you visualize positive systemic change. The effects caused by transformational innovation are incremental and long-lasting, and frankly, quite relevant in the age of systemic shifts, such as climate change, ESG and sustainability factors, AI technologies and other major global innovations. Here are five reasons why entrepreneurs today need to focus on transformational innovation instead.

    Related: To Achieve Sustainable Success, You Need to Stop Focusing on Disruption. Here’s Why — and What You Must Focus on Instead.

    1. This is where technology creates social impact

    Entrepreneurs can be transformational innovators who creatively use technological solutions to create meaningful change, which leads to increased economic impact, which in turn creates lasting social impact. This is an area of entrepreneurship that focuses on the “grand challenges” that societies need to address, from poverty reduction to environmental action to good health and well-being, as listed under the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals for 2030. High-growth technology entrepreneurs in particular have the potential to leverage unique opportunities to create social value, for instance by utilising open-source collaboration for problem solving, using social media platforms for advocacy campaigns and activism and unlocking data analytics to personalise lifestyle changes and improve healthcare solutions. It is generally understood that technology is the lifeblood of transformational innovation.

    2. It’s people-focused

    You must first understand consumer behaviour before you try and change it for the better. Therefore, transformational innovation is an exercise of using people’s adaptability to drive significant and lasting change. To innovate this way, one needs to be accepted by the wider population, and this often requires entrepreneurs to understand diverse groups of people instead of having a silo mentality. For your venture to succeed, you need people to trust what you do and commit to your process to derive value.

    3. It is driven by the $8 trillion global longevity market

    In its July 2025 report, Swiss banking giant UBS announced that transformational innovation is where investors should expect attractive returns from in the years ahead, and that longevity is one of the leading industries driving valuable growth in this space, next to AI, power and resources.

    The longevity market is expected to grow from $5.3 trillion in 2023 to $8 trillion by 2030, which will surpass AI industries which are only estimated to reach $1.16 trillion by 2027. The longevity market is transforming the global economy, according to UBS, which says that the change is being fuelled by increasing life expectancy and ageing populations worldwide.

    4. Transformational innovation industries are stable

    Innovation is a key driver of long-term equity performance. According to UBS, transformational innovation industries offer “durable, secular growth” that the bank believes can withstand short-term market volatility. The Swiss bank also suggests that if there are potential market dips in these industries, they are likely to be short-term and would act as useful entry points for long-term investors.

    Related: The Surprising Strategy Smart Leaders Use to Outpace Disruption

    5. It’s a brave new world

    While disruptive innovation is largely about creating cheaper alternatives, transformative innovation is about creating whole new market spaces with completely different frameworks to what already exists. For entrepreneurs, working within these industries can help them experiment with newer and better business models. It’s all about exploring the untapped potential.

    All in all, to embrace transformational innovation, an entrepreneur must be prepared to embrace change. It requires one to be proactive and have the ability to anticipate future trends that will come with it. To remain at the forefront of this entrepreneurial revolution, entrepreneurs must develop a multi-pronged innovation strategy through planning and in-depth research.

    Most importantly, entrepreneurs should develop a culture of innovation in their businesses, where entrepreneurs, managers, CEOs, employees, consumers and clients all collaborate to form a cohesive creative force. Leaders should inspire others to be bold, intellectually brave and challenge existing paradigms. Entrepreneurs should have a vision, forge strategic partnerships and create meaningful industry-level changes, even if they own a small business with limited resources. To remain competitive and to lead industry trends, entrepreneurs today must engage with the concept of transformational innovation.

    We are now in the year 2025 — it’s time to change the game.

    More than a decade ago, business gurus were quick to label any idea or development that was mildly novel as “disruptive innovation.” Originally coined by American academic and business consultant Clayton Christensen in his 1997 book The Innovator’s Dilemma, it was used largely to describe how small businesses could challenge larger players within a market, often entering at the low end and moving upmarket and disrupting established competitors’ core business.

    But in the mid-2010s, gone were the days of the so-called disruptors, as critics began noting how the term had become a business buzzword rather than a term that was describing meaningful change. Jill Lepore, a professor of history at Harvard, wrote an article for The New Yorker about how “disruptive innovation” is being used inaccurately in the business world, stating that many companies described as “disruptive” never succeeded in displacing incumbents. Her critique sparked a major rethinking in business circles, which made way for terms like “transformative innovation” in the 2020s.

    Furthermore, when compared with “disruptive,” the word “transformational” helps you visualize positive systemic change. The effects caused by transformational innovation are incremental and long-lasting, and frankly, quite relevant in the age of systemic shifts, such as climate change, ESG and sustainability factors, AI technologies and other major global innovations. Here are five reasons why entrepreneurs today need to focus on transformational innovation instead.

    The rest of this article is locked.

    Join Entrepreneur+ today for access.

    Allen Law

    Source link

  • How Owning a Professional Rugby Team Changed the Way I Lead | Entrepreneur

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    When I signed on as a founding owner of the Houston SaberCats, people asked me the same question over and over: “Why rugby?”

    To be fair, it wasn’t the obvious move. I’d already built a successful career in commodities trading and entrepreneurship. Rugby wasn’t a mainstream sport in the U.S., and it was clear we’d be climbing uphill in search for new market, new fans and new infrastructure. But that’s exactly what drew me to it.

    Entrepreneurs know that if you only play safe games, you’ll never learn anything new. Rugby, in all its rawness, became a mirror for my business endeavors: tough, unpredictable and full of lessons that reshaped how I lead. Here are the five biggest ones.

    Related: Adopt The Winning Habits of Elite Sports Stars to Unlock Entrepreneurial Greatness

    1. Play through the hit

    I’ll never forget standing on the sideline of our first SaberCats match, watching one of our players get leveled by a brutal tackle. Most people would’ve stayed down. He didn’t. He fought for every inch, rolled and kept driving the ball forward. The crowd erupted.

    That image stuck with me. In rugby, getting hit is part of the game, and when you get hit, you don’t stop — you adapt mid-impact. In business, the “hit” looks like a failed deal, a regulatory curveball or a market downturn. I’ve had plenty of those. What separates winning leaders from the rest isn’t avoiding the hit; it’s what they do after. Push forward. Stay on your feet. Make the play anyway.

    2. Trust the pack

    Early on, I thought entrepreneurship was about individual brilliance, where the best idea, the hardest worker and the guy willing to put in more hours than anyone else wins. Rugby shattered that illusion.

    A scrum is pure trust. Eight players lock in, shoulder to shoulder, with one mission: Move forward. If even one man falters, the whole formation collapses. It’s messy, it’s physical, and it’s all-or-nothing.

    That’s exactly what business teams should look like. At GETCHOICE!, I’ve learned that success isn’t about me making every call. It is about surrounding myself with the right people, trusting them to do their jobs and creating a culture where loyalty and accountability are non-negotiable. No pack, no progress.

    3. Adapt on the fly

    Rugby is chaos. There are no endless timeouts to plan your next move. Plays evolve in seconds, and players must read the field, adjust and execute in real time.

    I’ve had moments in business where a deal collapsed overnight or new regulations flipped our strategy upside down. The instinct is to freeze, but rugby trained me to do the opposite: Call an audible, pivot, and move. You may not always have perfect data, but you always have instinct and courage. And sometimes, that’s all you need to keep momentum alive.

    4. Respect the grind

    Here’s what most people don’t realize about rugby: These athletes play with no pads, no helmets and no glamour. It’s 80 minutes of collisions, sweat and bruises. And yet they do it because they love the grind.

    That mentality is the same in entrepreneurship. When people see an acquisition announcement or a headline about success, they don’t see the years of grueling work behind it. The 4 a.m. flights. The contracts that fell apart. The stress of payroll weeks. Rugby reminded me that toughness isn’t a one-time choice but rather it’s a way of life. You have to enjoy the grind, because that’s what forges winners.

    Related: Adopting an Elite Sports Mentality to Entrepreneurship

    5. Leave it all on the field

    Rugby has this tradition I fell in love with: After the final whistle, rivals share beers. Think about that — you spend 80 minutes hitting each other with everything you’ve got, and then you sit down together with mutual respect.

    I’ve carried that same mindset into business. Compete fiercely, play full out, but respect your rivals. Shake hands. Learn from them. Because the legacy you leave isn’t about a single game or deal — it’s about how you show up, how you compete and the way people remember you when the whistle blows.

    Rugby is the ultimate underdog game: tough, unpolished, but rich with lessons about teamwork, grit and respect. It changed how I lead, how I compete, and how I build companies.

    And here’s the truth: Business, like rugby, isn’t for the faint of heart. You will get hit. You will get tested. But if you trust your pack, adapt when the field shifts and respect the grind, you’ll not just play the game, you’ll own it.

    When I signed on as a founding owner of the Houston SaberCats, people asked me the same question over and over: “Why rugby?”

    To be fair, it wasn’t the obvious move. I’d already built a successful career in commodities trading and entrepreneurship. Rugby wasn’t a mainstream sport in the U.S., and it was clear we’d be climbing uphill in search for new market, new fans and new infrastructure. But that’s exactly what drew me to it.

    Entrepreneurs know that if you only play safe games, you’ll never learn anything new. Rugby, in all its rawness, became a mirror for my business endeavors: tough, unpredictable and full of lessons that reshaped how I lead. Here are the five biggest ones.

    The rest of this article is locked.

    Join Entrepreneur+ today for access.

    Javier Loya

    Source link

  • 8 Ways to Build a Business That Can Run Without You | Entrepreneur

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    Entrepreneurship is a hard road. There’s no rule book, and as a business owner, it can feel like you’re always on call.

    Each summer, before my children start school again, I put that life on pause. We load up our RV and head out for a multi-week trip. I don’t invite distraction during this time: in fact, my team knows that I’m off limits. This time is for me, my family and our relationships.

    Building a culture that can persist when I’m not in the office is crucial — not only to the success of my business but for my personal life. Creating culture takes intention, but the payoff is worth it. I won’t spend my waning days on vacation worrying about what I’m stepping back into.

    I know. That’s because I work to decentralize myself from my business.

    Not just short-term gains

    Decentralizing yourself from your business isn’t just about the short-term gain of getting to go away on vacation or finding time to incorporate personal passions into your life outside of your business.

    It’s about building a significant company.

    Significant companies are ready to transition at any point. To have value in the eyes of a buyer, my business can’t just be about me.

    That’s not to say that my mark isn’t on the business. Far from it. I put the work in on the front end with my executive team to craft eight “trust accelerators” that allow for clarity, alignment and informed decision-making.

    Related: Lack of Trust—What Does It Do to Your Company? Here’s What Leaders Need to Know

    Beyond core values

    Almost every company has core values. We have them, too. But, right about the time that the COVID-19 pandemic hit, we all noticed that they weren’t working. While core values are general north stars for any organization, sometimes they can feel like they’re a galaxy away from the day-to-day issues that every person in a business must take accountability for.

    What makes us unique is our trust accelerators, which are married to our core values. More than just guiding principles that we put on a wall, trust accelerators are active rules that we follow interaction to interaction.

    In fact, we don’t put these on a wall somewhere in our waiting room: each trust accelerator is printed on a card that each member of our team carries with them.

    Your culture is yours alone. These are the trust accelerators that we live by:

    1. No meetings after the meeting

    How we live it: If everyone is in a room to make a decision or discuss an initiative, they’re there by design. It’s inauthentic to invite input and then have two executives go into a room to debrief and make the real decision.

    If a member of our team has something to contribute, we want them to do it in the room where the actual decisions are being made.

    How it builds value: If people work at a place where they have obvious input into real decisions, they take more accountability for their contributions.

    2. Put yourself in other people’s position

    How we live it: We’re not just interested in the “how” of people’s actions; we’re interested in the “why.” After all, they may have good reasons that unlock clues about how we should operate. By seeking understanding, we build connection.

    How it builds value: Empathy is a critical skill — not just for connecting with colleagues but for connecting with customers.

    Related: 5 Foolproof Strategies to Help You Let Go and Trust Your Team

    3. Listen while avoiding judgment

    How we live it: My business, Exit Planning Institute, focuses on educating, credentialing and empowering Certified Exit Planning Advisors as they guide business owners through value creation and successful exits. While advisors have witnessed the factors that contribute to an owner’s success, every owner’s journey is unique — and there are many ways to build a significant company. Only through listening can we understand each other’s motivations and values, and embrace perspectives that might be counter to our own.

    How it builds value: If a conversation is necessary, it deserves to be full-throated. That’s only possible with a listener who is willing to be curious, not judgmental.

    4. 100% preparedness and participation

    How we live it: Collaboration is crucial to an empowered workforce that can function without its leader. Our culture runs on every person showing up prepared and participating.

    How it builds value: Every member of our team knows that they were selected for a reason. They can’t reach their full potential unless they are ready to contribute — and actually do.

    5. Deliver the mail to the right address

    How we live it: If we have an issue — or reason to praise someone — we don’t go to a trusted colleague or a supervisor. We go right to the correct address: the person we want to discuss with. It allows for more authentic communication — see “Listen While Avoiding Judgement” — and limits gossip, an incredible culture-killer.

    How it builds value: Every member of our team knows they’re accountable to every other member—and our doors are open to have a conversation with each other.

    6. Honesty without repercussion

    How we live it: We’re not at work to be well-liked or adulated (although that happens sometimes, too!). We’re at work to advance our business. By cultivating an atmosphere of respectful honesty, we get to offer our insights and listen to how others might do things differently.

    How it builds value: When every person on the team feels like they can contribute, we see how they might grow into their careers at the company — in the short- and long-term.

    7. Respectful

    How we live it: We’re bound not to see eye to eye. However, these trust accelerators do a lot of work to help us understand that we’re all working towards the same goals. When we put respect first in every interaction we have with each other, it reinforces that our differences aren’t personal — and can sometimes be assets to our business goals.

    How it builds value: We can’t tackle the hard stuff until we see each other as humans. If everyone knows that their perspective is respected, we tap into each other’s skills.

    8. Confidentiality

    How we live it: We have to move past surface-level conversations if we’re going to be a significant company. We’re not shooting for good. We’re going for best-in-class. That requires trust—and in this case, trust that if something is shared confidentially, it stays confidential.

    How it builds value: When we have deep trust, we believe that our colleagues—the ones we depend on to bring our goals to life—will do everything they can do to help us all achieve something great.

    Related: 7 Proven Tips for Building Trust and Strengthening Workplace Relationships

    Empowering your leaders

    It isn’t easy to be an owner and not be in total control. However, there’s a multiplier effect that comes with empowering your employees and building trust across the organization. To build a culture where every person feels a sense of ownership, there must be two-way trust: employees feel trusted, and leaders actually trust the people they work with. Additionally, as I empower our leaders to build a culture where they are trusted to make informed, quick decisions, I’m also sure to:

    1. Train the executive team on my long-term vision.
    2. Be transparent about our profits/losses, our operations and even my salary. It takes a great deal of time to educate the leadership team, but it enables them to know the short-term impact of every decision.
    3. Over-communicate. I’m shocked by how many owners don’t communicate with their leadership team. They can’t make decisions that I’d ultimately agree with if they don’t know what I’m thinking.

    Related: How to Close the Trust Gap Between You and Your Team—5 Strategies for Leaders

    Building a culture of trust is something I think about every day, and not just because I know that culture will ultimately pay off with a more successful exit.

    Culture also comes easily to me — it’s what I like to spend time on.

    If you don’t, you can still build culture. Finding a Certified Exit Planning Advisor who specializes in company culture can help you start building human capital at your company.

    Scott Snider

    Source link

  • How to Protect Your Company Culture When You’re Growing Fast | Entrepreneur

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    In the beginning, it was just us: Two law school graduates turned serial entrepreneurs, a husband-and-wife team working on our second big venture. Our vision, to create a business entity formation and maintenance company built on a culture of accountability and integrity without compromise. In addition, we wanted our company to be fun to work for, where staff members were celebrated, their ideas and creativity encouraged, the kind of company that parents would want their kids to work for. The culture would be unique, bold, unafraid of judgment, where occasional bouts of “weirdness” and nonconformity weren’t eschewed but embraced.

    Such a specific culture was easy to maintain when it was just my husband, myself and our first round of new associates. As a fifteen-person team, our culture functioned as intended. Work was fun. Our culture also made us stand out in the marketplace and drove client loyalty.

    Then, growth happened. In a period of a few short years, we went from a literal “mom and pop” operation to 100+ employees. With scaling comes new ideas and new opportunities. Teamwork is powerful, greater than the sum of its parts. It was an exciting time. Such dynamic growth, however, invites cultural risk. We soon learned that, when left unchecked, cultural risk becomes cultural harm: i.e. the proliferation of attitudes, norms and business practices that run counter to those on which the company was founded. Not wanting to lose or compromise the vision we had for our business, Phil and I vowed to never let up on our promotion of our original culture and core values.

    Related: Most Entrepreneurs Approach Culture the Wrong Way. Here’s What They’re Missing.

    How to think about your business’s culture: A simple rule

    Today, I use a simple rule of thumb that helps in the cultural governance of our growth. I call this the One-to-One rule, as it’s evocative of the one-on-one dynamic my husband and I shared in the early days of this business venture. The One-to-One rule is about a balance of “breadth” and “depth.” It’s simple to understand. Whenever your business broadens, to include more personnel, more service offerings, more locations, new verticals and so forth, it must also deepen, entailing, first and foremost, a deepening of culture, to include both workplace culture and customer-facing brand identity.

    In the wake of dynamic growth, all old trainings must be rethought and updated. Brand new trainings must come online that emphasize the most up-to-date rendition of the firm’s cultural identity. Did your firm just make a dozen new hires? Great. Congratulations. It’s time to put some new team-building events on the calendar, events and workshops that will enhance the cultural IQ of new and veteran employees alike.

    And please, don’t hold back on the pomp and circumstance when welcoming your new additions. Parties and other ice-breaking events are must-haves. Try weird things. Seriously. Even if they don’t go as planned (and they may go poorly). Lesson learned, move on. Try something else. Never lose your will to be weird and never lose sight of the One-to-One principle, ensuring that the depth of your business scales in synch with its breadth. This is the recipe for great culture and sustainable growth.

    What not to do

    You may feel that your business’s cultural identity couldn’t be stronger. It’s so dialed-in, so attractive, so intuitive that it’s bound to organically propagate itself across layers and layers of expansion. If you think your business’s culture and values are indestructible, I’d recommend you consider carefully the case of Starbucks. That’s right, the Siren-singing coffee chain once struggled to present a unified brand identity. As CEO Howard Schulz describes in his book Onward: How Starbucks Fought for Its Life without Losing Its Soul, there was a time when the proliferation of Starbucks retail stores was so intense that it compromised their ability to provide a uniform customer experience.

    As a result, the brand’s reputation became diluted, and the coffee giant’s bottom line was negatively affected. Schultz prides himself on the dramatic actions he took to restore the business’s cultural and brand identity, including the temporary closure in 2008 of over 7,000 stores for a few hours so baristas could be retrained on how to pull the perfect espresso shot.

    Don’t make the mistake of thinking that only enterprise-class businesses, like Starbucks, are subject to cultural risk. Without vigilance, smaller businesses too might lose track of their culture and core values, even in times of slower or no growth. This is why it’s important to expand, celebrate and amplify your culture on a continuous basis, with extra gusto during phases of dynamic expansion.

    Related: 5 Ways CEOs Can Assess and Reset Their Company Culture

    What to do

    Your first order of business, if you haven’t done so already, is to determine precisely what you want in your business’s culture. For example, in our firm, my husband and I knew from the very beginning that we wanted to build and preserve a family-centric feel in our business, one where our team members would be granted flexibility and understanding when it came to kids’ activities and other family obligations. We also wanted a culture that veered away from hierarchies, preferring instead a radical “open door” approach that encouraged direct and safe communications with and between all levels of management.

    Once you’ve defined the core cultural tenets for your firm, it’s time to rigorously pursue buy-in from your staff. They need to be educated on the what, why, and how of your cultural practices. Workshops, forums and trainings should allow your employees to “give back,” contributing their own thoughts and ideas on how the business’s cultural identity can best be defined, refined and lived up to. A staff member, for example, could inquire about how our business’s family-centric character may lead to staff members without family members feeling as if they’re afforded less flexibility than their coworkers. They may even suggest means by which such discrepancies could be remedied.

    My final piece of advice is three-fold: celebrate, celebrate, celebrate. If you’ve done your work properly, then you will have produced an environment your employees want to inhabit, one they will help develop and protect, in which they will feel safe, seen and valued. This is a cause worth celebrating, and all you need to do is find an excuse to do just that. Celebrations can come in many forms. At our shop, we’re big on birthdays, work anniversaries and other milestones, whatever we can do to bring everyone together and bask in the warmth and camaraderie we’ve all helped to create.

    In the beginning, it was just us: Two law school graduates turned serial entrepreneurs, a husband-and-wife team working on our second big venture. Our vision, to create a business entity formation and maintenance company built on a culture of accountability and integrity without compromise. In addition, we wanted our company to be fun to work for, where staff members were celebrated, their ideas and creativity encouraged, the kind of company that parents would want their kids to work for. The culture would be unique, bold, unafraid of judgment, where occasional bouts of “weirdness” and nonconformity weren’t eschewed but embraced.

    Such a specific culture was easy to maintain when it was just my husband, myself and our first round of new associates. As a fifteen-person team, our culture functioned as intended. Work was fun. Our culture also made us stand out in the marketplace and drove client loyalty.

    Then, growth happened. In a period of a few short years, we went from a literal “mom and pop” operation to 100+ employees. With scaling comes new ideas and new opportunities. Teamwork is powerful, greater than the sum of its parts. It was an exciting time. Such dynamic growth, however, invites cultural risk. We soon learned that, when left unchecked, cultural risk becomes cultural harm: i.e. the proliferation of attitudes, norms and business practices that run counter to those on which the company was founded. Not wanting to lose or compromise the vision we had for our business, Phil and I vowed to never let up on our promotion of our original culture and core values.

    The rest of this article is locked.

    Join Entrepreneur+ today for access.

    Nellie Akalp

    Source link

  • How to Build a Reputation That Survives Any Crisis | Entrepreneur

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    When we imagine power, we often think of prestigious titles, millions of followers or frequent media appearances. But in entrepreneurial practice, these are fragile assets: A single crisis can erase them in hours. The difference between those who survive and those who vanish? Reputation — an invisible form of capital that decides whether people will still follow you when the lights go out.

    Today, in the age of artificial intelligence and instant communication, reputation functions as a credibility algorithm. It’s not measured in views or likes, but in consistency, perceived authority and the ability to inspire trust, even in uncertainty.

    Research by Willis and Todorov at Princeton University demonstrates that people form judgments about trustworthiness, competence and other characteristics after just 100 milliseconds of exposure to unfamiliar faces. Additional studies from the University of Glasgow show that humans form trustworthiness judgments within the first 500 milliseconds of hearing someone’s voice.

    As Todorov, Baron and Oosterhof found, threat and trustworthiness perceptions are processed particularly rapidly, determining basic approach/avoidance responses. These evolutionary mechanisms, designed for survival in complex social contexts, today determine the success or failure of leaders and entrepreneurs in a hyperconnected world.

    Related: How to Build a Reputation That Will Become a Real Asset for You

    The invisible power of strategic silence

    Among the most underrated strategies for protecting reputation, silence holds a special place. It is not passivity; it’s an intentional, active choice. Deciding not to react immediately to a provocation buys time to think, assess and respond surgically.

    Silence has a precise psychological effect: It frustrates your attacker, often pushing them to overplay their hand and make mistakes. This dynamic is well known in negotiation — those who can tolerate pauses and gaps often control the rhythm and content of the exchange. Research in cognitive psychology shows that during moments of silence, people tend to fill conversational voids with their own thoughts and anxieties, often revealing more than they initially intended.

    I witnessed this principle firsthand during a pre-Christmas Saturday in a crowded supermarket when half the cashiers suddenly went on strike. Instead of issuing press releases or excuses, management chose silence. Within 20 minutes, operations were reorganized, and five volunteers began handing out panettone to customers. No words — just tangible actions. The result? A stronger corporate reputation.

    This example illustrates how direct action, unmediated by explanations, can transform a potential reputational crisis into an opportunity for brand strengthening. Customers remembered not the initial inconvenience, but the speed and humanity of the response.

    Anticipating crises with the “minefield map”

    Reputation management cannot be improvised. One effective method is to create a “minefield map” — a plan that identifies vulnerabilities and potential crisis points in advance. This tool, kept confidential until the right moment, guides decisions during chaos, when clarity risks giving way to emotion.

    The map should include specific scenarios: social media attacks, criticism from competitors, unexpected operational problems and ethical or legal controversies. For each scenario, three things must be predefined: who speaks (and who stays silent), what is said (or not said) and when action is taken. This preparation is not strategic paranoia, but operational intelligence.

    Anticipating negative scenarios is not pessimism — it’s preparation. It means knowing ahead of time which actions to avoid and which to take to safeguard credibility. As Eccles, Newquist, and Schatz note in Harvard Business Review, a strong, positive reputation doesn’t just attract top talent and foster customer loyalty — it directly drives higher pricing power, market valuation and investor confidence, making it one of the most valuable yet vulnerable assets in a company’s portfolio.

    Related: 9 Steps for Building a Reputation Management Plan That Wins Customers and Gives You an Edge

    Acceptance and consistency: The foundations of credibility

    Being an ethical or generous person is not enough to build a strong reputation. Credibility comes from self-acceptance — flaws and failures included — and from consistency between what you communicate and what you do.

    In business, this means that degrees and certifications may prove competence but do not guarantee trust. Trust is built when every interaction, both internal and external, aligns with the image you aim to project. Timing is just as crucial: A correct message sent at the wrong moment can be perceived as inappropriate — or worse, damaging.

    Authenticity, however, doesn’t mean sharing every thought or doubt. It means being faithful to your core values even when this involves short-term sacrifices. Stakeholders (employees, customers, investors) develop trust when they can predict your reactions based on stable, declared principles.

    Visibility vs. reputation: Two different roles

    Visibility is like a spotlight: It shines indiscriminately on whoever steps into its beam. Reputation is the puppeteer: invisible, but in control of every movement.

    Too much exposure without a solid reputation makes an entrepreneur vulnerable and easily manipulated. Conversely, those with strong credibility maintain control even when media attention fades. In the natural cycle of public careers, popularity always diminishes over time. What remains — and continues to generate opportunities — is reputation.

    The difference is subtle but decisive: Visibility makes you recognizable, reputation makes you chosen. In a market saturated with content and personalities, being noticed is relatively easy; being chosen repeatedly requires something deeper and more enduring.

    How to strengthen reputation in the AI era

    For entrepreneurs and leaders, AI has accelerated the speed at which both information — and misinformation — spread. Protecting reputation now requires proactive actions and active management of your narrative. Here are three concrete practices:

    1. Continuous monitoring: Use social listening and media analysis tools to detect early signs of crisis. Monitoring is not just about “putting out fires,” but about understanding which messages build trust and which create friction.

    2. Cross-channel consistency: Ensure that your message and values are consistent across every platform — social media, press, official statements, interviews. Even small inconsistencies can undermine trust.

    3. Train strategic silence: Incorporate provocation-response drills into leadership training. Simulate scenarios where the best answer is no immediate answer, to strengthen emotional control and prevent reputational damage.

    Related: It’s Time to Clean Up Your Act — How to Manage Your Reputation in the Era of AI

    The final question

    In a market where AI and instant communication amplify every action, reputation is the ultimate currency. Visibility makes people notice you. Reputation makes them choose you.

    As an entrepreneur, ask yourself: “If I could no longer speak for myself, what would my reputation say?” The answer will guide your decisions more than any visibility metric ever could.

    When we imagine power, we often think of prestigious titles, millions of followers or frequent media appearances. But in entrepreneurial practice, these are fragile assets: A single crisis can erase them in hours. The difference between those who survive and those who vanish? Reputation — an invisible form of capital that decides whether people will still follow you when the lights go out.

    Today, in the age of artificial intelligence and instant communication, reputation functions as a credibility algorithm. It’s not measured in views or likes, but in consistency, perceived authority and the ability to inspire trust, even in uncertainty.

    Research by Willis and Todorov at Princeton University demonstrates that people form judgments about trustworthiness, competence and other characteristics after just 100 milliseconds of exposure to unfamiliar faces. Additional studies from the University of Glasgow show that humans form trustworthiness judgments within the first 500 milliseconds of hearing someone’s voice.

    The rest of this article is locked.

    Join Entrepreneur+ today for access.

    Gio Talente

    Source link

  • The 5 Leadership Habits That Quietly Kill Trust in a Team | Entrepreneur

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    In times of crisis, employees pay great attention to what their leader is like. It is in these moments that trust shifts from a “soft value” to a strategic asset that directly affects motivation, retention and even financial results.

    Companies with high levels of trust outperform competitors in efficiency by up to 400%, and 93% of business leaders believe that trust directly impacts financial performance.

    Yet, the reality is not that great. According to Gallup, only 20% of employees say they trust their leader. Edelman reports that just 19% believe CEOs are honest, while 68% think leaders intentionally mislead them.

    Missteps during turbulent times don’t just dent a leader’s reputation — they shake the very foundations of the business. In this article, I reflect on five common mistakes leaders make during difficult times and offer guidance on how to avoid them.

    1. Micromanaging

    Leaders often believe that being across everything is about quality-checking; in reality, it’s more about a lack of trust in the team.

    In a survey of 14,000 employees for Jacob Morgan’s book, Leading with Vulnerability (2023), only 16% reported ever having faced a leader who showed vulnerability, asked for help, or acknowledged mistakes. That leaves the majority feeling undervalued and with no motivation.

    Under Bob Chapek, Disney’s leadership became known for excessive oversight. Staff felt that their creativity was being stifled, as leadership was unwilling to delegate. There was also a significant amount of instability and mistrust stemming from internal tension and declining morale among employees.

    Empower your team to lead on their responsibilities. Effective delegation enables leaders to focus on broader goals and provides employees with the space to grow.

    2. Wearing the “Superman” mask

    The instinct to appear unshakable is understandable. Yet it often comes with a risk of emotional burnout, and, ironically, disconnection from the teams. There’s no trust with no authenticity attached. Teams that see a more empathetic leader are more likely to collaborate openly, share ideas and remain engaged.

    It’s essential to remind yourself that vulnerability is not a sign of weakness. When Hubert Joly took the helm at Best Buy, he faced lots of challenges from digital competitors. Instead of hiding his doubts, he openly sought advice across the team to co-create solutions. The result was not only a successful turnaround but also deeper trust between leadership and staff.

    Leaders do not have to be flawless superheroes. They need to be authentic humans.

    3. Lack of flexibility

    Everything changes, and leaders now face an average of 3.2 major changes simultaneously. Before 2020, most organisations encountered only two significant shifts per year; today, that number is closer to nine. Yet only 10 % of organizations believe they respond well to such dynamics. A common mistake is clinging to outdated models and processes, even when market signals indicate a shift. Employees quickly lose trust when they see their leader ignoring reality.

    When Starbucks experienced slowing sales, they turned to a new CEO, Brian Niccol. He launched a “Bold New Chapter” strategy: simplifying menus, removing extra charges for plant-based milk and re-emphasising Starbucks as a “third place” for connection. As a result, pilot cafes already show improved sales and customer satisfaction.

    4. Overlooking small wins

    In crises, leaders often focus so intensely on problems that they forget to celebrate progress. Ignoring small wins leaves employees feeling that their efforts go unnoticed, which weakens motivation and trust. A 2025 study revealed that only 19% of employees receive recognition weekly, even though frequent and meaningful praise significantly boosts engagement and productivity.

    Be specific, timely, and personal in your praise. It can be as simple as a message in Slack or Teams or a comment in a meeting. Leaders who pay attention to achievements create a culture where people feel valued and motivated.

    5. Burning out

    According to Vistage, 71% of CEOs regularly face burnout, with a third experiencing it almost daily. Leaders need to prioritize recovery, activities and proper sleep. As the Financial Times noted in 2024, many CEOs now treat rest not as weakness but as a strategy. There are two types of entrepreneurs. Some proudly claim success came from working “day and night without pause”. Others learn to delegate, protect their health and focus on strategy. Both can succeed, but only one builds a sustainable organisation.

    A good leader knows that trust of the team is not a “nice to have”. It’s the foundation of performance, especially when the storm hits. The leaders who succeed are not those who strive for perfection, but rather those who are authentic, adaptable and empathetic. They delegate, acknowledge both challenges and wins and care for their own well-being, thus inspiring their teams.

    In times of crisis, employees pay great attention to what their leader is like. It is in these moments that trust shifts from a “soft value” to a strategic asset that directly affects motivation, retention and even financial results.

    Companies with high levels of trust outperform competitors in efficiency by up to 400%, and 93% of business leaders believe that trust directly impacts financial performance.

    Yet, the reality is not that great. According to Gallup, only 20% of employees say they trust their leader. Edelman reports that just 19% believe CEOs are honest, while 68% think leaders intentionally mislead them.

    The rest of this article is locked.

    Join Entrepreneur+ today for access.

    Slava Bogdan

    Source link

  • AI Won’t Wait for Your Strategy — Why Should Your Leadership? | Entrepreneur

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    AI is rewriting the playbook for businesses, and it’s reshaping market winners and losers in real time. The next several years may well decide which companies survive and which get squeezed based on who can keep up with the pace of change.

    When cloud computing transformed the tech world, it took a decade to reach mass adoption. Gen AI achieved the same scale in just a year, and Agentic AI, poised to become mainstream next year, is setting a new benchmark, already boasting a 50% adoption rate among tech execs. With AGI (superhuman AI) on the horizon, the rate of change will be almost incomprehensible, transforming life as we know it.

    In North America, 66% of organizations using AI agents report measurable productivity gains, 73% view their strategy as a competitive edge, and nearly half worry they’re already lagging behind their competitors.

    Despite anxious headlines (and even some dire warnings), I’m energized by the possibilities — and I share that optimism with my team, focusing on the transformative opportunities AI unlocks.

    Related: Artificial General Intelligence: The Next Frontier In Technology

    But optimism alone doesn’t cut it. The pace of change is so quick that the only way to build business resilience is to match it with speed and precision. I’ve always believed in short timelines and fast results, but now they’re non‑negotiable.

    The question for leaders is how to build organizations that can move as quickly and as intelligently as the world around them. Here’s how to get there:

    As a leader, you’ve likely got a plan in place for the next three to five years. But with the velocity of change, it’s tough to see what’s around the corner. That doesn’t mean you can’t set your business up for success, no matter how the landscape evolves. You just need to build the right foundation:

    A strong and unwavering vision and mission

    No matter how fast AI evolves, your company’s mission should remain steady. A clear, simple and consistent purpose keeps teams rowing together. For us, it’s about transforming access to the digital world. We do this by delivering content that is compliant and performing — both for humans and AI.

    What will evolve is how we execute on that vision. Today, we’re transforming our platform capabilities with agentic AI; tomorrow, emerging technologies may lead us to new strategies. But the mission itself? That provides focus and steadiness through change.

    Collaboration that moves as fast as AI

    I’ve seen organizations where leaders are incentivized to compete against one another, yet research has shown that internal competition can actually stifle innovation. A better approach? Empower cross-functional teams to collaborate on strategic thinking at all levels.

    Problems don’t care which department ‘owns’ them, and neither should your organization. I don’t hesitate to bring everyone involved in a project into the same room, regardless of title or position. Flattening hierarchies and breaking down silos accelerates decision-making, fosters shared accountability and unlocks the kind of speed and creativity AI demands.

    Related: Is AI Truly Driving Your Growth — or Wasting Your Time?

    A relentless commitment to AI alignment

    Keeping pace with today’s market realities requires more than urgency; it demands alignment on why we must keep embracing AI’s evolution. That understanding can’t be assumed. During a recent company-wide meeting on agentic AI, someone asked if we had invented the technology. It was a powerful reminder that we aren’t all starting from the same place.

    While I’ve never been one to mince words, alignment only happens when people truly comprehend what’s happening and what’s at stake. In recent months, I’ve made it a priority to connect directly with our entire global team, along with sharing regular updates through a recurring internal newsletter.

    The goal? Ensure everyone feels informed, empowered and included in the journey ahead.

    Pulling your team toward AI versus pushing them

    Resistance to change is often endemic, particularly in larger organizations. But forcing change is not the answer, either. While I actively encourage everyone to explore AI, I believe people need to pull themselves toward the opportunity.

    This requires fostering a culture where continuous learning and experimentation are encouraged — and where failure is seen as a necessary part of growth. Ultimately, it’s about helping people understand that the more you pull yourself toward change, the more successful you’ll be. The more you push away, the more it’s going to hurt.

    AI-paced decision-making (quarterly business reviews won’t cut it)

    AI compresses timelines. To move quickly, you need to dramatically increase your cadence. It may sound excessive for a busy CEO, but I meet weekly with our product teams and monthly with leadership to fine-tune execution. That way, we can quickly test assumptions, learn from real-time feedback and adjust course.

    Of course, evolving your culture to one of fast execution doesn’t mean barrelling ahead recklessly – it’s about establishing a steady rhythm of learning, iterating and improving at a pace that matches the world around you.

    That shift has already started paying off. I’ve seen early results in productivity: our team is more agile than ever, moving from idea to execution in a fraction of the time.

    Related: A Founder’s Guide to Building a Real AI Strategy

    But this isn’t just about speed. In our case – and likely for many other organizations – agentic AI is expanding the kinds of problems we can solve and the customers we can serve. So much so that we’re betting on a massive expansion of our total addressable market within the next three years.

    The real lesson of leading at the speed of AI is not about simply surviving the next wave of disruption; it’s about positioning your organization to shape it. At the end of the day, leaders must envision where the world is going, bring that future into their organizations and inspire their teams to take the leap alongside them.

    This is no time to wait and watch.

    Today it’s agentic; tomorrow it will be AGI. Either way, if you don’t adapt, you can be sure others will.

    AI is rewriting the playbook for businesses, and it’s reshaping market winners and losers in real time. The next several years may well decide which companies survive and which get squeezed based on who can keep up with the pace of change.

    When cloud computing transformed the tech world, it took a decade to reach mass adoption. Gen AI achieved the same scale in just a year, and Agentic AI, poised to become mainstream next year, is setting a new benchmark, already boasting a 50% adoption rate among tech execs. With AGI (superhuman AI) on the horizon, the rate of change will be almost incomprehensible, transforming life as we know it.

    In North America, 66% of organizations using AI agents report measurable productivity gains, 73% view their strategy as a competitive edge, and nearly half worry they’re already lagging behind their competitors.

    The rest of this article is locked.

    Join Entrepreneur+ today for access.

    Nayaki Nayyar

    Source link

  • I’ve Built 3 Multimillion-Dollar Businesses — and Here’s My Simple Secret to Success | Entrepreneur

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    When I started out, the goal was pretty straightforward: Make lots of money. Like most new entrepreneurs, I figured once I’d “made it,” then I’d give back. That part would come later. Success first, impact second.

    Looking back, I now realize that mentality was a massive mistake. In fact, I believe it was one of the fundamental reasons it took me years to find any success. I now realize that pushing purpose to the back burner might be the thing that stalls your growth even more than poor marketing.

    Everything turned around for me when I stopped “chasing paper” and started asking how I could help. When that shift happened, my business started to thrive in ways I never expected. And the money? It followed, as a side effect. It’s a fact that we all know deep down, but too often forget.

    We’re told that giving back is something you earn the right to do once your company is big, your team is built, and your bank account looks a certain way. But the reality is that purpose isn’t a luxury; it’s a growth strategy. This attitude of abundance needs to be something that you embody both internally and externally as well.

    Related: How to Balance Profits With Purpose at Your Business

    The first focus needs to be on how you approach your day-to-day operations. At BotBuilders, our work centers around AI and automation. But that’s not really what drives us. The deeper mission is helping small business owners believe in what they’re building and giving them tools to actually pull it off.

    The more we’ve invested in our clients’ success, the more we’ve seen our own business expand. Not just in revenue, but in reach, loyalty and community. Real relationships have carried us further than any marketing tactic ever could. It’s not something you can track or budget for, but we’ve all experienced how one relationship can lead to exponential growth, on many levels.

    The second way to have an impact is how your company shows outside of your core competency. Namely, in your community. How often do you and your team get out and serve those who need it most? Money is great, but there is no comparison to the difference that a smile can make.

    One of the biggest culture-shaping moments we’ve ever had started in the most unexpected place: a bowling alley in Arizona. Working with Special Olympics Arizona, we put together the Bowl-A-Thon Bash. The annual event pairs athletes with local business owners for high-fives, gutter balls, and a whole lot of laughter.

    At first, it felt like a one-off community event. But after that night, something shifted. It became tradition. And every year we go back it resets something in us. We leave lighter, clearer, and more in tune with what really matters. That one night has done more to anchor our company values than any vision statement ever could.

    Don’t get me wrong, money is important. I’m not dismissing that. But if we’re talking about real impact? Giving your time and actually showing up, things just hit different. Over the years, our team has done all kinds of small things that ended up being huge. We’ve served meals at shelters. We’ve planted trees. We’ve hosted holiday parties in retirement homes just to bring some joy to folks who don’t get many visitors.

    Related: This CEO Says Prioritizing Purpose Over Profit Is Key to Consistent Growth and Sustainable Profit — Here’s Why.

    None of that was fancy. None of it was scalable or “optimized.” But the growth those moments sparked? You could feel it. In how we communicated, how we worked together and how we showed up on Monday mornings. When we work together to do good for others, we are connected on a level much deeper than winning awards or even with traditional team-building activities.

    So if you’re leading a team, never forget the fact that your values are contagious. Culture doesn’t come from the posters on your wall or the perks in your handbook. It’s built in the quiet choices. It shows up in how you respond when no one’s watching. It’s shaped by what you say “yes” to, and what you’re willing to let slide. As my angel-of-a-mother always says, “never miss a chance to help someone out.”

    When you lead with meaning, people notice. They step up. And the ripple effects extend way beyond your team. So don’t wait for the perfect opportunity. You don’t need a giant audience, a massive checkbook or a five-year plan to make an impact. You just need to care enough to begin. You’ll be amazed by what comes of it on every level of your organization.

    Pick something simple. Volunteer for a day, and invite your team into the process. Whatever you do, it doesn’t have to be perfect; it just has to be real. Because when your business stands for something more, people stand with you. And that is when things really start to grow.

    When I started out, the goal was pretty straightforward: Make lots of money. Like most new entrepreneurs, I figured once I’d “made it,” then I’d give back. That part would come later. Success first, impact second.

    Looking back, I now realize that mentality was a massive mistake. In fact, I believe it was one of the fundamental reasons it took me years to find any success. I now realize that pushing purpose to the back burner might be the thing that stalls your growth even more than poor marketing.

    Everything turned around for me when I stopped “chasing paper” and started asking how I could help. When that shift happened, my business started to thrive in ways I never expected. And the money? It followed, as a side effect. It’s a fact that we all know deep down, but too often forget.

    The rest of this article is locked.

    Join Entrepreneur+ today for access.

    Matt Leitz

    Source link

  • Closer or Colder? How AI Shapes Your Customer Relationships | Entrepreneur

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    I’m not going to lie, the latest generation of AI, especially large language models and agentic AI, is nothing short of impressive. At Human Cloud, we used tools like Claude and Windsurf to accomplish in 5 minutes what had previously taken us 5 years.

    On the surface, it’s a story of overnight magic. But dig deeper and you’ll find that the real magic wasn’t the AI itself; it was the five years of groundwork that came before. We spent that time using spreadsheets, Canva graphics, CRM automations and hacky off-the-shelf tools to create the right sales and delivery motion, and validate our customers’ needs.

    Only then did the AI become a true accelerator, as we used Claude, Windsurf and AWS to create the Human Cloud Platform in less than 5 minutes.

    This brings up a crucial point. AI can easily be a distraction, prioritizing hype and buzz over real revenue and profitability. Why? Because the fundamental principle of business remains unchanged: every breakthrough starts with a deep understanding of what your customers need.

    Before you invest another dollar in AI, ask yourself one question: Is this technology making us closer to our customers, or pulling us further away?

    Here are five steps to ensure AI helps you get closer.

    1. Manually implement before automating

    “Do things that don’t scale” is a famous startup moniker brought up by Paul Graham, co-founder of Y Combinator, in his essay in 2013. As a 4x founder myself, this ethos has always run true.

    In the case of AI, in every scenario, ask yourself if there is a manual alternative. If there is, try that first, then automate based on customer demand.

    Related: LinkedIn’s Reid Hoffman: To Scale, Do Things That Don’t Scale

    2: Capture enough manual feedback

    Step 1 is only half the story. The other half is ensuring you have enough of the right type of feedback to automate what really works. My strongest recommendation is to capture feedback that’s closest to customers actually paying, engaging and sharing.

    I learned this the hard way in a former startup. We spent 3 months listening and iterating on prototypes based on feedback. We were maniacal in the level of detail we captured, from the user experience to the design. Then we launched, and less than 5% of these users actually paid. Instead, we shouldn’t have listened to what they said, but instead prioritized what they did.

    If you want a book to help you capture the right type of feedback, check out The Mom Test.

    Related: How the ‘Mom Test’ Can Help You Cut Through B.S. and Find Important Answers

    3: Make AI accessible for everyone, not just AI experts

    Rather than investing in an AI team or hiring AI experts, give everyone an opportunity to apply AI across their team and their work.

    Preston Mossman, Senior Director of AI Consulting for Galaxy Square, told me, “learning to use AI is a muscle you have to build. A lot of people self-select out because they can’t use AI today to help them, but the first step is to accelerate their comfort and understanding in a way that feels valuable to them.”

    When asking Preston about ways companies have helped their leaders get comfortable with it, he brought up investing in AI-related tools for interested individuals.

    In his words, “if your mechanic told you about a $50 wrench that could get your job done just as well for half the cost, you would buy it for them or find a new mechanic (with the $50 wrench).”

    Leaders not using AI in 5 years will be like leaders not using a computer today.

    Related: Why Your AI Strategy Will Fail Without the Right Talent in Place

    4: Hire independent experts first

    Telling someone to use AI with no support is like telling someone to jump out of a plane without a parachute.

    Obviously, hiring AI experts as full-time employees would be expensive and out of reach for most of us. Likewise, AI trainings take time, might be expensive, and rarely has direct applicability from training to application.

    But a shortcut is hiring individuals who already use AI, as 65% of independent experts were already using AI as far back as 2024, and 95% of independent experts stated that AI makes them more competitive.

    This brings up step 4: to hire flexible talent first, with flexible talent defined as independent, freelance, and fractional experts.

    The data is clear that flexible talent upskills faster than full-time employees and is ahead of the curve in AI adoption and effectiveness. It’s not just AI, Deloitte research shows that the independent workforce upskills faster than their full-time peers.

    There are also four massive benefits of flexible talent compared to full-time. You can control cost. You have a quicker time to effectiveness. You learn by seeing their expertise. And the most important benefit is that this is the future workforce.

    To get started, look for a flexible talent platform that is specialized in your region, industry, and the application you need AI for. There are over 800 of these specialized solutions.

    Related: Solopreneurship and Freelancing Is Here to Stay — Are You Ready?

    5: Scale like the cloud

    We take for granted how transformational cloud computing has been for us entrepreneurs. Without getting too geeky, what it really did was enable us to scale in line with customer demand rather than taking big bets because of large fixed costs.

    Apply this same mindset to AI.

    Do you think your AI idea is the next big breakthrough that will transform your company, your industry, and the world? That’s great. Now go through steps 1-4 before you bet the farm.

    I’m not going to lie, the latest generation of AI, especially large language models and agentic AI, is nothing short of impressive. At Human Cloud, we used tools like Claude and Windsurf to accomplish in 5 minutes what had previously taken us 5 years.

    On the surface, it’s a story of overnight magic. But dig deeper and you’ll find that the real magic wasn’t the AI itself; it was the five years of groundwork that came before. We spent that time using spreadsheets, Canva graphics, CRM automations and hacky off-the-shelf tools to create the right sales and delivery motion, and validate our customers’ needs.

    Only then did the AI become a true accelerator, as we used Claude, Windsurf and AWS to create the Human Cloud Platform in less than 5 minutes.

    The rest of this article is locked.

    Join Entrepreneur+ today for access.

    Matthew Mottola

    Source link

  • Want to Sell More? Make Your Team Less Competitive, Not More | Entrepreneur

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    As someone who has coached several sales teams over the years, I’ve seen how traditional competitive sales environments run leaders down. Perhaps one of the biggest challenges of managing this particular group of personalities is that they’re extremely competitive. This competitiveness can be both a boon for your company (e.g. the sales will keep coming) and a burden for you (e.g. you’re trying to keep high-achievers from acting aggressively or impulsively).

    I’ve seen top sales performers clash over territories and go to war with each other. Their sales manager then has to move from focusing on strategic leadership to constant conflict resolution. The stress is overwhelming not just for the manager, but for the entire organization.

    This experience led me to explore alternative approaches to sales team structures, studying companies that had successfully reimagined their sales cultures. The organizations I observed transformed their sales department by breaking down traditional silos and changing their compensation models to reward collective success over individual achievement. These models showed me that there’s a better way forward.

    Related: How Collaboration Can Help Drive Growth and Propel Your Business to New Heights

    Why collaborative selling works for everyone

    The natural go-getter attitudes of your sales team are a benefit to you, but when they are at odds with each other, it’s a drain on their time. If your salespeople are constantly trying to outdo each other, they won’t be as focused on outdoing the competition. They will also have trouble working together to meet shared goals.

    One way to fix this is to switch up your internal selling framework and move toward one that rewards collaboration. When they collaborate, they can pool their talents and have a better chance of beating the competitors.

    But beware. You can’t just say that you’re going to collaborate and then let the discussion end. Instead, you have to strategically revisit several aspects of your sales culture to drive more collaboration in a systematic way that you can still measure and control. You can start with the following suggestions.

    1. Allow sales representatives to have more flexibility

    Are your salespeople assigned to strict territories, verticals or product lines? This may be causing unnecessary tension between your salespeople and their customers. Sometimes, this friction can stem from team members feeling that certain assignments are less favorable than others.

    To increase cross-divisional synergy, think about ways you could drop some of your barriers. For example, Nexus Power bucks the traditional sales model by organizing into five separate but collaborative divisions across 11 western states. Rather than only incentivizing each sales team for the products for which they are directly responsible, their sales reps have the ability to tap into expertise from any division when customer needs span multiple product categories or require specialized knowledge. This approach not only provides a more seamless customer experience, but it also positions the sales team as the customer’s “go-to” resource for all their needs.

    To implement this concept, map your current territorial or product barriers, then pilot a “flex territory” program allowing cross-boundary collaboration on qualifying deals. Establish clear revenue-sharing protocols and regular knowledge-sharing sessions between divisions.

    Also, most importantly, adjust your compensation structure to reward collaboration alongside individual performance, ensuring that helping a colleague close a deal doesn’t penalize anyone’s commission.

    Opening up more opportunities to your salespeople won’t mean your stressors will vanish. However, you won’t have to play the role of referee between unhappy salespeople as much.

    Related: A Guide to Hiring the Right Type of Salesperson for What You’re Selling

    2. Incorporate a group commission into your compensation model

    Conventional sales-comp structures built almost entirely around individual quotas can choke off collaboration. That’s why 91% of companies said they will tweak their incentive plans this year, according to the Alexander Group’s 2024 Sales-Compensation Trends survey.

    A proof point comes from Pfizer, whose 4,500 U.S. customer-facing colleagues are mapped into seven business lines and hundreds of micro-territories. Each territory rolls up into a regional collective, and once that region crosses 100% of target, the entire cohort participates in Pfizer’s Global Performance Plan, an annual bonus pool that adds roughly 20% of base pay on top of any individual incentives. Territories are re-mapped quarterly to keep workload and opportunity balanced, so no one feels short-changed yet everyone is invested in pushing the region over goal.

    Related: How to Create a Pay Structure That Promotes Team and Company Growth

    3. Empower sales professionals to work their unique skills

    Another way to boost collaboration is to give your processes a complete overhaul. For example, you could use a test like the Clifton Strengths assessment to pinpoint what each of your employees is best at doing. You could then use the data to figure out who on your team is a rainmaker, a relationship builder, a closer, a specialist, etc.

    After determining the strengths of your team, you can then position them to shine. Maybe you assign your networkers to make it rain and then hand off leads to your communication masters who can build connections. By making the most of the skills of your current team, you may be able to help everyone achieve more — just make sure your new compensation model aligns with this shuffling of roles.

    A nice side effect of turning your team into a cohesive unit is that you’ll be able to see any gaps right away. When you do, you can fill those gaps with the right talent. Plus, you’ll be able to easily adapt your team to market changes because they’ll be working in tandem.

    You have enough stress. Rather than continuing with work as usual, consider the advantages of downplaying competition and encouraging collaboration for you and your team.

    As someone who has coached several sales teams over the years, I’ve seen how traditional competitive sales environments run leaders down. Perhaps one of the biggest challenges of managing this particular group of personalities is that they’re extremely competitive. This competitiveness can be both a boon for your company (e.g. the sales will keep coming) and a burden for you (e.g. you’re trying to keep high-achievers from acting aggressively or impulsively).

    I’ve seen top sales performers clash over territories and go to war with each other. Their sales manager then has to move from focusing on strategic leadership to constant conflict resolution. The stress is overwhelming not just for the manager, but for the entire organization.

    This experience led me to explore alternative approaches to sales team structures, studying companies that had successfully reimagined their sales cultures. The organizations I observed transformed their sales department by breaking down traditional silos and changing their compensation models to reward collective success over individual achievement. These models showed me that there’s a better way forward.

    The rest of this article is locked.

    Join Entrepreneur+ today for access.

    Peter Daisyme

    Source link

  • How to Consistently Exceed Customer Expectations | Entrepreneur

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    We’ve all heard the phrase, “underpromise and overdeliver.” Unfortunately, I often see businesses that tend to “overpromise and underdeliver,” failing to meet customers’ expectations.

    For me, it all comes down to trust. Can I rely on a company to consistently meet and exceed my expectations? As entrepreneurs, this can be a difficult question to confront. However, if you’re unsure how to respond, it may be time to reflect on your practices.

    Consistently exceeding expectations earns appreciation from others. What we truly desire is trust. In a landscape filled with wannabes trying to mimic reputable companies, the most effective strategy to differentiate yourself is not only to meet expectations but also to exceed them and then offer a little bit more.

    Related: If You Are Not Over Delivering for Your Customers, You’re Not Doing Enough

    Establish realistic expectations, then overdeliver

    Unfortunately, today’s consumers can grow accustomed to disappointment. That’s why companies that set realistic expectations are better positioned to achieve a high level of customer satisfaction. Here’s an example:

    While driving to lunch last week, a radio ad for replacement auto windshields caught my attention. Instead of touting how wonderful and fast the installers work or how great the company’s reviews and customer accolades are, the ad used a different strategy; they focused on realistic circumstances.

    “We may not always be perfect. Sometimes our employees punch in the wrong number or have trouble locating your address. At other times, we might underestimate how much time an installation will take. No, we’re not perfect, but you can rest assured that we’ll always do our best, make things right when needed and do everything possible to earn and keep your business.”

    The ad definitely caught my attention because I appreciated the company’s candor and honesty. In a world where most of us try to tune advertisements out, I’ll consider using the company the next time I need my windshield repaired or replaced.

    Why? Because my employees and I at Ditto Transcripts sometimes make mistakes. In the transcription industry, where turnaround time, accuracy and confidentiality are paramount, securing our clients’ trust and confidence remains our top priority. If we fail at any of these objectives, or if our transcripts don’t meet our 99% accuracy guarantee, I’ll do everything possible to correct the situation and satisfy the client as quickly as possible.

    The hidden ROI of overdelivery

    Most businesses strive to acquire new clients or customers, and on average, B2B companies can spend 20-50% of their annual revenue on this effort. Therefore, turning new clients into repeat customers is crucial for any company’s success.

    Given that repeat business is vital to our strategy and profitability, I personally review customer feedback and assess our service levels.

    For example, our Google reviews may include statements such as:

    • “Our transcripts were delivered early and accurately.”

    • “Their transcriptionist caught every word, even with poor audio quality.”

    • “You saved us, especially having such a tight deadline.”

    I genuinely appreciate it when our clients take the time to share positive feedback, as these reviews typically lead to repeat business. Moreover, when potential clients read favorable reviews, they are more likely to consider us for their transcription needs.

    By ensuring our clients are satisfied with our work, we can minimize or eliminate negative reviews. Always remember, taking the necessary steps to enhance customer satisfaction ultimately improves your return on investment (ROI) and bottom line.

    Related: This Is the Real Secret to Exceeding Your Customer’s Expectations

    What overdelivery looks like

    Often, it’s the small gestures that leave a lasting impression. For instance, sending a thank-you email to a new client is usually appreciated. However, a handwritten note can generate an even stronger sense of gratitude. Paying attention to these small details can lead to greater rewards.

    Consider what “overdelivery” looks like for your business. In our industry, it might include:

    1. Delivering transcripts ahead of schedule

    2. Proactively communicating with clients when issues arise

    3. Adding speaker labels or formatting without being prompted

    4. Following up with clients after delivery

    It’s important to note that “overdelivery” does not mean working for free or providing services at a significant loss. Instead, it involves exceeding client expectations through speed, accuracy, and quality. By focusing on successfully handling the small things, you may be surprised at the positive impact on your bottom line.

    Common mistakes that erode trust

    We’ve discussed many common mistakes that can erode trust and lead to revenue loss. However, a few of these mistakes are worth repeating.

    The first mistake is overcommitting while trying to secure new business. Most entrepreneurs have experienced this situation: Just as we’re nearing the finish line and sensing that our prospect is about to commit, a couple of concerns arise. In an effort to close the deal, we may overpromise without a clear plan for how to meet the customer’s expectations. Does that sound familiar?

    Overpromising simply to close a deal often results in underperformance and dissatisfied customers. To avoid this, it’s crucial to set realistic expectations from the start. Make sure to acknowledge the prospect’s concerns and assure them that you’ll develop a strategy to address their needs.

    Additionally, maintain open communication with the client to ensure their needs are consistently met. If, for any reason, you find that you cannot meet their expectations, be honest and communicate this as well.

    By establishing reasonable expectations, you and your team will have a better chance of overcoming challenges and pleasing the client. For example, saying, “Yes, Ms. Smith, I’m confident we can meet your 36-hour turnaround,” and then delivering the transcript sooner can help build trust and encourage repeat business.

    Build a culture of consistent overdelivery

    Now that you understand the importance of underpromising and overdelivering, it’s essential to instill this culture within your team. Leadership begins at the top, so ensure your employees comprehend your commitment to this approach. Focus not only on how this strategy benefits the company’s bottom line, but also on how it positively impacts individual employees.

    Start by evaluating your hiring practices. Are you looking for employees who take pride in delivering exceptional service? Acknowledge those who go “above and beyond.” Building loyalty and trust within your organization often leads to happier employees and satisfied customers.

    Create Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) to improve quality control and internal communication. Ensure your team is clear about what they can and cannot do when handling customer issues. Proper training can enhance customer satisfaction and foster trust among your employees.

    Recognize consistent performance, not only extraordinary actions. While many appreciate acknowledgement for outstanding customer service, it’s crucial not to overlook those team members who consistently deliver excellent service. These are the employees you want to retain and incentivize.

    Empower your staff to make small decisions. Your sales team or customer service department typically interacts the most with clients and customers. Allow these employees to make minor concessions or resolve simple issues without needing to consult a manager.

    Discuss both positive and negative customer reviews and identify ways to improve in both areas. Owners and managers often focus on negative reviews, especially when they mention specific employees, shifts or departments. While addressing negative feedback is necessary, it’s equally important to recognize those who contributed to positive experiences and discuss how to implement these successful practices throughout your organization.

    Related: Trust Should Be the Foundation of Your Business — Here’s How to Earn It.

    Trust still — and always — matters

    The ability to underpromise and overdeliver is the cornerstone of many successful enterprises. The suggestions and recommendations I’ve outlined are more about common sense than complex strategies. However, every entrepreneur, including myself, needs constant reminders of their importance.

    Every time your organization delivers more than it promised, your trust factor increases significantly. Consistently overdelivering helps build a strong culture of trust, both internally and externally.

    The late Fred Smith, founder of FedEx, established a solid reputation by promising next-day and two-day package delivery. This positive reputation helped him secure a loyal customer base, even when his company’s rates were higher than those of competitors. More importantly, Mr. Smith built trust through consistent performance.

    Ben Walker

    Source link

  • Stop Telling Women to ‘Smile More’— It’s Time to End This Workplace Double Standard | Entrepreneur

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    As we race to our social media channels to recognize and honor Women’s Equality Day, let’s not forget the daily struggles women continue to face both at our kitchen tables and at our conference room tables.

    In our workplaces, the everyday bias women face on how we speak, how we look and how we act can slowly chip away at us. And sometimes, these comments and actions that may be categorized as “innocent mistakes” impact performance reviews and advancement and promotion opportunities. All of which hits our paychecks, ultimately contributing to widening the gender pay gap.

    In my book, The Devil Emails at Midnight: What Good Leaders Can Learn From Bad Bosses, I share that my former boss, whom I nicknamed The Cheerleader, always wanted me to be happy. He wanted me to be smiling big like a Cheshire Cat or The Joker.

    “Why aren’t you smiling? What happened? Don’t worry, be happy!” The Cheerleader would always say this to me, pointing to his mouth and making a hand gesture for me to smile. And most of the time when I received this feedback, nothing had actually happened. I would be just at my desk diligently working, focused and apparently, not smiling. But he wanted me to always be smiling and always be projecting happiness, no matter what the circumstances were. This left my cheekbones sore and me feeling exhausted from the pretense of always projecting a positive, can-do attitude instead of just doing my work.

    So on this Women’s Equality Day, stop asking women to smile at work. Instead, here are three things leaders should focus on to break the bias in our workplaces.

    Related: 3 Ways Female Entrepreneurs Can Shatter Stereotypes While Also Empowering Others

    1. Focus on performance, not if they are smiling

    According to one study, 98% of women reported being told to smile at work sometime during the course of their careers, and 15% said the request to smile on demand happens weekly for them, if not more frequently. Of course, individuals who smile may be viewed as happier, likable and approachable.

    “Smiling is very much associated as a gender marker,” says Marianne LaFrance, a professor of women’s, gender, and sexuality studies at Yale University and author of the book Why Smile? “It marks one’s femininity and a more communal stance toward life. Though smiling is generally a positive characteristic, it falls to women to do more of it because we want to make sure women are doing what we expect them to do, which is to care for others.”

    Telling women to smile may seem harmless in the workplace. And it reinforces the societal expectation that women should be cheerful, approachable and make others feel more comfortable with a simple smile.

    Don’t use “the smile” as an indicator of whether women are performing or not on the job. Rather than focusing on their facial expressions, focus on their performance. Ensure all employees have clear goals and metrics and they understand when and what they are expected to deliver. And take the time to evaluate them fairly based on their work, and not based on how often they smile.

    Related: If You Want to Honor Women’s Equality Day, Start by Re-evaluating the Performance Feedback You Give Women at Work

    2. Recognize and respect how individuals express emotions

    I enjoy smiling. But when my former boss, The Cheerleader, would tell me to smile on demand, that’s when I started to dislike smiling. At times, I would shoot a quick smile back just to appease the situation. And when I am doing work at my desk, I am concentrating on completing the task at hand. I am not focused on how I look, if I am smiling or not. I just want to do the best work I can.

    For women, smiling on demand in the workplace can seem more like a requirement. According to Harvard Business Review, “This pervasive stereotype not only characterizes Black women as more hostile, aggressive, overbearing, illogical, ill-tempered and bitter, but it may also be holding them back from realizing their full potential in the workplace.”

    Let’s recognize and respect how women, and all individuals, express emotions, especially being content or happy at work. Depending on the culture and environment you were raised in, a smile doesn’t always equal happiness.

    For some, a smile without clear context or reasoning may seem suspicious, even a sign of weakness or dishonesty. For some, smiling constantly may be a way to mask how they are truly feeling. For some, they may not smile freely at strangers and only smile with close friends or family members where they feel comfortable. Remember that smiling is not the only way to determine if someone feels they are content and doing well at their job.

    Related: Men Are Seen as Experts More Often Than Their Women Counterparts — and It’s Time to Break Those Gender Biases.

    3. Challenge the idea that smiling is part of the job requirement

    As leaders, do we ask women to smile more than men? And if we do, why is it a job requirement at all to be ready to flash a smile on demand? Here’s how we can respectfully challenge and break through the bias:

    Do we ask Jeff to smile more often, who is also up for a promotion? Why is this feedback we are specifically giving Mita, to smile more and be happier in the office?

    Mita has gotten strong performance ratings the last two years in a row, and this year, she has exceeded all her goals and has received positive feedback from her team and peers. Can someone help me understand why we need her to smile more?

    Why do we need Mita to smile more often? What makes us uncomfortable about her not smiling? Is her lack of smiling impacting her performance?

    Next time you have the urge to ask a woman to smile more at work, stop and pause. Why does she need to smile to be successful and happy at work? Help yourself and others move beyond how she looks and focus on how she drives business results to help break the bias in our workplaces.

    As we race to our social media channels to recognize and honor Women’s Equality Day, let’s not forget the daily struggles women continue to face both at our kitchen tables and at our conference room tables.

    In our workplaces, the everyday bias women face on how we speak, how we look and how we act can slowly chip away at us. And sometimes, these comments and actions that may be categorized as “innocent mistakes” impact performance reviews and advancement and promotion opportunities. All of which hits our paychecks, ultimately contributing to widening the gender pay gap.

    In my book, The Devil Emails at Midnight: What Good Leaders Can Learn From Bad Bosses, I share that my former boss, whom I nicknamed The Cheerleader, always wanted me to be happy. He wanted me to be smiling big like a Cheshire Cat or The Joker.

    The rest of this article is locked.

    Join Entrepreneur+ today for access.

    Mita Mallick

    Source link

  • 4 Moves Every New Leader Must Make to Earn Their Seat at the Table | Entrepreneur

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    You made it. After years of building, optimizing and scaling to the nth degree, you’ve earned a seat at the table in the C-suite. Not just a C-suite title, still reporting to another executive who makes the real decisions; you are actually in the “situation room.” You bring a deep understanding of the technology that powers your business. You celebrate. You update your LinkedIn. Then day one arrives.

    And you realize something: People are a bit skeptical of you, and it isn’t just the people below you. People above you, your peers and the investors all seem to have a certain take on you.

    You learn quickly that a title alone doesn’t build trust. Your technical brilliance doesn’t move your team, your peers and your executive counterparts. They’re looking for leadership that values business outcomes rather than just technical best practices. This is why you’re the CTO/CIO, not the IT person.

    In an article he co-authored, Harvard Business School professor Boris Groysberg said, “Technical skills are merely a starting point, the bare minimum. Requirements for all the C-level jobs have shifted toward business acumen and ‘softer’ leadership skills.” This next stage is about blending driving value with your expertise, rather than just explaining how things work.

    Let’s go over some of the roles you need to fill and milestones you need to hit in your first year on the job.

    Related: I’ve Managed 260 Employees — Here’s How to Tell If Your Leadership Style Is Actually Working

    Day one: Everyone is going to lie to you (unintentionally)

    On day one, you’ll ask questions and hear confident answers. But most of them will be incomplete and even sometimes completely inaccurate, but hold your judgment initially.

    It’s not deception. It’s diffusion. In any organization of scale, no single person holds the full picture. Documentation is outdated. Systems are interconnected in convoluted and undocumented ways. History is buried in inboxes and hallway conversations. Late-night crises solved by sleepless IT staff have gotten the company back up by morning, but only by a patchwork that makes little sense.

    The instinct, especially as a first-time leader, is to clean house. To draw hard lines between what’s broken and what’s working properly and who’s to blame. Trust me, resist that.

    Why? Because if you say, “This is all bunk, we’re starting over,” or we are in the mess because the last guard was incompetent, you’re not leading; you are actively setting yourself up for the same demise. As The Who once sang, “Meet the new boss, same as the old boss.”

    Instead, don’t give in to the easy blame, trust that there is always context and be the empath in your organization. This means active listening without judgment, understanding how and why decisions were made before assuming they were wrong and recognizing that institutional constraints often explain more than incompetence ever could.

    When you seek to understand, not audit, you become the kind of leader people trust with the truth.

    Week one: Start speaking in business, not just systems

    The fastest way to lose trust in your first week is to speak in technical jargon and expect others to keep up. They won’t. And they shouldn’t have to.

    Your job now is to be the translator. That means reframing technology conversations into business impact.

    Saying, “We need $250,000 or we risk being hacked,” might be true. But it sounds like fear-based budgeting. Instead, say, “This investment reduces our incident response time and enables faster feature delivery, which directly affects our speed to market.”

    You’re not dumbing it down. You’re tuning it up. You’re connecting the dots between what the system needs and what the business values. That’s leadership.

    And if you can’t do that yet, now’s the time to learn.

    Quarter one: Deliver value that ripples across departments

    You don’t need a moonshot in your first 90 days. However, you do need a win, one that demonstrates your understanding of how the business operates, not just how the tech stacks up.

    Pick a persistent pain point that cuts across teams. Fix a bottleneck in onboarding. Streamline reporting. Solve something people have silently suffered through.

    This is where the operator shows up, a role that combines execution with empathy. You’re proving that your leadership isn’t just smart. It’s useful, visible and repeatable.

    And just as important: make sure the win isn’t just yours. Highlight the teammates who made it possible. Trust builds faster when people see your leadership as expansive, not self-serving.

    Year one: Don’t demand the seat — earn it

    There’s a common refrain among technical leaders: “We deserve more authority.” You want to report to the CEO. You want a louder voice in strategy. You want influence.

    If you want to be at the table, learn how that table works. Understand margin pressures. Know what drives your CFO’s decisions. Learn how compliance constraints shape your CMO’s roadmap. Understand how product timelines interact with hiring cycles.

    A real executive doesn’t just ask for influence. They wield it responsibly, cross-functionally, and with context.

    Related: Want to Be a Better Leader? Show Employees You Care.

    Create a space where tech leaders can thrive

    If you’re already in the C-suite, part of your responsibility is to make sure your technical leaders gain buy-in and succeed.

    That doesn’t mean coddling. It means creating clarity.

    • Invite them early. Don’t bring your CTO in at the end of a strategy session to “weigh in.” Bring them in when the goals are still being shaped.
    • Set expectations. Don’t just ask for deliverables. Ask for insight. Ask them to explain how tech can enable outcomes, not just avoid outages.
    • Eliminate the silo. Technology touches every department. The org chart should reflect that.
    • Reward translation. The best CTOs turn complexity into clarity. They make everyone around them smarter. That’s the leadership skill we should be measuring.

    When technical leaders fail, it’s rarely a failure of intelligence. It’s a failure of integration.

    If you’re seated in the “big chair,” you can’t expect people to intuit where they need to go. You need to build the bridge. You have to make everyone around you smarter, more capable, and more confident in their decisions because you’re part of the conversation.

    That’s what makes you trusted. And that’s what makes you dangerous — in the best way.

    You made it. After years of building, optimizing and scaling to the nth degree, you’ve earned a seat at the table in the C-suite. Not just a C-suite title, still reporting to another executive who makes the real decisions; you are actually in the “situation room.” You bring a deep understanding of the technology that powers your business. You celebrate. You update your LinkedIn. Then day one arrives.

    And you realize something: People are a bit skeptical of you, and it isn’t just the people below you. People above you, your peers and the investors all seem to have a certain take on you.

    You learn quickly that a title alone doesn’t build trust. Your technical brilliance doesn’t move your team, your peers and your executive counterparts. They’re looking for leadership that values business outcomes rather than just technical best practices. This is why you’re the CTO/CIO, not the IT person.

    The rest of this article is locked.

    Join Entrepreneur+ today for access.

    Charles Sims

    Source link