Traction Read online

  You’re hiring, firing, reviewing, rewarding, and recognizing all of your people around core values and using the People Analyzer for all people decisions. As your organization grows, you’re making the necessary evolutionary changes to your Accountability Chart, always focused on structure first and people second, ensuring the right people are in the right seats.

  You participate in a weekly Level 10 Meeting with your leadership team, reviewing your Scorecard to assure all numbers are on track. You review Rocks to make sure all priorities are on track. You’re solving all relevant issues for the week. As a result, you’re executing well as a team. In addition, each department is doing the same.

  Every 90 days, you deliver a quarterly state-of-the-company meeting. That keeps everyone in your company on the same page, sharing the same vision. Each person is setting and achieving his or her individual Rocks. Your company is growing. You’re achieving your goals and building a great company.

  This picture can be achieved. It is just a matter of implementing each tool in the order in which I’ve laid them out for you in this chapter.

  If at any time you get stuck, don’t hesitate to reach out to us for help.

  GET A GRIP: A BUSINESS FABLE...

  HOW TO GET EVERYTHING YOU WANT FROM YOUR ENTREPRENEURIAL BUSINESS

  By: Gino Wickman and Mike Paton

  See EOS at work – “in the trenches” of a real-world entrepreneurial company —

  Eileen Sharp and Vic Hightower are frustrated.

  Swan Services—the successful company they founded seven years ago—has hit the ceiling. On the heels of a major conflict, they decide to implement EOS. Slowly they begin to clarify Swan's vision, resolve a series of difficult people issues, and begin to gain Traction.

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR AND EOS WORLDWIDE

  Gino Wickman’s passion is helping people get what they want from their businesses. To fulfill that passion, Gino created the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS), a holistic system that, when implemented in an organization, helps leaders run better businesses, get better control, have better life balance, and gain more traction; with the entire organization advancing together as a healthy, functional, and cohesive team. Gino spends most of his time as an EOS Implementer, working hands-on with the leadership teams of entrepreneurial companies to help them fully implement EOS in their organizations. He is the founder of EOS Worldwide, a growing organization of successful entrepreneurs from a variety of business backgrounds collaborating as certified EOS Implementers to help people throughout the world to experience all the organizational and personal benefits of implementing EOS. Gino also delivers workshops and keynote addresses.

  FOR ADDITIONAL HELP AND INFORMATION

  My goal is to help you get everything you want from your business by offering three ways to help you fully and purely implement EOS in your organization:

  1. Self-Implementation—select one of your most capable and dedicated leaders to teach, facilitate, and coach your leadership team through The EOS Process, using free downloadable tools from our website and this book as a guide;

  2. Supported Self-Implementation—by joining the EOS Implementer Community for a small monthly fee, we will fully train and support that same leader to become an expert at implementing EOS in your organization; OR

  3. Professional Implementation—engage a professional EOS Implementer to lead you through The EOS Process.

  You can find out more about these three approaches, download free tools, subscribe to our blog for regular helpful tips, find out how to become a professional certified implementer, and schedule speaking engagements at www.eosworldwide.com.

  If you have any other questions or want any other help, call 1-877-EOS-1877 or e-mail [email protected].

  Now, an excerpt from

  GET A GRIP

  By Gino Wickman & Mike Patton

  The story of one company’s successful implementation

  of the EOS system discussed in Traction

  CHAPTER 1

  THE INCIDENT

  Sitting in her car, Eileen Sharp stared intently at Vic’s SUV parked across the lot. For a brief moment, she envisioned gunning the engine and ramming it. The hint of a smile appeared at the corners of her mouth.

  Eileen was angry and frustrated with Vic. For the first time she thought of ending the partnership with her childhood friend. After a few moments, she gathered herself and regained some resolve.

  “I’m not walking away from what we’ve built these last ten years,” Eileen said under her breath. “You just don’t turn your back on a $7 million company and 35 employees.”

  Still, what her business partner had done in the meeting was a new low. The fact that he’d said it in front of the other leaders was unforgivable. She couldn’t just let it go.

  Suddenly Eileen realized she was late for the Business Roundtable reception. She took a deep breath and checked herself in the rearview mirror. As she pulled out of the parking lot she muttered, “That son-of-a-bitch.”

  Four hours earlier, at 1:00 P.M., Eileen had rushed into the conference room carrying her laptop and a mound of paperwork. Determined to begin Swan Services’ quarterly executive committee meeting on time for once, she had scurried around all morning and skipped lunch to prepare the presentation and numerous reports that would tell the “story” of the last 18 months.

  This had been the first tough stretch in Swan Services’ history. Until the last year and a half, the company had been profitable and had grown quickly. Swan was still doing well, but the steady growth had stopped. Everything seemed to be getting more difficult—winning new customers, keeping them happy, operating profitably—you name it. She had always taken pride in her work ethic, but recently the demands of her business required so much attention that she regularly missed important events with her husband and two children. For the first time Eileen was frustrated, and she could tell that other members of the team were frustrated, too.

  Eileen burst through the conference room door, ready to apologize, once again, for being late. Instead, she found only two of her five colleagues. Sue Meecham, Swan’s VP of Sales, was reviewing the latest pipeline numbers. Eileen’s longtime friend and business associate and the acting Director of Marketing, Art Pearson, was stowing his overcoat and briefcase in the corner of the conference room.

  “Hello Sue, hi Art—any sign of the others?” she asked.

  “No,” replied Sue. “Unless you count Evan racing by a minute ago and looking relieved to see he wasn’t the only one late.”

  Eileen rolled her eyes, dropped her materials at the front of the table, and asked Art to help connect her laptop to the LCD projector. In walked Carol Henning, Swan’s Controller. Eileen distributed presentation folders to the three executives and began bringing up the PowerPoint presentation she had prepared. VP of Operations Evan McCullough entered looking rushed and disheveled. And then the team waited.

  Vic finally strolled through the door at 1:14, still in the middle of an animated phone conversation with what sounded like a prospective client. He made a few exaggerated gestures to the rest of the team, making it clear he was attempting to end the call. Eventually he hung up, sat down, and apologized as only Vic could.

  “Sorry, guys. That was the procurement guy at Shoreline Industries,” he said. “I’ve been trying to pry that deal out of his hands and back under the control of our buyer for so long, I think we used a slide rule to put the bid together.”

  The entire team laughed—even Eileen. She tossed her founding partner and CEO a folder, strode to the front of the room, grabbed the remote control, and launched into her presentation. Over the next 60 minutes, she detailed the troubling signs that had developed in the five quarters since the company’s “breakout year":

  • In Swan’s eighth full year, revenues grew at a record pace and exceeded $7 million for the first time. However the company hadn’t managed to hit its quarterly revenue goals since. Against projected growth of 14 percent, revenue had grown only 1.5 per
cent in the prior year, and was flat in Q1 this year.

  • Profitability had taken a beating. On the heels of a great year, the team had invested heavily in a foundation for further growth. Those investments had not yet paid off.

  • Pinpointing the cause of these problems had been difficult. Eileen had been studying the issue for three quarters and now felt comfortable sharing her findings with the team:

  ○ Swan’s sales team had missed its new revenue goal in three of the last five quarters.

  ○ Existing customers had begun leaving—a new phenomenon. At first the occasional defections seemed trivial, but the trend was disconcerting.

  ○ Labor costs had increased significantly. Swan had begun adding people and upgrading talent last year in an effort to ramp up to its five-year goal of $20 million in revenue.

  ○ Despite Swan’s paying more for talent, a few key employees had resigned abruptly in recent months. None cited internal issues in exit interviews, but Eileen had come to believe that Swan’s once great culture—one devoted to being a genuinely fun place to work hard and get great results—had begun eroding.

  None of these issues was new. The team had discussed each one at some length in prior quarterly meetings—often staying late into the night and ordering pizza but rarely reaching agreement on anything, much less a plan of action. The prevailing sense was that the primary cause of all of these issues was somehow outside of their control.

  One quarter, the economy was to blame. The next it was the software conversion. Last quarter Vic had actually used the terms “bad mojo” and “funk” in an attempt to quantify the problem—suggesting that the company had lost its “Midas Touch.”

  “Dwelling on all this bad news drags us down,” he had said, staring directly at Eileen. “We’ve lost our swagger and—while I know some of you will dismiss this as metaphysical mumbo-jumbo—I’m convinced we have to get that swagger back at all cost.”

  At the time Eileen had taken Vic’s observation in stride. She learned long ago to ignore his constant baiting and avoid getting sucked into titanic battles over trivial matters. Instead, Eileen analyzed the situation thoroughly and carefully prepared her plan of attack for today’s meeting. She had entered the conference room intent on staying positive and focusing on solutions to the 13 things she believed the executive committee actually could control. But first, she needed to present her mountain of evidence to convince them Swan had a right to expect more.

  Eileen methodically made her case; the data was irrefutable. Despite a larger budget, Swan’s marketing efforts had produced fewer qualified leads. The sales team’s close-ratio had declined and it had more frequently offered discounted pricing on the deals it had won. In Operations, revenues per employee had fallen while errors and missed deadlines were up.

  As she walked through the troubling details, Eileen saw the mood in the conference room change. Arms were uncrossed. Heads began to nod. Notes were taken. Near the end of her presentation, Vic pushed himself away from the conference table and held his hands up dramatically, as though he had eaten too much at Thanksgiving dinner.

  “No mas, boss,” he said with a smile. “We get it.”

  When the laughter subsided, Eileen suggested the team take a quick break and return ready to start solving problems. In high spirits, she headed for the ladies’ room. That’s where a nightmare scenario began to unfold.

  Eileen heard someone slide quickly into the restroom before the swinging door closed behind her.

  “Um, Eileen?”

  “Yes, Sue—what is it?” said the startled leader.

  “I don’t know exactly how to say this,” she began. “So I’ll just spit it out. I think it would be best for all concerned if I left Swan, effective immediately.”

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  This book would not have been possible without the help and guidance of the following people. I cannot thank them enough for the impact they have had on my life. My heartfelt appreciation goes out to them.

  FAMILY AND FRIENDS

  Kathy, my strong and beautiful wife, for your love through the good and bad times. Thanks for giving me the freedom to be an entrepreneur and for always believing in me, not to mention the weeks you spent helping me with this book—you were a life saver. I am truly the luckiest husband in the world. I love you.

  Alexis, my wise and beautiful daughter, and Gino, my son with the quick wit and common sense—you both keep me humble, make me laugh, and teach me what life is really about. You are the light of my life. You are amazing individuals and the best children a dad could have. I love you both very much.

  Linda Wickman, my mom, for teaching me to be independent, for your amazing quiet strength and wisdom, and for always being so proud of me.

  Floyd Wickman, my dad and my life mentor. This book would not exist without you. You have taught me everything I know about communicating with people, be it one or one thousand. You exemplify every principle in this book.

  Neil Pardun, my father-in-law, for teaching me that it is possible to possess wealth and remain humble. You are a rare and special person. I am forever changed through your example.

  Karen Grooms, the greatest assistant on earth. Thanks for holding all of the pieces together and protecting me from distractions so that I may remain in my Unique Ability®. I would be lost without you.

  Don Tinney, the best business partner a guy could have and an EOS Implementer extraordinaire. Thank you for proving it is possible that someone other than me can deliver EOS. Your feedback on this book was invaluable.

  Mike Pallin, who I truly believe is my guardian angel. You always place in front of me exactly what I need at that point in my life. This book would not have happened without you. I cannot wait to see what you have in store for me next.

  The “Book Club,” aka Curt Rager and Bob Shenefelt, for being an amazing sounding board and for constantly challenging me. Our annual trip to the mountains gives me tremendous clarity. You are lifers.

  Pat Tierney, Rob Tamblyn, and Kevin Brady, my first clients, for letting me practice on you. You gave me the confidence to move forward.

  My Entrepreneurs’ Organization forum members: John Anderson, Michael Cauley, Dan Dorman, Brian Ferilla, Dan Glisky, Mike Kanan, Scot Lund, Paul Pascoe, Marty Petz, Curt Rager, Bob Shenefelt, and John Silvani, for being an amazing sounding board, great teachers, and my proving ground.

  Tyler Smith, for constantly challenging me and not getting caught up in the hype. You are wise beyond your years. Thanks for your guidance and honesty.

  Ed Escobar, my previous business partner, for pushing hard and finally convincing my dad to let me into his company. I am on this path because of your belief in me.

  John Anderson, one of the world’s greatest “connectors,” for introducing me to six people who have had a huge impact on my success: Verne Harnish, Pat Lencioni, Dan Sullivan, Craig Erlich, Bill Gitre, and John Gallant. You are one of the most selfless people I know.

  MENTORS AND TEACHERS

  Sam Cupp, my business mentor, for teaching me all that I know about business. I could not have pulled off that turnaround without your guidance. I hope I have done you proud with this book.

  Verne Harnish, for being a pioneer, for inviting me into your world, and showing me that there is a place out there for my craft. Thank you for your passion and the impact you have had on the entrepreneurial world. Your teachings and tools have inspired much of what is in this book.

  Pat Lencioni, for your amazing and unparalleled work. I’ve never met anyone with your combination of humility and talent. You are truly unique. Thank you for your words of wisdom on our drive to the airport. They changed my life.

  Dan Sullivan, for helping me discover my Unique Ability® and showing me how to build a life around it. You have made a great impact on my life. You are truly the coach of all coaches.

  Jim Collins, for your amazing work, research, and inspiration. Your research on core values, core purpose, putting the right people in the right sea
ts, and proving that “Level 5 Leaders” have a place in the world has simplified my work. You have truly changed the course of business history.

  Mr. Sarkisian, Mr. Long, and the late Larry LaFever, for looking at me and treating me as the person I would become when I was a young man. You gave me confidence, and for that I am forever grateful.

  CLIENTS AND CONTRIBUTORS

  The manuscript readers: Karen Andrews, Thom Barry, Ron Blank, Rob Dube, Dan Israel, Dr. Lawrence Jelsch, Andy Klein, Chris McCuiston, Patrick O’Leary, Curt Rager, Bernie Ronnisch, Todd Sachse, Jim Sheehan, Bob Shenefelt, Tyler Smith, Don Tinney, Tom Violante, David Wallen, and Floyd Wickman. Thanks for all of your valuable time and incredible feedback. You are forever a part of this book.

  Gerry Sindell of Thought Leaders International; Ross Slater, Jennifer Tribe, and Susan Hart of Highspot Inc.; and John Paine of John Paine Editorial Services, for helping me find my voice and giving me the direction to write this book.

  My clients, for giving me the opportunity to live my dream every day. This book is a by-product of all of our work together, and most of its content comes from you. Thank you for allowing me to use your stories. Without them, this book would not have integrity.

  INDEX

  A

  accountability. see also Accountability Chart

  after traction, 168

  numbers and, 124

  organization, 8

  quarterly Rocks, 173

  before traction, 167

  Accountability Chart, 89–11

  core process documentation, 151–158

  delegate and elevate, 103–108

  evolution, 109

  example, 97–98

  integrators, 92–94

  introduced, 4–5

  leadership team, 99

  Niche Retail, 105–108

  organizational chart, 109