Is Starbucks an Economic Bellwether?
Wednesday, November 12th, 2008By Mike Myatt, Chief Strategy Officer, N2growth
Is Starbucks and economic bellwether, have they just been mismanaged, or are consumers simply becoming more savvy? Why do I ask, or perhaps more to the point, why do I care? Whenever an industry giant stumbles there are lessons to be learned. If you couple Starbucks recent earnings announcements, with massive store closures and other corporate re-engineering initiatives, there can be little doubt that Starbucks is in trouble. Put candidly, Starbucks has gone from an industry darling to just another turnaround. So, in today’s post I’ll share some insights that all CEOs can apply to their businesses in hopes of avoiding a Starbucks like event…
Transitioning the CEO
Monday, November 3rd, 2008By Mike Myatt, Chief Strategy Officer, N2growth
Today’s Myatt on Monday’s question comes from a board member who asks: ”Our current CEO is underperforming against expectations…How does the board know when it is time to transition the CEO?” While it is refreshing to hear a board member paying attention to CEO performance, the decision to replace a CEO not only requires a complex analysis, but the wrong decision will have far reaching consequences. In today’s post I’ll share my thoughts on the right reasons to transition the CEO…
Measuring Innovation
Friday, October 31st, 2008By Mike Myatt, Chief Strategy Officer, N2growth
Measuring innovation is where the rubber meets the road. 
While it’s very easy to wax eloquent about innovation, I’ve found that for most companies, measuring innovation is quite a tall order. Moreover, even for those organizations that do measure innovation, are they measuring the right metrics, for the right reasons? I’ve authored many previous posts on the topic of innovation, and have lectured often on the necessity for executives to completely embrace innovation as a core focus area. The power of innovation to totally transform a mediocre business into a category dominant company is really only deniable by the ignorant or the prejudiced. However even those businesses that embrace the concept in theoretical fashion can fail to implement productive innovation management programs if they do not understand how to measure its impact. In today’s post I’ll address how to measure innovation…
Leadership vs. Management
Tuesday, October 28th, 2008By Mike Myatt, Chief Strategy Officer, N2growth
As a top CEO Coach I can tell you without any doubt that Leadership is different than Management. While there seems to be a never ending stream of politically correct pontificating in corporate circles about the differences between managers and leaders, most of it misses the mark. Leaders and managers play different roles, and have different purposes. They both are unique in their value, and in their contribution. While most of the commentary I have read on Leadership vs. Management attempts to please all constituencies, those of you who have read my work in the past know that I am rarely politically correct, nor do I ever seek to try and please all the people all the time.
Increasing Sales in a Down Economy
Friday, October 24th, 2008By Mike Myatt, Chief Strategy Officer, N2growth
Increasing sales in a down economy should be a subject near and dear to the heart of all those that read this blog. Few things are as important in today’s economy as building your sales funnel and increasing revenue. It is no wonder that amongst the most frequent e-mail inquiries I receive each week are messages asking for suggestions about how to increase sales. This week I received an e-mail with an interesting twist on the age old topic…Perhaps a sign of the times, the question was: “What is the fastest way to increase sales?” The message was sent in from the CEO of a mid-market company whose sales have been flat for the last few quarters. The introduction of speed into the equation gives me a chance to put a fresh spin on an often over-discussed, but nonetheless mission critical topic…
Effective Compensation Plans
Monday, October 20th, 2008By Mike Myatt, Chief Strategy Officer, N2growth
“Can you provide any tips for modeling a winning compensation plan?” is today’s Myatt on Mondays question which was asked by a CFO of an Internet marketing company. While certainly a great question, I must admit that I have been reluctant to address the topic of compensation in previous posts as compensation theory is not only complex, but it often varies greatly based upon the situational realities of different workplace environments. That being said, there are definitely key elements which serve as the foundation for any well designed compensation plan which I’ll cover in today’s post…
Resourcing 101 for CEOs
Tuesday, October 14th, 2008By Mike Myatt, Chief Strategy Officer, N2growth
All great CEOs understand in the concept of creating leverage via proper resource allocation. Top CEOs know how to create resources where none exist, and to deploy and redeploy resources to maximize opportunities and to minimize risk. So my question to you is this…are you over-resourced, under-resourced, resource aligned, or do you even know? In today’s post I’ll look at the topic of resourcing as a key success metric for CEOs…
Timing Is Everything
Tuesday, October 7th, 2008By Mike Myatt, Chief Strategy Officer, N2growth
If you don’t think timing is everything, think again. If you’ve learned anything as a result of the events of recent weeks, it should be that timing matters…We’ve all recently witnessed that it doesn’t really matter whether you’re a politician, investment banker, CEO, or just an average citizen, when it comes to making a simple decision, managing a crisis, or attempting to exploit an opportunity, timing is everything. I’ve often heard people quip that they would rather be lucky than smart. While intelligence and good fortune are certainly both valuable traits to possess, neither of these traits holds a candle to having a great sense of timing…Luck is a hit or miss proposition, and we’ve all known many a brilliant underachiever. However it has been my observation that you will rarely come across someone who possesses a great sense of timing that is anything other than successful. In today’s post I’ll take a look at timing as key success metric…
Why Businesses Fail
Monday, October 6th, 2008By Mike Myatt, Chief Strategy Officer, N2growth
Why do business fail? With all the recent failures on Wall St, and what I’m afraid will be many more forthcoming business failures outside of Manhattan in the weeks and months ahead, I thought it might make sense to look at the root cause of business failures. It’s often said that the most frequent cause of business failure is attributed to a lack of capital. In fact, the recent events on Wall St might lead you to believe there is truth in the aforementioned statement. However, in my experience, that statement just doesn’t hold-up under scrutiny. It serves as a foundation for good rhetoric, and a great excuse, but not for much more beyond that…You see, I have witnessed well capitalized ventures fail miserably, and severely under-capitalized ventures eventually grow into category dominant brands. That being said, the unfortunate reality is that well more than 50% of all new business ventures fail within the first three years, and many mature, even once category dominant companies fail over time. In today’s post I’ll put forth my opinions as to why businesses fail…
Accountability
Wednesday, September 24th, 2008By Mike Myatt, Chief Strategy Officer, N2growth
While yesterday’s post addressed “Rogue CEOs & Board Accountability,” I felt that a follow-on piece further delving into the topic of accountability would be prudent given what the lack of accountability has done to our nation’s economy. The truth is that few people really likes to hear the “A” word applied to their individual circumstances, choices, decisions, and performance. Regrettably, this is precisely why we are embroiled with many of the daunting challenges facing our country today. Nothing keeps personal and corporate train wrecks from occurring more than a solid framework of accountability. In today’s post I’ll examine the many important benefits of accountability…